First century yesterday and feeling pretty accomplished. I picked up cycling (opened up my wallet for a new bike) last summer as a way to cope with the pandemic. My longest ride last year (until I took a break in December) was about 65 miles. Started back up again in February and finally found the time for my first century over the weekend. Rode with a neighbor who helped get me into the sport - he's got 2700+ miles and 141k feet of climbing done so far this year.
Route: Fullerton to SART, through Villa Park and up to Santiago and Silverado Canyon (most of the climbing was between miles 10-40). Down to Lake Forest, up to Irvine and then to Newport Beach via Back Bay. PCH to Huntington and Seal Beach. It was closed for a bit between Huntington and Bolsa Chica due to an accident, so we had to hop on the bike path on the beach. Beautiful views so no complaints here. From Seal Beach, up SGRT/Coyote Creek to Buena Park and home to Fullerton. 103.23 miles, 3579 feet climbed. 7h 21m moving. It was hot by the time we finished - mid-90's, but heat wasn't really a factor until the last 8-10 miles. We had a great tailwind heading up SGRT/Coyote Creek going inland and into the heat.
Anyways, that's it. I've learned a lot from the folks here but have rarely posted. I thought this was something fun to share - thanks for reading!