There's more to life than hiking?

Well, at least there are some things you can do to get/stay in shape for hiking. Last weekend P decided that he wasn't getting enough miles in on his bicycle, so he signed up for the Napa Gran Fondo. This is a charity ride that gets 1000 people to ride their bikes around the Napa Valley and up into the hills for a good cause, complete with all sorts of fun.

There were banners, costumes, jazz bands, refreshments, and more people on bikes than you can imagine. There was even an escort by the California Highway Patrol for the first few miles. P ended up riding 70 miles in just about 4 hours....not counting the time he took to fix a flat tire, grab some sandwiches, and refill his water bottles. (Of course, some of that was helped by drafting behind faster riders all the way back to Napa!)

And at the end of the ride, the party downtown in Napa included a number of different wineries, Sierra Nevada beer, and more refreshments and music.

A fun day, and a great way to burn off some calories and get your heart rate up among the stars...the photo in the link below is the only one we could find of P--he is on the right, walking his bike back to the road after climbing the Ink Grade (4 miles in 26 minutes...legs aching, heart pounding.) And the two women standing behind him absolutely smoked him on the ride!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/echelongranfondo/5750034146/in/set-72157626660489831