Santa Rosa Rd. to Santa Maria to Los Alamos,
then Drum Canyon: 62 miles / 3450' climb

Planet Ultra Solvang Spring Tour Photos by Chris Kostman, 3/22/03
Riders: John Bailey, Patrick Bates, Brian Bowling, Brandon Bruce, Deborah Caplan,
Chris Kostman, Frank Lobre, and Mike Moseley (more to come!)
Main Page. Sat - Sun - Mon - Tue - Wed - Thu - Fri
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Saturday's kick-off ride for our week of awesome riding in cycling paradise foreshadowed lots of fun and quality riding ahead. Less than half of the group is in town so far, but that didn't matter. After fueling up at Mortensen's Bakery across the street from the Royal Copenhagen, we seven headed west out of town about 830am on the quiet fun route via Chalk Hill and Ballard Canyon. From Buellton we headed west on Santa Rosa Road, a strikingly beautiful two-laner that rolls through farmland and ranches to Lompoc. Passing Lompoc, home of Vandenbury Air Force Base, we had the first of two moderate climbs for the day. The Harris Grade took us over the the quiet stretches of two lane Hwy 135 to the quaint town of Los Alamos. There we relaxed at the Quackenbush Café and its art gallery. Full of good food and drink, we climbed up and over Drum Canyon and then back to Solvang. Though the day started with a bit of a chilly marine layer, it had burned off and turned into a beautiful blue sky day of about 75 degrees and a gentle tailwind on the way back home. We're spending the afternoon relaxing and then tonite will watch "Stars and Watercarriers," one of the greatest films ever made about cycling. Enjoy the slideshow above. We'll be posting daily.