This day was a big ride day, training for Palomar this weekend. I had a very loose idea about the route I wanted to take, but it was fluid throughout the ride. I initially took the time trial route, following it up to Poway Rd and continuing on Pomerado Rd. I was fairly consistent in pushing power throughout the ride whenever I wasn't coasting downhill. I got to the bottom of the Pomerado climb and tried to keep a high power output, but I felt like I lost the initiative in the middle of the ride. However, I had a good finish to the climb and got through the light without stopping. Set a Strava PR (5:50, 274 W), which gave me a good feeling when I found out. Ryan Henderson has the Bisikleta PR at 5:15, and there's an outside chance I could match that pace with more training and going all out. Then it was down the hill, paying attention to the debris in the bike lane and the morning traffic. Over to Kearny Villa Rd, where I turned and kept a pretty steady 20+ mph pace all the way to the turn to stay on this road. Down to Balboa Ave, where I turned right. This road is sketchy on weekday mornings due to a combination of poor road conditions and heavy traffic, so I wasn't super fast here. Took it all the way to the base of Soledad Mountain Rd, where I turned and again buckled down to put in a big effort. It helped to know where the steeper sections were, and here I regularly got out of the saddle and powered through them, since they aren't super long. I set a PR (17:07), which is 2 minutes slower than Zac and Jessie Deguzman (JD) but third-fastest in Bisikleta (I don't know who Jason A. is, he's on our list). That one also felt good, I can go stronger here but not 2 minutes faster. I had a break at the top of the cross, ate a gel (I had a granola bar earlier, while on Balboa Ave), then headed back down the hill using Via Capri. The road condition is still bad in the steep concrete areas, so I rode my brakes all the way down to the turn onto Hidden Valley Rd, where I let it go and coasted down to the stoplight. Then it was time for another climb, this one the gradual climb on Torrey Pines Rd, where I set another PR (7:47, 226 W), only a little slower than JD in Bisikleta. Here, I pushed hard on the last shallow slope, and that helped. Stayed on Torrey Pines Rd, although I took my effort level down a little bit for a while. Down the outside route of Torrey Pines Rd, then I turned and rode back up to the top via the inside route. Again here, I put in a major effort, especially on the shallower sections after the steep part. I was running out of power here, could clearly tell it. So it was only my third-fastest climb up this stretch. Back down the outside route, then through Del Mar, keeping a steady pace but done for the day with setting PRs. I took Jimmy Durante Blvd over to Via de la Valle, then rode up to El Camino Real. Always keeping a steady pace but not able to sustain a high output. I rode over to San Dieguito Rd, then took the flats to the Three Witches climb. I did okay on this climb, no records but a good output for having ridden 50+ hard miles. Then it was over to Camino del Sur and up to Paseo del Sur, taking it through the light to Four Gee Rd. At this point, I realized I was going to be close to a metric century, so I started adding in little diversions on the roads to get more mileage. Generally, I followed the extended version of the route through the 4S Ranch neighborhood and included riding up to the tops of both Camino San Tomas and Ralphs Ranch Rd. Then it was the normal way back to RB Rd, down the hill and then down W Bernardo Dr all the way to the stoplight by the park, where I turned around and rode home. That last little hill on Aguamiel Rd hurt, but my legs didn't cramp up, and my back pretty much held out without stiffening up. This was a really good ride for me, I think I'm as ready as I need to be for the weekend adventure. My Fitbit ran out of battery with about 20 minutes left in the ride, so its heartrate estimate is approximate, and it doesn't have the full route.
Avg speed = 16.8 mph. Total mileage = 63.5 mi
Avg power = 160 W. Weighted avg power = 192 W
Total elevation gain = 4260'
Avg heartrate = 138 bpm (Coospo), 135 bpm (Fitbit)
In the afternoon, I went over to BJ's Restaurant and had lunch with Earl. We talked about gardening, fixing the opening chapter color illustrations in the galley proof for his book, and cryptocurrency. It was, as usual, a nice diversion and a good conversation. Then I had some unwinding time by watching an episode of The Expanse in the afternoon before heading over to Kit Carson Park to do a Couch to 5k session with Emily and Caleb at 5:00. I kept my pace slow, in part to stay close to Emily and also because my legs were tired from the earlier ride.
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