Solo ride from home to Joe's house, starting out around 9:20 and taking the shortest route. I rode fairly fast to get there because I got kind of a late start, had to replace the power supply on the home PC. We met up at his place and took off north on old 395, heading up to El Camino del Rey and taking it in toward Bonsall. In the early parts of this ride, Joe was hanging in there with me, even though I was setting a mildly aggressive pace. We got onto Old River Rd and took it, with a minor climb just south of the 76. This road eventually turns into Vista Ave, and we stayed on it until turning right onto Bobier Ave toward Oceanside. Joe was slowing down here, and I couldn't tell if he was struggling or trying to conserve his energy. I slowed down as well and suggested that he stay in my draft, and that worked for awhile. This road turns into Oceanside Ave, and it's a nice way to get down to the coast, although it's pretty long, about 9 miles to get to PCH. We turned left and headed south, initially riding slowly through downtown Oceanside and then Carlsbad, where we hit a lot of lights. After that, we made good time, with me pushing the pace to try and outrun a couple of time trial riders who initially passed us then slowed down. We turned inland at Leucadia Blvd, which turns into Olivenhain Rd. On this part, we stopped and took a break with some minor food and rest. This part of the ride was uphill in parts but not too bad. Turned right on Rancho Santa Fe Rd and took it over to El Camino del Norte, which has a couple of bumps but isn't too difficult. Then onto Del Dios Hwy, where we were helped by a tailwind. I really felt good on the first significant uphill, easily keeping it above 10 mph without overly much effort.. Felt fine on the second uphill before Via Rancho Pkwy. I stopped at the turn to wait for Joe, who was starting to run out of gas. I slowed down somewhat, but he was still lagging. Over to Felicita Rd, which we took to Centre City Pkwy. Joe stopped at the Burger King for a rest stop, and we took another break in the shade here. He was bonking, so the ride from there back to his house was really slow. I rode as slow as I could, and he was still lagging. I think he now has a better appreciation of what he will be up against in Solvang in a couple of weeks. He's still got some time, but I think it's going to be a real struggle for him to finish that ride. We rode to Country Club Ln and then to Village Rd back to his place, again riding at a slow pace. He was tired at the end and sore, but his muscles were still responding. I headed home the normal way, benefiting from a crossing tailwind and the general downhill slope of the return route. In South Escondido, the wind shifted to more of a headwind, which slowed me down a fair amount, going over the freeway and up the hill before the park. Final section was fine, legs were responding well and not feeling over-exerted. I felt tiredness at the end of the ride but no real soreness. My training plan to prepare for Solvang is on schedule, and I'm looking forward to a good ride, assuming the weather cooperates.
Avg speed = 16.8 mph. Total mileage = 82.2 mi
Avg heartrate = 133 bpm
Total elevation gain = 4410'
