7-30-2011 Ride

Solo ride from home, after fixing two flats, including a tube blowout. Need those new tires! Down across the freeway and up Via Rancho Pkwy. I had played tennis for the first time in a long time the night before, and I had no drive in my legs. So I kept the pace low. Down Del Dios to Via de la Valle. As I was going downhill, I noticed that I had a slow leak in my rear tire. Ugh! Stopped at the turn onto Via de Santa Fe and fixed it, deciding to cut my ride short. Headed on this road to El Apajo, then up the 3 Witches climb on San Dieguito Rd. Turned right at Camino del Sur and rode over to Carmel Valley Rd. Up and down to Dove Canyon, then up and left on Camino San Bernardo, going through the 4S Ranch neighborhood, by Del Norte High School, and over Lone Quail back to RB Rd. Took this to W Bernardo Dr, then back home the normal route. All in all, a disappointing ride. I was slow and felt out of shape, even though I'm in generally good condition.

Avg speed = 16.6 mph. Total mileage = 30.1 mi
Avg heartrate = 145 bpm
Total elevation gain = 1470'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/43830512/

7-24-2011 Ride

Time trial ride with Dave. Throughout the ride, I was pushing the pace, not really letting off at all. I really went fast up the short grade to Poway Rd and was at this point in probably my fastest split ever. Down Poway Rd, we started out fast and caught all of the lights, but I felt I was slower after crossing Pomerado Rd. On Sabre Springs Pkwy, I made good although not great time, and I finished this section near record pace. Heading up Ted Williams Pkwy, I had another slow flat. After fixing the flat, it took me some time to get back in the groove, so I don't feel like I really made good time on this section. The Pomerado section was pretty good, I slowed down near the top but that was because I was pretty much going 100%. I outpaced Dave to the top, but he caught me about halfway from his house and gave me a great draft. I finished up strong, ending in 51:45.

Total mileage = 23.1 mi
Total elevation gain = 820'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/4958719

7-23-2011 Ride

Ride with John from home, via Poblado and Matinal to RB Rd. John wanted to get more miles in than Dave, so we took an extended route over to Dave's house. Went Bernardo Center Dr to Bernardo Heights Pkwy, then ?? to add another loop. Back to Bernardo Heights Pkwy, then down to Pomerado Rd and over to Stone Canyon Rd. This road has an initial short uphill section, then it's meandering until just before Martincort Rd, where it's steep for a short period again. Down Martincort to Espola Rd, which we rode down to Alondra. From Dave's we headed over to Escondido, then took BVP out to Valley Pkwy. From here, it was up to Valley Center, taking the grade uphill. This grade is about 2.5 mi, and the last mile is the steepest but not too bad. I had a slow leak in my rear tire for the last half mile or so, which I fixed at the top. We waited for John, then continued out to Lilac Rd. This road has manageable hills. On Old Castle Rd, there is only one climb of interest. a short, somewhat steep section just before the long downhill, which is really fun. You can ride it without brakes until the hairpin section, then some more. Over to the old 395, where John started to run out of gas. He was slow on the short uphill just past the turn, so we kept the pace on the flats lower. Dave and I rode out on the climb back, another 2.5 miler, and we kept together for about 2/3 of it, when I pulled away and Dave couldn't respond. At the top, we waited awhile for John, then continued on, staying together on this flat-to-downhill section. We followed the normal route home; I pushed the pace across the freeway but couldn't hold 30 mph for as long as I wanted to. Dave split off and headed to his place, while John and I rode home. Even after 50 miles, my legs felt good although I wouldn't have wanted to try a long climb at high effort.

Avg speed = 17.3 mph. Total mileage = 50.2 mi
Avg heartrate = 150 bpm

Total elevation gain = 2310'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/42807122

7-21-2011 Ride

Solo ride from home after work. Took the loop with the extension to Poway Rd. I felt pretty good. The ride after the hospital to Poway Rd was into the wind, which was a little wearing, but it made the trip back easier; I averaged over 20 mph up to the park, then slowed down. I didn't really attack too much on the Camino del Norte section, and I slowed down considerably near the top of the second little climb. After that, I was pretty fast for the rest of the ride. I didn't feel the heat during the ride, but I was really sweating when I got home. Heartrate was about where I wanted it to be for the workout.

Avg speed = 18.4 mph. Total mileage = 16.8 mi
Avg heartrate = 152 bpm
Total elevation gain = 620'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/42608380/

7-17-2011 Ride

Time trial with Dave and John. I started out fairly slow, not really pushing the pace too hard. Dave and I dropped John on the little climb up the bend on Espola. We waited at the top for him, then continued at a fairly steady pace. At the climb up to Poway Rd, Dave really dropped the hammer. I did everything I could just to stay on his wheel and finished just a little behind him. It took a lot out of him. My legs were still feeling it from the 47 mi on the previous day. We made good, although not great, time on Poway Rd, where we hit most of the important lights. On Sabre Springs Pkwy, I went steady but not all out, since my legs wouldn't take it. I kept the pace up decently on Ted Williams Pkwy, then John set a good starting pace on Pomerado Rd, and Dave and I kept it going. We rode pretty hard downhill, especially near the turn. Finished in 52:30, which was a good ride for me, given that there were numerous places where I could have ridden harder. I also had some margin in my heartrate to go harder.

Total mileage = 23.1 mi
Average heartrate = 157 bpm
Total elevation gain = 820'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/4958719

7-16-2011 Ride

Ride over to Dave's house, where I met up with him and John. We headed up Pomerado to Twin Peaks, then over to Poway Rd via Community Rd. I wasn't pushing the pace at all in the flat and slight uphill sections, content to ride at the pace set by either John or Dave. Dave was sore from a previous day's workout, so it was mainly me and John leading throughout the ride. We headed up Poway Rd. I started out by not going too fast, but throughout much of the climb I was working pretty hard. Headed down the 67 to Scripps-Poway Pkwy, which we took down to Pomerado Rd. About here is where I discovered that I had a slow leak in my back tire. I climbed up to the top of Pomerado and beyond on Spring Canyon Rd, then stopped to fix it. My climb up Pomerado was solid, particularly the latter section, where I was able to keep a pace around 9 mph. We headed down this road, turning left on Scripps Ranch Pkwy, which has a small climb, then a pretty steep downhill to Mira Mesa Blvd. Over to Westview Pkwy, which is a nice alternative to Black Mountain Rd. Got onto Black Mountain and went over to the 56 bike trail. I took that little climb at a fairly easy pace. Down the bike trail to Carmel Valley Rd, where we headed back toward RB, staying together and trading leads. Turned on Dove Canyon Rd and used it to go over to RB Rd. By this time, my quads felt tight if I flexed them, but they didn't give me any trouble on the ride. Headed back to Dave's house, then I went home. It was a fairly decent ride for me, slower in average speed but this was what I wanted to do, not trying to punish too much after having been basically off the bike for almost two weeks.

Avg speed = 16.5 mph. Total mileage = 47.2 mi
Avg heartrate = 151 bpm
Total elevation gain = 2660'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/41765036/

7-12-2011 Ride

Ride to yoga, following the normal route to Oak Hill. I kept the pace steady but not fierce.

Average speed = 17.6 mph. Total mileage = 10.6 mi
Average heartrate = 150 bpm
Total elevation gain = 440'
http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/united-states/ca/san-diego/964123799127555358

2011 Scripps Ranch Old Pros Ride

Rode with John and Dave, saw Kevin Miller at the start. J and D wanted to get out front early and ride with the leaders, so we did. This group set a fast pace, particularly after the turn on Camino Ruiz and down into Sorrento Valley. We stayed with them, and John even led the ride at the turn onto Vista Sorrento Pkwy. Then the group split, with the stronger climbers pulling ahead. I stayed in the middle of this pack and tried to hang on as long as I could, which ended up being by the turn onto Via de la Valle. They kept going fast, but I needed to slow down. Had a problem around this time with my cyclometer, where the magnet got turned around and it wasn't registering. Stopped near the base of the first climb up Del Dios Hwy to fix it, and Dave caught up. I rode away from him on the climb, was feeling pretty good and keeping the pace above 10 mph. Another group of 4 riders passed me at the top, and I couldn't hang on to the back end of their pace line. Headed down Rancho Dr to Lake Dr, where they had set up a sag stop, and I waited for Dave and John. John had a flat, but the guy at the stop fixed it for him. We started again, had to climb a short, steep section to get up to Via Rancho Pkwy. Not too long after this, I flatted on the little climb, and I was really steamed. Bad tires. Changed the flat and the tire at the same time, then continued on, riding with Dave and waiting occasionally for John to catch up. We met Susanne at Rios Rd, and John had to fix another flat here. My pace going up Pomerado Rd was pretty good. I pumped up my tire at the Twin Peaks Rd sag stop, and we continued. May met us just beyond Scripps-Poway Pkwy, then we headed up the last significant hill. It wasn't too bad. The weather was warm and muggy but not too hot. I kept a steady pace on this climb, passing others (we were toward the back of the pack by that time). Fast and together down Pomerado Rd, then some separation when we turned into the Scripps Ranch neighborhood. Dave rode close but couldn't hang on any of the longer gradual uphill sections. I finished strong, arriving in about 2:33, a great time for me. My left hamstring had started to tighten up as we entered the neighborhood, but it didn't interfere with my pedaling. On the way out of the park, Dave and I made a wrong turn and got mixed up in the parade route, which was kinda funny.

Avg. speed = 19.3 mph. Total mileage = 49.4 mi
Avg heartrate = 163 bpm (wow!)
Total elevation gain = 2130'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/40040446

7-2-2011 Ride

Ride, starting from the parking lot by Carmel Mountain Ranch, over to John's house via Rancho Carmel Dr/Sabre Springs Pkwy to Poway Rd, then up Springbrook to his place. Met up with him and Dave, and we headed down to Poway Rd and over to the 56 bike trail. I was taking it fairly easy, knowing that the big ride was coming up on Monday. We went down to El Camino Real, heading south to connect to Vista Sorrento Pkwy and over to Carroll Canyon Rd/Carroll Rd. This is probably the easiest way to get back up out of Sorrento Valley onto Mira Mesa. Connected to Miramar Rd, which needs a serious repaving. Uphill on Pomerado Rd, again keeping the pace fairly manageable. Back to John's place, going all the way down Springhurst to get a couple of extra miles in, then up again on Springbrook. I had a good pace here. Went back using Sabre Springs Pkwy and staying off the gas. Even still, I was making good time on the slight uphill sections. Finished feeling that I hadn't really taxed my legs.

Avg speed = 17.3 mph. Total mileage = 39.1 mi
Avg heartrate = 145 bpm
Total elevation gain = 1710'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/40072404/