Rob, thanks – Larry and I met in Clairemont and rode over to the start. Like the old good days of BWR prep rides. It was strangely foggy as we moved inland (but clear on the coast) – usually its the other way around.
When we got to 7-11, we saw a group of 10 or so – Cresap and John took off as we got there, and there were some rumors that Hodges and Eric Gruff started early (we never saw them). It was good to see Sheehan and Boyle – founding members of the club who made a rare joint appearance today. Sheehan may be switching jobs soon, so we will see him more often (or perhaps even less often?).
We climbed SPP together, keeping it civil – we picked up Matt Babb who rode from home (while setting an impressive time on 67 climb) and caught Cresap at the top of SPP.
Descent down 67 was fun but we all stayed together as a group. Voris pushed the pace a bit up Lake Jennings and we had to chase him down. Rick lead us on the descent down Habrison Canyon – we split off a bit from Rob, Sheehan, Boyle and John. Strava flyby feature can tell you where everyone was at various times, it’s pretty good for those purposes.
We refilled water at the fire station, while some kept on going. Matt and Larry distanced from us on the climb a bit, putting out some impressive wattage. I wisely stayed back, riding with Ernst and Tony – Voris tried to hang on with Matt and Larry but soon came back to me.
Larry and Matt weren’t that far behind but near the top Larry had to stop to fix a flat.
At the Tavern intersection Voris and I caught Guido, Bernie and Matt who waited for us. The five us descended together and climbed together for a while – I tried to push the pace a bit – it was hot (we were riding with gentle tailwind that leaves you "cooking") and probably not too wise in retrospect but I felt good – for just a moment. Soon I could see Matt chasing me, solo. He finally caught up with me at the top of the infamous Japatul "Wall". I declared the top of the wall the end of the "official" climb for me and used the remaining road as cool down, while Matt kept riding pretty hard to the Lyons. We met some of the Matt’s MoFo friends at the bee farm – soon Voris and Bernie came, as well as Tony, Guido, Rick and Ernst. We rolled down the hill, picking up John and Larry – Rick lead most of the downhill, now into the headwind.
On the climb to Tavern Larry easily rode away from everyone and some of us chased him, we had several small 2-3 person groups chasing. We regrouped at 7-11 – at this point there were 10 of us. Several strong alternating pulls brought us back to Lakeside – Matt went home by splitting off at Hwy 8, Larry and I went home (easy) via Santee and 52 bike path, while the rest of the gang continued to Poway.
it was about 97 miles and 7,700 ft for Larry and I – your mileage may vary (literally).
Great day, even though a bit hot (getting ready for Monster Climbs!)
You should have come!
Photos:
https://picasaweb.google.com/109410926478548321411/20140527?authkey=Gv1sRgCKiQ-r212cO4kgE
Oleg.
On Sat, May 31, 2014 at 5:53 PM, Robert Verfurth <robertverfurth> wrote:
Hi All,
I think we had a great group ride this morning, actually I have no idea how the group ride went. I spent most of the day in a daze, in pain and alone. It was a perfect training day for the upcoming Monster Climb trip where I again expect to be in a daze, in pain and alone for most of the ride.
Guido met me in PQ and marshaled me over to Casa Voris where we picked up Dave and met up with John M. We are rolled down to the start at the 7-11. Hodges was supposed to be out ahead of us with Eric G, but I think they bailed on the ride.
We had a 14 guys at the start. Besides the 4 of us mentioned above, the group included Tony, Rick W, Bernie, Larry, Sheehan, Boyle, Oleg, Ernst, Steve K and Cresap. Some guys missed out on the group photo. Jeff was still recovering from his broken toe and rode with us only to Lakeside.
The pace was nice and controlled up SPP and descent down 67. We stayed together until the Lake Jennings climb when Boyle and Sheehan fell back a bit. I tired and disappeared off the back along Old Hwy 80. At the top of Harbison Canyon I waited for about 10 minutes for Boyle and Sheehan but they never came. I was in "No Man’s Land" for the rest of the ride.
I went down Harbison and up Dehesa. I was not planning to make the turn to Lyons as my legs we not up for it. I rode on Tavern and stopped at the CVS thinking Sheehan might have been there or maybe John M. No one was there so I kept up my slow pace back toward the 67 Climb. It was painful as always. I thought I might get caught but I guess the other guys were still way back.
At SPP there were about a dozen riders that had come from the other direction on 67 that made the turn ahead of me. I decided to catch them and ultimately decided to blow by them as I rode toward Pomerado Road. I rode up Black Mountain and got home with about 73 miles and 5,800 feet of climbing. I need to rest and get back out there to get ready for the MC trip in less than three weeks.
Oleg will have to share his photos and details of the group ride, he was with them for most of the day.
Rob
San Diego Descenders Cycling Club 