June 15, 2023
To Miraflores de la Sierra, Spain
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Short version for the day, because I'm always so long winded. This is an excellent route for exiting a city! Knees held up, Jacinto's rear was rubbed raw. The bike path was mostly flat. It felt as if we did all of the climbing in the last five miles, once we hit the road. We have a spacious 2nd floor apartment for 70E. We ate at the only open place we found, an upscale restaurant and paid more for the meal than for the apartment!
Long version - I froze all night long with the AC going. I slept all night, until 6:30 AM. I saw Jacinto had lost his big blanket as I got up to use the bathroom. I thought about stealing it, but the alarm was set for 7 AM.
Jacinto didn't waste time walking the two blocks to the churro store. He knew to ask for a porro (noting that he thought the name of the store should be porroteria rather than churroteria, because everyone was eating the larger portions. I had asked him to get a plastic spoon, so we would have two for yogurt. They gave him a tiny coffee stirring sort of spoon. Who knew plastic ware would be hard to obtain!
Now we are both semi organized with our panniers. The bikes are downstairs. We are on the third floor. My goal is to carry everything down in one shot. I want to save my legs for the pedaling!
We are having a slight disagreement. We've both eaten yogurt. Mine was Danon brand, YoPro, with 15G of protein. It was not as sweet as yogurt back home, and very tasty. We have meat and cheese to eat also. Jacinto says he's not hungry and wants to save it to eat later. I can tell you for certain that one yogurt isn't going to get me far down the road. Plus, I don't want to carry lunch meat for fear of spoilage. Those who know Jaicnto know that carrying food for several days does not concern him at all. He considers it to be well aged, like a fine cheese!
OK - I'd better get on with the morning. Wish us happy knees. I did stretches this morning for the first time in three days, and also mixed up collagen for the first time. I think we've done well with the sleep schedule, but we aren't quite on routine.
I've received a number of encourage messages through the journal. Thank you all!
Jacinto hadn't yet fitted his panniers to the rack on his Rodriguez bike. He spent some time adjust them so they would not hit the brakes. Our Goal depart time was 9 AM. We left after 10 AM.
1.5 miles later, we were on the bike path. I was the leader because I had Bertha (my name for RWGPS - it makes me think of an efficient German woman) telling me where to go. There was some confusion in places with multiple paths and road crossings. We were both frustrated with the slow pace and the back tracking.
At mile 10, we entered a fairly long tunnel under the interstate. It was cool. I appreciated the respite from the sun. When we exited the other side, it took us a bit to figure out which way to go. We were supposed to take a sharp right. I'm not sure we followed the path we were routed on, as we walked a distance of dirt that was too tough for our bikes to ride. Then we were supposed to meander through a park. Jacinto saw that there was a broad sidewalk along the street, forget meandering. We stayed on the straight path. Happily, after mile ten, at the end of the park, we seemed to be basically out of the city. I almost cheered when Bertha announced I needed to ride 2.75 miles until the next turn.
The entire path was in good condition. The more central section had two lanes for bicycles and one lane for walkers. That's an excellent idea. We saw many club riders, all kitted out. Most were thin men, who looked very mature. It didn't matter how widely I smiled, none returned a smile. It seems that everyone started out early in the morning and were on the return. We had only a handful of riders overtake us from the rear. At our pace, I'm sure everyone would have passed. It was notable how few women we saw. I counted three. Jacinto said 99% were men. One cyclist passed me, and was able to rotate his torso an impressive distance to look behind him while riding, and wave broadly at me, with a big smile. Finally, someone friendly! I returned the greeting in kind. I had a very few riders pass me and lift their fingers off of their handlebars as they passed. That was it. This is a serious crowd - not like the riders in Tucson.
Jacinto eventually gave up and passed me. I lost sight of him in the distance. We were getting closer and closer to the mountains, and I started to see a few farm animals. Some goats, and a couple of herds of cows. Mostly this long section of the path ran adjacent to busy M607. I still appreciated the extended stretch without directions to follow.
We passed Tres Cantos and Colmenar Viejo. Jacinto passed a rest stop at mile 20, where I certainly would have used the bathroom. There were several cyclists taking a break. He said he didn't even see it. Instead he stopped at mile 23, and took a bathroom break behind a big concrete block. I pulled my apple out and offered him his. No, he didn't want one, but he proceed to eat half of mine!
We both voiced our sadness multiple times during the day about the lack of cold water. We did see a small bag of ice for sale later in the evening at the grocery store for 4.65E. We did not buy it!
At mile 30, we had another scenic park path for one mile. We agreed to skip it, and get on the main road a mile early. As soon as we took that turn at Soto del Real, the road took a definite upward tilt. I had previously rode in the middle chainring with a couple of forays into big chain ring. Instead, I was now in the bottom of the granny. The road was narrow, with no shoulder, guardrails, and 'turns so tight that you kiss our own ass' (as said to us on the Pacific Coast Highway many years ago). Traffic was heavy for such a small road. Everyone was patient about passing. I did have a few people honk encouraging honks. Jacinto thought they were impatient, but I had one man honk and give a big wave. I think the car horns here have a different timber than those in the USA, they sound angry, even if they are friendly.
I could see the town of Miraflores on the side of the mountain ahead of us. I really wanted a photo of the white buildings with red roofs teeming over the mountainside. There was absolutely no place to safely stop. I wondered how many streets we would wander around before reaching our lodging. It didn't help that I took a wrong turn. Our host was waiting for us. We have the top floor of a house, with a spacious apartment for only 70E. This is exactly what we paid for our tiny room last night. Location, location. The entry way is quite small. Jacinto's bike is against the wall. My bike is on it's rear wheel, bungie corded to the staircase.
I was really huffing and puffing by the time we carried all of our gear up the steep second floor stairs. I was also very thirsty. I had finished the last of my water on the approach to town. I chugged down a couple of refills of water, then laid down on the hard wood floor to put my feet up on the wall to drain out the lactic acid. When I got up, my entire torso had left a sweat imprint on the hardwood!
We both showered, then we went walking for something to eat. I saw an open restaurant, but even the bars were closed. The grocery was closed. We need to arrive in town before the siesta hour!
We walked around a little. It was nice in the shade with a breeze. Temperature was 78 degrees, which felt hot in the sunshine.
We killed enough time that the grocery opened. They had the same protein yogurt I ate this morning. They also had a six pack of eggs. We have a kitchen (and a washer!). I have hard boiled eggs cooked for tomorrow.
We ended up back at the restaurant near the apartment, which said open. The cook said they weren't actually cooking until 8 PM, but he was there, and could help us make our choices. Jacinto asked about steak tartar - raw steak, sliced thinly. No, Jacinto wanted his steak cooked. I went with salmon with mango chutney. I don't read Spanish well, but I recognized those words. After my food arrived, I saw the salmon was raw. I looked at the menu. The first word of the description was tartar. I will never forget what that means now! We don't typically do fine dining, and will probably wait for the bars to open with their tapas. Our entire apartment was 70E, and our fancy meal was 74E.
We are now back in the apartment. It is across from a bar that is now open. Our windows are also open. It might be a long night!
There is only one chair that faces the TV. Jacinto thinks it's a child's chair, but he's squashed into it! I'm about ready for bed, even if it's still light outside. Tomorrow is 2,000 feet of climbing in six miles. Then downhill. I will be slow but sure on the road.
Jacinto says his knee didn't talk to him at all, as long as he stayed sitting down. The two times he stood up, he felt as if his knee wasn't happy. He says it's a matter of what hurts more. Jacinto usually stands up almost exclusively. His rearend has not been broken in. Now it is positively raw. He's trading one problem for another!
I have hard boiled eggs and a yogurt for the morning. Jacinto is eating the leftover lunchmeat and cheese that I'm in doubt of. We have one apple left that came all the way from Colorado! I have my name on it for the morning.
I am satisfied with the day. It's certainly not a must ride, but it was an excellent way to get out of the city with minimal traffic. From the journals I've read, most people take the train. If you are like Jacinto and feel you have to ride every inch -this is your route.
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Today's ride: 37 miles (60 km)
Total: 37 miles (60 km)
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10 months ago
I have a long history of IT problems left over from when I used to run. I have found that taping it with 1 strip of KT-type tape is very helpful in reducing the stress on it. Google it for the technique. I leave the tape on for walking as well. Also-you can wrap a band above the knee just above where it hurts and it takes the hurt away for awhile. Running stores sell bands just for this but I have used an arm warmer in a pinch. Massage is helpful as well, especially cross-fiber right over the sore spot. Hope this helps if Jacinto needs it. Best wishes!
10 months ago
And you know what tartare is now so you don’t have to do that again! Things can only get better from here.
10 months ago
10 months ago
10 months ago
Perhaps Jacinto should try the KT tape again to reduce stress on the IT band. It won't fix the problem, only extended rest will do that. But combined with a less aggressive riding style (i.e. in the saddle), it may help. And maybe some butt butter should be on his shopping list as well :)
10 months ago
The mercado didn't have any fruits/veggies at all. So much for bananas.
10 months ago