I have lived on the Central Coast of California for over 39 years. I think I have been to Jalama Beach twice, and not recently than 25 years ago. So, when Dave says “lets ride to Jalama and back”, why not. It only 20 miles there and 20 miles back. We left Lompoc at 9:15 AM in the usual Lompoc soupy fog marine layer. By the time we left Jalama, it had just started to clear.
I had obviously forgotten just how steep the road into Jalama was. The 1st 6 miles down highway #1 is not so bad, but the next 14 to the beach is a killer. It is 7 miles of an up grade that reaches over 1,100 feet, and then 7 miles down. Starting from the beach, the return is even harder.
It was a great ride, but I was surprised by how steep everything was. On most long rides there are always some hills that only require you to drop back into the midrange gears. There were a couple of up and down portions early in the climb to the top. However, every hill, even the short ones, required dropping down to the lowest gear to get over it.
We grabbed a couple of beers after we returned, and then realized we were hungry, so we went to a nearby small Mexican restaurant for some great food. All-in -All; a great ride.
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