Ride from home with John, Jim, and Dave. Headed out Centre City Pkwy to N Iris Ln, which we took over to Village Dr and met up with Joe at his house. The initial part of the ride was at a steady pace but not too fast. We slowed down when Joe joined up. Headed up Centre City Pkwy, and not too long after, Joe got a flat. I gave him a tube to repair it, but the tube apparently wasn't any good, since he had a flat not that long afterward. Three of us had climbed up to Deer Springs, so we turned around and rode back to where he and John were finishing up the repairs. From there, we continued up 395. The ride down the hill by Lawrence Welk was cold. It was chilly at the start of the ride, about 40 deg, and it never really warmed up. I had taken my full-fingered gloves off, and so my fingers got cold on the downhill. I was lagging behind most of the others throughout most of the day, partly to hang by Joe and partly because I was feeling pretty listless. We turned left on Camino del Rey and headed over toward Bonsall. This is a generally flat section of road, with some gradual uphills. We then turned on W Lilac Rd and headed up. This part of the ride was not anywhere near as steep as I had remembered it. It was mostly a gradual uphill for about 5 miles, with just a few breaks. We crossed over the arch bridge, and then it was uphill/downhill on this road until it teed into Old Castle Rd. At this point, it was a gradual, steady uphill for about 1.5 miles. Then we took a downhill section to connect to Valley Center Rd. This part of the ride was okay. I had started to get my second wind, and I wound it up on the climb before the big downhill. Again, the others outpaced me on the downhill, but they slowed enough at the bottom for me and Joe to catch up. Joe split off at El Norte Pkwy, and then we really turned on the jets to get Dave back home as soon as possible. We headed back on BVP. That was a really fast part of the ride, with everybody taking turns to set and push the pace. I held my own for most of this part but couldn't really step away from the others, which left me feeling aggravated, for some reason. I felt okay at the finish, although my lower back was aching during the latter climbing sections.
Avg speed = 15.4 mph. Total mileage = 55.0 mi
Average heartrate = 145 bpm
Total elevation gain = 2310'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/26471186/
