Discovering edible and drinkable tidbits can be a powerful positive operant conditioning stimulus for a ride. It is well-known that this psychological mechanism, called unscheduled reward, is one of the most powerful human motivations. Why not recruit this powerful drive to lighten the load and motivate your riding?
Paul’s design for this ride had several creative features. We’d go up Bohlman and over to Montevina via the short dirt connector, up OSCH, down Bear Creek, then double-back on Montevina-Bohlman. Since there are no "services" along this route, Paul had asked Carol and Paul Green if they might host a brief rewatering break at their home. They graciously accepted the demand.
We know that some people would rather have a root canal excavation than have to do Bohlman. So it was that Ray Rodriguez avoided this ride. Don and I also discovered a way to avoid the steep sections of the Bohlman climb. Just beyond the Saratoga cemetery, Don suggested we take a left on Norton Road. Sure enough, eventually this shady asphalt trail intersected On Orbit Road. We stayed on Orbit and by the time we intersected Bohlman again we found ourselves about 3/4 of the way to the summit, above those crank-warping switch-backs. If you are like Ray; troubled by a phobia about climbing Bohlman and you also fear of root canals, we recommend this Norton-Orbit bypass.
At the top of On Orbit we discovered our first unscheduled treat. It was an orange on top of the guardrail. "There’s an orange for you", said Don. I snatched it. I was pleased to see that it was fresh and intact. It was supple and actually cool to the touch. I put it in my jersey, carried it to the summit of Bohlman, peeled it, and shared it with our companions.
No telling what perfectly edible items people will place by the side of the road for scavenging cyclists. Humping-up steep grades gives you time to carefully inspect the bottles and cans as you pass by. Look carefully at those twist-off caps and tab-tops. A certain percentage of them are actually unopened. Or they could be partials with rescrewed caps.
Ascending OCSH, we found a pear on the shoulder of the road. As we ascended the Mountain Charlie cut-off, Ben asked me why I hadn’t picked it up. "I thought it was a stale orange, if I’d known it was a fresh pear, I would have snatched it, you bet." We had just about used up our breakfast by this time, and the others joined us in a discussion of appetite and its treatment. Should we detour to the Summit Store or proceed to the Greens' home? Would the Greens offer refreshments? What if they were inhospitable? "I bet Paul Greene’s got a Pepsi in his refrigerator, and I bet I can get it", I schemed. "Paul’s a nice guy. He’d probably serve us champaign if we asked for it. The trick is to get something without asking for it. It’s like scavenging for food. If you get it, it’s like an unscheduled reward. We want to discover food, not to beg for it."
The others conspired like stealthy confederates. There were several embellishments for the scheme. "How many entrances are there to the kitchen, does anyone know?" "What if Carol or others are there, how can we divert their attention?" "We’ll divide into two or more groups to distract them, while Guy will go on a solo break to probe for Pepsi."
Near the Zayante junction we found the ridgetop ranch of Carol and Paul. They invited us to join them for refreshments on the deck outside the kitchen. Carol showed us the cookie jar. "Eat them all. I made them last week. I’m making a fresh batch right now, so I want you to eat them all." Her back was turned. I ducked low and deftly pried open the refrigerator door. There were six cans of mixed beverages in the rear left corner of the top shelf. Root beer, Fresca ... but no Pepsi.
Carol is a school teacher with eyes in the back of her head. She swooped over to me. And persistently asked about my desires. Eventually I confessed that I was a probe for Pepsi. "Oh, well we don’t have any of that." But Paul recommended that we check a cabinet where the Pepsi was discovered.
"Look here," I toasted and boasted to my confederates on the deck. "We were prescient. We visualized our goal, planned carefully, called our shot, worked very hard, and accomplished our goal. It began as an offhand speculation, became a fervent dream, and now here it is, a fizzing reality."
We were joined by Carol’s imaginary friends, fluffy Thomas the bear and randy Reginald D. Rabbit. Thomas has a 4K9 problem and Reginald seems to have a one-track mind. Refreshed with our found friends, food, and entertainment, we were ready to ride once more. As we passed through the kitchen, we made another greedy pass at the cookie jar, cleaning it out. Passing through the living room we picked-up mallets and enjoyed an impromptu drum and percussion session.
Ascending Montevina Road there was speculation about the weight of tire patches and photons. Does a tube with six patches weigh an extra 30 grams? How about a tube with eight patches? What’s the record for patches on a tube? If you forget to take-off your night light and batteries before a hilly ride, can you turn on the light and shed photons? Paul speculates that the second law of thermodynamics counteracts the photon-shedding effect. As the photons are emitted in the x direction, there is an equal and opposite thrust in the minus x direction. Physical effects can be quite subtle but every picogram is important when you do hills.
Another delicacy was discovered on the descent of Bohlman. A partial poppy bagel was lying on the shoulder being warmed in the afternoon sun. If a cyclist was truly famished and could actually arrest the bike in the descent of Bohlman, this rich morsel could be enjoyed. Satisfied by the found food that we’d already consumed, we left this tidbit for the next famished ACTC cyclists, like Ray, who still need to get this goat. Bagels stay fresh for a long time.