04/10/2026 Swim

Slept okay, did wake up in the night and read for a while, but I got back to sleep (<!>). Had to hustle to get ready for my swim at the WWC when it opened. Talked to Tuan some about our Vietnam trip while we were waiting. The pool was crowded on this day but I had a lane to myself. Felt okay when I started but didn't have a lot of energy on this day. I ended up swimming four 500s with brief rest breaks in between. Here are the times: 9:12, 9:20, 9:26, 9:30. So, not great. My form was pretty bad on the last 500. On the plus side, the changes I made to the Amazfit watch settings not only restored the lap tracking in Strava but also incorporated pause times, so my elapsed times don't include the pauses any more.

Avg pace = 1:52/100 yds (Video, not including pauses)

Total distance = 2000 yds

Elapsed moving time = 37:28 (Video)

Avg heartrate = 129 bpm (likely)

Relative Effort = 6 (seemed like more of an effort than this)

SWOLF =36

Avg stroke rate = 20 bpm

Avg pull distance = 2.47 yds (seems too long)

https://www.strava.com/activities/18055611352

Rode home and had some breakfast before going out in the front yard and trimming the big bush on the west side of the yard. I got out there, and the bees were quite active around it, so I decided to avoid getting stung. Instead, I went out back and tackled the leaking sprinkler line. First, I trimmed the bird of paradise plant whose root system was right over the broken line. That took a while, including digging out the dirt to get at the line. Was messy work as well, but at least I was in the shade. I ended up digging out the line going back to the sprinkler valve (#2) as well. Tried to just reseat the PVC pipe in the flexible fitting and tighten it up, but that didn't work. So I went to Home Depot and got the parts to rebuild a section of the 1" sprinkler line heading back to the valve. I was tired from this work by this time, so I postponed the next steps of gluing in the new line and fittings. Instead, I gathered my tools and rode over to Ray's house to show him how to replace his brake pads. That went fairly smoothly, although he had a little bit of rubbing on his front brake. Will see how it goes during the Saturday ride. In the evening, we drove into Escondido and saw some performers at the Hidden City Sounds concert to celebrate some of the nominees - Jesse Ray Smith, Kimmi Bitter, and Rebecca Jade - for this year's San Diego Music Awards. The concert was good, we enjoyed Jesse Ray Smith, would go see him again. Americana music done pretty well. Kimmi Bitter was also decent, had a guy playing a Gretsch guitar to give her music a surf country feel. We drove home from there, I dropped Ann off, and the I drove to Carmel Country Rd to say hi to Paula on her longest leg for the RAGNAR run. Drove home and went to bed after a long day.

04-09-2026 Ride

Slept somewhat fitfully, caffeine from the coffee ice cream in the evening made for very vivid dreams. I woke up and read for a while but was able to get back to sleep. Got up around 5:45, unloaded the dishwasher, had a bowl of cereal, and got ready for a ride with Rob Tran. I noticed that my Wahoo battery was almost out, so that delayed my start a bit. It was still low when I needed to leave, so I connected it to my battery pack and took off. This was expected to be a harder day than normal, so I packed more food and put Gatorade in one bottle. Left home around 6:45, down by the park and over the freeway to BVP, taking it up to Valley Pkwy. I was maintaining a decent pace, not killing it but not wanting to be late. Once I saw I would have plenty of time, I slowed down a bit. Rode to El Norte Pkwy and got there around 7:20. Rob showed up about 7:25, and we continued on Valley Pkwy to Lake Wohlford Rd, where we turned right. Up this 2-mile climb, where they have paved a lot of the road, so it is much better now. I'll have to try it as a descent sometime soon. I got up to the top, turned around and rode back to Rob, who wasn't too far back. We continued through the village and then on the rolling stretch over to Woods Valley Rd. This is a nice piece of road to ride, and the temperature was just about ideal. We stayed on Lake Wohlford Rd to Valley Center Rd, where we turned right. I'd never been on this stretch on a bike, and the descent was thrilling. There is a decent shoulder, but I was going fast enough to make it a little sketchy to ride, with the morning traffic to deal with. Got down the hill and then over to Harrah's Casino (Rob stopped a little bit before to adjust his cleat). He bought some water there, I was good to go, so we continued up to the 76. Left turn through the roundabout onto a stretch of road that I don't think I've ever been on. It was probably a couple of miles to the turn onto Cole Grade Rd, where I stopped and ate a banana before we began the climb. The climb itself is about 2.5 miles long, and it seems to be steepest early on. I just dropped into a low gear and pushed up. Ended up with a time just outside the top 10 for my age group, but I think I could better my time, now that I know what the climb entails. I kept going after the climb, it was rollers pretty much all the way back to Valley Center Rd, although there was one little climb to negotiate. I circled back and rode to Rob, who wasn't very far behind at all. We stopped briefly after the turn onto Valley Center Rd, then continued on. My right shifter quit working for a bit just before and into the climb up to the top of Valley Center Rd. Thankfully, it started working again, and I was able to push to the top and get into the descent. Was fast and a little scary due to the swirling winds, cars, and trucks. A garbage truck passed me when I was at full speed and buffeted me, giving me an adrenaline shot. Got to the bottom, where Rob had caught up to me on the descent. We rode back to El Norte Pkwy, where we parted ways. Was a good ride with him, he is getting stronger and could end up being a pretty formidable cyclist if he sticks with it. I rode home the normal way from there via BVP, keeping a pretty good pace and benefiting from the net downhill grade after crossing San Pasqual Valley Rd. Across the freeway, and the last two little climbs were tough, legs were tired from the effort. But I made it home safe and sound, this was a good day on the bike.

Avg speed = 15.6 mph. Total mileage = 50.7 mi

Avg power = 146 W. Weighted avg power = 176 W

Total elevation gain = 3580'

Avg heartrate = 128 bpm (Coospo)

Relative Effort = 103

Training Load = 223

Intensity = 80%

https://www.strava.com/activities/18043793558

Got home before 10:30, so I had some time to relax before getting ready to ride to the SDHS in Escondido for my volunteer shift. It was another day of folding laundry, and I'm officially getting tired of this task. I did it, along with stocking the shelves, for about three hours, then rode home. Had a little time before I rode over to Phil's to meet Avi, Britt, and others at happy hour (no drinking when I'm riding the scooter). Was okay, talked mostly to Britt about a current work crisis as well as her childhood history of athletics. Rode home after that, had dinner, and spent a quiet evening.

04-08-2026 Run/Swim

As mentioned in the previous post, I drank too much Pepsi at dinner the previous evening, so I woke up in the night with a mildly churning stomach. Read for a bit and was able to get back to sleep, but I need to watch out for that next time. Got up a little before 6:00, read some more before getting ready for a run. I stretched more than usual before taking off, and this really seemed to help. No real leg pain or discomfort during the run, and my right foot was okay too, was noticeable at the start but it settled down. Down to the park for the usual 5k route, I was faster than usual on the first mile and kept putting in negative splits for the next two miles. So, this was my fastest run in a while, felt fine at the end.

Avg pace = 7:50/mi

Total distance = 3:16 mi

Elapsed moving time = 24:48

Avg heartrate = 134 bpm (Coospo)

Relative Effort = 14

https://www.strava.com/activities/18027326031

Got home and had some time to cool down before getting ready to head over to the WWC for a quick swim. The pool was busy on this Wednesday. I swam 1000 yds, had to stop several times to empty water from my goggles, and I also paused at 950 yds, thinking I was done. Here are the splits for the two 500s: 9:24, 9:23. I was able to maintain 18 strokes per pool length for the whole time. Slow strokes, would need to increase stroke frequency while maintaining pull distance. But the workout felt decent, and Strava is now capturing the lap data again.

Avg pace = 1:53/100 yds (Video)

Total distance = 1000 yds

Elapsed moving time = 18:47 (Video)

Avg heartrate = 129 bpm (likely)

Relative Effort = 6 (seemed like more of an effort than this)

SWOLF =36 (!)

Avg stroke rate = 20 bpm

Avg pull distance = 2.41 yds

https://www.strava.com/activities/18029099091

Got home and had some cereal and coffee before going in the side yard and replacing a length of aged drip sprinkler line. I buried the replacement line, found another leak and cut out that part of the line and capped it off. All good there. But I found a major leak on sprinkler line 2 that is going to be a big job to repair. Ugh! Not enough time to start that, so I shaved, showered, and got ready for my volunteer shift at the hospital. It was busier in the second half than the first, time went more quickly when I was busy doing stuff. There was a new nurse there, Frenchie, nothing much else to report. Rode home and watched some TV before dinner. It was a quiet evening, cleaned the kitchen, did some reading, went to sleep around 9:00.

04-07-2026 Mountain Bike Ride/Hike

Slept later than usual, until 6:30 or so. I had gotten up really early, had cereal for breakfast, then gone back to sleep. Leisurely preparation for the mountain bike ride with Andy, who showed up around 8:00. We drove over to the park and rode from there, he on his gravel bike and me on his mountain bike. Across the pedestrian bridge, then heading west, initially to the area by the boat launch, then to Hernandez Hideaway, finally continuing to the Lake Hodges dam. The way out seemed to have more climbing, but that probably wasn't the case. This wasn't a technically difficult ride, but it was challenging at time for me, particularly on the sharp little climbs that came up from time to time. We stopped for a longer break by the damit would be fun to extend the ride sometime down into the riverbed below the dam. Here, we turned around and rode back, including taking the flatter return route. I was working hard to stay with Andy. The mountain bike is harder to get up to speed and keep going at pace. I felt a little more comfortable on the return from the dam. I forgot to bring my Wahoo, so I used the Polar heartrate monitor that Avi has lent me and recorded the workout using Polar Flow.

Avg speed = 8.2 mph. Total mileage = 16.3 mi

Avg power (est.) = 69 W (too low)

Total elevation gain = 730'

Avg heartrate = 104 bpm (Polar)

Relative Effort = 21

https://www.strava.com/activities/18016586320

Got home and had time to shower and get ready to meet earl for lunch at Bros Kabob in South Escondido. Food was decent, falafel was okay but not great. We talked about our Vietnam trip as well as what's going on with Earl's kids, mainly Jenny and Jason. Also discussed some elements of perceiving reality, including a philosophy known as quantum qubism. Had a quiet rest of the afternoon, read a little bit and watched some TV. In the early evening I rode over to Kit Carson Park to meet Emily for a hike, then we went to OtB afterwards. It was a good time to catch up on what's going on with her. She told me about work (generally going well, not as many complaints about Mike) as well as their trip to Las Vegas. I ended up drinking too much Pepsi. Rode home before sunset, no issues there. The rest of the evening was quiet, I watched some more TV while Ann was at bell choir practice.

04-06-2026 Swim/Ride

Slept until about 6:00, woke up refreshed. I got up and had a little time before I needed to get ready for a swim at the WWC with Avi. Had some bread and then ate a banana once I got there. I was the first one there, and it looked like it would be a light day in the pool, even when he showed up. We got adjacent lanes, then others quickly started showing up, so that the pool was pretty full while we swam. I ended up doing 1500 yds without stopping. Avi swam next to me for a fair portion of the swim, but he didn't swim continuously. Still, he was swimming at pace, so his pace helped keep me pushing. I had a couple of times that I needed to pause briefly to empty the water from my goggles. My stroke was decent, 18-19 strokes, for the first 1000 yds, but my form broke down somewhat in the last 500. I was surprised at the times for this swim, I think it's the fastest 1500 I have swum, either ever or in a long time. Here are the splits for the three 500s: 9:04, 9:21, 9:18. I've been aiming for quite a while to be able to swim distances at 1:50 pace, and this was the first time I've gotten close without some kind of swimming aids. Arms felt the effects of this workout later in the day, another good sign. Later in the afternoon I found, with help from Google Gemini, a setting - Turn Auto Lap On - that I hope with re-enable tracking of the lap data that gets imported into Strava.

Avg pace = 1:51/100 yds (Video)

Total distance = 1500 yds

Elapsed moving time = 27:43 (Video)

Avg heartrate = 172 bpm (no way)

Relative Effort = 93 (no way)

SWOLF =36 (!)

Avg stroke rate = 21 bpm

Avg pull distance = 2.46 yds

https://www.strava.com/activities/18003950747

I got home and had just a little time before I needed to get ready for a ride with Andy. Headed up to W Bernardo Dr and then took RB Rd to Bernardo Oaks Dr. Andy was already on his gravel bike and ready to roll, so we took Rios Rd to Pomerado Rd and then rode up to Stowe Dr. I dialed back my pace and rode with him, hearing how his gravel ride with his daughter went (hard but a good experience). They also stayed a couple of days in Curry Village and enjoyed Yosemite (we need to go back there soon). We took Stowe Dr up to O'Brien's Boulangerie and stopped for a coffee and a shared pastry (Andy paid, my turn next time). Planned a fall adventure, potentially with Charlie, a mountain bike camping trip out in Canyonlands NP. We rode back from there down to Community Rd, turned right and took it to Twin Peaks Rd, where we turned right again on Espola Rd and rode up to the high school. We took Titan Way to Riparian Rd and headed over to Lake Poway Rd, using it to get to Summer Sage Rd. Left turn, and the usual way from there back to Espola Rd. We rode down to Alondra Dr, turned left to get over to Rios Rd, and then rode back to his place. I rode home the normal way from there via W Bernardo Dr. This was a slow-paced ride but a fun one, no stress and almost perfect temperature. Heartrate was a little elevated from what I hoped for, still work to do for getting back into prime cardio shape.

Avg speed = 13.7 mph. Total mileage = 22.3 mi

Avg power = 109 W. Weighted avg power = 132 W

Total elevation gain = 1290'

Avg heartrate = 114 bpm (Coospo)

Relative Effort = 24

Training Load = 66

Intensity = 60%

https://www.strava.com/activities/18004232287

Got home a little later than planned, no problems. I had leftover grilled food for lunch and then had a fairly light afternoon. I did fix a small problem with one of the drip line heads by the peach tree, it was easy once I found the right supplies. Watched some TV, then I spent some time trying to see if I could figure out why Strava isn't recording the laps in my swim workouts. Ann had identified a leak in a drip head by the peach tree, so I fixed that after finding the spares. Later, I patched the sprinkler line I. The front yard that had been chewed through, couldn't get water to flow to it. This is supposed to be line 8, which had a minor spray leak when I turned it on. Tried to fix that and ruptured the line, which necessitated cutting out tubing, removing it from the connectors, and putting a new line of tubing in. Then I traced the issue in the front yard back to an apparent line separation there as well, it was a weird one. After I reconnected the line it cause another line rupture further downstream, again due to old cracking tubing. I cut two more connectors out but turned the sprinklers off. Will splice in new line tomorrow, I was ready to stop for the night. Ann and I watched TV in the evening after that.

04-05-2026 Ride

Woke up after decent sleep. Initially woke up around 4:00 but got back to sleep until 5.50. Got ready for an Easter morning bike ride. It was colder than expected. I rode the extended route through the neighborhood to W Bernardo Dr and then took RB Rd up to Camino San Bernardo. Over to CD, turning left and getting onto the reverse of the time trial route for a while. Stayed on Sabre Springs Pkwy to the end, then took Poway Rd to Oak Knoll Rd, staying on it until I got to Carriage Rd. Left there, then another left on Poway Rd to get to Donutopolis. I stopped there and had a couple of donuts for breakfast. The chocolate iced donut was surprisingly good. Back from there to Pomerado Rd, where I continued the reverse time trial route until staying on RB Rd to W Bernardo Dr. Home from there. Legs were still tired and a little sore from the previous day's ride, so I wasn't as fast as I wanted to be.

Avg speed = 16.4 mph. Total mileage = 20.9 mi

Avg power = 155 W. Weighted avg power = 174 W

Total elevation gain = 1090'

Avg heartrate = 123 bpm (Coospo)

Relative Effort = 28

Training Load = 84

Intensity = 79%

https://www.strava.com/activities/17988856532

I'd shaved earlier, so I had a shower and then rode to church to meet Ann there. Service wasn't that inspiring, but the Hallelujah Chorus at the end was great. Talked with several folks in the patio afterwards, got our picture taken by the Easter cross, then I rode home in much warmer conditions. The rest of the morning was quiet, I had some rice and beans from way back for lunch. Cleaned the back patio, Ann did a lot of cooking throughout the day. I watched some TV in the afternoon. Started a new book, Number Go Up, by Zeke Faux, about the crypto boom and bust with the downfall of FTX. Ann and I watched an episode of Rooster after dinner, was mildly funny but probably not a keeper for either of us.

04-04-2026 Ride

Slept okay but not my normal hours, since we were out later than usual the night before. Woke up and got up around 6:00. Got ready for the Bisikleta ride.. It was around 50 at the start, so I wore my long-sleeve jersey and my light jacket over to the starting point at the 4S Target. Through the neighborhood and then the new extended route through the 4S Ranch neighborhood. I left early and got there around 7:20. People were already showing up, but we had to wait for James, who was riding from home and had to deal with a flat on the way. We left around 7:45 or so. On this ride, we had the following riders: Ray, Jed, Perse, Arnold, Fritz, Rob T., Nel, James, and Paula. She now has her own Bisikleta jersey, which she bought from My Tran. We headed to Four Gee Rd and did the reverse of the extended route through the 4S Ranch neighborhood. I led the way, which was the general pattern for the day. To RB Rd, then down to W Bernardo Dr and around to Pomerado Rd. Sometime around here James got his second flat, but he was behind us and we didn't notice he'd stopped. So we got way out in front of him. Up to Paseo del Verano, turning left there. I waited for James to show up while the others continued up this short climb, but he was still behind, so I texted him to meet us at the coffee stop and continued on. Up and over to the little path that connected us to Old Winery Rd, which we took up to Valle Verde Rd. It was me, Rob, and Fritz in the front, others strung out behind us. We rode to Espola Rd, turned left there and took it up past the high school I got out in front again and stopped at the top to see that James was catching up to us. We all waited for him there, then continued down to Del Poniente Rd, turning right there. A short steep climb got us to Huntington Gate Rd, where we turned left and enjoyed the winding descent through this neighborhood, taking us to Tierra Bonita Rd. To Twin Peaks Rd, turning left there and riding over to Kings Craft Coffee, where we stopped for an extended break. I had a large coffee, and that got me buzzed for the next part of the ride, which was the most challenging. After the break we headed back to Twin Peaks Rd and took it to Community Rd, James and I were in the lead on this stretch. Over to Metate Ln from there, taking it back to Pomerado Rd and turning right. Then to Poway Rd via Oak Knoll Rd, riding to Springhurst Dr and taking it, and Springbrook Dr up to Scripps-Poway Pkwy. We turned on Candy Rose Way just past the light and climbed up to Cypress Canyon Park Dr, me and Fritz leading the way here. Left there and then another left on Cypress Woods Dr, riding down to Swan Canyon Rd and then over to Legacy Rd, which we used to get back to Pomerado Rd. From there we rode up to Stonebridge Pkwy (Paula really likes this road, so do I), and we climbed up to the top. Did the ups and downs initially and then got onto the last 400' climb. I got out front, and apparently Jed wasn't too far behind me, but I didn't notice him. Up to the top, where I stopped and had a pee, during which Jed kept going on the route and got ahead of the rest of us. The others climbed there, we had a short break, then we rode over to Via Santa Pradera and took it down to the fire road leading into Beeler Canyon. Down the steep descent, carefully, and the gate was up across the road, so we all had to stop and carry our bikes around it. Just past the gate James got another flat, so some of us who were in the back waited for him before continuing. Paula and I ended up getting separated from this trailing group, but we caught up to them at the gas station on the corner of Pomerado Rd and Scripps-Poway Pkwy, where the riders were just leaving as we rolled up. Stayed on Pomerado Rd all the way to Camino del Norte, about half of the riders were in this group. The others had ridden ahead, and James had decided to cut his ride short and head directly home via Scripps-Poway Pkwy. I stayed with this trailing group leading the way for them but making sure nobody got separated. We turned on CdN and took it to CdS and back to the starting point. It was about 90 deg by this time, others were complaining about the heat, but I wasn't too fazed by it. Was nice in the shade and not so bad in direct sunlight as long as I was moving. I headed home the new normal way, legs felt strong all the way to the finish. Heartrate is starting to come down as well, which is promising.

Avg speed = 15.3 mph (15.5 mph). Total mileage = 51.5 mi

Bisikleta route avg speed = 15.6 mph

Avg power = 136 W. Weighted avg power = 166 W

Total elevation gain = 3590' (3460')

Avg heartrate = 126 bpm (Coospo)

Relative Effort = 100 (114)

Training Load = 228

Intensity = 75%

https://www.strava.com/activities/17979300357

Got home and snacked on generally light foods for lunch, stomach wasn't ready for a heavy meal. I watched a little TV and cooled down. Had a quiet afternoon, no nap, surprisingly. In the early evening I talked to Mom, who was in good spirits. Chatter with Ross as well afterwards. Ann and I watched some TV after dinner, then I read some before going to sleep (<>).