San Diego Descenders Cycling Club

Twelve Descenders rode Soledad Adventure today. Eight of us met at BMR, and we picked up Chris, Jeff (two Englishmen!) and Eileen on the bike path, and Len (who was working today) at the top of Torrey Pines. With Tony and myself, a third of the group was europeans.

Geoff and Steve were pushing the pace up Torrey Pines – Larry and I worked hard to bridge up but then Larry declares he needed to use the bathroom at the top and just rode away from us – quickly disappeared in the distance, as if the three of us were standing still. He took top honors on every single climb after that as well, by the way, strong climbing. We grabbed some free bananas handed out at the top of TP and kept going. Rob broke a spoke as we approached UCSD campus, which made Proulx (who was riding behind Rob) immediately hit the brakes before any of us had a chance to figure out what was going on, giving Rob about 30 feet of extra space, in case something goes really wrong. Good instincts, Proulx! Luckily it was just a minor problem. Rob fixed his wheel in about 10 seconds (impressive!) and we carried on – we decided to incorporate Black’s Beach as an additional climb – I think this was a new road for most, except for (I think) Geoff, Len and I.

We rode over to Soledad, and added another extra bit – a fun loopy detour via Al Bahr and Crespo Dr. – which look very scenically european – down to narrow, winding (and rather bad quality) roads and all. Rob pushed the pace on the first climb up Hillside, while Larry and I had to work really hard to chase after him – I was finally able to do it just barely by the end of the cyclocross path. I think it’s because Rob’s bike was now lighter by one spoke. I am removing half of my spokes to see if this makes me climb faster. (How many spokes does one need, anyways?) Proulx left as we continued to Country Club – his form is coming along nicely after his injuries.

As we hit Country Club now I was forced to chase Tony and Larry. I rode on Larry’s wheel to the top. I do this a lot lately. We took group photos at the scenic outlook and went up via Casa Alta, to another free banana and water station, courtesy of anywhere bicycle repair. Third climb featured Muirlands, LJ Scenic and Candlelight Dr and was comparatively mellow, perhaps in part because nobody knew this part of the route. Even I remembered it only vaguely.

At fourth climb up Soledad, up Pacifica and Soledad Rd, Len’s endurance was just amazing – he started Pacifica dead last, but rode through the group and finished strong 4th by the time we got to the cross. This was also first time for two Pacifica virgins – Rob and Chris. I can’t believe Rob never did Pacifica before – he says he always found an excuse to quit early. Not this time, Rob!

Len and Steve called it quits after 4 climbs, while the remaining 9 of us continued on to Via Val Verde, fifth and final climb. Despite a relatively smaller group at the start this is by far the biggest group of “survivors” who completed the entire route (plus a few fun extras we added today which did not deter anyone).

After our fifth climb six of the nine survivors went down Nautilus for a coffee break. The Starbucks at Fay was recently relocated somewhere, so we looped aimlessly around La Jolla downtown until we settled at the Living Room Cafe. Muffins and cappuccinos – what a fantastic way to finish the climbing portion of the ride (for the most part). We rode up along Calle del Oro, and as we got to UCSD, Larry and I parted ways with John, Eileen and Jeff. 69 miles for me and Larry, with 6,600ft of climbing.

Some photos are attached, the rest are at http://goo.gl/qWkVFQ.

Fantastic ride (fog and rain are gone), on some new roads and climbs. You should have come!
Oleg.

Hi All,

A bit late for the ride report but here is a summary of our TTT ride at Stagecoach.

Hope to see many of you tomorrow for the Soledad ride.

Rob

Stagecoach Century 2014-Triple D and Rob–TTT Ride.pdf

All, to add to quick report by Rob – it’s hard to keep track but I think we had a total of 19 riders come out for true Descenders “classic” route to Mussey and Pamo roads. We had two new riders – John and Marcus joining us, both very strong riders. It was also my first time riding with Bryan Taylor – who was doing super-strong pulls all day. On any ride you can hear a number of european accents – in our relatively small club we have representatives from Britain (2), Ireland, Scotland, Germany (2), Ukraine and perhaps several other countries that I am forgetting now.

Eric R. was late to start and was chasing us – unfortunately for him the pace was pretty quick as we went up 67 (he finally caught us on Mussey), and Hodges was riding ahead as he was recovering from illness (flu?) – we caught him at the top of 67.
We started with amazing patchy cloud cover that was quickly burned off as the sun came out by the time we reached Ramona.

We had a number of flats – one at the bottom of Mussey and another on approach to Ramona. I also manage to drop my chain at some point. These split off the group into two, but we re-united at Pamo again.

Normally we ALL stop as a group and wait for the flat to be fixed, but I would like to propose that if a rider has a flat in the beginning of out-and-back section (on approach to Pamo, or on early section of Old Julian, Mussey, Double-Peak etc.) – the group should reserve the right to NOT stop, and keep going. The rider who flatted can simply fix the flat and start riding towards the group and turn around as soon as they see the group coming back.
Even though it may help if another rider stops and helps make the flat tire fix, everyone should be completely self-sufficient in this fairly simple and commonly needed task (have CO2 inflator/cartridge or functioning pump, spare tube, perhaps a patch kit, levers, etc).

Even if a flat happens not on out-and-back section, the group should consider an option of keep riding easy tempo for a few (3-5) minutes and then turning around and loop back to the site of mechanical – this should give sufficient time for a rider to fix the flat, and does not require everyone to stop and stand around and wait.

Some photos are attached, more photos are at: http://goo.gl/Av1mwJ

You should have come! Oleg

Descenders,
in stark contrast to pain and suffering that was simultaneously experienced by many Descenders at the Stagecoach Century today, we have hosted one of the mellow-est rides ever attempted by Descenders. Eileen, Jeff, Denise and I met at my house – we picked up Larry 5 miles or so down Morena Blvd – Larry did a quick morning 20K ITT at Fiesta Island, swapped his TT bike for a cyclocross bike with 28mm tires and we were off to our Coronado Urban ride (for Larry this entire ride was an extended cool down).

The ride was also special as it featured the highest ever (by far!) percentage of female riders assembled on Descenders ride – 40%! Naturally, I take full credit for this (with some help from Eileen and Denise) – try and beat this record!

We took it easy going through urban sections of Hilcrest and North Park, descended down Florida St. by the Zoo, rode through dilapidated sections of Barrio Logan and soon we were on Bay Front bike path.

The pace was conversational – as Hodges would say a “pootle”. Nonetheless we ran into a few strangers who tried to race us going “full out” along bike path as we approach Coronado. We let them “win”, while spinning easy at approximately 13mph.

It was sunny and warm by the time we got to the Coronado Ferry Landing. The ferry going to downtown was departing just as we arrived to Coronado Ferry landing, but luckily there was another one in just 10 min, going to Convention Center. The Ferry ride was rather short. We rode through downtown and stopped at Cafe Italia in Little Italy for cappuccinos, cannoli and gelato. *(“Leave the bike, take the cannoli”). Little Italy was crowded with people, partly due to farmers market right around the corner. I learned from Eileen, who is of italian heritage, that creamy sweet stuff inside the cannoli is ricotta. I would have never guessed!

We slowly rode back, but decided to swing by and do a lap around Fiesta first. Turns out Eileen, Jeff and Denise never rode there. While Larry of course must have done 10,000 laps around the island and knows every little crack and grain of sand there. We rode through Ocean Beach bike path, across Mission Bay Drive bridge (boy, that thing is NARROW!) and Old Sea World Drive bike path to Fiesta. After nice pace line around Fiesta, we said goodbye to Larry who was parked there, and headed back. Instead of doing proper cool down we all sprinted up Ariane. Jeff took the top spot.
I was going to say that no KOMs were harmed during this ride, but I think both Eileen and Denise got a few QOMs, despite super-easy pace most of the time.

A fantastic, enjoyable ride with emphasis on camaraderie and sightseeing. Photos are at: http://goo.gl/Vp0YFq

You should have come!

We had 17 riders come out for our Old Julian Ride.

Larry and I rode from home. Normally we can cover the 20-mile section from Genessee in Clairemont to Pomerado and RB in just about 70 minutes, comfortably at about 17mph average. But perhaps because we caught a few too many red lights or perhaps because it was really really cold at the start (Larry had to ride through canyons that must have been in 30ies F), we were riding too slow (7 minutes too slow) – we got to the meeting spot at 8:07, and the group was already gone!

By the way, when I say “really really cold” I have to apologize to my friends in Chicago and East Coast who have had sub-zero F temperatures all week. “Really Really cold” by SoCal standards, where sub-60F is cold, sub-50 is “really cold” and sub-40 is really really cold. We have no word for sub-30F temperatures because this never happens. Supposedly water freezes then but I think it’s a myth, I guess we’ll never know for sure.

We tried to chase the group (which apparently left at 8:04), hoping to see them coming up HVR but it was hopeless. Strava records indicate the group was really flying and despite Larry and I doing our best impression of two-man time trial team, we were actually losing time to the peloton – on flat HVR section and the climb to Bandy canyon we lost over a minute!

Luckily for Larry and I, (but not for him) Rick W had an issue with cassette and the group stopped at the bottom of Bandy Canyon. It was good to see Janet who keeps coming out for our rides regularly, John and Len were in the group, as well as Bernie, Neil and Jim who I haven’t ridden with in a while. Happy Birthday to Bernie! It was also good to see aero-Sheehan who was all smiles as usual and did some strong pulls with his aero bars and aero helmet. He and Rob are riding stagecoach as a team with Boyle and Ernst – good luck guys! That’s a strong team!
We went up Ramona grade lead at a steady pace by Rick B, and our group has dwindled down to about 6 or so when Rick W attacked towards the top, and Jim easily chased him down. Neil and Larry were never under much pressure, but Voris and I were on the rivet. Rob stayed with us almost until the last few steep sections when he wisely let us go. We regrouped in Ramona and rode over to Old Julian. On the climb I watched the front group of Jim, Rick, Neil and Larry ride away from Rick W. while Tony, Janet, Rob and I were chasing them at our own pace. There was a strong acceleration from Jim that dispatched Larry and for a moment gapped Rick and Neil, or so it seemed. The top trio of Jim Rick and Neil were chased by Larry who was chased by Rick W who was chased by me who was chased by Tony who was chased by Janet who was chased by Rob who was chased by Bernie who was chased by Mike etc. Everyone had a 30-yard gap on everyone else but nobody caught anyone as far as I could see.
We also picked up another rider named Steve.
On the way back there were a few strong pulls on Old Julian but nothing too crazy. We regrouped at Chevron, by now it was 70+ F. Hodges had a flat and we waited for him for a while but decided to head on home. Part of the group went back via HVR while the rest of us rode through SPP. Bernie rode up Pomerado hill with me and Larry to add some elevation, while Jim and Rick stopped at Subway for a sandwich.
It was a fantastic day in Ramona area (especially once it warmed up) – you should have come! (Photos attached)

Good luck to everyone who is riding stagecoach next Saturday! For those who prefer dessert to the desert, I will be holding a low-key sight-seeing/coffee/pastries ride to Coronado returning via Ferry next Saturday, starting from my house in BayHo around 8:00 (leaving 8:10).

Descenders, we had our official first Saturday ride of 2014 yesterday.
There were a total of 20 descenders riding – 16 descenders showed up at the start, including Bob Raibert with his 8-year old daughter Elle (?) on a tandem. Now we know how Bob scores those KOM segments – he has a secret mini-human motor in the back! She should be worth at least extra 50Watts!
We picked up Proulx (I believe his first outing with descenders since his crash) and Eric while we were riding by Santaluz. Jeff and Eileen try to catch up with us at the Stud loop but were a bit too late. It was a bit chilly at the start but warmed up eventually.

Eric, Larry and Rick were clearly the strongest on all the climbs (even though they were taking it easy, chatting together while climbing), with Tony, Steve, Geoff and I chasing them. Janet was also consistent on all climbs, easily catching me and Geoff at the very top of HVR.

Descending towards Del Dios Rick introduced us to a new bike trick – he bunny-hopped over a dead skunk by the side of the road, a.k.a. "skunk-hop". Don’t try this at home, Rick is a pro!

On the way down Mussey fearless Claus tried to escape early on, but he was brought back. Then he tried again towards the bottom. This time Guido was able to go with him. I couldn’t see it from the distance, but I think Claus got the best of Guido in the final downhill sprint. Either way, it was close.
On the way back up, Larry and Eric raced each other to score top 10 in steep Mussey strava segment, while german national team of Rick and Claus teamed up against the rest of us to launch Claus into yet another breakaway. We caught 2 lady riders who knew Janet on our way down 67. They were pretty fast but decided to ride with me and Larry as we turned on Pomerado, despite protests from Hodges who encouraged them to follow him and the rest of descenders who continued straight up SPP.
Larry and I rode back home, ending up with 95 and 94 miles respectively, but Claus, who added some serious miles before and after the ride, ended up with 104 miles for the day!

Selected photos below, while more photos are at:
https://picasaweb.google.com/109410926478548321411/20140104?authkey=Gv1sRgCNXChPrPns3fPQ

You should have come!
Oleg.

On New Year’s Day we had an impromptu ride, assembled quite literally last-moment. Voris sent an email at 8:40AM about a ride starting at 11 at his house. I rode to Casa Voris and met with Hodges and Voris. Hodges did 50-miler (very similar route) with Voris the day before and then ran up Iron Mountain that morning!
From there we headed over to 7-11 and met with Ernst and Tony. Not bad for a 2-hour notice.We rode some new roads (or at least they were new to me) – check out strava. Let me just say there was a lot of 19% steep gradients, "No trespassing" signs and cursing of Hodges who took us on intentional up-and-down, out-and-back loop just for his own sadistic entertainment. It was warm, with the temperatures in upper 70ies, and since I just came back from single-digit temperatures in Boston, it was nice to enjoy summer-like weather.
Because there was only 5 of us, there was almost no regrouping, even after the steepest sections. Tony and Ernst are in excellent climbing shape and kept pulling away from us. We hit 67 and descended down to Mussey. Hodges immediately turned around while the four of us took a brief break. On the way back, Tony and Ernst separated on the climb, while Voris and I took it easy. Ernst waited and did a super-strong pull – we caught Hodges who kept going through HVR, while the rest of us went down 67 (Ernst wen back High Valley, the way we came).
Excellent way to start a New Year. Happy New Year!
You should have come, Oleg.

12 or so Descenders met at the BMR/56bp rendezvous. Geoff B turned up and like Bryan the week before left the ride before it begun – Bryan turned up for atonement. The pace was somewhat languid to the climb up to RSF, when Larry became "sporty", and I was popped off the back, feeling comforted that I had given the group strict instructions to do Stud Loop – a detour I had no intention of riding. Bob P was also missing Stud Loop but was in more social mood than I – hence he waited and I pedaled on. I should of course have felt guiltily, lonely and sneaky by riding solo to Double peak – I did not. The ride up Double Peak was bliss – I gently spun the pedals along the off road path that runs parallel to San Eilijo road (BWR training) and even waited at the light before the final left hand turn on to DP road. Near the top the GC riders came past me fast – Larry (muttering pointing a finger at me and saying "cheater"), Rick W (breathing hard), Steve K (great performance), Tony, Dave G, with Claus, Bryan, John M et al a bit further back. Kudos to Steve K for getting the third place on the podium and nearly catching Rick W. Nice pictures at the top with a young guy who turned up for the Swamis B and foolishly found his way to Swamis A – and never saw them again as they dropped him.

After DB we descended fast – Tony was flat on the bike as he screamed past everyone as we played through and off a bit on the way down. Left hand turn onto Elfin Forrest Rd then right hand up and on to Ambiente. Now those of you who have done this little gem will know of its qualities. Its pitchy, steep and longer than you think. Its actually quiet hard to do fast – which is why John M and I pootled our way to top having given the GC riders carte blanche to push forward to the finish line without us. John was riding strong and put some distance into me, but thankfully managed to regroup near the bottom of the descent. Claus, Tony and Steve had waited, so the five of us turned left on to Del Dios Hwy and then later did the wonderful detour along Lake Drive – that is a cracking section. Sadly for me I was again popped off the back and looked at John’s florescent rain jacket disappearing once more. The boys were waiting for me at the junction of Lake Drive and Via Rancho. We turned right and up we went and I went off the back – I realized that I was so far behind I really wasn’t on the same ride as the others, and it was at that moment I entered the parallel vortex where Yi Shiou had been on the "Five Faces of Soledad". I was looking at the group way off in the distance and could have sworn that everyone rode beyond the right hand turn to the 15 bridge. So I took a sneaky short cut through the woods (BWR practice) and slipped and skidded my way off road to the foot bridge over the road (hairy down hill). No Descenders were to be seen – looped all the way back to the gas station – still no one else, so road home over Lake Hodges and then took my favorite way back to home …. via LTE’s famous detour and Black Mountain. 65 miles and 5.5K climbing – I have no idea how we get to climb so much for a ride that is so close to the coast.

See you next Saturday.

On Sat, Dec 28, 2013 at 12:38 PM, Michael Hodges <Michael.Hodges> wrote:

Sunday "B" Ride Report by Rob V

RSF, Elfin Forest and 4S Ride Report-Dec 13.pdf

Mussey Road and Pamo Road Ride Report
by Rob Verfurth

Mussey Grade and Pamo Road Ride Report-Dec 2013.pdf

Fives Faces of Soledad Ride Report
by Mike Hodges

Yes, well the big story is the great turn out – we had 7 truly hard nuts, two hopefuls and a load of wimpos.

The two hopefuls turned around at the sound of thunder at the base of Soledad to go get a Starbucks – but at least they had courage to come out. Notes to the headmaster were received from Rick and Denise who were out riding, Bob P who is injured and was on his turbo (apparently with a wind fan and water being sprinkled on him to mirror ride conditions), Mike F was achieving his I hr a week Strava cycling goal, John B in Hawaii and Eileen with the kids. As for the rest of you – "ba humbug" (that is the opposite of Hogwash). Please note that tomorrow’s ride is a "B" ride which means we go slow. My legs are burnt out (this was the fastest five faces we have done as a club – Oleg please don’t do the calculus a la Sheldon Cooper to prove that statement incorrect as this was your ride and you didn’t even turn up) so no going fast for all you guys (and gals) who have saved their legs.

We met at BMR and 56bp – no photo from Rob, should have been seen as an omen that he was already preparing to bale and didn’t want a record of the ride. Myself, Tony, Bryan, Yi-Shiou, Paul P, Dave G, Rob V (the latter two would soon go AWOL). There was a little chatter from the locals about the weather and what might happen – the British Isles chaps looked at each other and shrugged.

The pace was brisk to the foot of TP, where we met a resplendent Larry sporting a dashing red kit. Further up TP was Jeff S sporting hips which is worrying as he is already too fast. Up TP where Bryan, Jeff, Larry and Paul chatted whilst spinning nonchalantly. It was the first climb and was disconcerting for us laggards. We zoomed down past the Aquarium – the sea looked Azure, the sky without a cloud in the sky and temperatures around 90 (maybe I am embellishing somewhat). As we rolled along LJ Shores there was a rumble heard above Mt Soledad – this put RV and DG into some kind of apoplexy, quivering and shaking, and heading for the bunkers. Before turning they gently enquired if anyone was coming with them – some one was heard muttering "well I am doing the f&5$ing ride". So what was nine was now seven. We moved forward wiggling a bit around the LJ tennis club then up the approach hill, right turn onto prospect and a U turn to wait calmly at the traffic lights, Left turn down the hill and right turn to the first climb.

We did Hillside, Country, Nautilus, Pacifica and Valverde. All were done in fairly sharp order – enough to ship Yi-Shio off the back, into a parallel universe where he remained fr the rest of ride. We kept meeting him on the mountain as we were leaving the top – poor chap’s Strava will look incomplete but credit to him as he came out took a spanking and kept coming back for more. A true Descenders. The order at the top tended to Bryan, Jeff and Larry (alphabetic order). Honorable mention to Tony who turned himself inside out on the first few climbs to hang just a bit back from the front runners. Paul P was there or there about with Tony. I was clinging on with fingernails to Tony and Paul, One variation to my liking is that nobody wanted to stop at the top – I kept saying we should stop for a rest, take a shower clean the bikes and chill – but there was a sense of urgency and drive coming from somewhere; so we did the first three climbs in one hit, took a 3 min break and did the next two in one hit.

On the way back towards the 56 we lost Yi-Shio (abducted by extra terrestrials no doubt), Larry Peeled off, Jeff had already missed Valverde … so that left Tony O, Bryan and myself. There was a little chatter from us British Isles chaps about the weather – we looked at each other and shrugged. C’est La Vie – as they say in England.

Descenders,after a few days of rain yesterday’s ride seemed a bit dicey, with predictions of a reasonable chance of precipitations. Nonetheless we had 13riders come out for an Alpine ride. As I pulled up to Springmeadow Guido was already waiting. Soon we were joined by John Moran, followed by Jeff and Eileen, and Rick, as well as Voris and Hodges.
We rode over to the 7-11, where Ernst, Bernie, Tony O’Gorman, Yi-Shiou and another Tony, DiLorenzo, were waiting.

It was a bit chilly at the start but we warmed up quickly as we climbed SPP.
The group stayed together until the Dehesa – Ernst went for a breakaway past the fire station, but Tony O did a monster effort and pulled me to him. The three of us worked together on easy slopes but couldn’t hold off Rick-lead group of Guido and Bernie, they reached us just as the steep section started. Ernst did a super-long pull, and Guido followed by another pull that split the group apart a bit but we all reached the turn to Tavern more or less together. Bernie and I got away again, just before reaching the plaza. The parking lot had a farmers market and we explored it a bit.
It was getting chilly there! After a brief snack we headed back. We were together until climb up 67. I hate that climb! Bernie set a hard tempo and I got on his wheel. Rick rode by, and I could see that we were chased by Ernst and TonyO, with Guido not far behind. We had a maybe 15-second gap at the top of the first half but Ernst got into his aerobars and closed it easily – he just kept going and broke away from the group that now included Rick, Bernie, myself, Tony and Guido, lead by Rick. At the very top Ernst still was holding us off but Guido outsprinted him at the very end. I was cramping a bit as lack of mileage was getting to me.

We did a few strong pulls coming back to Springmeadow, now the sun was out and it was warm, almost hot!

Guido and Ernst were amazing today, as was Bernie – very strong. A lot of us had PRs all around, with Eileen scoring a bunch of QOMs despite just recovering from being sick last week.

A few photos are attached, more are at http://goo.gl/t9na8X.

Great day to be on the bike, you should have come!

Oleg.

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Subject: Lake Wohlford and Lilac Road Ride Report (by Rob V)

Lake Wohlford and Lilac Road Loop-2 Nov 13.pdf

Hi Guys,

Voris hosted another group ride, falsely advertised as a "B" ride. We had a good turnout of 12 guys for the Sunday ride. We all met on the bike path before heading toward PCH. Included in the group were John M, Len (TE), Voris, Guido, Cresap, Claus, Sheehan, Ernst, Bernie, Rob, Tony and his son, Patrick. The 45 mile loop took us to PCH, up to La Costa and back into RSF. After climbing Three Witches most of us climbed the Run of the Knolls loop in Santaluz before heading back to the bike path.

The pace was mostly in control with the occasional surges. It warmed up nicely and it was a beautiful morning to be on a bike. One fast surge occurred along La Costa Road where Ernst sped to the front. The group flew at 30+ mph to El Camino Real. The climb up to Lago Lindo was very pedestrian but there was an attack on Three Witches that split the group. At the entrance to Santaluz we lost Ernst and Sheehan who were heading back to Poway. Tony had already left us in RSF.

We lost a guy or two at every major intersection so we were down to just 5 guys by the time we got back to the bike path. I ditched for home, pleased with a short ride. A few photos are below.

Rob

Hi All,

Oleg was on the front of our group most of the ride, holding back his pace a bit. I was on the back of the group most of the ride, holding on as best I could. Tony got the save of the year award for a near miss of wheels touching on the descent of Old Julian. After two swings left and right, he managed to keep his bike up and slow to a stop. Great balance skills Tony. It was a fun morning of riding and a great group ride. Here are a few photos.

Rob

Descenders,7 of us rode to Old Julian today. It was a bit chilly at the start – Rob, Guido and I rode from Springmeadow to the meeting spot, where only Eric was waiting – but soon we were joined by Tony, Bernie and Cresap. Cresap was uncrecognizable – he was riding a new Diamondback ride and was sporting a mean goatee. Don’t F with Cresap!

Because we had a fairly small number of riders, all roughly equal ability and because nobody was trying to prove anything to others, we rode essentially the entire 60+ miles as a group – we climbed HVR together (for the first time, in my memory), rode down Bandy canyon and climbed most of Ramona Grade as a group (we only had to regroup once during this ride, briefly waiting for Cresap at the top), then we climbed Old Julian together – Cresap had to go home early to do some woodwork, and Eric turned at the top of the Old Julian as he was racing the next day. We kept it controlled but the 5 of us pushed the pace only a bit towards turn around point at the end of Old Julian – Rob got a strava KOM, clocking a segment at 30+mph!

The five of us returned via SPP into a headwind, 64 miles and 4,300 ft of climbing on a beautiful day. Fantastic day of training and truly a "GROUP" ride.

Photos:
http://goo.gl/y3iUuz

You should have come!

Hi All,

Dave Voris organized a nice "B" paced Descenders ride today. A group of us met at Casa Voris before rolling towards Sycamore Canyon. We had Voris leading the ride, along with Guido, Cresap, Len (TE), John M, Rob and Sy was back in town on another visit. We rode a friendly pace to meet Bill Wood, in country from Australia again, before we started to climb toward SPP.

At the top of SPP we noticed Guido had a gnarly slice in his tire so he gently reversed course and pootled home to replace his tire. The rest of us sped to the bottom of 67 in Lakeside and rode over toward Willow.

Voris stayed on point keeping the paced under control and blocking wind for those of us tucked behind . We made the turn onto El Monte and Voris again took point. He pulled us all the way to the final climb at the reservoir.

We took a short break to enjoy the spectacular views before returning back on El Monte. Voris pulled us to the end for our water break at the 7-11 store. The group then returned back to the climb up 67 to SPP. Cresap and Bill snuck away a bit early from the break so they were already climbing by the time the rest of us got to the turn. Sy pushed to the front and quickly caught, then passed Jeff and Bill. Voris went with Sy and the rest of us rode up at a controlled pace. Len pushed hard to catch the wheel of Voris and Sy. The three of them were at the top when Jeff and I got there.

We regrouped and headed down SPP. Some of the guys headed back to Casa Voris while John M and I rode all the way to Black Mountain Road. John headed south while I climbed back to the bike path.

I finished with 59 miles at a nice pleasant 16 mph pace. Voris plans to host another "B" paced ride next Sunday up to Mussey Grade.

Here are a few photos. I will work on the ride report for the fast paced Saturday ride soon.

Rob

Hi Guys,

It was a very foggy weekend early in the mornings. We met Saturday on the corner of the 56 bike path and Black Mountain. There were a number of guests that Mike Hodges invited, they were all good riders. Joel, John and Lauren joined us for the ride. We also had Rick W, Rick B, Ernst, Bob P, Tony, Claus, Yi-Shiou, Chad, Oleg, Hodges and Rob. Chad was on his new Litespeed carbon bike, he is now riding even faster!

The group rather slowly made its way along the bike path and turned north towards Santaluz. We met Bob P at the south gate and rolled into the resort roads of Santaluz, no traffic and clean smooth surfaces. It was so foggy was could not see more than 100 yards ahead. We rode Run of the Knolls to the top and descended tentatively back down; at least the surface streets were not too wet. We exited onto San Dieguito Road and cruised down Three Witches, again a bit more cautiously than normal.

A quick regroup at El Apajo and then Hodges pulled us all the way toward Stud Loop. Oleg kicked it up a bit right before the corner and we regrouped again as we turned toward Lago Lindo. The fog was still thick so we took it easy down El Camino Del Notre. Yi-Shiou dropped a water bottle on the bumpy section so I stopped to retrieve it. We were separated from the group but caught up to John and he hammered back along Rancho Sante Fe Road to catch the guys at a light.

The pace was too quick for me and a few others as we fell back. The fast guys hammered up San Elijo toward Double Peak. The sun was breaking through and it was turning into a beautiful morning. At the top of Double Peak you could see all the thick clouds sitting down in the valleys with a highest mountains sticking out. There was a small wedding ceremony taking place at the top as well. Great views.

We screamed down back into the small town area before turning towards Elfin Forest. The pace was flying and things began to separate. The lead group of Rick W, Rick B, Ernst, Proulx, Chad, Oleg and one guy they picked up took off along Harmony Grove. Hodges fell off and Claus pulled Mike and me along at a brisk pace. Mike eventually fell back more and I hid behind Claus all the way. The lead group looked awesome as we saw them ahead along the curves. Everyone regrouped before we hit Lake Hodges.

Lauren rode south on Del Dios, back towards his home near the coast, while the rest of us rode Via Rancho Parkway towards I-15. Hodges was again on point for more than a mile pulling along the group. Things sped up rapidly in the race toward the mall. Rick W, Oleg, Chad, Ernst and a few others repeatedly attacked each other to get on point. We called truce just before hitting the freeway. We cruised over the Lake Hodges bridge on the freeway to get to Pomerado where the group split. Many guys headed down Pomerado while Hodges, Chad, Bob P and I rode west towards RB Park. Mike took us on his little tour of the neighborhoods and we cruised through 4S before climbing the back of Black Mountain towards home. Chad left for his house while Mike followed me back to the bike path; he was looking to get in a few more miles.

I finished with about 55 miles and 5,000 feet of climbing. Fun foggy ride that turned into a nice sunny finish. Attached are a few photos.

Julian Retro Ride-19 October 2013.pdf

Hi All,

Sheehan returned from one of his recurring business trips to Japan late on Friday so he was not able to do the Julian Retro Ride with us on Saturday. Dave got a few of us together to ride the classic Poway Grade/HVR Loop on another beauty day to be out on a bike.

Ernst and I met over at Sheehan’s house before we rolled over towards Poway HS to meet Dave Boyle. Sheehan pushed the pace along Espola as we headed for the Poway Grade. Just after we made the turn to begin our climb, we spotted Bernie flying down the grade, riding in a non-Descenders kit. He was also out getting in more road time after putting in a great effort in Julian, more on that ride in the next ride report.

Ernst and Boyle eventually pulled away from me and Sheehan on the climb but we regrouped at highway 67. Ernst led us along 67 to the top of the climb by Mount Woodson where Sheehan put the hammer down. The pace line towards Mussey was fast and we all took turns on point. I barely survived the pace and needed the break we took after the turn onto Mussey Grade. We decided not to do the descent and headed back to HVR.

Again, Ernst and Sheehan provided the pulls at the front while I hid as much as possible. We cut through Sky Valley to get to the top of HVR. Boyle led us out and I swept. Ernst and Sheehan were flying and quickly overtook Boyle, then disappeared from my sight. Boyle and I finished the final descent together and he pulled us back to regroup with the fast guys.

We rode to Pomerado and looped back toward Sheehan’s house. It was a 31 mile loop and a beautiful morning. Always a good time out riding with some of the Descenders.

Ride On-
Rob