12-30-2009 Ride

Ride with John and Dave from John's house, a long training ride out to Alpine and back. Headed up Scripps-Poway Pkwy and down the 67 to Vigilante/Moreno, which we took over to Willow. Right on Ashwood and over to Mapleview/Lake Jennings Drive. This road changes names several times, but we stayed on it all the way to the intersection at Tavern Rd in Alpine. From the bottom of the 67 grade, it was essentially uphill, with just a few downhill sections and few flats. I felt good throughout the first part of the ride, although it was chilly and it never really warmed up. We re-traced our route to get back, throwing in a 10-mile out and back on El Monte up toward the El Capitan dam. By this time, I was feeling it, not sore, just tired and without much drive in my legs. I gutted my way up the Lakeside grade on the 67, running out of gas near the top. From there, it was mainly downhill, and I cruised, conserving my energy. My new cyclocomputer worked just fine, and its functions are identical to my older one. Dave got a new Garmin Edge cyclocomputer, which is really cool.

Average speed = 16.0 mph. Total mileage = 60.5 mi.
Average heartrate = 139 bpm
Total elevation gain = 3440'
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/san-diego/607126221745640864

Bicycle Settings 12/29/2009

New Ascent 4LW wireless cyclocomputer.

Calculated odometer setting after turning over 10,000 mi in August to be 1212 mi

Wheel Size = 2118 mm
Front Gears = 42, 52 teeth
Rear Gears = 13, 14, 15, 17, 19, 21, 23

12/29/2009 Ride

Ride from home over to Dave's house, where I met up with him and Dave. We planned on a 40-mile route, but it ended up being longer. It had rained recently, although I don't think we had any rain at our house. We headed up RB Rd to Camino del Sur, then headed west to the 56 bike trail. Took the trail down to El Camino Real, then over Carmel Valley Rd to the coast and through Del Mar. Turned right on Via de la Valle and took this all the way back to Del Dios. I think this is the fastest way to get back from the coast, with not a lot of uphills, just a little near the end. On Del Dios, we had the wind pretty much at our backs, so I just cruised right on up the grade. Another guy passed me right near the top of the first set of uphills, and I hung with him until he pulled away near the turn onto Via Rancho Pkwy. Dave had a flat on the climb, but I had already gotten to the top, so I ended up waiting for them. It was tough starting back up, but I got going pretty quickly. Crossed the freeway and headed up Pomerado back to Dave's house. Stopped there for awhile, then headed back home via normal route. Dave was slower than usual, due to his longer layoff from riding. John was strong, staying up with me on the flats and downhills.

Total mileage = 50.2 mi
Total elevation gain = 1740'
Average heartrate = 139 bpm
http://www.mapmyride.com/route/us/ca/san%20diego/355126212876677969

12-27-09 Ride

Ride from home with John over to Joe's house, using the normal Centre City route to Iris, then left on Village. From his place, we headed up Centre City to Old Castle/Lilac Rd to Valley Center Rd. I was in short sleeves and shorts, and it was a little cooler than I had planned. I had a flat on the section of Centre City just past where Joe joined us, and I was wearing new short-fingered gloves, after my old pair had ripped apart on the previous ride. The climb up Old Castle was not as bad or as long as I had remembered it, about 2.5 mi with some 7% grade sections. On Valley Center Rd, Joe had a flat as well. The ride down into Escondido was colder than expected, as the day had become overcast. Back to Centre City on El Norte Pkwy, where we split up with Joe and headed home the normal route. My legs were tired from the previous day, but no soreness or cramping.

Total mileage = 43.4 mi.
Total elevation gain = 1940'
http://www.mapmyride.com/route/us/ca/san%20diego/872126201138877883

12-26-09 Ride

Ride from home over to John's house via the standard route to Pomerado and up Springhurst. From his place, we headed up Scripps-Poway Pkwy. I wasn't really feeling strong at any point on this ride, and the part up to the top of this road was particularly bad. It was cool and overcast throughout the ride. Down the 67 to Highland Valley Rd, which we took over to Archie Moore Rd and back to the 67. I found that I had lost one of my full-fingered gloves, which was a bummer. The section on Archie Moore has a couple of climbs, nothing too bad normally but they felt worse on this day. Other than on the steeper or longer climbs, I tried to stay with John, who is still riding slowly. At the connection back onto the 67, I looked over on the other side of the road and saw my missing glove. Eureka! From there, I essentially retraced my path all the way back home. Stopped at John's briefly, then headed home.

Total mileage = 50.8 mi
Total elevation gain = 2400'
Average heartrate = 142 bpm
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/san-diego/735126186617439219

12-24-09 Ride

Ride on Christmas Eve morning with John from home out through the neighborhood to RB Rd and Camino del Sur. Turned right on Artesian Rd and followed the route from 12-3-09 up to Paseo Delicias in Rancho Santa Fe. We took this road over to El Camino del Norte and down through Olivenhaim to Rancho Santa Fe Rd. Took this road all the way to San Elijo Rd. This middle section of the road had a lot of gradual uphills, good for training for the Stagecoach Century in the middle of January. Through San Elijo Hills to Elfin Forest/Harmony Grove Rd. This is a good road to ride, although the minor climbs were more challenging on tired legs. Turned left on Country Club Dr, another road with minor climbs. Over to Auto Pkwy / Nordahl Rd and up to El Norte Pkwy. At this point, we were largely done with the climbing, and we headed back through Escondido on Centre City Pkwy. On the freeway over Lake Hodges, John ran over a nail and got a flat on his loaner bike. Changed the flat and headed on home. Again, it was cold at the start and cool throughout the ride.

Total mileage = 40.1 mi
Average heartrate (with stops) = 138 bpm
Total elevation gain = 1440'
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/san-diego/708126166825452694

12-23-09 Ride

Ride with John from his house up to the top of Pomerado, then down to Kearny Villa Rd. Went to Clairemont Mesa, where we took a left and headed into Tierrasanta. Turned on Santo Rd and took this over to Aero Dr, where we took a right. Over to Linda Vista Dr, which we took by USD and down to Napa, a short stretch over to Morena. This road is nice, it parallels I-5 for awhile. Then we turned right on Jutland, which has a very steep short section just past the turn. It continues to climb after that but not as steeply. Turned right onto Luna, then an immediate left onto Regents Pkwy, which we took over to Governor Dr. Governor connects into Genesee, which we took over to Torrey Pines Rd and down to the coast. This section of the ride was pretty hilly, with not much in the way of flats. Rode back up the bike trail all the way to Sabre Springs Pkwy, to avoid the construction on Poway Rd. Took this road all the way to Springhurst and back to John's house. This is a good 50-mile ride, with a lot of challenge in the middle part and the last little climb back to his house to end it. The weather was cold at the beginning but warmed up enough to ride with a long-sleeve jersey and tights. Again, I felt good throughout, with tired legs at the end but not much soreness and no cramping.

Total mileage = 52.1 mi
Total elevation gain = 1920'
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/san-diego/842126166565881028

12-21-09 Ride

Ride from home with John, Dave, and Jim. Headed out Centre City Pkwy to Deer Springs and back via Twin Oaks Valley Pkwy. Back via Barham to Mission, then over Tulip to Valley Pkwy and up to Centre City. The entrance ramp to the freeway was blocked, so we took a detour on Felicita, by the park and back using Via Rancho Pkwy. This is a fairly easy 30-mile ride, with only gradual climbs that are mostly positioned in the first half of the ride. I felt really strong during this ride and had trouble staying back with the others. John had some kind of mechanical problem with his bike and later had to get a new chain, gear cluster, rear derailleur, and rear wheel dropout.

Total mileage = 30.9 mi

Total elevation gain = 930'
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/-san-diego/450126166484757883

12-20-09 Ride

Time trial route, riding from home over to Dave's house. It was me, John, and Dave, and the pace was fairly slow, as both John and Dave are rebuilding their cycling legs. I didn't have my cyclocomputer with me, so I couldn't tell my riding time.


Total mileage = 23.1 mi
Total elevation gain = 820'
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/san-diego/854917700575

12-19-09 Ride

Ride from John's house with him and Dave. It was somewhat cold at the start, but not cold enough for tights. We headed out Pomerado/Miramar Rd to Eastgate Mall, then took Genesee to Torrey Pines Rd going south. Turned on La Jolla Shores Dr and took this road down through La Jolla, getting near the coast. A short section on La Jolla Pkwy, then onto Hidden Valley Rd and Via Capri. This is the steep part of the ride, particularly the parts where Hidden Valley turns onto Via Capri, and near the top of Via Capri, as it approaches Mt Soledad. I made it without stopping, but it was slow going. After a rest at the top, we headed back down via Soledad Mountain Rd down to Balboa Ave, which we took all the way to Kearny Villa Rd. This road connects to Miramar/Pomerado Rd, and we headed back the way we had come. This was a tough 40-mile ride, particularly the steep section. Still, I felt good and didn't have any soreness in my legs at the end, only tiredness.

Total mileage = 39.1 mi.
Total elevation gain = 1920'
http://www.mapmyride.com/edit_route?r=438126137024980393

12-18-09 Ride

Ride after a half-day of work, from work, with John. We went on Bernardo Center Dr to Camino del Norte out to San Dieguito Rd, which we took all the way to El Camino Real and over to the 56 bike path. Rode up to Camino del Sur, then took this road back to RB Rd and back to work using Via del Campo. It was a nice day for a ride. My cyclocomputer flew off on Camino del Norte, and it quit working.

Total mileage = 33.0 mi.
Total elevation gain = 1160'
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/san-diego/144126136976677731

12-5-09 Ride

Solo ride from home. It was 41 degrees out at the start, so I had my tights and long gloves. Headed out Centre City Pkwy and Old 395 to Old Castle Rd. This part of the ride was somewhat warmer, and I thought I would be able to take the tights off and switch to fingerless gloves at the top of the grade on Old Castle. But it never really warmed up, staying overcast the entire ride. The climb up Old Castle was harder than I had remembered it, particularly the section after turning back east beyond the switchback. Old Castle to Lilac Rd, then right on Valley Center Rd. This part was flat to slightly downhill until just before the long grade down into Escondido. Back via BVP the normal route. This section was mostly flat to downhill, with just a little small uphills, and I must have had somewhat of a tailwind because I rode this section pretty fast. On the last hill on Aguamiel, I was tired and my quads complained a little, but I wasn't overly sore or tired the rest of the day, just cold.

Average speed = 17.3 mph. Total mileage = 40.4 mi.
Average heartrate = 152 bpm
Total elevation gain = 1920'
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/-san-diego/710126006783172085

12-3-09 Ride

Ride at lunch with the HP crew. First time out with them, and I was very surprised that they didn't really push the pace as hard as I thought on the flats and that they were nearly all better climbers. Oh well, it gives me something to work on. Went out Via del Campo to RB Rd, then over to Artesian Rd. This is a nice road, little traveled, but you have to watch out for a series of speed bumps after a fairly long downhill. Get to a gate, which you have to lift your bike over, then it's uphill through Rancho Santa Fe. A series of roads eventually leads you back to Del Dios, then its through the town and left onto La Gracia Rd. Connected via a series of roads to Calzada del Bosque, which connects into Via de Santa Fe. Took this to San Dieguito Rd, then up the hill to Camino del Sur. This is where I fell behind nearly everybody on the hill. Back via the same general way we came.

Average speed = 16.7 mph. Total mileage = 21.7 mi.
Average heartrate = 149 bpm
Total elevation gain = 920'
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/san-diego/104125988442787031

12-1-09 Ride

Exercise bike at work for 30 minutes, Fitness Program 1, at level 9.