Ducati Monster Forum

New rider/new owner of M696/new to East Bay. Been doing runs along Skyline/Grizzly Peak and will continue (still just scratching the surface) but looking for suggestions for other places to ride. Recognize my limitations so no flaming please! Just trying to get to know the area and my bike better. Thanks! 

Nick

Have you ventured down to Redwood yet? Some have issues with a few of the turns so keep it slow, but it's pretty basic and one of my favorites :D

*EDIT*Where in the East Bay are you?

You're not far from Marin either:
http://tinyurl.com/2gw9n6 (http://tinyurl.com/2gw9n6)

The Local Resources thread (http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=562.0) also has some good ride routes linked.

ANd hey, post up and propose a ride! We're happy to show you the roads  [thumbsup] And we won't flame you here...this isn't BARF  ;D

I can't make this promise.  [moto]  [thumbsup]

Yes, have gone down Redwood a couple times.  Enjoyed it, although blind turns probably will be a challenge for awhile.

I live near the Thornhill Rd exit off 13. Basically, I've been heading up into the hills then cruising up to Berkeley, turning around and heading back south.  If you see a dark 696 and a red helmet, that's me!  [moto]

Thanks for the response.

Nick

I'll check out these links then give you a shout. Really appreciate the info. Thanks!

Nick

if blind corners/turns are an issue, then suggest you NOT ride calaveras ... otherwise, and awesome road for a monster.

http://maps.google.com/maps?client=safari&rls=en&q=calaveras+road,+milpitas&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&um=1&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&resnum=1&ct=title

Yeah,  Calaveras has lots of sketchy corners, and it is frequently gravely, but it is one hell of a ride.

Hi Nick, a fun little loop from where you live would be to go through the tunnel and go down San Pablo Dam Rd. to Appian Wy. then hop on the 80 EB and get off @ Pinole Valley Rd. and go through the hills to Bear Creek Rd. and ride that back into Orinda and head home.  It isn't a long loop, but you'd get a lot of turns for the time spent. 

Calaveras is way more fun on a bicycle ;D

Palomares is a nice beginner-friendly fun twisty road, just wish it were longer. :)

Calaveras at midnight in a modified Mini Cooper S w/ 20 other knuckleheads who love single lane roads  ;D
Done it and it is a blast.   [thumbsup]  I'd think that road is a wee bit sketchy to play around on during the daytime since you can't
see around some of those corners too well and it's very tight in some spots.

My and my partner's regular route is Wildcat Canyon Road to San Pablo Dam Road to Castro Ranch Road to Alhambra Valley Road to Bear Creek Road back to Wildcat Canyon.

http://tinyurl.com/684kgo (http://tinyurl.com/684kgo)

When I did Calaveras I kept waiting for the road to begin then it was over... I need to do it again so I can remember all these blind turns everyone always talks about.

I don't really like wildcat but in the same area, if you want a longer alternate:
Take Bear Creek from SPDR.
Turn right on Alhambra Valley. Take it to Alhambra.
Left on Alhambra.
Left on Franklin Canyon.
Right on McEwen. Be careful.
Left on Carquinez Scenic. Enjoy the views.
Left on Crockett Blvd. Watch the S turn.
Go either way on Cummings Skyway, to either 4 west or 80 west. Take 80 W to Pinole Valley.
Exit Pinole Valley. Take until it turns into Alhambra Valley again.
Right on Castro Ranch.
Back to SPDR. Left.
That's my hour-to-kill loop.

Thanks everyone for the comments/suggestions. Ended up meeting up with a Newbies group ride in Castro Valley and heading north to the Wall on Sat. (made for a nice roundtrip for me from home  ;)). Met some cool people and had zero issues on the ride. Spent time riding on my own on Redwood and Pinehurst Sunday morning. At this point, can't get enough  [moto] so any other ideas for great rides in this area, let me know!
Nick

Wildcat can definitely be crowded if you don't leave really early in the morning. It's also pretty bumpy. I'll probably give your route a try next time I go out. On Sunday I did the loop I just described in order to break in my new 1-piece leathers.

Now that it sounds like you have a couple of options I would suggest doing them a number of times to get used to them before trying too many new routes.

Everybody's suggestions sound good as far as routes go!

Just a word of warning in case you want to venture farther in the east bay, I recently found out Mines in Livermore as well as Marsh Creek in Clayton are being repaved.  Mines is not good for a new rider anyway, but in the future once it's repaved and with some more time under your belt it's tons of fun *my opinion* (as long as you're not a speed demon and don't mind back to back blind turns). Marsh Creek is cool for a new rider -- it has some good twists, not many blind turns and little bit of elevation change-- and the other day I tried to ride it and was sad to find that it's got tons of gravel from being newly paved. Both of these roads will be fun again when the gravel is swept away.

Moral of story: Gravel sucks! East Bay roads can sometimes have a lot of gravel/ are often repaved in the summer. If you can, try to check road conditions before going to a new road in the East Bay. I'm going to from now on! Once Marsh Creek is cleaned up that's a nice ride going out of Concord. You should def check that out once it's cleaned up  [thumbsup]

I just rode Marsh Creek today from Clayton to the Sheriff's range.  It's still full of gravel.  They're chip-sealing Morgan Territory too and they've got traffic all fouled up on that road.  My advice?  Stay clear of these roads until the next good rain has come and gone.

Has Morgan Territory ever been ride-able? That rode plain sucked when Vinnie forced me to take it :)

Too right! Plenty of options for me at this point. Probably heading back to Redwood Rd. later today! Thanks all! [clap]

[thumbsup]

For whatever reason, coming down wildcat just makes me uncomfortable. Too steep and slow and weird intersections. It was better on the monster than the 851, and this being a monster board I suppose that's appropriate, but it still always made me nervous.
It is very pretty though.

Marsh Creek has too much traffic for me. Too many hyper-commuting east county drivers, I guess.

Also, if you want a tight road, you can go over to Mt Diablo and ride that. It's like $3 (?) but actually really pretty fun. Come in off Diablo and go out Northgate. Very pretty.

I love wildcat, especially once i had my suspension setup.  both uphill and downhill are fun for me  ;D

Just wanted to say thanks. Have tried this route twice now, once in each direction.  The high speed curves are awesome!  [thumbsup]  Great views/vistas, easy to get to.  Excellent recommendation.   [clap] Will definitely keep this one on my short list.

Nick

This is a great loop in both directions.  Thanks!!  [thumbsup]

Nick