Building Memories (BM) uses personal experiences and relates them to topics of importance to building.
This BM explores biking highway 101 alongside the California coastline.
The travel bug struck again in the summer of 1981, and on a whim, I signed up to drive a Driveaway car from Chicago to Los Angeles—a service where someone transports a car cross-country for its owner. With minimal planning (a mistake, as I would soon learn), I packed only a sleeping bag and a one-person tent and headed west.
Once in L.A., I walked into a bike shop, bought a bike, and set off for San Francisco along the iconic Highway 1. Camping along the way, the journey was doubly exhausting: I hadn’t trained, and the hills along California’s coast were brutal uphill—but exhilarating downhill. The scenery was beyond breathtaking, and some of the people I met were more than a bit crazy.
During steep climbs, standing up and pushing as hard as possible on the pedals, drivers would sometimes slow down and give me a slap on the back—perhaps intending encouragement—but all I wanted was to keep moving. My lack of preparation came at a price: my rear-end ached for the first three to four days, and I ended each day thoroughly exhausted.
The total trip covered roughly 468 miles (according to Google Maps) and took about ten days, averaging around 47 miles per day. Not bad considering the lack of training! And for every grueling three- to four-hour climb, there was a brief, exhilarating 15-minute downhill coast—more than enough to keep the adventure alive.
Photo 01 – Near Big Sur
Photo 02 – Bridge Along the way
Photo 03 – Sunset along the way
Photo 04 – Arriving at Golden Gate
Photo 05 – Monterrey
Photo 06 – Sunset along the way
Photo 07 – Golden Gate-Bike Trip Ends