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Post-Thanksgiving Coast Ride

S

SNC1923

Guest
For our post-Thanksgiving ride, we took a trip to the coast, which in our case is Morro Bay. The weather here has really resisted winterizing, so we had bright blue skies, uninterrupted sunshine, and temperatures soaring into the upper 60s.

We took Hwy 58 west and turned north on Hwy 229 into Creston. I've written about this little 5 mile ribbon of roller coaster asphalt before. Freshly paved, too narrow for a center line, it is bordered by white lines to keep you out of the brush. Loads of fun.

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Here Brad and Steve S. (Snider's products in the ON) confer after their all-too-short ride into Creston.

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While attempting to stand and stretch, Steve H. broke his right foot page just outside Atascadero. We pulled over for some emergency surgery. Here Steve S. substitutes the right passenger peg for the rider's while Steve H. looks on and Myram offers advice.

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Finally we arrived in Morro Bay. Here are some fishing boats lined up in the shadow of Morro Rock.

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Right on the pier there is a restaurant, Giovanni's, that serves fresh seafood all day out of a take-out window. Although there are myriad menu choices, I always go for the fish & chips, in this case opting to upgrade to their famous garlic fries. In addition to minced garlic, they drizzle on olive oil and lace the whole mess me freshly-grated parmesan. Mama mia!

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Because I was entering a garlic-induced semi-coma, I couldn't get up and leave the table; however, my friend Brad was all too happy to grab my camera and snap this shot of a patron enjoying a crab lunch.

Two more shots of Morro Rock taken with my 17-85 (which is actually a 28-135)

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This one taken at nearly 120mm. . .

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. . . and this one taken at 28mm.

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This is the power plant at the harbor. Thinking about selling this one to Cingular.

Soon it was time to head home. We switched it up a bit by taking twisty Hwy 41 over to Shell Creek Road before returning to the 58.

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View from Shell Creek Road.

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We nearly always stop for a break at the corner of Shell Creek Rd and Hwy 58, signified by this long-standing landmark, courtesy the Aermotor Company out of Chicago.

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Hwy 58.

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Steve S. taking a rest on his battle-weary GS.

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Cruising down Hwy 58, Myram says, "Let's go home!"

Two more Hwy 58 views:

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If you've never ridden this road, it's a great two-hour diversion from Bakersfield to the coast, or vice versa. Check it out sometime.
 
Great RR as usual Tom!

I enjoyed knowing what roads were on and I looked them up on Google maps.

I think that my favorite picture was of the fish and chips (or what was left of it). :D
 
Nice pics but we don't get bundled up like that here until it's in the 20's. :stick

Regards,


Randy Kasal
 
Nice! Thanks for bringing us along.

We had our first snow today........:violin


How'd you miss out? We had about 4" on Wednesday. It wasn't until late yesterday that the ice in our neighborhood was all gone. I gave it another day and today took the bikes out for a spin. Sad to say I only saw one other bike in 150 total miles of riding today. It was THAT brand but at least it had a muffler.

Regards,


Randy Kasal
 
I have to ask - what focal length lens was used to capture the Highway 58 roller coaster?

Hi Paul,

I shot that--and nearly all my photos--with my EF-S 17-85. Because I use a crop-sensor digital camera, the equivalent 35mm focal length would be 28-135mm.

I shot the whoop-de-doos at full telephoto, or 135mm; HOWEVER, I did crop the picture about 50% in post processing, removing a lot of the landscape in the foreground. One of the pleasing characteristics of a telephoto lens is its tendency to compress. The more the telephoto, the more the compression. Obviously each of those "hills" is far enough apart for a car or truck to go over them at 70 mph, but the compression gives the optical illusion that they're right on top of each other, which is exactly how it feels when you hit them at 80 mph on a bike.

Something like this: :boldpurpl
 
Hi Paul,

I shot that--and nearly all my photos--with my EF-S 17-85. Because I use a crop-sensor digital camera, the equivalent 35mm focal length would be 28-135mm.

I shot the whoop-de-doos at full telephoto, or 135mm; HOWEVER, I did crop the picture about 50% in post processing, removing a lot of the landscape in the foreground. One of the pleasing characteristics of a telephoto lens is its tendency to compress. The more the telephoto, the more the compression. Obviously each of those "hills" is far enough apart for a car or truck to go over them at 70 mph, but the compression gives the optical illusion that they're right on top of each other, which is exactly how it feels when you hit them at 80 mph on a bike.

Something like this: :boldpurpl

Ah, yes my favorite kind of roads, when they don't cut and fill, just follow the contours of the land! Well, looks like we got both ends of turkey day covered, one post, one pre.:brad Thursday it was73, by Friday it was in the upper 30's, and that was the high! Saturday and today most of the leaves have dropped and they were so nice Thursday.

Don't see any spots in the images, esp. in the blue of the sky one place they really stand out,:dunno did ya get the sensor cleaned or photoshop them out?

RM
 
Thanks, Tom. I wish I could have been there with you guys!
 
Thanks, Tom. I wish I could have been there with you guys!

You and anyone on this board would be most welcome, any time. Bakersfield is a major thoroughfare between southern and northern California. I better not hear of anyone passing through without calling. . . .







Especially since we're getting a BMW motorcycle dealership. Oops, was that out loud?
:whistle
 
I hope to be able to take you up on the invitation someday. I've driven through several times on 4-wheels for business, but have always wanted explore CA on 2.







Will they have any rentals?
 
Don't see any spots in the images, esp. in the blue of the sky one place they really stand out,:dunno did ya get the sensor cleaned or photoshop them out?

RM

Great question. Nope, they're still there. They're usually only visible in a blank sky at small apertures, say f/11 and beyond. I did process these in iPhoto, but just for cropping, saturation, and contrast. No monkey business.

I mean no offense to monkeys. I like monkeys. Unlike that monkey-hating Lamble.
 
Hwy. 58, et al

What a great reminder of times past, spent many years working at Diablo Canyon power station, and taking rental car rides all over the coast on days off. Miss the beautiful scenery very much, hoping to do a trip on the Rockster in the next couple years, to revisit all the scenic byways.:dance
 
You and anyone on this board would be most welcome, any time. Bakersfield is a major thoroughfare between southern and northern California. I better not hear of anyone passing through without calling. . . .
I pass through Bakersfield with some regularity. I'll almost certainly be going through to get on CA-178 on the way to and back from the Death Valley Daze at the end of January.

My riding friend Steve and I stayed in Bakersfield a week ago on our way back from TX and NM, just so we could eat at Benji's. (See my ride report in the Gear section -- I was testing out my new Rick Mayer seat!) Still trying to sample all of the Basque restaurants there...
 
I pass through Bakersfield with some regularity. I'll almost certainly be going through to get on CA-178 on the way to and back from the Death Valley Daze at the end of January.

My riding friend Steve and I stayed in Bakersfield a week ago on our way back from TX and NM, just so we could eat at Benji's. (See my ride report in the Gear section -- I was testing out my new Rick Mayer seat!) Still trying to sample all of the Basque restaurants there...

Pyranees Cafe is fun; although Woolgrower's is our favorite. Ambience is a bit stiff, but the food is fabulous. BF to DV is a great ride, no matter which way you go. Be happy to join you for a meal if you're looking for company.
 
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As usual Tom, great photos.
We rode these 'anti gravity' hills on Wednesday and on Sunday on our way to and from LA. I just love the feeling in of weightlessness in my stomach! We also rode Elkhorn Road thru the Carrizo Plain and had a blast!
 
Great question. Nope, they're still there. They're usually only visible in a blank sky at small apertures, say f/11 and beyond. I did process these in iPhoto, but just for cropping, saturation, and contrast. No monkey business.

I mean no offense to monkeys. I like monkeys. Unlike that monkey-hating Lamble.


you're lucky then, I had a gobber the size a small spaceship at ANY aperture, funny but I kept looking for it in the upper right corner of the imager then remembered the image is the resverse (upsidedown) in the imager, and sure enough, there is was in the lower right hand corner!

RM
 
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