The fog was thick as I backed the Bandit out of my garage and it got thicker and wetter the further from home I rode.  I reached down to the tank bag to turn up the Heatroller for the vest and arm chaps and thought about grip heaters.  Although I left home early, the slow progress over the ridge on Vasco Road was making me late.

South of the ridge, the sun was shining into a clear sky over Livermore.  Kim Leong and his burgundy ST1100 were in the gas station ahead of me when I stopped to top off.  At Country Waffles, Jeff Smith’s Interceptor 800 was already parked in front.  Kim and I walked in together, greeted by Jim and Bene Alexander.  They and Jeff Smith were waiting for us.  Jim and Jeff remarked at how wet I was.  Jeff reported clear skies all the way from Cupertino.  Dom Ochoa arrived as we were ordering breakfast and he confirmed clear skies and cold air from his direction.  I should have thought about the route then and there.  Instead, I hoped that the sun would pierce the fog during breakfast and handed out the route maps.

After breakfast, we headed east on Altomont Pass Road.  But, as Dom took the lead south to Flynn Road we re-entered the thick and cold fog.  Visibility was near zero, so Dom pulled over.  We all agreed to try an alternative.  I lead the way further east on Altamont Pass Road, only to once again become engulfed in the thick, cold and wet fog, making even turning around a safety issue.  The left turn lane for a golf course entrance created a safe opportunity, so we headed west toward sunshine and south on Greenville Road.