Ride from the parking lot by Cafe Luna over Rancho Carmel Dr and Sabre Springs Pkwy to John's house. It was absolutely dark when I started, and the fog was preventing it from getting light soon. Made it okay. From his place, I rode with him and Dave out to the stop sign on the way to Alpine. In the early part of the ride, I wasn't really pushing it. Took it fairly slow up Scripps-Poway Pkwy and even still my heartrate was pretty high on the major climb. We climbed through the fog into the sun, and it was basically sunny, alternatively warm and cool, through the rest of the ride. We headed over to Lake Jennings Rd, where there were a couple of riders on the climb here. I increased my pace and passed them readily, then waited for the others at the top. On the gradual climb toward Alpine, I intentionally took a pretty easy pace, not pushing it. We made good time on the way back down, with all three of us pushing the pace at various times. Then the others slowed down, while I was starting to feel good. Good ride to the base of the Lakeside grade, and the wind was at our backs. While this was a tough climb, as usual, I think I did pretty well on the first part and really well on the second, where the tailwind seemed to be pushing me uphill. Headed back to John's house, feeling good and outpacing the others on the little climbs. The ride back to my car was uneventful. I didn't feel overly sore, just tired. Thankfully, no cramping in my legs.
Avg speed = 16.5 mph. Total mileage = 53.9 mi
Avg heartrate = 149 bpm
Total elevation gain = 3300'
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/54490040
