Couldn't have asked for a more perfect day. It was sunny and the skies were super clear. It was the perfect temperature and the trails were in great condition. Most importantly it was a great group with many new faces. I had initially proposed my normal route that heads south to do all the dirt along the coast and return by Purisima Creek Redwoods but Zoe veto'd that and we did the shorter version. People were pretty fried at the end of this so it was probably the right call for this group. :) Riding dirt is my happy place and getting to share FCRT and introduce people to new trails brings me joy. It was a chaotic start. It was all perfectly timed out to arrive at the gate for 9:30a but Emily decided to stop at an early Caltrain station and meet at the gate instead of Waterdog without telling me. I think it would've been an easier trip had she stuck to the original plan. Some people dropped out but some others joined that I didn't know about. The funny thing is, the day before, Emily told me she had a stress dream about being late for this ride and not being able to get to it. Some of her dream came true. She manifested it. Once we got inside the Watershed, we were able to chill and enjoy the ride. They were doing some trail work at the top of the first climb by Cemetery Gate so that meant we got to ride a new spur trail that winds its way through the trees. It was really nice and we got to do it before it officially opened. Alex and Justin were the first to split off at Sweeney Ridge. Alex was supposed to play tennis with his fiancée but we were going slower than expected so he never got to play. Oops! But it was worth it. :) It's been a while since I went to Mori Point. It's not the most wildflowers I've seen there but it was pretty nonetheless. Once we left Mori Point, I was a little sad that we were done with that section of the ride because it had been so pretty. Dinosaurs Sandwiches was great and fueled us to climb back up Milagra Ridge. Pam and Alexa headed back after Dinosaurs while Darlene was pretty cooked at the top of Milagra Ridge and told us to go on without her. This happened several times on the ride. It was supposed to be photo pace but Ant ended up on the front and strung it out spreading the group quite a bit. Once we got onto San Andreas/Sawyer Camp, he really started to pull. At first I let it go since there weren't that many people on the trail. I was at the back and slowly, Peter seemed to be struggling and leaving a gap so I moved up. Then the same was happening with Dmitri when Courtney took over to pull. The trail was also getting more crowded so I went to the front to shutdown the fun. At the end of the trail, we split it up with half of the remaining group heading back to Cañada and me convincing Courtney, Sarah, Emily, and Peter to do Highlands singletrack with me. I suspect Sarah might have been a bit too fried to enjoy it. And had I told them about the steep climb to get up to the trails, the probably wouldn't have come. :) Such a great day and enjoying it with new friends!