Wine-ding your way along Monterey County’s bikeways

The pleasures of cycling from winery to winery

Maybe you’ve noticed the many wine-lovers touring Napa and Sonoma by bicycle, or even had a first-hand experience of the celebrated cycling routes through many European wine regions.

Watch for more cyclists touring Monterey County wine country!  Why?  Because of the early leadership of three local wineries who are sowing the seeds for a special MoCo welcome.

Dan Johnson of Baywood Cellars invites local violinist Laurel Thomsen to Baywood’s tasting room.

HER Helmet Thursdays welcomes the wineries

Baywood Cellars, Pierce Vineyards, and Scheid Vineyards are the first wineries in the HER Helmet Thursdays project,  which has 130 H-E-R participants countywide as of 6/25/10.

H-E-R? For women?  No, this is for male and female cyclists.

If you’ve missed being introduced to the project:   H-E-R stands for Hotels (and other lodging), Educational attractions and entertainment venues, and Restaurants (and other food and beverage service—which is right where the wineries fit in).

I invited just three wineries to be early leaders for the project, and all three responded with an enthusiastic yes!  Other wineries are now welcome; more on that below.

These Monterey County visionaries—foreseeing a popular cycling route along the Monterey County vineyards trail—are blazing that trail by giving discounts not only on tasting room fees but on all wine sales to cyclists on Thursdays.

The Pierce tasting room at 499 Wave Street, just above the bike path.

Monterey

All three of these charter participants have wine lounges/tasting rooms  in the Cannery Row neighborhood.  Want “bike-there” tips?  Check out their HER Helmet Thursdays detailed listings for specific directions on how to reach these locations by bicycle:

• Baywood Cellars is just below the bike/multi-use path and is across from the Monterey Plaza Hotel and Spa (also a HER Helmet Thursdays participant).
• Pierce Vineyards is just above the bike path, in the lovely little house at 499 Wave Street (look for the cross street of McClellan).
• Scheid Vineyards is just below the bike path, across from InterContinental the Clement Monterey (yet another HER Helmet Thursdays participant).

Save money by cycling to these wineries on a Thursday, or simply enjoy the gracious company and fine wines of these popular winemakers by visiting them any day of the week.

Scheid’s wine lounge right on Cannery Row.

Greenfield

Also in the HER Helmet Thursdays project is Scheid Vineyards’ Greenfield location.  In Greenfield, Scheid features an organic chef’s garden, regulation-length bocce court, and horseshoes area.  Sounds like a fun day  awaiting cyclists at this wine-lover’s destination!  Enjoy the converted century-old barn, have a picnic, and linger among the grapes.

Scheid’s lovely Greenfield location makes a terrific destination for avid cyclists.

Tip of the wine glass

This is just the tip of the iceberg.  While the above three wineries—Baywood, Pierce, and Scheid—are the first, other wineries are now encouraged to come into the HER Helmet Thursdays project too.

It’s a pleasure to introduce this unique component of the HER Helmet Thursdays experience.  Special thanks to cyclist Aaron Magenheim of Signature Irrigation for suggesting this addition to the project.  Aaron is a Monterey County native whose family has supported MoCo cycling from way back; they helped prepare the track for the first Sea Otter Classic!

How can other wineries get involved?

If you have a favorite Monterey County winery you’d like to see in HER Helmet Thursdays, please let them know that they need not wait for a personal invitation.  (I so wish that time did permit me to extend a personal invite to each one of them!)  I welcome them to contact me, 831-375-6278.  They may refer to “How to Participate–for Businesses and Organizations” and there is an option to sign up online as well.  Charter participants pay no fee to participate; creating and launching the project is my gift to my home county of 30 years.

Drinking and bicycle safety

If you consume alcohol, a plus about biking is that you can have a few extra drinks and not worry about a DUI (driving under the influence) ticket, right?  Wrong.  You’d still be subject to a BUI (biking under the influence) ticket!

Refer to VC 21200.5 in this overview of California bicycle laws.  The California Department of Motor Vehicles indicates a BUI fine of not more than $250, whereas they state that the cost of a DUI can total $8,240 or more.   Regardless, driving under the influence isn’t cool, whatever your mode of transportation.

Does that mean you can’t use a bicycle for transportation if you enjoy alcohol?  Au contraire! You simply use the same good judgment about when it’s safe to get behind those handlebars that you would use about when it’s time to get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle.

Slow down, savor the wine, and savor the day.  And when you’re ready to go, hop on that bicycle and find yourself enjoying the day even further.  There’s little that compares with the joy of cycling in the fresh air,  surrounded by the beauty of Monterey County landscapes and seascapes.

Additional bike safety tips

For more ideas on staying safe while cycling, see the “Personal Bike Safety” section of Tips for Tourists Bicycling Monterey County.©