Wednesday, January 31, 2024

01-31-2024 Ride

Went for a shorter walk, about 45 minutes, in the morning, then got ready to go riding with John.  I was worried about my brake pads, so I took my old bike off the trainer and set it up for riding.  As soon as we got started, I noticed a couple of issues: couldn't shift into my lower chainring, front brake was loose, and I hadn't adjusted my saddle from when Audrey's friend Chris had borrowed it.  We rode through the neighborhood to Matinal Circle and around to Matinal Rd, and I stopped to adjust the brake first.  Then it was over to W Bernardo Dr, taking it up to RB Rd and then on to Pomerado Rd.  No need for lower gears, so I didn't try that adjustment, which was going to be more tricky.  John was putting in a bigger effort than usual, and my legs were feeling it from the previous day's ride.  We rode all the way up to Scripps-Poway Pkwy, turning left there.  At the base of this climb, I stopped and manually dropped my chain onto the lower chainring.  Then I caught up with John and passed him, eventually waiting at the top of the climb, where I had enough time to move my saddle height up a little bit.  That felt better.  We rode down to the turnoff for Sycamore Canyon Rd, and I was still in my lower chainring, so I rode up this generally gentle grade to the top and waited, not too long, for John to join me.  Then we rode back down all the way to Garden Rd.  That descent is fast.  You don't need to brake, but I did before some of the gentle curves.  Over Garden Rd to Poway Rd, turning left there and riding down to Community Rd.  Right there and over to Twin Peaks Rd, where we took another right and rode up to Espola Rd.  After the left turn there, I shifted manually to my lower chainring again and climbed to the top of this little grade.  I found that I could get out of the saddle and pedal for quite a while longer than I have been able to in the past.  John and I met up again at the top, then we rode down, fast, to RB Rd, turning right on Bernardo Center Dr and home the normal way from there.  The ride was a little bit shorter than originally planned, but the weather was just about ideal at the end for riding.

Avg speed = 15.6 mph. Total mileage = 28.1 mi
Avg power = 134 W. Weighted avg power = 151 W
Total elevation gain = 1670'
Avg heartrate = 112 bpm

Also, I started reading Banana Ball: The Unbelievably True Story of the Savannah Bananas, by Jesse Cole and Don Yaeger.  Cole, along with his wife, created this low minor league team and has infused it with a lot of off-the-wall promotions, gimmicks, and different game rules.  The book is kinda over-the-top in optimism and telling the story of Cole.  The baseball promotions are mildly interesting.  Went in to volunteer at the hospital in the afternoon.  Talked a little more with Frank (Med Tech).  There is also Shane (Nurse) and Patty (Custodian).  It was slow at the beginning but the second half of the shift had me busier, and time passed pretty quickly.  I received my pension payout check from Unocal (through Chevron) and will deposit it into our Raymond James accounts.

Tuesday, January 30, 2024

01-30-2024 Ride

Got up and got ready for a longer training ride in preparation for the upcoming century rides.  That included changing out my front tire inner tube, which has a very slow leak, and mapping out the proposed route using RideWithGPS.  I took the camera with me and used it to capture the Torrey Pines downhill (at least, I hope, haven't checked the video yet).  Headed down Aguamiel Rd to W Bernardo Dr, then up to RB Rd and over to Dove Canyon Rd.  It was in the low 40's at the house, but it warmed up quickly into the 50's by the time I got to Alva Rd.  Rode over to Carmel Valley Rd and took the climbs up to Black Mountain Rd, not at a fast pace, knowing that I had a lot of miles to get in on this day.  Rode Black Mountain Rd over to Kearny Villa Rd.  So far, this was a good training ride, since the uphill grades were fairly mild.  Turned onto Miramar Rd, and on this stretch I made good time, it seemed like I had the benefit of a tailwind, but I looked at the elevation profile and saw that it's net downhill for about 7 miles until the climb on La Jolla Village Dr (which Miramar Rd turns into) up to Torrey Pines Rd.  There was a little stretch on La Jolla Village Dr, in the bike lane, where they had cut ridges into the road, and when I hit it at speed it was scary, since the bike was shaking so hard that I couldn't hit the brakes.  I made it through, but it certainly gave me an adrenaline rush.  After I got to the flats by UCSD, I stopped for a short break, eating a granola bar.  Then it was over by the hospital and down the descent, which I filmed, as mentioned above.  There were still sand flies in the air on the flats after the descent, pretty gross.  I took the climb into Del Mar at moderate pace, was trying to catch up to a rider ahead of me.  Down, then up into Solana Beach, where I got some practice on my flat grade pace.  Through Cardiff and into Encinitas.  At Encinitas Blvd, a rider passed me and said something about last one up being a rotten egg or something like that.  I caught and passed him on the little climb, then he passed me on the flats and I tried to stay with him.  He started to get away from me, then slowed down.  When I caught up with him, I recognized it was Romeo!  So we decided to ride together into Oceanside, although I told him not to wait for me.  He set a mean pace, and I was working hard to keep up with him, occasionally taking the lead.  Through Carlsbad and into Oceanside, where he decided to keep riding with me when I turned onto Oceanside Blvd.  He lives not too far from the 76, near an In 'n Out by College Blvd.  Once we turned away from the coast, the general grade started going up, but it didn't seem too bad, generally staying in the 1-3% range.  Even so, I was working hard to keep up with Romeo, who hasn't been riding much lately (it didn't show).  He turned off at Santa Fe Ave, and I definitely slowed down after that.  By this time, the street name had changed to Bobier Dr, and I stayed on it until turning right onto E Vista Way.  Thankfully, I had the benefit of a downhill section, and near the bottom I stopped for another short break, including taking a Gu packet.  After turning left onto Civic Center Dr, I had a little climb and not too much energy, then a longer climb after the next left turn onto Santa Fe Ave.  That one really wore me out.  Then it was a little downhill to the intersection by Buena Creek Rd.  I knew this stretch well, including the little climbs until dropping down to Mission Rd.  Not too far from here, I turned left at Las Posas Rd and rode up to Borden Rd.  This gentle climb wasn't too bad (probably had a tailwind to help me), but the climb up to the top of Borden Rd was rough.  I made it and kept on going, suffering through the little climbs I had to deal with. I stopped by the park at Woodland Pkwy and ate my last food, two dates.  Not too long afterward, I turned left onto Country Club Ln and got an Replenish bottle at the 7-Eleven at the corner.  A brief pause there before continuing on.  Thankfully, there weren't too many uphill sections on this road, which I took back past the turn to Joe's house and then a right onto Iris Ln to get over to Centre City Pkwy.  The general downhill heading into and through downtown Escondido was most welcome.  I rode over to Citracado Pkwy, then took the route through Kit Carson Park to the back side of the mall.  To Sunset Dr and over to the bike trail under the bridge.  By this time, the wind had definitely picked up, coming from the southwest, so I had to ride into it for the rest of the ride.  Slow going up the last two little climbs, but my legs held out.  Was glad to be done and overall pleased with my effort level.  I pushed it too hard staying with Romeo while we were riding together and suffered with less energy on the latter third of the ride.  Will need to pace myself and fuel up better on the Palm Springs ride.

Avg speed = 17.0 mph. Total mileage = 77.4 mi
Avg power = 150 W. Weighted avg power = 171 W
Total elevation gain = 3680'
Avg heartrate = 132 bpm

Not a lot done in the afternoon other than catching up on my blog entries from the last several days.

Monday, January 29, 2024

01-29-2024 Swim/Ride

Went for a swim at the WWC in the morning when it opened, was fairly busy on this day.  2000 yds following the normal protocol, finishing in a little less than 41 minutes.  I used the stopwatch to gauge my times for the first 40 lengths (20:48), but I might have accidentally swum an extra 2 lengths.  If not, I am noticeably faster when swimming with the swim snorkel.  I think I'm faster with the swim pads as well.  Then we went over to the Credit Union to get some documents notarized for switching out our savings and checking accounts, which had been compromised by a successful hacking attempt.  No appointment the first time, which was frustrating.  So we went back home and returned at 11:30, getting it all done in about half an hour, including talking to Jeff Ross about changing the account numbers for the regular distributions.  When we got back home, I got ready for a bike ride, intending to keep the pace fairly moderate.  When I turned my Wahoo on, it gave me a low battery warning for the Quarc power meter, so I changed it out.  Headed through the neighborhood and then through the 4S Ranch neighborhood up Alva Rd to Hunters Ridge Pl, then over to Camino del Sur.  It was a nice day for a ride, warm (we're having Santa Ana conditions) and dry.  Out to San Dieguito Rd, turning there and riding downhill and across the flats to El Camino Real.  I turned left there and rode up into Del Mar Heights, not killing it on the climb, spinning at high cadence.  Then it was down and over to the 56 bike path, which I took back to Camino del Sur.  Again, not super fast on this moderate climb, which was aided by a mild tailwind.  I kept going on the bike path up to the turnoff for Carmel Mountain Rd, taking it and heading over to Black Mountain Rd.  There is some climbing here, not too bad.  Over to Carmel Valley Rd and then up and down to get to Dove Canyon Rd.  This climb was a little slower, I was starting to feel calorie-deprived, since I didn't want to have lunch before the ride and forgot to eat the dates I brought on the ride.  Over to RB Rd and home via the route down to W Bernardo Dr.  I was surprised that I kept my pace above 17 mph on this ride, since I didn't try to ride fast, just kept spinning pedals on the climbs.  Quiet later afternoon and evening.

Avg speed = 17.1 mph. Total mileage = 34.7 mi
Avg power = 153 W. Weighted avg power = 180 W
Total elevation gain = 2000'
Avg heartrate = 130 bpm

An update on a little experiment I have been working on.  Before I left for Houston, I tried to install Linux on our old laptop, which is underpowered and doesn't have enough memory to handle the latest version of Windows.  I found out that the hard drive had failed and thought about giving up until I saw I could buy a new 500 MB HDD on Amazon for about $15.  So I ordered one and decided to take a chance.  Got the service manual for the old laptop, which showed how to disassemble it, involving taking out 6 screws on the back side, using an Allen wrench to separate the keyboard from the motherboard assembly, and disconnecting some cables to get access to the HDD.  It wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be.  When I got back Sunday, the new HDD was waiting for me, so I removed the foil and rubber protective sleeve from the old one, then put them both on the new one.  It took me a while to figure out how to reattach the cables for the keyboard and touchpad, but I got it done and buttoned it back up.  However, when I powered it up, the HD diagnostics failed to find the new HDD, so I took it back apart, this time only splitting the case enough to check and reseat the cables for the HDD, which are near the front of the case.  I checked the HD diagnostic with a thorough disk test before snapping it shut, and it passed!  Then I installed the Ubuntu Budgie Linux OS version on the laptop, and it worked!  I was pretty excited by the success.  Not sure what I will do with this computer, but it's good to have something portable with computing power and better I/O functions that the tablet.  No luck trying to get access to Yahoo! Mail via the Linus email programs, which was a source of frustration that I had to deal with in the evening.  The internet browser response is just fine, and I got it successfully hooked up to the large display and wireless keyboard/mouse, which was surprising and satisfying.

Sunday, January 28, 2024

01-28-2024 Entry

Final hourlong walk in the morning during my visit.  For the first time, it was cold during the walk, I wished I had worn my gloves.  I told Ross about the car before I went on my walk, including letting him know that I had bought the terminal end replacements but couldn't loosen the nut holding the old one one.  By the time I got back, he had gone to get his tools from his house and replaced the bad terminal end.  Problem solved, good news.  The three of us left for the airport around noon, and I got to the airport a little before 1:00.  Checked in and made it to the gate fine, but the flight ended up being delayed about 50 minutes because the flight crew was late on their flight in from Memphis.  I had a crappy seat, second to last row and middle seat with a guy next to me who was crowding my space with his leg.  Nothing to do but take it in stride.  I watched Mad Max Fury Road, which was mindless and violent but made the time pass.  I had made a sandwich at the lake house, and that helped to kill some time as well.  Then I watched the first episode of 100 Foot Wave on Max, which was much more entertaining.  The big wave surfers are a crazy bunch, I just can't wrap my head around the risks they take for the adrenaline rush.  Got into San Diego after a very smooth flight.  It took a while for me to get off the plane, but I walked through the terminal and was lucky enough to see Ann in the car as I exited the terminal, so no waiting.  We had dinner at Saffron Thai Noodles, it was pretty good (actually the leftovers were better after the spice set into the noodles).  Felt good to sleep in my own bed, after a generally successful family visit.

Saturday, January 27, 2024

01-27-2024 Entry

I got up and went for an hourlong walk in the neighborhood starting at Mety Cove Dr.  I got back from the walk and got ready for meeting the brothers at the Denny's on Hwy 90 by Sheldon Rd.  Ross texted me (he had already left the house, I later found out) and said he wouldn't be joining us, which was disappointing.  When I got in the Pathfinder to head over there, I tried to turn the engine over, and it went dead.  Uh-oh.  I sent a message to the others saying I was going to be late, might have to take an Uber to get there.  Checked with Ross, who I thought was in his room (nope), no luck.  So I went out, popped the hood and looked at the battery terminal connections, one of the few things I know to check.  Amazingly, the positive terminal cable was loose, and when I jiggled it, it sparked and I got battery power back.  So I started the engine and headed over to meet Mark and Ben, about 5 minutes late, not too bad.  I felt quite fortunate that it was a simple thing I could fix, 95 times out of 100 it would have been worse.  The three of us had a good discussion about Ross and current situation with Mom, state of the trust (it's not as robust as I would like), situation with McKenzie (she is still having fairly significant seizures, will have an MRI on Tuesday), Mark's history with substance abuse (he's on anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medication currently but has been clean and sober for a very long time, fantastic willpower), Chris (who's been sober for 8 years), distribution of estate assets (Ross will get the car, the grandfather clocks will also likely stay in the family, Ben and Ross may want to keep the lake house, which could get messy).  There aren't too many items that I will want, maybe some of the family papers that should stay in the family).  Ben came back to the house after breakfast (it was pretty good, great service from Irma).  Mom was still in bed.  I talked to her briefly, then Ben talked to her for a longer time, telling her again that it doesn't help to worry about Ross and try to change his behavior.  After he left, I stopped back in her room, and she was starting to feel a little better.  Later on, she came out, didn't have much for lunch, but she was more of her normal self in the afternoon.  I made mac & cheese for dinner, with broiled asparagus, and it was a much better meal than the previous evening.  She ate pretty well.  I watched a little TV in the evening and read as well.  Ross was home early, which was good, since I wasn't looking forward to a situation on Sunday where he couldn't drive me to the airport.

Friday, January 26, 2024

01-26-2024 Entry

Walked for an hour and fifteen minutes in the morning, over to the new subdivision along Foley Rd, with houses in the $220-320k range. They looked pretty nice but with small backyards. Got home and got ready to drive with Mom over to Ben's house to see him, Adri. Suzanne, Abigail, Hannah, and her two girls Carson and Phoenix. New cat is currently named Shreveport, after the location of the warehouse where Ben picked him up on his trucking route. We visited for a while and then headed to Chik Fil A for lunch. It was okay, no main dishes for vegetarians, but the others seemed to like their food. Afterward, Mom and I stopped at a nearby Best Buy to get a Bluetooth transmitter that will work with her new Bluetooth headphones, along wit a set of powered speakers for the TV on the sun porch. A little rain on the drive back, nothing too severe. I installed the new items when we got home, and everything worked as planned. It rained heavily the rest of the evening. Dinner was baked tortellini with Alfredo sauce and garlic bread. Not a great meal, too much processed food. In the later evening Mom had some pretty severe heartburn, and I was wondering if it would resolve by itself. Watched a little basketball on the TV, sound is better there, not perfect but definitely better. 

Thursday, January 25, 2024

01-25-2024 Entry

Fairly quiet day. I went for an hour long walk around Mom's neighborhood, walking every street in this portion of Lake Shadows. Pretty eclectic mix of houses here, and they are dredging the little cove where we used to go water skiing. Then we went to Aldi and Walmart to get groceries for lunch and dinner. The rest of the day was at home, lots of talking. Dinner was stir fry and rice, with chicken for Mom, turned out pretty well. I have started Holly by Stephen King, and I finished Persepolis Rising, latest one of the books I've read in the Expanse series. That latter book involves the Laconians setting up an empire based on advanced technology derived from the protomolecule. The crew of the Rocinante plan and execute a revolt on Medina Station that allows 20 ships to get away to other gate worlds and involves a capture of a Laconian destroyer. King's novel is about a private detective tracking down the whereabouts of a missing young woman, where the villains are an elderly couple of professors who trap victims, put them in a cage in their basement, and eventually kill the and eat their remains in an attempt to retain their youth (or at least forestall the onset of age-related debilitation.  I also think I figured out what we need to get Mom's TV headphones to work, as well as how to fix the TV audio on the sun porch. Today was also Emily's 32nd birthday. She and Caleb had cheese fondue for dinner. 

Wednesday, January 24, 2024

01-24-2024 Swim/Ride

Busy workout morning for me before I traveled to Houston.  Went for an hourlong walk early in the morning down to the lake and back, then I headed over to the WWC for a 2000 yd swim.  Usual protocol, it took about 41 minutes.  I tried out my new swimsuit and goggles from Temu, and they worked fine.  Forgot to use the stopwatch I also bought from there, will try next time.  After I got home, I got ready to ride my bike and decided, on a whim, to capture video and try to sync it with my Wahoo stats using the Garmin Virb app.  I couldn't find my Wahoo for a while but then located it and got everything set up, including turning off the Auto Pause feature so that the video would sync with the stats.  Took what I am calling the extended time trial route, which includes riding down to the lake and then back up Pomerado Rd until it joins the standard time trial route at RB Rd.  On this ride I generally pushed myself pretty hard for most of it, including some high-power drives for short periods of time.  Felt some of the effects of the previous day's ride in that I couldn't produce high power for very long before my legs started to give up.  Still, I was satisfied with my effort.  I set a couple of PRs on Pomerado Rd, from Highland Valley to the hospital and to Poway Rd.

Avg speed = 17.8 mph (from Fitbit, which didn't Auto Pause). Total mileage = 19.6 mi
Avg power = 177 W. Weighted avg power = 197 W
Total elevation gain = 1160'
Avg heartrate = 130 bpm

We left around 12:45 for the airport, I decided that I wouldn't have time to ride so left my bike home. Flight was uneventful, a little bit of a delay when we landed before we could pull up to the gate. However, Ross and Mom were parked right at the arrivals area, so I got directly into the car and we headed back to the lake house. Talked about camping on the way back, among other topics. Mom was in good spirits too. 

Tuesday, January 23, 2024

01-23-2024 Ride

This ride turned out okay.  It rained early in the morning, and I was a little worried when I left home that I might run into some weather.  Headed down by the park and over the freeway to BVP, then taking the back way behind the mall to get over to Centre City Pkwy.  Stayed on it all the way through Escondido and then up to Deer Springs Rd before continuing on down the hill past Lawrence Welk Resort.  The downhill was exhilarating, and even after it flattened out, I had a little bit of an overall downhill gradient all the way into Bonsall via Camino del Rey.  Evidence of recent flooding on that road was visible, and I had to watch out for patches of mud in the bike lane.  Headed over to the 76, where I turned right and rode up to Mission Rd, turning left there and starting a 6-mile very gradual (averaging around 1%) uphill into Fallbrook.  I rode through the newer sections and found my way to old town Fallbrook, where I stopped for a short break and a couple of photos before turning around and retracing my route.  This time, the gentle climb back to the freeway wasn't as noticeable as last time, and I didn't have any problem on the little climbs to get me back to near the Lawrence Welk Resort.  I stopped for a short break here before the last significant climb, a 2-miler averaging 3-4%.  Took it nice and easy for the most part, not trying to overdo it.  The ride back into Escondido from there was net downhill and fast, I was also benefiting from a slight tailwind and made good time.  Lots of stoplights going through the city, then it was another fast run across the bridge on the freeway before the last two little climbs, both taking fairly slowly.  Legs felt fine at the end, not as much push in them as I wished but no cramps.

Avg speed = 16.6 mph. Total mileage = 61.1 mi
Avg power = 151 W. Weighted avg power = 172 W
Total elevation gain = 2830'
Avg heartrate = 127 bpm

Monday, January 22, 2024

01-22-2024 Virtual Ride

Weather was wet and miserable all morning, so I did an indoor ride on the Kickr.  The Wahoo app had been redesigned, and I never did figure out how to set the resistance level consistently.  I was in Erg mode for most of the ride, targeting a power output of 170-180 W.  Focus was on trying to keep a steady high cadence and keep pushing the pedals.  I was getting tired near the end and was glad when the hour was up.  Lots of sweating, even with the fan aimed at me.  I listened to music on my iPod through the speakers during the ride.

Avg speed = 18.6 mph. Total mileage = 18.5 mi
Avg power = 158 W. Weighted avg power = 163 W
Total elevation gain (est.) = 800'

In the afternoon, I did my volunteer shift at the hospital.  Met a couple of new people, including Shane (nurse), ?? (female med tech), and Emily (other charge nurse).  I also talked briefly with the regular Monday morning ED volunteer, Pat.  She seemed a little scatterbrained.  The department was really busy, even in the crappy weather, and I didn't have too much trouble finding stuff to do.  Cleaned up my first room with a fair amount of blood (nosebleed), and I took lots of extra care handling all the stuff that went into regular and bio waste.

Sunday, January 21, 2024

01-21-2024 Entry

Light exercise day for me, the first in a while.  No ride, since it was raining in the morning.  Ann and I ran some errands in the afternoon, returning the HDMI cable to Best Buy and buying some stuff at Aldi.  I tried to get the old laptop to run for a Linux OS installation, but it apparently has a bad hard drive.  I can run Linux from a flash drive, but it's a pain to boot up, and slow.  Once it's booted, it is not too bad to run.  Can surf the internet okay.  I also went for a walk later in the afternoon, got out and around without getting rained on.

Saturday, January 20, 2024

01-20-2024 Ride

I wanted to get more miles than the planned Bisikleta ride, so I started out around 6:30, heading through the neighborhood to Matinal Rd and then over to W Bernardo Dr.  I rode the little climbs up to HP, then turned right onto Via del Campo to get over to RB Rd.  Left there, and then through the 4S Ranch neighborhood up by the water tower and then down to Ralphs Ranch Rd.  I stayed on this road until turning right onto Camino San Tomas and riding it up to its cul-de-sac before riding back down.  Also rode to the top of Four Gee Rd before turning around and staying on Paseo del Sur into the Del Sur neighborhood.  I took a number of turns to get over to Casey Glen, finally finding it and heading back.  I took Garretson St up to Del Sur Ridge Rd, and then Paseo del Sur to Templeton St to get to the 4S Target parking lot.  On this ride, there were: Ray, Perse, Rob, Jed, Eric, Sassan, Zac, Joey, Gio, Kamal, Maher, Gideon, and Nel.  I acted as the sweeper during the ride, not wanting to push the pace too much and instead focusing on getting distance in.  We rode Camino del Sur all the way to the 56 bike path, then down to El Camino Real.  Perse and Gideon continued on El Camino Real to shorten their ride, while the rest of us rode over to the coast via Carmel Valley Rd, and as an added bonus turning left to ride up Torrey Pines.  Three of us - Jed, Sassan, and me - took the inside route while the others rode the outside route.  I kept pace with Sassan, who was pushing it pretty hard, and ended up with a new PR, 9:02.  I could have gone a little faster but not much.  We gathered at the top and took a short break before turning around and riding down and into Del Mar.  I was riding consistently at or near the back of the bunch, but we were still riding pretty fast.  Zac and Joey were back there, along with Maher and sometimes Nel.  We rode up the coast to La Costa Ave, and the others took a break at the 7-Eleven while I kept riding up to Breakwater Rd before turning around and heading back.  When I got there, they were ready to leave, so I didn't have much of a break.  Again near the back of the group, spending time talking with Maher for a bit.  Around this time, Tony Nuccup caught up with us, and I rode with him as well.  Back to Via de la Valle, and around the turn here I felt a couple of raindrops.  Thankfully, they didn't continue, and we rode up to El Camino Real and then over to San Dieguito Rd.  I was still at the back, but I got ahead of Kamal and Maher, finally letting them pass me after the turn onto San Dieguito Rd.  I caught up with them and then set the pace on the flats back to the gas station.  They continued on, and I stopped with the rest of the riders for a short break before continuing on.  On the 3 Witches climb, I rode near the back with Rob, Nel, Gio, and Tony.  Nel, Gio, Tony, and I rode on Camino del Sur, and I eventually caught up with Zac and Joey, riding with them for a while.  We all got back safely, and it started to sprinkle.  Eric was trying to figure out the reason for a noisy drivetrain on his new bike, so I rode it around the neighborhood and pointed out what I thought was going on.  During that little ride, it really started to rain, and I thought I was going to have to deal with that on the ride home.  Thankfully, it was brief, and as I headed east the rain let up and the streets weren't even too wet.  Headed back through the neighborhood but was close to 70 miles, so I stayed on Matinal Rd to W Bernardo Dr, then took it down the hill to Aguamiel Rd.  That last little climb up to the house was slow, I was out of gas, probably didn't eat enough during the ride, and I didn't take as many breaks.

Avg speed = 16.7 mph. Total mileage = 70.0 mi
Avg power = 142 W. Weighted avg power = 168 W
Total elevation gain = 3420'
Avg heartrate = 121 bpm

In the evening, we had a number of church people over for a potluck and singalong.  Emily and Caleb, Kay and Earl, Michael, Benjamin, The Whites (Dennis, Melissa, Abby, Weston, and Isaiah), and Jen and Lars.  Earl was having dizzy spells, so they ended up leaving not too long after dinner.  The singing was fun, I just selected the songs and displayed the lyrics while others played instruments.

Friday, January 19, 2024

01-19-2024 Ride

Jhonar had suggested a Friday morning ride the previous day, and several other people showed interest, so I planned a route, starting from the Marco's Pizza parking lot at 8:00.  As normally happens, the others ended up backing out, and it was just me and him on the ride.  We headed down the hill and over the pedestrian bridge to get to BVP, taking it up to Sunset Dr and then riding up to Juniper St.  On the flats, Jhonar was keeping pace with me, and I was trying to maintain a steady but not hard average speed.  We rode over to Idaho Ave, turning right there and having to climb that short, very steep hill.  I had forgotten just how steep it was.  Then we coasted downhill past San Pasqual Valley Rd and had a more gentle little climb to get back over to BVP.  Turned left there and rode over to Valley Pkwy, taking that road to get to El Norte Pkwy.  Jhonar and I traded leads on this section, and he was working to keep our effort level high.  Left on Centre City Pkwy and back through Escondido until we got to Citracado Pkwy, where we turned left and then right onto Escondido Blvd, taking this road down to the trail through Kit Carson Park that brought us to Beethoven Dr.  Back to BVP and then returning via the path to the pedestrian bridge and the climbs up to the park and then up to Duenda Rd.  I kept going to Poblado Rd and rode with Jhonar to his place to drop him off, then continued to Matinal Rd and home through the neighborhood.  Was a nice ride, unplanned, but more miles can't hurt in my preparation for the upcoming century rides.  My Fitbit ran out of battery during the ride, a little more than halfway, so its data are only partial.

Avg speed = 15.9 mph. Total mileage = 26.1 mi
Avg power = 144 W. Weighted avg power = 169 W
Total elevation gain = 1270'
Avg heartrate = 133 bpm

Later in the morning, I rode my scooter over to Best Buy and bought a mini HDMI cable so I can plug a monitor into Emily's laptop for the singalong, then I stopped at Jalapeno's for lunch, a bean and cheese burrito.  It was good, but it made me really gassy in the evening.  Cleaned the refrigerator shelves and bins pretty thoroughly and swept the front porch.

Thursday, January 18, 2024

01-18-2024 Swim/Ride

Most of the action on this day happened early.  I went for an hourlong walk in the morning, then headed to the WWC for a 2000 yds swim, following the normal protocol.  Felt a little stronger after Tuesday's workout, and I pushed the pace in the last 20 lengths, able to break the 2:00/100 yd barrier for the first time at this distance.  But it took a fairly big effort.  When I got home, I started transcribing the lyrics for a series of songs to include in the singalong on Saturday night, and I lost track of time.  Avi texted me a little before 11:00 and asked if I was riding, so I said yes.  Headed over there up Aguamiel Rd to Duenda Rd and then W Bernardo Dr to get over to Bernardo Center Dr.  Then it was up Bernardo Heights Pkwy to Paseo Lucido and over to Rancho Carmel Dr.  I was a little early, so I took the loop around Innovation Dr and got to the back door of the Oura offices right around 11:45.  Avi and Jose were riding, and we headed back to Rancho Carmel Dr, taking it down to the 56 bike path.  We stayed on that path until turning onto Rancho Santa Fe Farms Rd to get over to Carmel Valley Rd.  Headed back to Camino del Sur, turning left there.  I was staying at their pace for the most part, pushing myself on the little climb up to this intersection and getting some separation.  Then we rode together up to Paseo del Sur, turning right there.  I also got out front here but dialed it back to try and let them catch up.  But they were riding slower, so I increased my pace a little bit and waited for them at Babcock Dr.  Then we rode together, turning right on Potomac Ridge Rd and then right again on Nicole Ridge Rd.  Left on Camino San Bernardo, which we took up to Camino del Norte.  I found out that Jose is a pescatarian, for similar reasons to me being a vegetarian.  Apparently, Laurie is a very strong rider as well.  Jose has been dealing with lower back pain caused by an imbalance in his muscle development when he was riding a lot.  We followed this road back to the gate just past the freeway, where Avi and Jose turned and I kept going up to Paseo del Sur, turning left there.  I stayed on it past the light at Bernardo Heights Pkwy, looping around and catching this road near the bottom of the hill.  Over to Bernardo Center Dr, heading home from there via the Duenda Rd route.  It was a decent workout, didn't push myself too hard.

Avg speed = 15.4 mph. Total mileage = 29.5 mi
Avg power = 136 W. Weighted avg power = 171 W
Total elevation gain = 2030'
Avg heartrate = 126 bpm




In the afternoon and evening, I finished up the ~30 songs that I'm hoping we can choose from for the singalong.  I also got my first partial shipment from Temu, still waiting on the stopwatch and solar phone battery charger to be sent.

Wednesday, January 17, 2024

01-17-2024 Ride

I had originally planned on a little longer solo ride after finding out that John was down with the flu.  But when I looked out at 7:30, the back patio was wet, and I got worried about getting caught in the rain.  So I put my rain jacket on and decided to make it a shorter, slow ride.  Headed through the neighborhood, taking the Capilla Rd route.  Then I took RB Rd over to Camino del Norte, turning left there and heading toward Carmel Mountain Rd.  I incorrectly turned onto Bernardo Center Dr but got it figured out pretty quickly.  Then it was over to Rancho Carmel Dr, taking this road down to Sabre Springs Pkwy and staying on it all the way to Springhurst Dr.  Over to Poway Rd, turning right and then taking Oak Knoll Rd to get onto Pomerado Rd.  I took a break at the Chevron gas station on the corner, then continued on, following the reverse of the time trial route back home.  Wasn't a fast ride, and it was nice to take a more measured pace for a change.

Avg speed = 14.8 mph. Total mileage = 21.1 mi
Avg power = 137 W. Weighted avg power = 162 W
Total elevation gain = 1230'
Avg heartrate = 126 bpm




I rested up a little bit before heading over to take my volunteer shift at the hospital in the afternoon.  I was able to keep busier on this day than previous times, probably because there were a lot of room cleanings that I ended up doing.  Margie stopped by later on, she was meeting a new volunteer, Anton, who is a student and will likely be working in the evenings in the ED.  On the way home, I stopped at Sprouts and got some stuff, including ingredients for the chocolate kiss cookies that Ann and I made in the evening.  They were, of course, delicious!  Best cookies coming out of the oven, when the chocolate kisses have had a chance to melt and are still warm.

Tuesday, January 16, 2024

01-16-2024 Swim

Went for a swim at the WWC when it opened, nobody else at the beginning or at the end, although there were a couple of swimmers who joined in the middle.  Went for 3500 yds, and it was a chore.  Normal protocol for the first 2000 yds, then I repeated 3 of the 4 segments for the second 1500.  Seemed slower at the end, although I didn't have a lot of energy throughout.  Finished in about 1:19, a pretty slow time but my first swim of this longer distance.  My right shoulder was giving me a little trouble during the end of the first session with pads, but on the last 20 lengths with pads it was fine, I was just slow.  I took it easy for a while when I got home.  Started the next book in The Expanse series, Persepolis Rising, where decades have passed since the last book and Holden and Naomi hand over the Rocinante to Bobbie as captain.  One of the ring worlds, Laconia, has been secretly using the protomolecule to make superhumans and advanced spacecraft, and they attempt to take over the human race.  I worked in the backyard digging weeds for over an hour, still a ton of work to do back there.  Ann and I went for a walk in the afternoon over to CVS, about 1.5 mi round trip, and got a snack.

Monday, January 15, 2024

01-15-2024 Ride

Well, this was a generally good day on the bike.  I wanted to get some miles in, and originally I planned on dialing back my effort and focusing on distance.  But as I got going, I found that I was feeling good and kept that way for the most part.  Went down the hill and over the freeway to BVP, taking it up to Valley Pkwy.  Just past Sunset Dr, the road was under construction, but I thought I could ride behind the barriers until I ran out of rode.  Hoisted my bike over the barrier and kept going on a really beat up side of the road, climbing slowly and carefully until the road conditions improved.  Over Valley Pkwy to El Norte Pkwy, and I made good time on this stretch, although the slight downhill section was into the offshore breeze.  Kept on this road past the freeway, doing the little climb there and then riding to Bennett Ave, turning left there.  This road is in good condition, but I was surprised by the little climbing section here before it dipped down to Mission Rd.  Turned right there and made really good time over to Las Posas Rd, not really feeling the effects of the offshore.  Rode to San Marcos Blvd, turning right there and staying on it until it turned into Palomar Airport Rd.  This stretch was generally downhill, and I made good time over to Avenida Encinas, turning left there and riding on a road that I don't think I've ridden on before.  It meandered a little before turning west and connecting with PCH just north of La Costa Ave.  I got on PCH and kept making good time, feeling like I had a little tailwind pushing me.  I rode through Leucadia and Encinitas, deciding on a whim to take a break at Swamis Beach.  I talked to another cyclist who told me about the Old Spokes Cycling Club, most of whose riders are over 65.  The guy I talked to was 78, and he was in pretty good shape for his age, recovering from spinal fusion and hernia surgery.  Let's hope I'm still riding at that age and avoiding any major physical breakdowns before then.  I kept riding on PCH through Cardiff, Solana Beach, and Del Mar, turning left onto Carmel Valley Rd and heading over to Sorrento Valley Rd, where I turned right.  The road quality here was pretty terrible, and I had a little bit of a down spell, spinning gears until I worked through it.  This road turns into Mira Mesa Blvd and has a relatively gently climb out of Sorrento Valley, which was good for me on this day.  However, the outer tendon on my right knee started bothering me a little bit, and I got worried that it was the onset of a bout of tendonitis.  I adjusted my foot position in the pedal and moved my knee out a little bit, and it really never turned into anything to worry about.  My right quad was just fine throughout the ride, a good, surprising outcome.  The stretch on Mira Mesa Blvd seemed like it went on for a long time, but it was only 6 miles or so.  Near the left turn onto Scripps Ranch Blvd, I got a low derailleur battery warning, so I stopped after turning left onto Erma Rd and switched out my rear derailleur battery, which solved the problem.  I tried out the Akasa camera on the downhill heading toward Scripps-Poway Pkwy and again on the second downhill past this road on the bike path.  My energy was lagging by this time, so I headed up Poway Rd to a liquor store by Springbrook Dr and got a Powerade and a Clif bar, taking some time to rest and refuel.  Felt good after I got back on the bike, aided by the steady tailwind blowing on Poway Rd.  Up to Community Rd, turning left and riding over to Twin Peaks Rd, turning right there.  Good time made up to Espola Rd, where I turned left and rode up the climb to the high school.  The last bit of this climb was a chore, as my legs didn't have a lot of push left in them.  I made it, then did decently on the generally downhill stretch back to RB Rd.  Home the normal way via W Bernardo Dr from there, and I was really glad that my legs held out the entire way and allowed me to average over 18 mph.

Avg speed = 18.2 mph. Total mileage = 70.8 mi
Avg power = 169 W. Weighted avg power = 181 W
Total elevation gain = 2760'
Avg heartrate = 129 bpm



Sunday, January 14, 2024

01-14-2024 Ride

Ride in the morning with John from our house (Dave was recovering from COVID, and Jim was busy moving Liz into the house).  It wasn't as cold as the previous morning at the start, but it never really warmed up during the ride.  I was a little late to get ready, and John was early, so I didn't pump up my tires.  Didn't seem to make a lot of difference this ride.  We headed down the hill and down by the park over to Pomerado Rd.  Those downhills were cold, but I knew we would be slowing as we climbed back up Pomerado Rd to RB Rd.  From there, we followed the time trial route.  I generally dialed my pace back and rode with John except for a couple of times.  The day was clear when we began but clouded over by the time we finished.  Felt fine at the end, I could feel my right quad was not quite right, but it didn't act up, seems like it is healing.  I didn't start my Fitbit, but it tracked the ride as an exercise.

Avg speed = 15.8 mph. Total mileage = 19.6 mi
Avg power = 146 W. Weighted avg power = 169 W
Total elevation gain = 1100'
Avg heartrate = 125 bpm



I have started reading Jon Krakauer's book about Pat Tillman's death, Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman.  He is a fine writer, very thorough, and he does a good job of getting to the bottom of the fratricide that killed Tillman, as well as providing much more insight into who Tillman was and what motivated him during his life.  It's changing my opinion of him, the circumstances of his death, and the way that people in power attempt to manipulate the news cycles to their advantage.  My TMJ discomfort also appears to be gradually getting better, but some residual might stay with me indefinitely.  In the late morning, I went over to the WWC and swam for 2000 yds in about 40 min.  Not too many people swimming, although it was a decent temperature outside.  Then, in the afternoon, I took a shorter walk around the neighborhood.

Saturday, January 13, 2024

01-13-2024 Ride

Was pretty cold at the house, so I put on double gloves and my winter booties, along with three top layers.  Even so, my hands were pretty cold at the start, the rest was fine.  Headed over through the neighborhood and the extended loop through the 4S Ranch neighborhood, including riding up by and around target to get to the meet-up point.  On this Bisikleta ride, there were: Zac and Joey (they have moved back to San Diego since both are working remotely), Perse, Jed, Fritz, Rob, Nel, Charlie, Eric, Kamal, Maher, and Gideon.  We headed out Camino del Sur and down San Dieguito Rd, it was me and Kamal ahead of the others, and by this time it was a little warmer (I'd ditched the booties in Nel's car).  Down to El Apajo, turning right and waiting for everybody to gather up.  Then it was over to Via de la Valle, where I led the group up the climb to the beginning of Stud Loop.  Another gathering, then we rode the loop over to El Montevideo, with me and Jed mainly in the front until near the end, when I pulled away from the others.  Eric was riding strong on this day throughout the ride and was consistently in the front group.  Took El Montevideo up to Via de Fortuna and turned right to get over to El Camino del Norte, where we turned left and headed downhill to Rancho Santa Fe Rd.  At the end, Kamal, Fritz, and I sprinted out, but I couldn't keep up with Fritz at the end.  We turned right and took this road over to Olivenhain Rd, I had stayed near the back and then rode hard to get up to the front on the little climb.  Left at this junction, then we took it and Leucadia Blvd up to Quail Gardens Dr.  There is another short, kinda steep climb here, and I finished well ahead of the others.  Right turn, another gathering point, then it was over and down to Saxony Rd, turning right there and using it to get to La Costa Ave.  We took this road over to the coast and stopped at the usual 7-Eleven for a break, maybe a little longer one than we needed.  After that, we headed back via PCH through Del Mar (I pushed the pace and led up the little climb into the village) and over to Carmel Valley Rd.  Route back from here was the usual, via the 56 bike path and Camino del Sur.  On the bike path, it was me, Eric, Jed, and Rob out in front, and we formed something of a pace line on the stretch just past Carmel Valley Rd and gently climbing up.  On the second climb, Rob dropped back, and eventually I put in a big effort to catch, and pass, Eric, who had attacked.  My right quad bothered me on this section, and I was worried that it would get worse, but it didn't really.  It just kept letting me know that I was pushing the pace pretty hard.  For the return on Camino del Sur, it was me, Fritz, Jed, and Eric in the front for a while, then Fritz and I outpaced the others and finished together.  I took a longer route home, staying on Camino del Norte over to Bernardo Center Dr (that little climb past Camino San Bernardo caused me some pain) and then to W Bernardo Dr.  I was slowing down by this point, didn't fuel up enough on the ride and was feeling the effects.  I stayed on this road down the hill until turning on Aguamiel Rd and riding it up to Aguacate Way, turning right there and taking it up to the cul-de-sac before turning around and heading home via Creciente Way.  That allowed me to get to 60 miles for the ride.  Legs held out well, I should have eaten more, and my right quad was tender for the rest of the day as I took it easy.

Avg speed = 17.2 mph. Total mileage = 60.2 mi
Bisikleta ride avg speed = 17.7 mph
Avg power = 163 W. Weighted avg power = 193 W
Total elevation gain = 3550'
Avg heartrate = 122 bpm



Friday, January 12, 2024

01-12-2024 Swim

Went for a swim in the morning at the WWC, going 2550 yds (I'm pretty sure I swam at least one extra lap above the 2500 yd target) and taking about 54 min to do it.  Arms were getting tired near the end, so I couldn't talk myself into getting to 3000.  Later, I had lunch with Hongwei at Viktor's Cafe, she is a little worried about long-term ink research prospects at HP.  Xi's company is doing okay but not turning into a blockbuster, and he is starting to think about what the next step might be.  Both of them are considering where they might end up next.  Audrey is doing fine at Princeton, her fall semester was tougher than she thought, so her GPA was lower than she was used to.  She enjoyed the summer excursion to Indonesia, wants to go abroad again this summer.  Lilian is happy with being at home, wants to stay at home while going to college as well.  In the afternoon, I installed a camera on my bike and will try to capture some video on the Bisikleta ride.  Cleaned it up a little as well, checked the batteries.  The other day, I also figured out how to remove the derailleur hanger from my old bike, it wasn't so hard.  Might end up taking it to Houston to get some rides in, we'll see.  I also went for a shorter afternoon walk around the neighborhood, to get my steps in.  In the evening, we had dinner with Jan Baer and her daughter Jennifer, as well as Emily, Caleb, and his parents at Cocina del Charro.  Was a nice dinner, food wasn't memorable but we shared some good memories and best wishes for Jan as she moves back to Ohio (near Finley).

Thursday, January 11, 2024

01-11-2024 Entry

Went for a shorter early morning walk around the neighborhood before driving over to Oceanside with Ann to catch the train up to LA.  The Amtrak train was delayed because of a trespasser on the tracks (so we heard), so we ended up boarding a Metrolink train to Laguna Niguel and then switching to another Metrolink train into LA Union Station.  The train ride up was interesting, pretty on the first half, which took us mainly along the coast.  The second half was through more industrial areas, and that was also fascinating in its own way.  Union Station, and the LA Metro system, was somewhat depressing, we saw a fair amount of people down on their luck during the day in LA.  We went to the Grand Central Market, taking the Metro B Red line.  There wasn't so much to see there, and we weren't quite ready for lunch, so we took the Metro back to Union Station, then walked past Olvera St and into Chinatown for lunch.  Lunch was pretty good for me, Ann's wasn't quite as good.  I was worried that we wouldn't find a restaurant with vegetarian options, but this one had some choices.  After lunch, we walked to a DASH stop and then took it over to the Broad Museum, which is in the LA cultural center: Walt Disney Concert Hall, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, etc.  Entered the museum a little bit before our scheduled time.  The Broads were world-class collectors of post-WW II modern art, including works by: Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Jeff Koons, Jasper Johns.  Lots of really large artwork, some of it quite intricate.  The visit was memorable and enjoyable, including a short visit to an infinity mirror room.  Afterwards, we walked back over to Grand Central Market for ice cream, and then had a drink and a snack at a bar on Hill St serving happy hour.  Then it was back to Union Station to catch our return train, this time getting on Amtrak and the trip going smoothly and more quickly than the outbound trains.

Wednesday, January 10, 2024

01-10-2024 Ride

Solo ride in the morning over to John's house, taking W Bernardo Dr and RB Rd to get to the normal route on Pomerado Rd.  I was running late because both my watch and phone were low on battery and hadn't charged overnight as planned.  I pushed the pace for a while but ran out of gas on the last uphill to his place.  We continued on from his house, heading up toward the top of Pomerado Rd using our normal route.  However, right by Cypress Canyon Park, I heard something snap and found out that John had broken his chain at a link that he had tried to reuse.  So he was done for the day.  Thankfully, there was a lot of coasting to get back to his house, and he decided to coast it instead of asking Vivian to pick him up.  I stayed with him and we made it back safely.  Then I cut my riding day short and rode back home the normal way on Pomerado Rd, taking Bernardo Center Dr to Duenda Rd to finish it off.

Avg speed = 15.3 mph. Total mileage = 22.2 mi
Avg power = 154 W. Weighted avg power = 181 W
Total elevation gain = 1360'
Avg heartrate = 108 bpm




Went for my second volunteer shift in the afternoon at Pomerado Medical Center.  Met Johnny (nurse), Arissa (admin support like Shannon, I think), Patty (housekeeping).  This day seemed to go a little quicker, I did a lot more prepping of rooms than the previous week, and there weren't any patients in the hallway this time.

Tuesday, January 9, 2024

01-09-2024 Swim/Ride

Went over to the WWC in the morning, was cold but not as cold as the previous day.  Curiously, nobody else was there as the club opened to go swimming.  I ended up having the entire pool to myself for almost an hour, swimming 2500 yds in about 52 min, following standard protocol along with 20 lengths without snorkel or pads.  I also cut down the Christmas tree and put it in the green recycling bin.  Around 11:00, I rode over to Avi's office in CMR, taking the Bernardo Heights Pkwy route.  There, I met him and Jose Doval, who I hadn't seen in quite a while.  We rode back to Carmel Mountain Rd and then over to Twin Peaks Rd to get to Pomerado Rd, which we took up and then down to RB Rd.  Up to Espola Rd, but we turned right onto Bridlewood Rd, riding up and over a short little climb to get to Summer Sage Rd, where we turned right and followed it all the way until it came out onto Espola Rd again.  Up to the high school, then down to Twin Peaks Rd, where we turned left and rode over to Midland Rd.  The guys were keeping up a good pace, and Jose was staying with me when I pushed it a little harder.  Over to Community Rd via Hilleary Pl, then we got onto Poway Rd.  Stayed on the old time trial route until we got to Ted Williams Pkwy, where we switched to the new time trial route back to our meet-up spot.  Was a good ride, I'll try to join them on a more regular basis.  I rode home by staying on the new time trial route for a while but staying on Camino del Norte until I turned right onto Camino San Bernardo.  Over to RB Rd, then home the normal way through the neighborhood.

Avg speed = 15.6 mph. Total mileage = 29.4 mi
Avg power = 139 W. Weighted avg power = 173 W
Total elevation gain = 1800'
Avg heartrate = 123 bpm




After I got back home, I had a quick shower and then drove down to Fashion Valley to return the candy thermometer to Williams-Sonoma, since Ann was able to get our old one working again.  Happily, I didn't run into traffic on the trip there or back.  I stopped at Big 5 in RB on the way back and bought a new pair of black running shoes with white soles, to wear while volunteering at the hospital.  Ann got her dental filling replaced at the new dentist that Blair recommended, she was happy with the service and pricing.  In the evening, Emily, Caleb, and I went down to North Park to a place called BottleCraft for a beer and cheese tasting.  It was an enjoyable experience, the beers were definitely esoteric and not altogether great for drinking, but certainly interesting to hear their stories and have different taste sensations.  The paired cheeses were better, not to unusual.  And there were little snacks on the plates as well to mix up the palate.

Monday, January 8, 2024

01-08-2024 Swim

Went for a relatively early hourlong walk and then a swim at the WWC, 2000 yds with standard protocol in 41 min.  Felt slow in the early laps but got into more of a rhythm later.  Right after I got home, I took a shower and then Ann and I headed up to Long Beach to visit the Aquarium of the Pacific for our anniversary.  Drive up was essentially traffic-free.  The aquarium was pretty large, lots of exhibits featuring coral reefs, and the message about the relationship between global warming and the reefs dying off was pretty relentless.  There were many aquarium exhibits, but they got kind of monotonous after a while.  The presentation where scuba divers went into one of the aquariums to feed the fish was pretty good, as was a presentation where the otters were fed.  The two female otters are being prepared to be surrogates for orphaned otter pups, and the presenter did a good job telling the story.  Outside were a couple of pools where you could touch rays, and that was an interesting feeling.  Similar littler exhibit where you could touch moon jellies, and it was a weird sensation.  The lorikeet exhibit was also decent, although the birds looked both colorful and a little ragged in their plumage.  We walked around Rainbow Harbor afterward to kill some time before heading to dinner, and we saw the Queen Mary off in the distance.  Then we drove to Westminster (some slowing in traffic mostly on the 710), Little Saigon, originally to go to a vegetarian Vietnamese restaurant, but it was closed.  So we went to a Pho restaurant, Phoholic, that was next door.  I'm guessing the vegetarian noodle soup I had was in a meat-based broth, but no complaints.  Food was good.  Ann drove home, and we had a little bit of traffic but not much.

Sunday, January 7, 2024

01-07-2024 Ride

This was a tough day.  I heard it raining in the night, was a little surprised, but it was clear when I woke up, so I just delayed my start time a little bit.  Headed through the neighborhood and then through the 4S Ranch neighborhood, up to Ralphs Ranch Rd.  On the early stretches, I felt that it was breezy, and the ride on Alva Rd let me know that it was coming from the north.  Camino del Sur to San Dieguito Rd, where the crosswinds on the downhill were really stiff, causing me to ride the brakes for most of the way down the first and second descents.  Still swirling winds on the flats, and it wasn't completely clear when I was riding into the wind until I got onto Via de la Valle, where I could tell the wind was coming from the northwest.  By the time I got to the coast, it seemed to have shifted to mainly coming from the north, so I was riding right into it when I turned right and headed north.  For much of the time heading up to Carlsbad, I was in my lower chainring, and there were times when I had to pedal going downhill just to maintain 15 mph.  I rode the second half of this stretch with another guy who was suffering like me, our paces generally matched each other, and it was good to have somebody to commiserate with on the conditions.  I rode into Carlsbad Village and stopped for a break at a little park on the west side of the main drag, had a banana and a trail bar.  The ride back was, for the most part, exhilarating, with a 20 mph tailwind to help me along.  Because of that, I had a number of PRs on the stretches heading south.  Around the turn back onto Via de la Valle, I saw that I was running out of energy from the hard push on the outbound section.  So I dialed it back and didn't have too much problem getting to the bottom of 3 Witches.  Was really slow going up, and my slow pace continued on Camino del Sur.  Just no push left in my legs, and my lower back was also a little stressed.  Stayed on Camino del Norte up to Camino San Bernardo, then over to RB Rd and a retrace of the earlier route.  Legs didn't cramp up, and my right calf (which acted up on the previous day's ride) was totally fine.  I was pretty hungry when I got home but not too sore, just tired.  My FitBit ran out of battery a little less than halfway on this route, so my average heartrate is elevated because of the high effort needed to ride into the wind.

Avg speed = 16.1 mph. Total mileage = 60.9 mi
Avg power = 151 W. Weighted avg power = 172 W
Total elevation gain = 2410'
Avg heartrate = 135 bpm



Saturday, January 6, 2024

01-06-2024 Ride

It was cold at the start of this ride, colder than I think I've been in a year.  Might even have benefited from the new booties that Emily and Caleb got me for Christmas.  Instead, I had on three top layers and suffered from cold fingers and numb toes for a while.  Up through the neighborhood and through the 4S Ranch neighborhood (short route) to the 4S Ranch target.  On this ride at the start, there was a big group: Ray, Perse, Arnold, Nel, Fritz, Eric (new Canyon Endurace bike), Charlie, Kamal, Maher, Omar (started with us), Aaron (he proposed the route), Ryan (the son of one of Rob's former co-workers, very strong rider), Cam, and Sassan.  We rode on Camino del Sur over to RB Rd and then down to W Bernardo Dr, turning left there.  The downhill section was cold, and it got colder as we approached the lake.  Over to Pomerado Rd, taking it up to Highland Valley Rd and turning left there.  We met Jamil at this corner and were supposed to meet Rob as well, but he had a flat and caught up with us later.  It was near freezing on the flats and pretty brutal, with Jamil and Sassan (he's training for a half-IronMan) in their aero positions getting out in front.  I caught up with them around the start of the first climb, then it was me and Ryan out in front of the others.  He was fast!  I couldn't match his pace, but I didn't get too far behind him.  We waited at the top of the first climb for the others, and it ended up being a really long wait, since Omar was struggling to get up this pitch.  Eventually he made it, and we continued on.  Sassan was just behind me, and Ryan was a little out in front, and on the second climb I ended up dropping Sassan near the top of the first steep part, while Ryan was ahead.  He waited for me and the others a little later, and I suggested that we keep riding, otherwise it was going to be a really slow waiting day.  So we rode up to the summit of the climb, he was in front but again I stayed within shouting distance.  When we got to the normal waiting area I have used in the past, we paused for the others to catch up.  Ray needed a CR2032 battery for one of his shifters, and so we ended up taking the one out of his Quarq power meter and putting it in.  This time, we didn't wait for Omar, who was struggling to make these climbs.  We continued down the gradual descent, and I tried to stay near the front of the pack, including a time on the flatter section where I organized a pace line for just a short while.  Out to the 67, turning left there and riding down into the outskirts of Ramona to Mike's Liquor Store, where we had our break.  Then we reversed the route.  I stayed near the front, and Fritz was more active on this section of the ride.  On the gradual climb back to the summit, Aaron and Ryan got out in front and I couldn't come close to matching their pace, but I was satisfied with my effort in general.  Some of us gathered near the summit for a selfie that Aaron took, and then we started heading down.  There's a sharp turn in the first descent before a little kicker to get to when the longer descent starts, and Rob lost his back wheel there and went down.  Bloody elbow and some torn clothes, but he was generally fine.  Around this same turn, Ryan also almost went down when he hit one of the road reflectors, but he recovered.  I was fast on this stretch back, descending well and pushing hard on the short little uphill sections.  Caught and passed all of the others and was first to the bottom of the last climb.  Then we had a more measured pace to get back to Pomerado Rd, where I split off with Jamil and Rob to head left while the others retraced their route back to the start.  Wanted to make sure Rob was okay and supported, and he did fine.  I rode with him back to RB Rd, where he continued straight and I turned.  I got a low battery indicator at this time, and I think it's one of the CR2032 paddle shifter batteries (went to the store later and got some new ones).  But I was able to work through a short period where I couldn't shift to a lower gear.  Back RB Rd to W Bernardo Dr and home the normal way from there.  I think my core is definitely stronger, since I finished this ride, which was moderately punishing, feeling fine.  Some soreness in my right calf, which acted up a little bit on the outbound climbs, but other than than my legs held out well.  Not so tired at the end either.

Avg speed = 16.4 mph. Total mileage = 45.4 mi
Avg power = 173 W. Weighted avg power = 198 W
Total elevation gain = 3330'
Avg heartrate = 123 bpm




In the early afternoon, Ann and I went out to lunch at Cotija's and then to Walmart and Harbor Freight for some things, including a new set of metric Allen L-wrenches.  I also went later to the library to get a new card, since I had lost my old one somewhere along the way.

Friday, January 5, 2024

01-05-2024 Swim

Went for a swim at the WWC when it opened, 2000 yds in 40 min, give or take, following the normal protocol.  I think it's the first time that I was able to swim this distance at 2:00 min/100 yds, I pushed pretty hard in the last 10 lengths or so to give me a chance.  After the swim, I changed there and then rode over to HP to have coffee with John and Brooke, bringing a carrot nut bread that I had made the previous afternoon.  It was pretty tasty, recipe turned out well.  Then in the afternoon, I went for a walk for about an hour around the neighborhood.  In the evening, we drove over to Poway Park to see Gregory Page at the Templar's Hall.  We got there about an hour early for the show, and we didn't have to wait outside long before they let us in.  Small venue, maybe 120 people max, and we were in the second row center.  Had to wait for the show to start, but the wait was worth it.  He was excellent, his handwritten setlist is shown below.  He had his nephew (who teaches at Berklee) play a couple of instrumental pieces that were technically very difficult, and he was joined on a number of songs by a keyboardist with whom he is recording his next album soon.  A very nice evening, something of a surprise about how good the concert was.  It was sponsored by San Diego Folk Heritage, and we will have to be on the lookout for future concert dates.

Thursday, January 4, 2024

01-04-2024 Swim

Went for an early morning hour-long walk, then headed over to the WWC for my longer swim of the week.  Followed the standard protocol for the first 80 lengths and then repeated the first 40 length protocol again to get to 3000 yds, finishing in about 1:04.  My arms were tired at the end, and on the following day I noticed that my legs were also a little tired, which was somewhat surprising.  A quiet day in the early afternoon, then I headed over to Miguel's Cocina for an Indigo researcher get-together.  As far as I remember, here are the people who showed up: Julio Lopez (he's looking for a new job, got laid off from D&K in December and also told me that Paul Templin is looking for another job), Dave Sabo (he's been to Havasupai Falls a couple of times, most recently in 2019), Minedys (she's still working for Calloway, seems to be liking it, went in the fall to New Zealand with her boyfriend, where the weather was rainy much of the time), John Godden (Thomas is doing well in Austin, involved in robotics work and planning to buy some commercial e-scooters in an upcoming auction), Evgeny Korol (still at Illumina, he doesn't appear too worried about recent company turmoil, Beni is now working for SpaceX in the LA area), Kyle and Dan (both doing well, we talked some Knicks basketball), Mark Choy (still as Dexcom, seems relatively safe there in his operations section manager role, David is an aviation planner specializing in helicopter landing spot design and Nathan is going to Palomar and working part-time), Fereshteh (doing well, joked with me about not having to do the budget this year), Hongwei (all are well, Audrey is home from college and goes back fairly soon, Hongwei is going to China to see her parents around Chinese New Year), Avinoam (we didn't talk too much, although I will try to ride with him over lunch on Tuesday), Andre Garcia, Guangjin (both boys are now out of school, Johnson is going to work as a business analyst at CapitalOne in DC, and Zhongyi is working locally and living at home to save money), and Pedro (doing well, always fun to be around, although we didn't get much time to talk).

Wednesday, January 3, 2024

01-03-2024 Ride

This was a surprising ride.  I went out for an hour-long walk in the early morning and then got ready to meet John for a shorter ride leaving from our house.  As we started, there were some scattered raindrops on the ground, but we thought we might be able to avoid most of it.  Headed down by the park and over the freeway to BVP and started up.  We got to Sunset Dr, all good with the rain but the road was under construction, so we turned here and rode up to Juniper St.  It was here that it started to drizzle, then as we kept riding it got progressively worse, to full-on rain by 15th Ave.  So we rode up to 13th Ave and used it to get over to Escondido Blvd, where we started heading back.  The rain continued, alternating in its severity.  It wasn't ever as bad as it got on Saturday, but I was pretty wet (not soaked all the way through).  Down through Kit Carson Park and the backside of the mall to get back to BVP, where we took the pedestrian bridge route over Lake Hodges, due to the dicey weather conditions.  Riding across the bridge, we encountered the heaviest rain, but it slacked off a little bit once we got onto W Bernardo Dr.  Home the normal way from there, I was glad to be back, more chilled than soaked but still kinda miserable.

Avg speed = 14.0 mph. Total mileage = 13.2 mi
Avg power = 115 W. Weighted avg power = 154 W
Total elevation gain = 680'
Avg heartrate = 111 bpm

I left around noon to head over to Pomerado Medical Center for my first day of volunteering in the Emergency Department (ED, not a great acronym).  I met the charge nurse Emily, as well as Judy (she's in charge of the back rooms in the ED, Ramon and Tornado (two med techs), Shannon (I think she is admin support), Carter (staff nurse), Victoria (staff nurse), and Anessa (staff nurse).  More people to meet and get to know over the next months.  There was a lot of walking around the department, I cleaned out a couple of rooms and replenished supplies.  I also talked to a number of visitors and a few patients, got them water when requested and listened to some of their stories.  The time passed generally quickly, but I would sure like to have more things to do on a regular basis, will need to try and figure those additional tasks out over time.  The shift was supposed to be 12:30-4:30, but mine was more like 12:15-4:40.  Was still able to get home before it got dark, and I successfully avoided having to ride in the rain, even though it was a lousy day weather-wise.

Tuesday, January 2, 2024

01-02-2024 Swim/Ride

Went for a swim in the morning at the WWC, not so many people there when it opened.  2000 yds using the normal protocol, finished in about 41 minutes.  It was below 40 deg when I left home, but I got used to the water quickly.  Feeling a little better during freestyle swimming with no swim pads or snorkel.

I rode over to the Park n Ride by Via Rancho Pkwy to meet Joe around noon for a ride down to the coast and back.  We followed the usual way, up that little climb on Via Rancho Pkwy and then down to Del Dios Hwy.  The descent into Rancho Santa Fe was dicey, bike was unstable with lots of crosswind.  I need to figure out a long-term solution for this issue.  Rode the brakes on the curving portion of the descent.  Then we rode through RSF and onto Linea del Cielo.  Because this was such an up-and-down ride, I kept getting out in front of Joe, then waiting for him to catch up.  It was okay with me, allowed me to push a little harder on the climbs than I would have otherwise.  Down to Lomas Santa Fe and to the PCH, where we turned right and stopped at Pizza Port for a slice of pizza and a pint.  It was a nice, welcome break, always interesting to talk to Joe.  He is teaching a new course this spring on the Catholic sacraments.  The ride back was aided at times by a tailwind, although I didn't think it was as breezy on the return as on the way out.  I had a pretty decent ride on the full Del Dios climb, starting from La Valle Plateada and going up to the turn onto Via Rancho Pkwy, posting my second-fastest time on Strava.  Slowed down after that on the way back into Escondido, although the downhill was thrilling as always, maybe a little more so because there was more car traffic than usual.  Home the normal way over the freeway.  The day was cool for the most part, sunny but the sun wasn't so warm.  My Fitbit almost lasted the entire ride but battery died around the Park n Ride.

Avg speed = 15.8 mph. Total mileage = 40.1 mi
Avg power = 151 W. Weighted avg power = 183 W
Total elevation gain = 3040'
Avg heartrate = 125 bpm



Monday, January 1, 2024

01-01-2024 Ride

Well, this was a mildly interesting day.  Started off with a ride, heading through the neighborhood to Matinal Rd, the long way on Matinal Cir then turning right, and right again onto W Bernardo Dr.  Intention was to fill this ride with lots of gradual climbing, mission accomplished.  Up to RB Rd, then up that gradual hill and over to Camino del Sur, riding through the 4S Ranch neighborhood the short way.  Then I rode out to Carmel Valley Rd, turning left there and riding up to Black Mountain Rd, where I took a right.  Stayed on Black Mountain Rd into Mira Mesa, including the gradual climb up to Mira Mesa Blvd, then continuing on to Kearny Villa Rd and over to Miramar Rd, where I turned left.  On the climb up Pomerado Rd, just around Ave of Nations, I thought I noticed a coin in the road, so I stopped and turned around to see what it was.  Turned out to be a lot of stuff, some coins and bills, credit cards, a gift card, a Florida driver's license.  I gathered it all up and rode a little further before stopping to call Amex and reporting that I had found somebody's card.  They couldn't help me get in touch with the owner, so I kept riding on Pomerado Rd, going down the hill and eventually turning onto Poway Rd, to head over to the Sheriff's sub-station just before Community Rd.  It was closed for the holiday, and after being put on hold on the phone outside for non-emergency use, I decided to keep going and call from home.  Back to Pomerado Rd and home the normal way from there via the RB Rd and W Bernardo Dr route.  On the gradual climbs, my legs felt really good, it's clear that my power base is improving.  Not sure if I can ride faster, but I can ride fast for a longer time.

Avg speed = 16.9 mph. Total mileage = 34.5 mi
Avg power = 164 W. Weighted avg power = 188 W
Total elevation gain = 2200'
Avg heartrate = 127 bpm




I called the non-emergency San Diego police dispatch line when I got home and arranged for an officer to come and pick up the stuff that I found.  Hope it gets back to the owner, but I didn't have a solid feeling that the police would reach out to her and let her know that her items were located.  I also talked to Ann about not wanting to be her designated driver any more.  New Year's Eve was not so pleasant, she seemed out of it and it made me upset.  She said she's okay with that, let's hope it sticks.  In the afternoon, I worked on the ride analysis program and made some improvements to it, including displaying power curves for a ride.