One year ago today Melinda and I did our first ride together. To celebrate, we considered doing a double century but Melinda hasn't really been riding since we did our double in June. Next year. As it was today's ride was a little bit on the epic side. The forecast, like last weekend, was cloudy once again. When I woke up, it looked like it was going to be just like last weekend - warm with blue skies and sun. By the time we started, it was overcast and cooler. I ended up putting on layers that I didn't need because it was warm most of the ride. There was a chilly section in Portola Valley but after lunch the sun started to come out and it got warmer. It was almost the reverse of last weekend except at the very end it was overcast again and there were periods of misty sprinkles. I threw in a couple of new roads in Portola Valley that I've never done before. One ended up being a steep climb to a steep descent (check out my top speed without pedaling). We also had to do some gravel/dirt on our road bikes. It's just what you do. #roadbikesoffroad We had lunch at Alpine Inn. We got lucky that they were able to seat us right away. The plan was always to go to Alexander's Patisserie but it was only about 10 miles after Alpine Inn. Melinda was still full and they had quite the line. I just didn't feel like waiting so we continued on. The stretch between Alpine Inn and Alexander's was maybe the least pleasant with a lot of traffic on bigger, busier roads. But then we made it on to the Bay Trail which was very nice. Unfortunately, once we got out to the bay, we were faced with a pretty strong headwind. The thought of 30 miles of headwind was very unappealing, especially since Melinda's feet were starting to hurt. It was very pretty at least and, for me, the wind wasn't too bad. Even the last part that gets a little more industrial seemed alright. At least the roads were fairly quiet. Almost forgot, Melinda got a dozen Krispy Kremes to celebrate. I've had three so far. I think it's time for a fourth...