# route/streets suggestion for noon ride around Moffett Field/N.Mathilda area?



## Kwantani (Sep 26, 2002)

my new job is at the Ariba campus (between Moffett Field Dr and north Mathilda, north of 101/237). Looking to scout a quiet and low traffic route/streets in the surrounding area for noon ride. 
Wonder if anyone who're familiar riding in the area can suggest a low traffic route? either point A to point B or some kind of crit loop (south bay noon ride style).
I also observed from google map there might be a way to get to the bay trails for possibly some off road riding too, but not sure how to get there from office area. 
Also saw many excellent streets inside the Moffett fields, do they allow bicycle access to use their roads?

thx
Kwan


----------



## Leopold Porkstacker (Jul 15, 2005)

CrankyMonkey would know, as he is pretty familiar with that part of Sunnyvale/Mountain View.


----------



## ukbloke (Sep 1, 2007)

You can take Caribbean Drive to get over to Baylands and then pick up the Bay Trail running parallel to 237. You can then head down the San Tomas Aquino/Saratoga spur off the Bay Trail and back again. Alternatively, you can do a loop around Alviso and North San Jose - for example, Gold Street, State Street, Los Esteros, Zanker Rd, Holger Way, North 1st Street, and then there's a bike path along the other side of 237 to take you back to Lafayette. I think there may be a group ride in Alviso, but don't know any details. Alviso has pretty quiet roads, but there is a sewerage treatment plant and a landfill dump leading to a lingering smell and often fairly dirty roads.

There is hope that a gravel trail will finally open on the Bay side of Moffett Field this year on levees around the salt ponds. This is a very long awaited and much needed connector on the Bay Trail from Baylands out to Shoreline Park. It'll take a pretty circuitous route though to get around the air field. As well as mountain bikes, this should be passable on a cross bike or maybe a road bike if you don't mind a bit of gravel and mud. Once you get to Shoreline Park there are plenty more trails and you can get to Palo Alto and beyond.

Personally I take a longer lunch break twice a week and head south or west to find some hills.


----------



## robwh9 (Sep 2, 2004)

ukbloke said:


> There is hope that a gravel trail will finally open on the Bay side of Moffett Field this year on levees around the salt ponds. This is a very long awaited and much needed connector on the Bay Trail from Baylands out to Shoreline Park.


That would be very cool.


----------



## ukbloke (Sep 1, 2007)

From p7 of Spinning Crank, Winter 2008:


> *Bay Trail*
> There’s been another delay in opening the section of the Bay Trail behind Moffett Field, but it doesn’t appear to be a serious problem. Stay tuned for further announcements, hopefully in the very near future!


They had previously set a target of Earth Day 2008, so I'm wondering if Earth Day 2009 will be the new opening date target (April 22nd). I also wouldn't be surprised if this is going to be a seasonal trail, only open in the dry months.


----------



## sokudo (Dec 22, 2007)

Go to Ellis, take Fairchild to Whisman, Whisman to a start of Hetch Hetchy trail.
That trail will bring you to Stevens Creek MUT. Stevens Creek trail goes to Shoreline and MUTs in that area. Or, in other direction, almost any exit connects to a quiet street with a bike lane. You may explore Middlefield, Evelyn, Mercy.
In some cases there are bike passes between seemingly unrelated streets that one has to know about.

I think I heard that there is a kind of noon bike ride that starts somewhere near Mathilda and 1st (not far from Yahoo and Juniper). 

There is a Sunnyvale bike map and a Mountain View bike map.


----------



## DasMud (Jun 8, 2003)

Great America Lunchtime ride
Days: Tuesday, Thursday
Time: 12:00 PM
Meet: Parking lot between the 49er's parking lot and Great America on Tasman.
Contact: Tim O'Hara
Email: [email protected]

Two options, depending on availability of the parking lot - if the parking lot is being used by the Police or Fire Dept, cross the street and meet in the Golf Course parking lot for the Alviso loop.

1. Parking Lot Crit Ride:

40 mins of pure ecstasy racing around a four corner, 0.5 mile parking lot. Good, slightly undulating pavement, with two banked turns, one off camber, lots of poles, but OK if you keep your eyes open. Generally a fantastic workout with an experienced group of 20 riders or so including Cat 5 though Cat 1 and 2's. At 12:35 the five lap to go sign is called out for a flat out sprint to the finish. If the lot is busy, see the Alviso loop below.
2. Alviso Loop

Approx 4 to 5 mille Clockwise flat loop (except for two overpasses) from San Jose up to Alviso. Three laps are generally run. Although portions are in traffic and have lights, every lap there is approximately a 1-mile sprint, with speeds exceeding 35mph.

The rides goes to Alviso for three intervals of around 5 min long. The pace is very high, average speed is around 27-28 mph and the sprint can go up to 40mph. The pace slows down for regrouping and goes around back to Alviso. The recovery section takes around 8-10 mins. Total loop time is around 15min. Typical Turnout: 10 to 25 riders. Occasionally Cat 1's. Usually always some 2 and 3's. 

source: http://www.fremontfreewheelers.org/RaceTeam/Useful/TrainingRides/ByName.html


----------



## CrankyMonkey (Jul 8, 2007)

The Great America Lunchtime ride is probably going to be more your style. Most of the stuff I do in this area is pretty low key as in slow and easy (due to my knee recovery). Here is an example of a ride a few of us RBRs are starting todo on Fridays.

http://rides.chriscowan.us/activity/Lunch-Ride-with-Eddy/id/171


----------

