Recumbent Riders
News and Ride Schedule
[Last Updated December 1st]
Ride Schedule:
This weekend, our First Saturday (12/4) VCRR Group Ride will start from Pitts Ranch Park in Camarillo, at the corner of Flynn Road and Calle Brisa. We suggest an arrival time of about 9 AM, planning (or hoping?) to ride away around 9:30. The distance, route and average speed for this ride will be determined by the folks who show up, with a most likely choice of riding down to CSUCI or to the Camarillo Premium Outlets mall. Alternate routes will be offered for our infamous Pokey Patrol people or for the Faster Folks and the Motorized Mob. The most likely lunch stop will be the CSUCI Food Court or Cracker Barrel. Temperatures for this ride are forecast to max out in the mid-60s, with a bit of overcast early, changing to sunnier skies and a light wind.
As usual lately, it will be up to each person who visits this site to choose whether to join the group for this ride, with your own (hopefully apropriately updated) individual preferences for masking and social distancing, meet the group for lunch, drive by and wave 'Hi', or meticulously avoid the venues. If any of this confuses or doesn't work for you or if you need any more info please contact me by phone or email.
This is a brief listing of preliminary plans for upcoming rides:
- Saturday, December 4th: First Saturday VCRR Group Ride – Pitts Ranch Park, Camarillo
- Saturday, December 18th: Third Saturday VCRR Group Ride – PLEASE INPUT ANY SUGGESTIONS!
Recent History:
Our First Saturday VCRR Group Ride was a sort of experimental blast from the past, starting with coffee and muffins at West Channel Park in Oxnard's Channel Islands Marina. Our ride started with a loop to the harbor entrance, then up the coast past Oxnard State Beach, Harbor Boulevard and the Arundell Barranca on our way to lunch at Main Street Restaurant in Ventura.
October: Weather was great for our Fifth Saturday VCRR Group Ride. Seven of us rode from Crescent Park in Oxnard's RiverPark complex around the big gravel pits, across the river on the freeway bridge, up the Johnson Barranca bikepath and from the eastern end of the bikepath beside CA-126 to its newly opened western end. Our group, all trikes this time including three with motors, stayed together for the whole ride. Ann and Alan joined us for lunch at Gateway Plaza before we zoomed back down Johnson Drive to the start area. This route is about 20 miles, with a few shallow climbs along the way.
BAD WEATHER BRUNCH with a twist? Since the temp for our Third Saturday VCRR Group Ride was already in the mid-80s at 9 AM with the threat of Santa Ana winds, the few folks who showed up at Harbor Cove Beach opted to postpone the ride until the next day when the weather was much more favorable. Instead of a ride, we chose to indulge in a delicious brunch at Main Street Restaurant. On Sunday, four of us met again in eastern Venutura and enjoyed a nice ride in a much more pleasant environment. No one regretted or felt the least bit guilty about that choice.
The First Saturday VCRR Group Ride this month was basically a repeat of other recent rides, with the longest route starting from the parking lot at the Ventura Mission in downtown Ventura, located between Main and Santa Clara Streets at the north end of Junipero Street, going about 35 miles round trip to a turnaround in Carpinteria. Other riders met for a shorter ride at a slower pace and with fewer hills, starting from Emma Wood Beach near the eastern end of the Old Coast Highway. About half the group stopped for lunch in Carpinteria, while the other half popped into Hobson Beach Grill. This ride went very well in great weather, without any mechanical issues.
Summer 2021: The Third Saturday VCRR Group Ride of September was planned to start one more time from the Ventura Mission, climbing Rincon Hill to Carpinteria for the turnaround. There was, I think, a new record minimal turnout for this ride, but the guys who did it still enjoyed the pleasant weather atypical of late Summer in SoCal, as well as the scenery along the beach.
The First Saturday VCRR Group Ride of September started (again) from the Ventura Mission. Since a 95 degree temperature was forecast for the last climb up the hill to Ojai, the group of about eight opted for a cooler out-and-back cruise up the coast. With no Pokey Patrol people again this weekend, this gang chose to turn around after their lunch stop at Pizza Man Dan's in Carpinteria, racking up almost 40 miles round trip – to the delight of folks who have been eager for a longer ride with a larger group.
On the Third Saturday of August, seven riders, including one newby on a hand trike, met at the Ventura Mission, and most rode up the coast, turning around at the top of Rincon Hill. Since Hobson Beach was experiencing a power failure, most of the group dropped (literally!) down to the snack bar at Faria Beach before those final few miles back to the mission.
Our First Saturday Ride in August started from Harbor Cove Beach, and we rode down to the Channel Islands Marina before taking a slight detour for a lunch stop at Pizza Man Dan's near the Oxnard Airport. Eight folks showed up to take advantage of yet another inexplicably pleasant Summer day, with temps peaking in the low 70s and a light west wind. The group stayed together for the whole route, and there were no mechanical or routing issues.
For the unusual Fifth Saturday of July, a small group of us rode from the small public parking lot in the Seabridge Marina, located just south of Wooley Road between Harbor Boulevard and Victoria Avenue. We looped around the Seabridge and Channel Islands Marina MUPs, enjoying the cool overcast morning and light sea breeze of early afternoon. We met Deena as she completed her puppy prep school and went to Seafresh, a new location for us, for a very satisfying lunch.
On the Third Saturday VCRR Group Ride we pedaled up and back on the coast northwest of Ventura. Kay and I met riders coming from both directions at our unique landmark on the Old Coast Highway just northwest of the end of Omer Rains bikepath. We rode about 16 miles, with a turnaround at Rincon Beach Park, but most other folks in the group racked up a bit more distance. Most of the group of almost a dozen riders popped down to Hobson Beach Park for lunch on our return. Weather was again almost ideal, starting with a coastal overcast, clearing to a peak temp in the mid-70s with very light winds as we returned to our midivan.
For the First Saturday of the Summer (and July) we opted to start from a new venue: Windrow Park in the RiverPark area of northern Oxnard. Since only a few Pokey Patrol people showed up, we changed from our original plan to ride to east Ventura, making a few loops of the MUPs around the large pits near the river and The Collection instead, before popping into the food court at The Annex for lunch. We had a nice ride (and lunch) on a great early Summer day in SoCal.
6/19/2021: On the Third Saturday this month, ten of us rode from College Park, down the Bubbling Springs MUP to the lighthouse at Port Hueneme. Our Faster Folk added a longer loop out to the southeast so that we all arrived for the lunch stop at Steak & Hoagie together. Barb and Bob logged a few more miles after lunch while the rest of the group pedaled (no motorized cycles this time!) more directly back for a partial tour of College Park before loading up for home. Gerry had ridden over to the start from Camarillo and completed his 18-mile add-on after the group ride. Temps rose into the low 70s with a light west wind sweeping away the last of the morning mist in the afternoon.
6/5/2021: On the First Saturday this month, a dozen folks showed up to ride beginning from the parking lot at Harbor Cove Beach. We first rode down the coast to Oxnard State Beach, and after a brief but very welcome pit stop we rode back up Harbor and the Arundell Barranca MUP to have lunch at Main Street Restaurant. With tummies full and freshly hydrated we started our return by going west and then zooming down Seaward, through the Pierpont residential area and back around the marina to the park. Weather was almost ideal, going from morning mist to light sunshine, in the 60s with a light west wind in the afternoon.
Other News:
RIDE VIDEOS AND OTHER PIX: Rolly has posted videos from several recent VCRR Group Rides for public viewing on YouTube at this link. We are hoping to post more videos over the next few months, and, of course, your feedback is eagerly solicited. There is also a series of older video clips posted on YouTube, on 'TheVCRR' channel, at this URL. There is a VCRR photo archive on Flickr; to view it, start at this URL. Vincent has posted some of our ride pix to the Recumbent Trikes Group on Facebook (one of several).
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE DON'T FORGET!: COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS ARE EAGERLY[!] SOLICITED FOR OUR REMAINING GROUP RIDES IN 2021, AS WELL AS FEEDBACK FOR THIS WEBSITE, RIDE NOTICES, PHOTOS, RIDE VIDEOS, ROUTE SHEETS, MAPS, CUSTOM VCRR SAFETY FLAGS AND/OR VIDEO FLYOVERS. We are seriously looking for suggestions for VCRR Group Rides for this year, either in person, by phone or email. We plan, contingent upon feedback, to continue sending email notices a few days before each upcoming ride, at least for the next couple of months. Please let me know if you want to make any changes to our email list.
If you newbies or folks who haven't ridden with the group for a while need help or more information for getting to any of our rides, please email or phone me. Our home phone number – usually the best way to talk to us – is 805-981-0339. If we're not home you can also try my NEW CELL PHONE: 805-612-7662. Text messages will not work on our home phone, and are slightly discouraged for the cell phone. Don't even think about Facebook or Twitter! For convenience my email link is: