Diablo Fit: It’s never too late to find something new

An East Bay woman takes cycling to new heights.

Entering Napa’s Sweetie Pie coffee shop is Nancy Allen. She’s dressed in her cycling attire. Silver bike shoes clack as she walks through the doorway. Black Lycra covers her legs, while a pink and white jersey pokes through the armholes of her neon green windbreaker. For Allen, age 52, it’s just another day on the bike.

An avid cyclist, Allen has accrued a notable set of milestones in the sport. She’s ridden 100-mile bike tours through the Napa and Sonoma valleys, traveled New Zealand for three weeks by bike, and has planned cycling trips around wine country, Santa Cruz, Big Sur, the San Juan Islands, and Banff, Canada. You’d never guess she started riding only five years ago, at age 47.

But if you ask her, the Pleasanton native doesn’t consider her cycling adventures anything out of the ordinary; rather, she sees them as a matter of course. They’re natural results in her progression as a cyclist.

“As a lifelong athlete and an outdoor nut I've been game to learn many sports,” Allen says. And over the years, her athleticism has expressed itself in the form of windsailing, skiing, tennis, golf, and even surfing, just to name a few. Yet, she says that while the sports she’s participated in have always been entertaining, they’ve never captivated her in the way cycling has.

“The most unique thing about cycling is that this is the only sport I know of where you can get a great combination of exercise, adventure, exploration, camaraderie—and can leave from your front door,” Allen says.

She began riding in 2004 when friends at work started encouraging her with stories of their own riding exploits. Those mental seedlings sprouted into action when Allen found herself coasting along Napa and Sonoma’s rich country back roads with the same friends in tow. At that moment, she says, she knew cycling was for her and set the goal to ride her first 100-mile tour the following year.

“I could not believe how long I had lived in the Bay Area but had never seen what lies beyond the streets we drive on. I had no idea that such beautiful areas such as Pope Valley, Coleman Valley, or Mt. Veeder existed until I found them on a bike.”

This was no overnight transition, however. Allen understands that the process of riding well is far from an innate skill and emphasizes that endurance takes time, pointing to herself as no exception to the rule. When she first started, Allen says she can remember all of the daunting climbs that strained her unsuspecting muscles and pushed her to grow.

“I wanted to give up,” She confesses with a smile, but adds that she remembers herself mentally chanting that one must go up to go down. “The more I rode, the more I got hooked,” she says.

As her drive propelled her deeper into cycling’s unique culture, she eventually found herself riding with the Golden Gate Cyclists, a Bay Area cycling club that caters to all levels and abilities—the club’s accommodating atmosphere toward all types of riders was one of the biggest things that drew her to join up.

“Women are not generally as strong as men or as focused on speed and may be challenged to keep up with men they meet,” She explains. Allen points out that the Golden Gate Cyclists offered her the chance to ride with a balanced demographic of riders and to expand upon her skills and techniques.

Looking back, Allen is always amazed at how many wonderful memories cycling has given her. More than anything though, she says it’s empowering to see how far she’s come and the new confidence she has gained.

“The more you practice and keep at it, the more you can enjoy the sport: it is about endurance, both physical and mental,” she says. “I can ride anywhere and stick it out rain or shine.”

Today, Allen and her partner Jim (who’s also a fellow cyclist) enjoy traveling through the Napa Valley on their road bikes as they visit wineries, bakeries, art galleries, and coffee shops. They both like to set goals for themselves and are constantly looking for the next big adventure by bike.

“Jim and I almost always build a destination into our bike ride,” Allen says. St. Supery Vineyards and Winery in the Napa Valley and the Bouchon bakery in Yountville are some of the couple’s favorite ride destinations.

“It's a relaxing, almost meditative, way to spend time and explore together while getting great exercise."

For more info on great rides, visit goldengatecyclists.org or diablocyclists.org.

 

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