Tour de la Marin

Sunrise on Tam

I grew up in Marin County, CA. Posh by some people's standards, and it is these days. It was a bit less of that when I was growing up, at least in certain towns. But you may not know that it's basically an area founded by hippies, pot growers and smokers, musicians, generally outdoorsy people, and all else wishing to be close to civilization (SF) for work or "culture" but also far enough away - it's an escape. More recently it's been bombarded with yuppies with which there's nothing wrong with but it's driven housing prices so high none of my high school friends, nor anyone i know, can afford to live there so it's an aging population. As i've probably spouted off about before, I started riding mountain bikes (after BMX bikes of course) when I was in 6th grade. Oh my...that was about 1985. At that time, the most numerous bikes I saw on the mountain were Schwinns, Specialized (for the low budget buyers) and Ross. Even though those were nice bikes, they didn't compare to the other bikes seen on the mountain and they were just pure beauty - lugged Breezers, red Ritcheys, and super gucci Steve Potts and Otis Guys. I remember also WTB Phoenix, Ibis, and Salsa bikes but that was few years later. I worked for my step-dad all summer and saved up for a new bike. I had a Schwinn High Sierra (got stolen the same year i got it), then a Specialized Hard Rock to replace it, which is the bike I really got into MTB'ing on. But then as I got more addicted, I wanted something better...lighter. I talked to the shop guys at the Mill Valley Cyclery and they suggested buying a frame/fork from a guy named Ritchey that was making frames in his garage. But I couldn't afford that much for just a frame/fork. I went to my local shop, the Village Peddler in Larkspur, and ordered up a Klein Pinnacle with Suntour XC Pro. I ordered it 'unfinished' - as in no paint. I had to polish it and to me, it was one of a kind. It had that sweet Cunningham Aluminum look to it and was around 24 pounds and seriously rigid with its aluminum fork. Oh, there's another sweet bike that I saw very few of - Charlie Cunningham. Strangely, I don't recall seeing many Fishers. Probably just because the Breezer, Potts, Cunninghams, and Otis Guys all woo'd me more. There were other bikes, but Marin riders are very proud of their place in mountain biking history. That's why when you go there even today you see the same names on the local's bikes in addition the overwhelmingly popular Santa Cruz (because of their dualies). (If you haven't seen Klunkers, I highly recommend renting it.) So each time I visit the parents, I bring my bike or borrow a friends. Mt. Tam is king. Sure, most of the singletrack is illegal to ride, but the mountain and the entire watershed is mostly desolate of people and is one of a kind. Amazing to think it's so close to San Francisco and millions of people. You surely wouldn't know it riding there even on a Saturday. Somehow, I had never heard of the "de la." It's a ride started by Gravy in 1986. Gravy is a long time mechanic that has wrenched for the likes of Miles Rockwell (another Marin loc), Missy Giove (fellow pot dealer with Miles apparently), Tinker, and many others. He's been in the scene a long time. Anyways, each solistice - spring and fall - locals meet at an undisclosed location at 4:20am and ride all day according to the route that Gravy lays out (lately they've been around 100 miles). The route changes each year, traverses all over the mountain and hits places like Muir Woods, Stinson Beach, Lagunitas, and even Pt. Reyes before returning back to the "front side" of the mountain where everyone meets at a bar to celebrate the changing of seasons. So this year, I decided to make the trip back on the Solstice and try out a De La. My compatriots from the Kokopelli Trail trip, TK and PB, were to be my guides. Although I grew up riding in Marin, I didn't ride anything but Tam 'proper' and never ventured up north too much. Gravy's directions leave something to be desired but that's part of the fun too. You really have to know this area to not get lost on this ride. So it was, we heard the day before the ride that we were to meet at midnight at a certain "Wooden Bridge" just behind my old middle school. It was literally Old School. Later in the day, we were lucky enough to get the "Lammy" as everyone calls it - a laminated postcard with artwork on the front and the route on the back. I looked at it and realized I'd be lost after the first paragraph, if not sooner, and there were 3 paragraphs for the route! Gravy is apparently TRYING to hurt people...and very Montezuma's Revenge-esque, disable most people from finishing. It was an incredible journey that I wasn't fully prepared for...i was a bit over-confident coming from high elevation Colorado. Next year, I will be there again, and maybe for a fall ride too. The riding vibe from Tam is definitely addicting, and I miss it. Here's a short picture show of the ride.