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Bridging the Golden Gate

Here in San Francisco it seems like it has rained every day in 2006. That's just a guess, but it's not an exaggeration. I woke up this morning to the sound of rain and immediately decided to skip the bike ride I had planned. But an hour later the rain stopped, so I hopped on my bike, grabbed my camera, and headed toward the Golden Gate Bridge. Click the photo above to see what I see on a typical 18-mile ride.

A little while ago I was down in the Marina getting ready to go for a long run when a car full of tourists pulled up alongside me. They got out of the car to admire the view and the dad said, "Ah, there it is, the Golden Gate." One of the kids replied, "It's not golden at all."

That's right, kiddo, the bridge isn't golden. It's also not the Golden Gate. Let me clear up some misconceptions. The Golden Gate is the name for the entrance to San Francisco Bay. It has been called that since the 1840s. The bridge that spans that strait -- the Golden Gate Bridge -- was built in the 1930s. It is orange. International Orange, in fact.

I ride across the bridge nearly every weekend (and two or three times per week in the summer) because it takes me to Marin County, which is an excellent place to ride a bike. It's a 25-minute ride from my home to the bridge. Although it offers spectacular views (when it's not foggy), riding across the bridge is generally pretty unpleasant. Reason Number One is that it is always very windy. The deck is suspended about 220 feet above the water, so it's kind of like cycling in the sky. Number Two, the bridge is a freeway, and the sidewalks are very close to cars going 60mph, along with the accompanying noise and exhaust.

Reason Number Three is Other Cyclists, namely the helmetless tourists on rental bikes. They are known to ride while carrying umbrellas or video cameras in one hand, looking up at the towers instead of ahead at the narrow sidewalk. They swerve and stop without warning. Most of them can't ride in a straight line. They are a hazard. Riding across the bridge can be technically challenging even for an experienced cyclist (see reason Number One above), and the tourists make it a moving obstacle course for the rest of us.

I certainly don't mean to bag on tourists, and in fact any if any of you non-local readers make it out here, I'd love to take you across the bridge to the Marin Headlands for some hill repeats! But I do wish that those unfamiliar with cycling etiquette would walk across the bridge instead of riding rented mountain bikes they can't control.

I also wish they would stop calling our lovely city "San Fran." But that's another story all together.

April 16, 2006 6:07 PM