Then I walked over to where they were parked, to drop off my gear and started changing into dry clothes. We walked from there to a Mexican food restaurant for lunch. I was not hungry at all,but the two happy hour margaritas (not too much alcohol in them) really hit the spot. Chips were pretty bad, I had a couple of them. We walked back to the car after lunch and drove a little further east to Turtle Beach, got out and walked to where there were a bunch of sea turtles resting on the sand. A guy also had his pet goat tethered up, which was an attraction in itself. There was another guy spinning records on a portable stereo, so it was a minor scene apart from the turtles. Emily drove us back to the Airbnb after that, and the hot shower felt pretty wonderful.
Thursday, June 18, 2026
06/17/2026 Haleakala Ride
Well, here goes. This was quite a challenging day. I had packed my stuff up for the Haleakala ride the night before, so I got dressed, had a bread stick and a banana for breakfast and loaded up on fluids as well. Had carbs for the ride as well as Gatorade in bottles along with the powder. I was rolling around 5:37, glad that I had arranged to get the bike the day before (wouldn't have made it otherwise). I headed up Kihei Rd all the way past the barriers (there had been road flooding by a bridge but it was passable) and over to the road to Lahaina. A right turn there got me to the Maui Veterans Hwy, with I took north, using a pretty nice bike path that avoided having to ride on the shoulder. Over to Hansen Rd, by an old sugar mill (not sure if it's still operational), which gave me a shortcut to the Hana Hwy. I was on this just a short while until I turned onto the Haleakala Hwy. At this point the road wasn't really built for bikes, but its shoulder was protected by rumble strips and fairly wide. Not too long after the turn the grade started to tilt up. I stopped for a break around 7:00, ate a banana, and took a pic of the mountain covered in clouds (foreshadowing). I continued past the turnoff O to the Old Haleakala Hwy, and the road became the Kula Hwy. Stayed on this until I came to another intersection with the Haleakala Hwy. I figured I was getting close to the end of places to get water or drinks, so I backtracked on the Old Haleakala Hwy to a convenience store in Pukalani and bought a bottle of blue Gatorade. The two ladies in the store were very sweet, told me "God bless" as I left, which was a nice touch. I drank some of the bottle and used the rest to fill up NY empty water bottle and top the other one off. Then I rode back to the intersection and continued straight onto the Haleakala Hwy. This road had been recently repaved and was in excellent condition. I was at about mile 21 at this point, having climbed around 1700'. The road tipped up just a little bit and wound through some beautiful forested areas. Somewhere around this point I rode through the entrance gate to Haleakala NP, talked briefly with the ranger there (she didn't know the temperature at the top but said it was still socked in). This was the most scenic part of the ride, unless you are into barren landscapes and volcanic features. The road wound up to Kula (maybe there is a place to get water there, I didn't check) and turned onto Crater Rd. At this point I was at mile 28 and 3400'. Here is where the real climbing began. Initially it was in the form of a series of tight switchbacks with somewhat flat turns and steeper ramps, which went on for around seven miles and topped out at 5900'. This section also took me above the tree line and into the clouds, where I basically stayed, with brief intervals of sun breaking through, all the way to the top. I rode along an upward sloping ridgeline, winding but not switchbacks, that briefly went through a wooded area and lasted a little less than three miles to get to 6800'. I was definitely wearing down by this point, around 38 miles in. Probably also feeling the effects of the thinner air at this altitude. This next set of switchbacks was grueling. They weren't so steep by they seemed to last forever before coming up to the turns. Each ramp was a mile or more, and this section was a little over eight miles long, takimge up to 9200' and 46+ miles. Some folks at the last turn cheered me on and congratulated me on making the climb, but they missed the point that this last two and a half miles was the hardest. It followed another ridgeline up past the visitor center, and beyond this point it got steep again. I was gassed by this point and took it really slowly, stopping at least once to catch my breath and gather my strength. On this stretch my quads started to twitch, so I knew I was nearly at my limit without stopping for a longer rest. I made it to the parking lot just below the observation building, resting for a bit before attempting to climb the stairs there (I should have ridden up the paved path, but the thought of climbing on my bike at this point was off limits). A number of people congratulated me on the ride, one of them asked me how long it had taken, and when I told her (7.5 hours) was pretty amazed. It was overcast at the top, so not much to see down-country. Took the stairs to the observation building, shot some pics there, and recorded a get-well soon video for Audrey. Topped out at a little less than 49 miles and 9900'. I ended up riding down the path back to the parking lot and stopped to put my jacket on to keep warm on the descent. Little did I know. Started down, and it was initially fine, although chilly from the air temperature. I had drunk all of my water, so I stopped at the visitor center on the way down, went to the bathroom, and refilled my bottles. Then I was rolling on the descent again. At one pout I went through a thermal zone as it got more cloudy and the temperature rose. I thought, "This is manageable." But it didn't last, got colder and denser in fog until I had to slow down just to be able to see. At times the visibility was less than 100 yds just to see car headlights coming. Then it got worse. It started out as mist, then drizzle, then steady rain, finally roads so wet that I was riding through water. This continued, off and on, for quite a while. It would subside, the fog would lessen, and I would think/hope that I had ridden through the worst, only to enter another cloud bank. I was cold, had numb hands and toes, and shivering, definitely in an uncomfortable and unhappy state. It got perhaps a little lighter as I continued the descent but never completely let up until I came off Crater Rd around mile 70. I had stopped a couple of times at turnoffs to rest my arms and get a little break. At one point, when it was really raining, I stopped under some trees and contemplated my miserable condition. Here is where I thought about stopping and calling Ann for a pickup. But I persevered and kept going until mile 70.Then it was like a light switch, was still overcast but I had dropped below the clouds. It had started to dry out and warm up by this point and kept doing so until the end. At mile 76 or so, just above Pukalani, I turned off onto a smaller road,??, that was largely descending with few sharp turns and was a real thrill to ride. This was the most fun section of the ride, which I had hoped would include more descending like this. It took me through Makawao and dropped me into Paia. I was watching my route map on Strava and was thrilled when it showed I was getting close to the bike shop. It was less than 10 miles of descending without cold, fog, or rain, but it was glorious. I'd called Ann and let her know my ETA, turns out they were very close to where I was. Got to the shop, took my gear off the bike and checked it in, while they looked for a parking spot.
Tuesday, June 16, 2026
06/16/2026 Walk
Planned easy day before the big challenge on Wednesday. I woke up and read for a while, had some leftover grilled food for breakfast. Later on we walked up to a little marketplace area and strolled through the shops. We stopped at Foodland and got a couple of items before Ann and I walked back, while Emily and Caleb got food and had lunch in the park by the ocean. I read some more in the afternoon, avoided taking a nap, and drove to pick up my rental bike in Paia. That went off without a hitch, and I saw some of the roads I will ride on from Kihei. It will take a little longer to get to the point where I can turn south and head up. So many factors could turn this ride into a bigger challenge. Drove back to the Airbnb and plotted out my route on Strava, ending at the bike shop in Paia. In the late afternoon we drove (Emily) down to a fancy walking outdoor mall in Wailea and watched a hula demonstration. The dances and dancers were varied and excellent through and through, a quite pleasant free experience. We ate at Black Rock Pizza on Kihei for dinner, it was okay, a good carb-loading session with breadsticks too. Back to the Airbnb, where I packed up my stuff into a fanny pack, not sure about taking water due to the weight. It will be a gametime decision in the morning.
Recent books
The Maze Runner trilogy
Ben Mezrich, Bitcoin Billionaires
Adrian Tchaikovsky, Children of Time
Saturday, June 13, 2026
06-13-2026 Walk
This was a weird day and not a great one. I woke up after a very fitful night of sleeping. Feeling a little out for sorts but not too bad. We walked to a nearby Cafe for breakfast, food was decent, staff were very friendly, prices were high (as expected). We walked back, and I started to feel a little worse. Went to a Food Town to pick up groceries for the week (Yikes!) adn then drove back to the Airbnb. The others decided to walk to the beach, but I was starting to feel worse, so I stayed back and slept. It didn't make me feel any better, I was achy and starting to run a slight fever. Pain in my belly, not sure from what, so I stayed in bed most of the afternoon and evening. Was originally scheduled to go disco dancing with the others in the evening, but that wasn't going to happen. They went and had a good time while I tried to rest and feel better.
Friday, June 12, 2026
06-12-2026 Run/Swim
Woke up around 5:30, it was already pretty light outside. I love this part of the year for that reason. I had gotten up in the night and had a bowl of cereal and a banana, probably too much caffeine the previous day. Got ready for a run, and I started around 5:40 after stretching out my hamstrings in particular. Down by the park, beginning at a faster pace than usual. I did the 5k route and had significant negative splits throughout, including a 7:12 third mile, where I was working pretty hard. Finished the 5k and walked uphill the rest of the way home.
Avg pace = 7:34/mi
Total distance = 3.17 mi
Elapsed moving time = 23:59
Avg heartrate = 135 bpm
Relative Effort = 14
Had a little time after I got back, so I started cleaning up my cycling analysis program code, taking out some redundancies in the code and replacing them with a common function. Got that done successfully, and I packed up my stuff for a swim at the WWC. I met Avi there, didn't have a lot of time, so I ended up swimming four 250s at tempo, followed by a cool-down 100, with a pull buoy. My stroke got increasingly ragged as time passed, so I still need a lot more work to build my endurance at high pace. Here are the split times: 4:13, 4:10, 4:19, 4:16, 1:47. I did try mixing in breathing every three strokes, and at the end of the 250s I was breathing every two strokes and pushing hard in an effort to sprint. I didn't record the last 100 on my watch.
Avg pace = 1:43/100 yds (Video, not counting pauses)
Total distance = 1100 yds
Elapsed moving time = 18:54 (Video)
Avg heartrate = 144 bpm (just for the first 1000, perhaps)
Relative Effort = 27 (for the first 1000, perhaps)
SWOLF = 35 (for the first 1000)
Avg stroke rate = 23 bpm (for the first 1000, more strokes to go faster)
Avg pull distance = 2.35 yds (for the first 1000, see above)
Got done with the swim and took a shower in the locker room, then changed to ride over to the new HP San Diego site and meet Hongwei and Paula for a tour of the facilities. I saw a lot of folks I knew, which was cool. The space is definitely more compact but workable, I think, given the charter of the HPSD site. Had coffee in the break area and saw more folks stopping by or walking through. All in all it was a very nice little diversion, I'm thankful to Hongwei for volunteering to give us the tour. I rode home after that, did a little more packing and organizing of stuff for the Hawaii trip before riding my scooter down to Mom's Pizza in Sorrento Valley to meet some ex-LEP folks for lunch. At the lunch were: James, Rima, Kyle, Dan, Bor-Jiunn, Hongwei, Anna, Rachel, and her husband and baby daughter. I talked mostly to Dan, Anna, Rachel, and her husband. Food was good, so was the service. Anna and Dan are now working down in Sorrento Valley. Took 35-40 minutes to get there, stopped to get money from the CU on the way back. I was pretty weary when I got home but needed to finish packing and checking my travel list. Got it all done without much time to spare. Emily and Caleb showed up around 3:30, we packed the car, and then we drove down to the airport parking lot. A little traffic on the 163 near I-8 but not as much as feared. We got to the airport by 4:30, and of course my phone wouldn't connect. Had to restart it twice before it started working, but we got through security okay and to the gate with plenty of time. Caleb gate-checked his bag, so we got to board with an earlier group. The flight wasn't full, Ann and I had empty middle seats next to us. Got free high-speed Starlink internet, courtesy of T-Mobile, it worked great. Flight was long, I dozed a number of times. We arrived early, even though we left late, and I hustled over to the Thrifty rental car counter to make sure I got there before it closed. No issues there, I got the car and waited for the others to arrive on the tram after picking up their luggage. Drove to the Airbnb in Kihei with no issues and got into the place fine, then it was to sleep after a long day.
Thursday, June 11, 2026
06-11-2026 Ride
Woke up before 5:00 and got up a little after 5:00. Had a bowl of cereal, got ready for a bike ride, and emptied the dishwasher. I left the house and started down the hill before realizing I didn't have water bottles. So I turned around, got the bottles, and headed out down the hill. I left around 5:40, down by the park and over Lake Hodges on the freeway, turning left on Via Rancho Pkwy. I rode to Felicita Rd and took it past Felicita Park and over to Gamble Ln. Thought about taking this up the hill, but I had enough time to take the longer route via Bernardo Ave, whose more gradual grade was a better fit for what I am training for. Up to 11th Ave and then down to Del Dios Rd, taking a left and then a right on Avenida del Diablo. Over to Citracado Pkwy, right turn, then a left on Harmony Grove Village Pkwy. I rode down to Harmony Grove Rd, turned left and took it to Harmony Grove Village Community Park. The gate was locked, and I thought Paula was driving to our meet-up spot, so I sent her a text to meet at the nearby park (4th of July Park) in the neighborhood. I rode up there and waited for a short while, then she called me and said she was by the park (it turns out she was at the original park, she'd ridden there). So I rode back down to the park and connected with her, heading west on Harmony Grove Rd. I dialed my pace back on this general descent, doing a lot of coasting until we turned onto Elfin Forest Rd, where I stayed slow and rode with her on the first climb. I got out ahead of her on the second climb, in part because she dropped her chain. We rode to Schoolhouse Way, a new road for me, and turned right, climbing past San Elijo Rd and turning right on Lighthouse Rd. We took a left on Misty Sea Way, then used an access path to get to Pearl Dr, which seems to be service road in this section. It got pretty steep, up to 15% at times, and we had to get past a gate by a cul-de-sac, continuing the climb for a little longer. I got to the top and rode back down a little bit to stop and take a video of Paula climbing up through the fog. Stayed on Pearl Dr until turning right on Ruby Ct, then left on Wild Canyon Dr to get to Tucana Dr. Right turn there, down to Vega Way, taking a left there and another left on Lyra Ln, which got us back to Tucana Dr, where we took a left and then a right, staying on Tucana Dr (kinda confusing street names here) to get over to Double Peak Dr. Instead of turning left and heading straight up, we turned right, rode down to San Elijo Rd and took the bike path on the west side of the road to get up to Ledge St. This climb was gradual, as it was just after we turned left here and rode through the pedestrian gate. Then it got steep and stayed that way for a while until it flattened out just before another gate across the road. Past this gate there was a little descent before we connected with Double Creek Dr just before the water tower. It's steep here, I measured 13-14%, but not too long at this gradient before decreasing to below 10%. To the sign, and I went to the end of the parking lot before turning around and meeting Paula just coming up. We stopped for a short break in the shade, I went to the bathroom, then we took some pics by the sign before riding down. The descent wasn't as bad as I remembered, but then again I rode the brakes more than usual on the steep parts. Back down to San Elijo Rd, turning left and climbing back to Ledge St before taking the descent down Twin Oaks Valley Rd. As I was riding down this at high speed, a lady in a Tesla started moving into the bike lane and scared the crap out of me. I had a moment where I thought I was going to lose control but kept it together. I caught up to her at a light and told her off, and she was apologetic (better). But that really got my adrenaline going! We finished riding down the hill and stopped for a coffee and hot chocolate at the Starbucks in the shopping center to the left. Nice conversation as usual. We continued the ride (it was starting to warm up), taking Discovery St to Barham Dr, then turning right on La Moree Rd. Took this gradual climb to the top and then the steeper descent back to Barham Dr. Right turn there, riding more slowly and taking it to Meyers Ave, turning right there and then right again on Corporate Dr. A left on Progress Pl got us to Country Club Dr, where we turned right. This road is in bad shape, so we suffered for a bit until turning right onto Mt Whitney Rd. If anything, this road is in even worse shape, and it started to tilt up a fair amount just after we got past a gate in the road. It dropped us into the top of Harmony Grove Village. We turned right on Long Trot Dr and then left on Wilgen Dr, enjoying an easy descent back to Harmony Grove Rd. We split there, Paula had to climb back to her house, so she had some hard work left. I retraced my route (after stopping at the park to go to the bathroom) back to Citracado Pkwy and stayed on it up to Scenic Trail Way, using that road to get to the top of Gamble Ln. Since they paved this road, the descent is really nice, but I still rode the brakes for most of it. Down to Bernardo Ave, turning right and then left on Hamilton Ln to get back to Felicita Rd. To Via Rancho Pkwy and the normal way home from there. Legs felt good at the end of the ride, even though it had some pretty steep sections to navigate.
Avg speed = 13.2 mph. Total mileage = 39.2 mi
Avg power = 123 W. Weighted avg power = 160 W
Total elevation gain = 3580'
Avg heartrate = 114 bpm (Coospo)
Relative Effort = 54
Training Load = 183
Intensity = 73%
Got home and had an early, fairly light lunch. In the afternoon I started working on code to implement calculation of the Training Load metric from Strava into my cycling analysis program. First step was to gather the power zone data and bin it into the appropriate categories. It took a while, but I finally got it to display the same numbers as Strava shows. Next step is to create a dataset with Strava Training Load numbers and those power zone values to see if there is a linear set of equations that calculate TL. This work took me much of the afternoon and some of the early evening. I also watched a little TV.
Wednesday, June 10, 2026
06-10-2026 Ride
Slept pretty well, no nap the previous day. I got up around 5:30 and got ready for a shorter bike ride at an easy pace. Headed out a little after 6:00, didn't get far before I realized I had forgotten to put my derailleur batteries in. So I had to climb back home, get the batteries, and start all over. Down the hill and by the park, over to Pomerado Rd, where I started up, again not pushing the pace. It was good temperature for riding, I was in short sleeves. I ended up riding to the top of Pomerado Rd, again taking it easy, in first gear for the most part, on the last climb. Then I took Cypress Canyon Park Dr to Angelique St and rode back down to Scripps-Poway Pkwy. Continued down the hill on Springbrook Dr to Sabre Springs Pkwy and turned left there. I stayed on it until turning onto Evening Creek Dr and taking that little spur until it reconnected to Sabre Springs Pkwy. From there I followed the time trial route all the way back home. Slow and steady the whole way.
Avg speed = 14.6 mph. Total mileage = 24.5 mi
Avg power = 121 W. Weighted avg power = 150 W
Total elevation gain = 1720'
Avg heartrate = 107 bpm (Coospo)
Relative Effort = 20
Training Load = 85
Intensity = 68%
Got home and ate a light breakfast, did the dishes, and relaxed around the house until I needed to start getting ready for my volunteer shift at the hospital. Showered and shaved, then headed over early so I could stop at Walmart and pick up some motor oil for my scooter. That went okay, but of course they didn't have the brand I wanted on the shelves, even though it was supposed to be there. I got some that should work and headed to the hospital. Ate my lunch there and went to the ED. Shift was pretty normal, I had periods where I was pretty busy and others where I just waited around. There was a guy in Room 7 who didn't want to be there, so security officers were there to make sure he didn't leave. It was uncomfortable for the latter part of the shift. Got busy near the end of the shift, as usual, but I was able to leave on time. Rode home and had a quiet evening. I talked to Ben before dinner, he had a CAT scan with contrast in the morning and will know about the results next week.
Tuesday, June 9, 2026
06-09-2026 Swim
Slept pretty well, although I did wake up hungry early and eat some cereal and a banana. I got back to sleep and woke up after 6:00 (<!>). Continued working on my cycling analysis program to format the segment data page a little more cleanly, including use of a monospaced font to get better alignment for the numbers. Then I got ready for a swim at the WWC, arriving around 9:00. Summer season is kicking in, so there were a lot more kids. I was able to get a lane in the pool, lane 5. Swam 1500 yds, the last 500 with swim fins. I paused my watch after the first 1000 and forgot to restart it, so it and Strava only recorded the first 1000. Here are the splits for the three 500s: 9:33, 9:31, 8:47. During this workout I focused on keeping my strokes long, and I practiced breathing every three strokes while keeping long strokes. Maybe it helped a little bit, but it still feels unnatural.
Avg pace = 1:51/100 yds (Video, not counting pauses)
Total distance = 1500 yds
Elapsed moving time = 27:51 (Video)
Avg heartrate = 143 bpm (just for the first 1000, perhaps)
Relative Effort = 19 (for the first 1000, perhaps)
SWOLF = 37 (for the first 1000)
Avg stroke rate = 20 bpm (for the first 1000)
Avg pull distance = 2.47 yds (for the first 1000)
Ann cut my hair later in the morning, and we went to Pizza Nova in San Marcos for lunch. It was okay, pricey and too salty with the Kalamata olives. Stopped at Walmart on the way home and got a couple of things for the trip, along with discovering that some items are cheaper to have delivered from the store than they are to buy in store. Weird. The rest of the afternoon and evening were quiet. I read, did some cleanup of my cycling analysis program code for displaying segment stats, and watched some TV.
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