Oceanside and Sleeping Indian Ride Report-3 December 2016
by Rob Verfurth
Riders: Tony, Guido, Sheehan, John M, Andrey, Marisa, Rick B, Hodges, Cresap, Bernie, Oleg and Rob
It was a perfect day to be out riding your bike. The skies were clear, there was no wind and the cool temperatures gradually rose throughout the ride; boy are we lucky to live and ride in the San Diego area. Most of us met on the bike path and we headed for the coast. We picked up Bernie at CDS and then Oleg after passing under I-5. The group rode casually through Del Mar, where we saw Jeff & Eileen coming back from thier early am spin, and Solana Beach before we hammered it along Cardiff Beach and up towards Swami’s. Cresap had to u-turn there while the rest of us rolled through the center of Encinitas. Just past Encinitas, Tony broke a rear spoke so we waited as Rick B did his mechanic thing to fix up the tire. John M and Hodges rode ahead while the rest of the group waited for Tony’s wheel to be ready. The group spun up to Oceanside Harbor, Oleg and Bernie pushed the final sprint pace before we all regrouped for a rest.
Rick B had to head back along the coast but the rest of the riders were game for a little inland adventure. Oleg pulled lots along the San Luis Rey River Trail, with a few others hitting the point a bit. We rode onto North River Road until we hit Sleeping Indian, the climb we knew lay ahead of us. I was on point at the turn so I just picked up the pace a bit at the start of the climb. Oleg and Bernie eventually blew by me and I tried in vain to hold their wheel. Hodges came up to me and did a pull before falling back a bit. We all regrouped at the top of a long climb and then did one final climb before getting to Morro Hills; the curvy descents were smooth and fast. We hit Olive Hill Road and headed towards Bonsall. Oleg was on point and I was right on his wheel as we flew down the winding road until coming to Highway 76. Most of the group stopped for water. I waited for the last of the riders to show and we carried on towards Little Gopher Canyon. At rest stop, Sheehan had to reverse course towards Oceanside to see his nephew play in a LAX tourney. I had Hodges, John M, Andrey and Marisa with me while Tony, Oleg, Bernie and Guido were at the gas station "refueling". Our group pedaled along Old River until we hit Little Gopher Canyon Road; this is a narrow road with lots of trees that cuts across to Gopher Canyon. The traffic on Gopher Canyon was busy as usual, but we only had to ride about a mile or so to get to N. Twin Oaks Valley Road.
Twin Oaks Valley has almost no traffic and climbs up and down as it heads south towards San Marcos. We regrouped at the top of the first climb and waited for the whole gang to get back together; we still had 9 riders. The first descent is pretty bumpy before the next climb up. Oleg and I hit the final top first and we cruised down to Deers Springs Road where we waited for the rest of the gang. We knew Deer Springs would be a tight climb up towards I-15; the road is too narrow and traffic is very heavy. We all made it successfully to Mesa Rock Road, just before the freeway interchange. We cruised south and went onto City Center Parkway. No more regroups were planned as everyone was dispering in different directions once we got to the mall. Oleg, Guido and I bid adieu to Tony at the back of the mall. He was waiting for Hodges who planned a stop for more food before continuing his big loop along Del Dios to get 100 miles in for the ride. Bernie was escorting Andrey and Marisa back to Pomerado Road; he got in just short of 100 miles for his long ride.
Oleg did all the work as he pulled me and Guido along West Bernardo Drive. We did a quick water stop at the park and continued on through 4S and behind Black Mountain. We had been out riding so long, the weather started to turn cold again as we got to the 4S neighborhoods. After climbing Carmel Valley Road, Oleg kept going towards the coast to get in his 100 miles while Guido and I turned on Black Mountain Road towards home. We both hit about 86 miles and 4,100 feet of climbing, with very tired legs, by the time we got home. It was a great club ride, I have a link to some photos below.
San Diego Descenders Cycling Club 