Ride up to Jim's house, meeting up with the other three. It was cold at the start, 34 deg by my thermometer. Headed over Duenda to W Bernardo Dr, then up the hill to Bernardo Center Dr. On the first climb, I got the sense that the others, particularly Dave and John, were going to lag behind. Jim was riding strong the entire day. Headed out Bernardo Center Dr and Carmel Valley Rd to Del Mar Heights Rd. Took this road over to the coast, and I really put distance on them on the short, steep climb just before the last downhill to the coast. On the coast, I generally held my own, particularly on any of the parts with an uphill grade. There was one point where the three of them got out ahead of me after a stop at a light, and I couldn't close the gap. Thankfully, they slowed down to let me catch up. We rode over to Palomar Airport Rd then headed up. This is a long, gradual uphill, with some but not many flat or slight downhill sections, just right for grinding it out. I finished a little ahead of Jim, and the other two were further back. From there, we headed by CSUSM and over Barham to Mission Rd. Took it back to Centre City Pkwy, where it seemed that we hit every other light. We motored down the road to just before the bridge on I-15, gathered up, and headed over. About halfway across, Dave's right pedal separated from its spindle, so I stopped to wait until he got it back in operation. Then we headed home. The climb up Aguamiel to Jim's house is a tough finish, and Dave outrode me to the top. Had a good smoothie at Jim's and rode back home. Finished the year, according to my calculations, with 2782 miles ridden, which is probably close to a record for me. All in all, it was a good riding year, and a good year in general.
Avg. speed = 16.8 mph. Total mileage = 50.0 mi
Avg heartrate = 144 bpm
Total elevation gain = 1580'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/26499120
