105 Miles!!!

Ohhhh...that's a lot of cycling! My legs don't like me very much right now.
Lets see...we rolled out yesterday afternoon at 4:30pm for a two hour, 15 minute ride around Cali. It was a great tour through all the aspects of California life. First, we rode to the coast and cruised along the beach watching pelicans and seals diving and jumping through a huge school of fish. From the beach we turned along the coastal road and rode through tons of tiny towns, each with their own big resort or fancy hotel.
We said good-bye to the water and turned inland, following some railroad tracks and passing all sorts of farms and crops in all stages of growth. I could see the strawberries heavy on the vines. There were workers out picking the beans and loading huge boxes into the back of trucks. A few fields had tractors that were going up and down the rows...either planting, tilling, or weeding...I wasn't too sure.
The final turn west to take us home wound through vineyards of all shapes and sizes. There were some signs that claimed 'vineyard' and all I could see was a front yard with some grape vines. Then there were other areas where the whole hill side was covered with rows and rows of immaculately trimmed vines and barely a mention of what delicious wine was being produced behind high walls.
As the sun was setting (right in my face, I might add), we finally rolled back onto Tank Farm road and after 41 beautiful miles, the rental-house was in sight. After a quick shower and an attempt to look presentable, I joined Matt and Jake as we headed into town for some chow at CPK (California Pizza Kitchen) where I can highly recommend that you request the Honey Wheat Crust on any pizza that you order!
We discussed the idea of seeing a late night movie but decided that with a ride time of 7:25am the next morning, it was probably a better idea to just get some sleep!
I am SOOO thankful that was the decision!! A little over 12 hours after finishing one ride, I was heading out on another!! This time it was a group ride that met in downtown SLO so we had about 15 other cyclists to roll out with...and first thing we hit: The Grade. Up and over into a massive headwind (of course, I was never less than fourth wheel so the wind wasn't too bad back there:) and then a short regrouping at the bottom. After that, it was pretty much non-stop rolling country roads for the next two hours of my life. It was all I could do to hang on to the the guys wheels as they drug me along some of the coolest cycling roads I've been on...after getting UP to the top of the rollers, the down hills were always lots of fun with twists, turns, corners and no cars!
About the time I was dying for a stop, I saw a "Country Store" sign and the group turned in for a quick refill. I had to keep myself from looking at my speedometer because I had the feeling that if I actually knew how long and how far I'd been riding so far, I might just collapse on the spot! With topped off water bottles, we were back on the road and finally heading in the direction that I was pretty sure was towards home.
I knew I was right when I looked ahead and could see that we were going back up and over The Grade! I think the only reason I'm able to compose this post is because the return climb wasn't nearly as long and steep. The down hill was WICKED though! It was so long and fast that my arms were actually giving out on me in the drops. I was sure that at any second my chest or face was going to be on the bars as my arms dangled uselessly at my sides:)!
This time, after three hours and 40 minutes of riding, Tank Farm road and the rental house came into view and I could finally justify looking at my speedometer to see the final damage...64 miles, 18mph average, 45mph max (must have been down the grade)!! I'm so proud of that number that I feel the need to just mention it again: 105 miles!!