Day 2: Los Gatos to East San Jose; 67 miles
 Deadcalf Hill - The approach to Deadcalf Hill. Ken thought it was the worst climb of the Tour, but then he flatted right before the climb. Spring Mountain was the worst, I thought. Steeper and longer. I know it was 67 miles because I got my computer to work. Don't ask me how. I usually figure these things out by accident. We're at another church, sitting in the auditorium with the other hard core riders checking out my Euro cycling magazines. OK, total immediate thing. Since my head is shaved, I bear a strange resemblance to Marco Pantani, or more precisely, Marco's older, fatter brother, whom I will call Giovanni. By the way, Marco Pantani is a former Tour de France winner and is regarded as one of the best climbers in the world. Kai Yu, one of the really fast riders (he rides Category 3 road races) has a Mercatone Uno (Marco's team) jersey and bib shorts which he is graciously letting me wear for tomorrow's stage up Mt. Hamilton. It'll be beautiful. I'll have pictures taken as I reach the summit. So now, I'm Il Pirate Grande. Nice. This actually started when I was coming up Metcalf Road hill today. That was today's big climb. It's considered the second hardest climb on the Tour, and is nicknamed Deadcalf Hill. Short and steep but it levels some toward the top. So as I approached, I shifted up a few gears got out of the saddle and apparently I looked a lot like Marco coming up. There's a picture of him in one of my Euro cycling magazines and he has the same grimace on his face that I must've had on mine. But it's gonna be hilarious tomorrow. We stopped for a press conference in the Almaden Valley to raise awareness about some planned development that is just poorly conceived. This is really what we're riding for and the stop kinda drives home the point. Apparently, a couple of our riders spent copious amounts of time talking to one of the long-time (45 years) residents of the spot next to where we stopped, where there is a large, potentially tacky home going up at the head of the valley. Several more are going there, too. Planned developments in the area will stress existing infrastructure and crowd already crowded streets. The development is away from main roads and any kind of transportation other than the good old car. Along with Greenbelt Alliance, the local Sierra Club office as well as a couple other organizations are fighting the development. Unfortunately, there was some kind of office shooting in San Jose and it drew away a lot of the press coverage we were supposed to get.  Press Conference - This is why we ride. This press conference was intended to raise awareness about an ill-conceived development of McMansions outside San Jose, away from major mass transit outlets. Sprawl was everywhere on this Tour. All along the route we saw signs of sprawl, from the overt - new developments - t o the subtle, like signs heralding developments to come. All poorly conceived in their location and planning. Next year we'll probably see more of both. Aside from Deadcalf, today's stage was reasonably easy. The highlight was probably the Coyote Creek Trail, another paved bike path lined by meadows with tons if blooming wildflowers. This was the section right before Metcalf and since it was slow, got us a bit of rest before the climb. This is also where Ken Lowney got the first of two flats. The second came right before climbing Deadcalf and put him in a bit of a funk about it, but he climbed it strongly nonetheless. Got really chilly overnight last night. And humid. My tent was covered with moisture, and most everything was damp. Thankfully, after getting most everything inside my tent wet on the first night, I started using my rainfly. Was a bit cool when we started, but it warmed up quickly and turned into a perfect day for riding. Already, I've developed a beautiful cycling tan, stopping just above the knees, with patches on the back of my hands, and colored from the biceps down. I expect that by the end of the week, I'll have the pattern from my helmet vents on my bald melon, too. We finished up with wicked three-mile pace-line, with Matt (Stuart) O'Grady, Kai, Ken - who lives only a couple miles from me in Oakland - and Trey, who is also a hammer. At one point, Matt, who was behind me, jumped out and tried to take off. I jumped out after him (don't ask me why. I should've been toast by then), at which point Kai decided to jump out from behind Ken to catch Matt, cutting me off. It was actually pretty funny. Kinda my introduction to Closing Sprint Tactics. But it was pretty incredible to finish up a ride with a 30+ mph pace line; I mean to just be in it was incredible. Saw some more amazing terrain today, with green carpeted hills and incredible fields of wildflowers - all native. Every mile gives me a deeper appreciation of this area, and the need to protect it. After Day 1, during our nightly meeting, we went around the room and everyone introduced themselves and gave their reasons for riding. Almost universally, at least part of the response was that it was essential to protect the open space that remains. I'm looking forward to seeing so much more of it the next five days. I hope tomorrow is clear. The view from 4,200-foot Mt. Hamilton is supposed to be stunning. An addendum: (I'm actually writing this nearly two months following, but you know how things just kinda pop into your head and you remember things you forgot.) The night of Day 2 in East San Jose, I had trouble sleeping. Not from discomfort or lack of fatigue. It seemed like every time I'd approach the drop-off point into blissful slumber, a pack of coyotes, maybe a mile away - or less - would start to yip and talk to each other. This happened at least three or four times. At first yip, it was a bit unnerving. But after I realized that the odds of a pack of coyotes romping through our camp was highly remote, I started to groove on it. Here we were in this area that was developed and not too far from San Jose proper, and there was this pack of wild coyotes. Then I started to get a bit sad because here we were in this area that was developed and not too far from San Jose proper, and there was this pack of wild coyotes so close. It really drove home the point of why we were riding this year, and why we need to continue every year. Unfortunately, this is not an isolated problem here in the Bay area, or in the country as a whole. Every day, more native habitat is lost to suburban sprawl and development. It's land that can no longer be reclaimed for its native inhabitants. And we're the only ones who can do anything about. Go to Day 3: E. San Jose to Livermore; 76 miles 
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