Bike Tour in the USA (2007), Part 23

Monday, Sep. 17, 2007

Friendly America

Morro Rock - San Simeon State Park

Distance: 72.35 km, Time: 5:09:21 hrs, Total: 782.97 km

On the left side of the road is a small park, from there a nice view on the dominant vulcano rock in the ocean not far away from the coast. To take a satisfying picture I had to use some skills to cut off the Dynegy power plant which provides electricity not only to Morro but also the Central Valley of California (Fresno and Bakersfield). Due to its large tall smokestacks it is also known as the ‘Three Fingers‘.

I found a small post office of Morro Bay City and parked my bike directly beside the entrance. At that time the internet was not very popular and widely available, so I’ve decided to mail a CD of my photos to my wife and daughter which I ‘burned‘ at a pharmacy yesterday. I sent it per airmail for $2.70 to Taiwan with the hope that my family might receive and enjoy the CD before my return.

I continued on the Highway 1 until I came to the beautiful city of Cambria. During the history this place had many different names like Santa Rosa, Rosaville, San Simeon and Slabtown. After 1869 the city decided to call themselves Cambria, latin for Wales. 

City of Cambria sign

In the beginning the place was a fishing and miner city, later it became a milk and wood production center. Today Cambria attracts mainly artists and tourist. The whole place seems only to exists of renovated wooden buildings, many are historical and from founding period of California and the USA. Today they are used for apartments, restaurants, shops and galleries.

Road in the City of Cambria

After my acquaintance Peter warned me about bike theft in San Francisco I wanted to buy a lock for my bike. Already several days into my trip I strangely never thought about locking my bike. Even during shopping, mailing and even eating I just parked my bike outside and had a good feeling that my bike would be still there when I came out. In German there is a word called 'Gottvertrauen' translated into faith/trust into the Lord. 

Not far away from a bike path I discovered the Cambria Hardware Center and steered in its direction. They did not have a complete bike lock but a padlock with a secret number. The locking system was constructed like a safe (different left and right turns) so I asked the clerk at the cash register how to use it. He did not know either but the customer behind me was so kind to help out. I still did not get it 100% and went to the same customer already sitting in his pick-up ready to leave the parking lot. He was so kind to explain it to me a 2nd time with it's running engine and the opened door window and finally I got it.  

Still on the parking lot I asked a young employee if he knew where I could find a bike shop. It happened that just In the same moment a friend of him rode by on a bike. The employee shouted his name and he rode straight to us. 

Cambria Hardware Center

The friendly store assistant instructed him to lead me straight to the Cambria Bicycle Outfitter brick and mortar bike shop which is also a bike mail order business and can be found on www.cambriabike.com. As my guide wanted to leave me in front of the door he asked me for my name. As I answered that my name is Gerhard he asked me if I have relatives here in Cambria because he has heard my name before. I denied with a smile; I absolutely did not know about a relative in the USA. I asked him if there are any Germans in Cambria. He answered that if a house has a tidy front garden, I can be sure the owners have German ancestors, if not, they are either African Americans or Mexicans. 

Stepping into the shop I felt like arriving in the 7th bike heaven! Everything a biker's heart needs was right here with a great selection of good quality and great prices! The boss was busy on the phone doing his mail order business and advised me to take a cable ($22.00) from the wall. He told me that it was made of special steel with several fine cables twisted and protected by a thick plastic coat. It was made in the USA and so strong that no one could cut it! He convinced me that I just bought it without hesitation!

As I was already here I took my time to look around. I discovered a signed and mounted Mountain Bike shirt from Mountain Bike legend Ned Overend hanging on the wall. Leaving the shop there stood some Beach Cruisers in line for sale...

During the research of this book I found out that the Cambria Bicycle Outfitter moved  to another place and the house shown in the picture was listed for sale! 

Cambria Bicycle Outfitter 

I am a big fan from Ned Overend who pushed the boundary for Mountain Bikes (MTB) in general but especially in front suspension and full suspension (Fullys) MTBs. Here is an interesting video on fitness tips for all different kind of bikers from the master himself:

(to be continued)