09-30-2024 Run/Swim/Hike

Woke up nicely (<>!) and got ready for a run. Headed down, at a slower pace, to the park and did three loops around it before running back. Felt generally fine although my left calf was a little sore during the run and after.

Avg pace = 8:42/mile

Total distance = 4.19 mi

Elapsed running time = 36:28

Heartrate = ?? (Fitbit)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12540148306

When I got home, I had a banana and then switched clothes for a swim at the WWC. Got there when it opened but, luckily for a Monday, had a lane to myself. Swam the 2000 yard protocol, struggling to keep my stroke even and long in the second half as well as controlling my breathing. Finished in around 38 minutes, I think I got my lap count correct. When I got home, Ann was getting ready to go to the beach, so I drove over to Aldi to pick up some stuff while I could use the car. She left in mid-morning, and I took the opportunity to cut the grass in the back yard. The lawn mower wouldn't start (naturally), so I took the carburetor off and cleared the holes in the fuel jet. That did the trick, although the gasoline was old and it needed some carb cleaner to get kick-started. Afterward, I drained all the gas out of the tank and the carburetor bowl, then ran the mower until it stopped. Am hoping that this keeps the jets clear for when I use it next, probably in the spring. The afternoon was a quiet one. I did a little bit of coding, trying to figure out how to add annotation to the elevation profile chart to show the gradients. No luck so far. I made a couple of batches of cookies, then after Ann got home I drove over to the parking lot by On the Border to meet Emily for a hike. We hiked along the San Dieguito River trail to the east, it was quite flat. I filled her in on some of the details of our recent trip as well as my visit back to Houston. After the hike we ate at the restaurant, it was a nice evening with her. Home after that and a quiet finish to the day.

09-29-2024 Ride

Got ready for my bike ride after waking up. I wanted to put some extra miles in before meeting Jim for the time trial route, so I rode through the neighborhood all the way on Matinal Circle, turning right on Matinal Rd and then right again on W Bernardo Dr. Up to RB Rd, then up the hill and through the 4S Ranch neighborhood to Ralphs Ranch Rd, where I turned left. Took it back to RB Rd, then I had to hustle to get to Jim's house by 7:30. Back through the neighborhood to Cabela Dr, then Luz Pl to Duenda Rd and Cabela Dr to get to his house. I got there right around 7:30, and we continued the ride. I slowed down for the time trial route for the most part, especially on the latter climbing sections. Even still, later in the day my legs were tired from the exertion.

Avg speed = 15.0 mph. Total mileage = 25.7 mi

Avg power = 127 W. Weighted avg power = 149 W

Total elevation gain = 1560'

Avg heartrate = 110 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12534236090

Ann was gone to church and hanging out with Kay for the afternoon, so I had the house to myself. I found a bigger tail light for my bike, charged it up, and attached it (it barely fits) to my seat post. I also made some oatmeal cookies, then read for a bit and watched Wolfs (starring George Clooney and Brad Pitt) on Apple TV+, it was decent. Later in the afternoon, I made baked ziti for dinner, it was also tasty, could have perhaps used a little more flavoring in the ricotta mixture. Evening was quiet. Ann had a good time seeing Jersey Boys with a number of women from church. She saw Jim and Marlene Tusing there.

Several days ago, I started reading Rings of Fire by Larry J. Hughes. It details the development by Edwin Land and colleagues at Polaroid of an innovative gunsight based on calcite crystals, along with the efforts to find and mine calcite with sufficient optical purity to supply the demand in WWII.

09-28-2024 Ride

Woke up early with a surprise <>. I got ready for the bike ride, I had planned an inland route featuring the first Highland Valley Rd climb. It was quite foggy when I left home, also cool enough to wear my long-sleeve Bisikleta jersey. Through the neighborhood and then through the short version of the 4S Ranch neighborhood, I was the second to get to the starting point. The first was a new rider, Mark, who had ridden with Nel and Aaron last Saturday and came to join us for this ride. The other riders trickled in, slowly. Gio and Jed were late, Jed A. showed up thinking he had a flat tire and that took time to figure out, and Kamal overslept and still got to the starting point before we left. Not great. Here were the riders on this day: Ray, Eric, Charlie, Connor (first time riding on the road with a group), Zac, Joey, Rob, Nel, Kamal, Mark, Jed, Jed A., Cam, and Gio.  We finally got rolling, and I led out on my planned route. East on Camino del Sur and Camino del Norte to Bernardo Center Dr, turning left and riding up to W Bernardo Dr, where we took another left. We took this road all the way down to Lake Hodges, it was a little chilly on the downhills, then over the bridge to Pomerado Rd and a left on Highland Valley Rd. We started a pace line after a little while, and it quickly got whittled down to about 5 riders. Jed A. was helping me lead out, and he led me right onto the first climb. I put in a big effort and got to the top just a couple of seconds slower than my fastest time, with Zac hot on my heels (he started later and had a faster time, a PR for him). I waited at the top for the others to show up, and Mark was last by quite a margin. He and I rode up to the waiting group, then we continued on to Bandy Canyon Rd. The downhill section was fun, but I was continuing to push hard, staying out in front the whole way to the 78. Jed A. wasn't too far back for a while, then I gapped him. We gathered up again at this turn and rode single file along the 78, which doesn't have a bike lane or even much of a paved shoulder. Over to the climb out of the valley, where I led out and had a couple of riders, Zac and Connor, on my wheel. Near the top, Zac passed me and I didn't have anything left to respond. I did set a PR on this climb (5:12, 275 W, 160 bpm). We waited at the top again for the others to show up, then continued over to Summit Dr, where we turned right and took this gradual climb to the top of Idaho Ave. The others rode ahead while I waited for everybody to make the turn, Rob offered here to sweep, which was a plus. We rode downhill to Citrus Ave and turned right, taking it all the way over to El Norte Pkwy. I think I led the whole way over, and I was starting to feel it a little bit. Left on El Norte Pkwy, riding down to Broadway (Eric and I traded leads), where we stopped for our break. Some of the riders got donuts, some may have gotten coffee, others just hung around and chatted until it was time to saddle up again. Up to Centre City Pkwy, where we turned left and rode back through Escondido. To Citracado Pkwy, where we jogged over to Escondido Blvd and took it down to the path through Kit Carson Park that dropped us behind the mall. We rode through the mall parking lot by On the Border and over to the entrance to the bike path leading to the pedestrian bridge over Lake Hodges. I pushed hard on the little climb up to the park, Jed A. was right there with me, then we rode until turning onto Aguamiel Rd and waiting for the others to make the turn as well. Rob, Mark, and Zac didn't make the turn, Rob had stopped to change his derailleur battery, so I missed them. But they got back on route not too long after. We climbed past our house, and on the climb up to Duenda Rd Cam and I were going all out. From here, we followed the normal straight route back to the starting point. I waited at the turn onto RB Rd for everybody to get there, and Rob and Mark were last. Gideon and Jhonar passed us not too long after that, on their way over to the starting point to chat with the riders at the finish. I put in another fairly big effort to try and catch the other riders who had gotten ahead, and I caught the middle group. This was a hard riding day for me but successful. Nobody crashed or got (too) lost, and we all started and finished at the same location. I rode home via the RB Rd and W Bernardo Dr route. Legs were fine at the end, no cramping but some soreness and a lot of tiredness.

Avg speed = 16.8 mph. Total mileage = 50.0 mi

Bisikleta route avg speed = 17.1 mph

Avg power = 152 W. Weighted avg power = 178 W

Total elevation gain = 2780'

Avg heartrate = 132 bpm

https://www.strava.com/activities/12526306643

Got home and had something to eat, watched a little bit of football. Other than that, it was a quiet afternoon. I worked a little bit on coding my cycling analysis program, fixed some bugs I had introduced by moving code segments around, and I created a flag to turn on or off for matching Strava segments, since this code is currently too slow. Evening was quiet as well.

09-27-2024 Swim/Ride

Woke up in the night and had a bowl of cereal and a banana. I think I was affected by the caffeine in the iced tea at the lunch restaurant. When I got up, I did the dishes and then got ready to go to the WWC. Wore my tri suit for the first time, it fits a little snugly but that's a good thing. I met Avi there, and we were able to get two adjacent lanes to swim in. We started off with a warmup 250, then did 5 100s at tempo, starting the next one on the 2 minute mark. I slowed down in the latter ones but was able to push hard in the last 100 to match my first time. After a brief rest, we did the pyramid drill. I was okay, keeping pace with Avi out to about the first 200, then I started lagging behind him. This drill showed the effects of not having swum distances recently, so I need to plan at least one day a week of 2000 yds or more. We finished up with a 100 focusing on long strokes. 2100 yards in total. Then I rode home, where the pest inspector told us we have bats in the attic (he installed some flashing to prevent them getting in) and strongly recommended that we get the house tented. So, that's also happening. Ugh. I spent the late morning and early afternoon just hanging around the house, not doing a whole lot (some coding and analysis of recent rides). <> In the later afternoon, I went out for a short ride, heading down by the park and then over the freeway to BVP, riding up to Sunset Dr and turning left there. I took this road over to Escondido Blvd, then rode up to Felicita Ave, turning left there. I took it all the way over to Via Rancho Pkwy, then turned left to get back to the freeway entrance ramp. Over the freeway and onto W Bernardo Dr, where I stayed on it until turning right on Nevoso Way. Up this short road to Cabela Dr, then right to get to Aguamiel Rd, and home from there. Legs were feeling the effects of the previous day's exercise, so it will be interesting to see how I do on the Saturday Bisikleta ride.

Avg speed = 17.2 mph. Total mileage = 12.4 mi

Avg power = 144 W. Weighted avg power = 175 W

Total elevation gain = 710'

Avg heartrate = 128 bpm

https://www.strava.com/activities/12518389710

In the evening, we went to dinner at Himalaya Grill in Mira Mesa with Charlie and Leslie Witherspoon. Food was good, service was slow, and the conversation was nice.

09-26-2024 Swim/Run/Ride

This was intended to be a busy exercise day. I woke up and got ready to head over to the WWC, bringing my gear for running as well, along with a change of clothes. The swim was a shorter one, 1250 yds, completed in about 25 minutes. The first 250 were a warm-up, then I swam 500 yards at a faster pace followed by another 500 yds with the pull buoy and snorkel to focus on lengthening my swim stroke. Felt fine, although my right shoulder was a little achy at the start from not having swum in a while. Then I changed and went for a 5k run, following the usual route that I've mapped out from the WWC. It all went well, although just after mile 1 I tripped coming around a corner and went down. Only very minor scrapes, but it shook me up, for sure. I had a fast third mile, a good sign as always.

Avg pace = 7:44/mi

Total distance = 3.09 mi

Elapsed running time = 23:55

Avg heartrate = 143 bpm (Fitbit)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12509469100

I showered at the WWC after the run, then changed and headed over to the cafe at HP to meet John, Gary, and Brooke for coffee. We had a good discussion, a lot of talk about the complexity of the move to Bldg 8. Once again, I'm so glad I'm not working there any more. I got home and hung out around the house until leaving to meet Jerry Chen for lunch. We met by B61U, then walked over to Thai2You in High Country West. I paid this time, food was decent and the lunch special was a good value. In the afternoon, I spent some time working on my new bike, adjusting the brake pads and lubricating the outsides of the pistons with brake fluid. I also recentered the rotor between the brake pads on the rear wheel. Then I adjusted the position of the rear derailleur in an attempt to make it shift more smoothly from cog 6 to 5. Old setting was 8, I adjusted it to 4. Later in the afternoon, I went for an easy bike ride, heading through the neighborhood and then the long way through the 4S Ranch neighborhood. I took Camino del Sur all the way to the 56 bike path, then rode on the bike path toward Black Mountain Rd and beyond, taking Salmon River Rd to Paseo Montalban and then over to Black Mountain Rd. I took it up to Carmel Valley Rd, then up and down to Dove Canyon Rd to get back to RB Rd. Home via W Bernardo Dr from there, most of the time taking it easy and not pushing too hard. Legs felt fine, but I was tired overall.

Avg speed = 14.8 mph. Total mileage = 23.7 mi

Avg power = 119 W. Weighted avg power = 156 W

Total elevation gain = 1590'

Avg heartrate = 115 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12512616436

Had some dinner and snacks, I was really hungry when I got home, even though I had had a big lunch. Other than that, it was a quiet evening.

09-25-2024 Ride

Woke up early to get ready for a bike ride with John. This was going to be a longer ride, need to catch up on my miles after the last couple of weeks. October may be a big miles month. I headed over to his place via the time trial route and the normal way up the hill. Vivian and Jayden were out front with him when I got there, but we didn't stay long. We rode over to Scripps-Poway Pkwy and took it down to Mercy Rd and over to Black Mountain Rd. There was a little mist at the beginning, and on my ride over, but it dissipated and left us with an overcast day with nice temperatures for the ride. We took Black Mountain Rd to Kearny Villa Rd, then to Ruffin Rd to get to Balboa Ave. We rode pretty fast on the flat stretches I set a PR on Kearny Villa Rd going south). Turned left on Balboa Ave and it turned into Tierrasanta Blvd with a little climb up to Santo Rd. Then we followed it downhill until turning left onto Colina Dorada Dr, where we rode the short, sharp climb we've done before. I got to the top and rode back down to where John was still climbing, on the shallower section. Set a PR on this climb (6:13, 253 W, 160 bpm). Turned around and rode up with him, then we turned onto Calle de Vida and took it over to Rueda Dr, which linked us into Clairemont Mesa Blvd. We turned left and took it back, over the freeway and then turning right onto Chesapeake Dr (set a PR for this stretch: 1:55, 236 W, 144 bpm). This took us to Ruffin Rd, which shortly after turned into Kearny Villa Rd. From there, it was the normal way back to his house via Pomerado Rd. I kept my pace slower on the flat section, but I pushed harder than usual on the Pomerado Rd section. I got to the top in time to do 5 laps around the little neighborhood before John showed up. Then we rode home the normal way. Vivian made smoothies while we sat outside and chatted, and John also showed me the progress he has made in his backyard, lots of plants in pots along with young fruit trees. It could end up looking really nice there, but more work is needed. After the smoothie, I rode home the normal way on Pomerado Rd, taking Bernardo Center Dr to Duenda Rd. On this ride, I pushed harder than usual, especially when riding with John.

Avg speed = 17.0 mph. Total mileage = 50.1 mi

Avg power = 158 W. Weighted avg power = 182 W

Total elevation gain = 2930'

Avg heartrate = 134 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12502516599

When I got home, I was pretty tired, so I relaxed during the short time before heading over to the hospital for my volunteer shift. Not much had changed in the over 2 weeks that I had been gone, and the shift was uneventful, slow at the start but busier toward the end. After I got home, I talked to Mom about her interest in getting some housekeeping help, which is a good sign. Then Ben and I discussed this change, along with Rebecca and Wesley, both of whom are doing well. It was a quiet evening after that, I went to bed early.

09-24-2024 Entry

 First time in a long time where I have gone two days without either swimming, running, or riding. Woke up and stayed in bed much later than usual (<>!). Then Ann and I got ready and went to visit Brett for a financial update (all is good, returns look fine and investment portfolio is balanced well for us). When we got home, I did some stuff in the garage - repacked the air mattress, rearranged my bike stuff - and that was about it for working this day. I had a nice relaxing day not doing much, although I went out for an hour-long hike in the middle of the afternoon, on the trails by the park and down to the lake before turning around. In the evening, we went to see Murder on the Orient Express at the Old Globe.

09-23-2024 Entry

Travel Day. I couldn't get myself motivated to get up early and go for a walk, so I ate some soup for breakfast and also had a piece of pie. Then Ann and I packed up the car and helped clean up the Airbnb before leaving a little before 8:30. We stopped for ice on the way south, then drove all the way to Sherman Oaks before stopping for gas and a bathroom break (I went to a Starbucks and bought a coffee to use their restroom). Ann drove the rest of the way from there. We got home a little before 3:00, and by 4:00 I was fully unpacked and the camping gear stowed away. The rest of the day was quiet. I did go for an hour-long walk after dinner to get my steps in.

09-22-2024 Ride

Woke up and had pie for breakfast before the others got up, then went for a walk. Down through the village to the pier, out to the end, then back along the beach. When I got back to the house, the others were up and making breakfast. I chatted with them a little bit but left after the bacon smell got overpowering. When I went back in, David let me know he wouldn't be riding, still recovering from the previous day. So I got ready and rode south this time, focusing on consistent power. Down into Morro Bay and to the base of Morro Rock before turning back and riding over into Morro Bay State Park. The road wound around and eventually got me back to Hwy 1, after some descent and a short climb that was difficult to keep pushing hard on. The ride back was fast, but I could tell my legs were tiring out. The route that Strava had mapped for me took me on some back roads and bike paths, but I didn't get lost.

Avg speed = 19.3 mph. Total mileage = 18.7 mi

Avg power = 201 W. Weighted avg power = 213 W

Total elevation gain = 460'

Avg heartrate = 150 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12478518469

I was pretty wiped out at the finish but recovered quickly. We all gathered back at the house, had some food, and decided to go wine tasting. Selecting the winery was a laugh a minute, as nobody was willing to pick one. We ended up going to Niner Winery near Paso Robles, it was pricey but decent. They had a nice chef's garden that we walked through before doing the wine tasting. Then we took a longer drive back, along the coast. Dinner was grilled chicken, tofu, and roasted vegetables. Another quiet evening, with berry pie for dessert. 

09-21-2024 Ride

Got up and had some breakfast and conversation with everybody, then David and I got ready for a bike ride. I adjusted my rear derailleur to make it shift more smoothly while I was in my lower chainring. We rode north through town and then got on Hwy 1. Not too long after we got onto the highway, the mist got heavier and was close to drizzling. We suffered through that for about 10 minutes, then it started to clear up. It was overcast all the way up to the turnoff to Cambria, wavy like the previous day. I started off at a fairly moderate pace in front, and David was keeping up with the help of his electric motor. Once he got out in front, I was working hard to stay on his wheel, especially on the slight uphill sections. Turns out he was using up a lot of battery capacity, but we didn't realize it. We turned off on the road into downtown Cambria, which had a little uphill stretch that was steeper, then a long downhill into the village. We stopped at a nice little coffee shop and had a coffee and cinnamon roll, along with an extended conversation about David's exit plans for his business. Then we started heading back, riding over to Hwy 1 and heading south. We were climbing just after we got on the 1, and I got out ahead of David before waiting for him at the top of the little climb. We rode on flat land for a time, then David noticed that his battery was struggling to output power on subsequent climbs, so that really slowed our return down. We stopped once for a brief break before riding the last section to the Airbnb. We made it, but he was pretty wiped out, too much exertion on this day.

Avg speed = 14.4 mph. Total mileage = 31.2 mi

Avg power = 98 W. Weighted avg power = 137 W

Total elevation gain = 990'

Avg heartrate = 112 bpm

https://www.strava.com/activities/12470137966

Ann and Christine were out to lunch, so I heated up the shells for us to eat, then had a shower and a short nap. The afternoon and evening were quiet. We had Potato Basque soup for dinner, and it was tasty. Also had a berry pie that Ann and Christine had picked up in Harmony, and it was very good for a store-bought pie.

09-20-2024 Entry

I got up early and went for a hike around the park. Headed over to the beach and found a sketchy way to get past the lagoon to the beach proper. Then I walked through the marsh area again and found a trail that continued inland along the marshy lowlands. I saw a deer in the distance, eventually hiked up to the road and followed another trail back toward our campsite. Ann was getting up when I got back, we had oatmeal and toast for breakfast, then started packing up. It went more smoothly, but for some reason I had more difficulty fitting all the gear into the car. We got going and headed the short distance down to Cayucos, where we met David and Christine at the Airbnb they had selected. We unloaded the food out of the car and put my bike in the garage. Then we drove into town and had lunch at the Hidden Kitchen (very good food, expensive for what we got, yuppie vibe). We drove back and started some wash, then drove together into Morro Bay to an Albertson's. Got food for the next two nights, then went back and hung out, taking a little walk down to the beach right before dinner (eggplant parmesan that Christine made). Caught up on our lives after dinner and talked some politics before calling it a night. 

09-19-2024 Ride

Had a decent night's sleep, it was later than usual when I woke up to go pee. Woke up around 6:30, <>. We had a quick breakfast on this day, since Ann had to be at Hearst Castle for her tour, and I wanted to start riding. My route was a simple one, but the ride wasn't easy. I rode from our campsite over to Hwy 1 and headed south. Passed by Cambria, through Cayucos, and on to Morro Bay. I took Hwy 1 past that community, then found a place to turn around. Followed the same route going back. There weren't any steep climbs on this ride, but it was wavy at times. I rode with my jacket on for the first 20 miles or so. On the way back, I ran into some sprinkles, but they didn't get too serious, and they cleared up right before I got back to the turnoff to the park. Legs were telling me it was time to quit near the end, as I didn't take many breaks and there weren't many stops along the way. I ended up setting my 2nd fastest Strava time for 50 miles, since I didn't take any long breaks.

Avg speed = 18.1 mph. Total mileage = 51.9 mi

Avg power = 166 W. Weighted avg power = 180 W

Total elevation gain = 1760'

Average heartrate = 142 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12453954051

When I got back, Ann had just returned, so we ate lunch. Weather stayed clear in the afternoon, although some fog rolled through. It turned out to be nice and sunny for most of the afternoon. We drove up the coast to an area where elephant seals hang out. It was fascinating. They are really large, and the docent said that these were juveniles, so the truly gigantic ones weren't around. I think she said this is the largest pupping area in the world for these seals. Males can get to 5000 lbs, but they live up to 12-13 years. They usually get one season to mate, when they are at their maximum size, then they often don't survive after the rigors of fighting off other males for sexual supremacy. Females live about twice as long as males, have one pup each year. Orcas and Great Whites are their main predators. After we got back, I had a short nap and read for a little while. We made stuffed shells in the Dutch oven for dinner, and they turned out really well, a good blend of cheeses and flavorings in the stuffing. It was a quiet evening, I was still tired from the ride. All in all, an excellent camping day.

09-18-2024 Entry

Woke up after a decent night's sleep and went for a walk/hike around El Capitán SB. This is a pretty big park, stretching up the coast for a distance from where we were camping. The northern parts of the park were not inhabited, some of the area was closed off. There was a space for hikers and cyclists to camp, which is kinda cool. Ann got out of the tent when I returned, and we had a big breakfast of eggs and grilled vegetables. Then it was time to break down the camp, went fairly smoothly, although I struggled with getting the mattress back in the bag. After we packed it all up, and I stowed the gear in the car, we walked over to another camping area and took a shower together. The water was running, so it was a free one, although we had bought tokens to use. I shaved afterward and felt much cleaner. We hit the road around 10:30 or so and drove up to Santa Maria for Ann to get some stuff at Walmart. I waited by the car because my bike was on the rack, and it seemed to take her forever. That was frustrating. After she got back and had to return to get the ice, we tried to stop at a DQ, but it was located in a mall, so we had to skip it. On the road again to San Simeon SP, seemed like it took much longer to get there than I expected. The campsite is decent, no frills and not great views, although we can see the ocean in the distance. There's a collecting pond much closer, less photogenic. We went for a walk after setting up camp, had to retrace our steps to find a route to the beach. It was a cloudy day, blustery and cool with a mild breeze. We made Dutch oven enchiladas for dinner. Then Ann started a fire (it's a lot easier when there are charcoal embers) and we made s'mores.

09/17/2024 Ride

This was a very good, and challenging, day. Started off with a good night's sleep and a nice wake-up call (<>!). Then I made pancakes and coffee for breakfast, so Ann cleaned up the dishes. That enabled me to get ready earlier for a bike ride. I decided to head up Refugio Rd, which looked like a big climb. So I rode through the park and over to Calle Real, turning right because my Strava-mapped route told me to. It took me to a dead end as it's starting point, and I turned around and rode back to where I came from, then continued on Calle Real. It was a little wavy on the way over to Refugio Rd, kinda nice. When I turned, the road quality was sketchy for a time, and it started out as flat with a little uphill grade, maybe 1-2%. For a time, the road quality improved, and it got a little steeper. Then it got seriously steep, with long sections of 10+% grade, going up to 15+% at times. And the road quality was really bad, many patches on a crappy base. There wasn't any traffic on the way up, just a road crew clearing brush. I did see a deer in the brush beside the road. There was one point where I said to myself, "I have to stop now." But I kept on going and didn't stop during the steep climbing sections. It was shady for a fair portion of the time. There was a 3.5-mile stretch where the gradient averaged over 9%. About 7 miles from the turn, I came to the end of the road, but there was another non-maintained road, Camino Cielo, that I decided to try. Road quality was overall as bad as Refugio Rd, with some potholes and washout areas to contend with too. Importantly, it wasn't as steep, so I kept riding on it for about 2.5 more miles. At some point, I decided it was time to turn around, since I was already behind schedule for getting back. The ride back down was tortuous, just awful road conditions combined with steep gradients and very sharp turns. I don't see how anybody could go fast down that road, but I was really slow, not in the mood to try my luck. My hands and shoulders hurt from constantly riding the brakes. Even when the grade flattened out, the road conditions were so bad that I couldn't ride fast. There was one stretch of downhill good road that was moderately enjoyable, but it didn't last. Back to Calle Real, and there was really no place else to ride without getting on the 101. So I retraced my route back to the camp, arriving as Ann was making a sandwich for lunch.

Avg speed = 10.5 mph. Total mileage = 27.2 mi

Avg power = 127 W. Weighted avg power = 167 W

Total elevation gain = 3760'

Avg heartrate = 131 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12435967750

We ate, then we decided to go into Santa Barbara and look around. It was a low-key walk along State St. I brought my bike wheels and got a guy at a bike shop to fill them to pressure. We were going to go to Walmart, but it turned out there wasn't one in the area, so we postponed until Wednesday. Back to the camp, where I had a short nap, so did Ann, before dinner. Grilled vegetables and sausage, pretty tasty. Using the grill grate helped to avoid charring the food, may be a good trick for future grilling at home. We walked around the camp after sunset, then Ann made a fire and we sat around it. So, a good day. 

09/16/2024 Entry

Travel day. I got up early and went for a walk for a little bit less than an hour. Had some breakfast when I got home, then we started packing things up. I finished packing my personal stuff, then I worked on the car while Ann filled the cooler. It seemed like we had more stuff than usual, but we did bring the firewood bin and more food than usual. Skipped bringing the sunshade (we didn't need it, it turns out). The drive up was uneventful, traffic going through LA, nothing like a traffic jam, just numerous slowdowns. We stopped at this good Peruvian restaurant, Mouthful Eatery, in Thousand Oaks and ate lunch. Ann drove the rest of the way from there. Got to El Capitan SB right around 2:00. She picked a good campsite for us, had some shade and was fairly quiet. It was quite windy as we set up camp, so I tied down the tent and vestibule tighter than usual. The wind persisted through the evening. We had burgers for dinner and peach cobbler in the Dutch oven for dessert. Latter was fabulous, maybe one of our best desserts. I was tired from the long day, so after cleaning up the dinner dishes I was ready to lay down. 

09-15-2024 Rides

Woke up and had some breakfast, then shaved and brushed my teeth before getting ready for a bike ride with Jim and John. We met at Jim's house and did the time trial route. I kept my effort level dialed back throughout the ride and spent the majority of my pedaling time in Zone 2. Throughout the ride, we occasionally got sprinkled on, but the rain never amounted to much. I could tell my legs were tired from the previous day's ride, but I didn't stress them on this ride. Smoothies at the end were tasty, and it was starting to drizzle as I rode back home.

Avg speed = 14.5 mph. Total mileage = 17.6 mi

Avg power = 116 W. Weighted avg power = 132 W

Total elevation gain = 1040'

Avg heartrate = 112 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12418110625

Later, when I got home, I ran the wet vac around downstairs to clean the floors, then I got the camping stuff down and piled into the garage. The afternoon was a generally quiet one (<>!), but late in the afternoon, just before dinner, I went out for another ride, to get some miles in knowing that it will be a busy week. Headed through the neighborhood, at perhaps a little faster pace than in the morning, then via RB Rd to the extended 4S Ranch neighborhood route, including the little climb up to the top of Four Gee Rd. Back to Paseo del Sur and through the Del Sur neighborhood down to Camino del Sur, where I turned left and headed home via the RB Rd and W Bernardo Dr route. Legs felt a little tired from the earlier ride, but it was a nice evening, with an offshore breeze that helped push me home.

Avg speed = 14.6 mph. Total mileage = 14.4 mi

Avg power = 116 W. Weighted avg power = 149 W

Total elevation gain = 920'

Avg heartrate = 114 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12420648272

In the evening, after dinner and cleaning the kitchen, I drove over to Gideon's house to borrow his wetsuit and to look at the different jersey manufacturer options. Then I drove home and packed up much of the non-perishable camping gear into the car, topping it off with oil as well. I also tuned up the front derailleur on my Fuji bike and tried to get the front brake to work better. Was successful on the first task, not as much on the second. It should be rideable.

09-14-2024 Ride

Woke up a little earlier than usual, took a COVID test and it was negative. I'm glad it wasn't a severe or even moderate case. Then I got ready for the bike ride. Over to the 4S Target the original, fastest route, arriving there first, although Ray was over at Starbucks. On this ride at the start, there were: Ray, Jamil, Fritz, Jed (late, as usual), Rob, Gideon, Cam, Charlie, and Eric (hadn't ridden with him in a while). I had planned the route, so I led out as we left the parking lot. We took the reverse of the shorter route through the 4S Ranch neighborhood, got back to RB Rd, then took it down the hill and under the freeway to get over to Pomerado Rd. There, we turned left and met up with Andy and Rob, who were waiting by the corner. We rode down toward the freeway, and just before the last gradual downhill Edson joined us. I was sweeping by this time, and shortly after that, Fritz had a flat with a big gouge in his tubeless tire. So it took about 15 minutes to plug it and get it to seal well enough. Another example of why I don't want to go tubeless. We rode across the pedestrian bridge and then through the mall parking lot to Beethoven Dr, taking it up to the little path through Kit Carson Park to get to El Ku Ave. Then it was up to Escondido Blvd and over to Centre City Pkwy. I was still sweeping as we rode through Escondido, then as we got close to the 78 I rode to the front to make sure we stayed on the planned route. Up the hill past Country Club Ln, where I set a PR (2:23, 288 W, 164 bpm). Waited for the others at the top of the hill, then we rode down and turned right onto Ivy Dell Ln to get over to Jesmond Dene Rd. I was leading here to make sure we made the right turn, and I pushed the pace on this little climb, including setting another PR on the last little hill near the end (1:11, 3:36, 170 bpm!). I gapped the others on that last climb, but it was an all-out effort. Then I waited at the turn onto Centre City Pkwy to make sure the others made it, ended up riding back up Jesmond Dene Rd to look for Edson and Andy. We had our break at the Circle K up near Deer Springs Rd, then we turned onto this road and took the downhill to get over to Twin Oaks Valley Pkwy. This stretch of the ride was fast, since it has a slight net negative gradient and everybody was pushing the pace. I was at the back and riding hard to stay in touch with the others. We rode up to Barham Dr and turned left there, with me still sweeping. Over to Mission Ave, turning right and taking it into Escondido, again another fast, slightly downhill stretch. Around this time, Edson split off, since he lives in Escondido. Jamil was out in front, and the others didn't clearly see that he turned where he was supposed to, on Quince St. We followed that route, and I was pretty far behind the leaders by this point. I tried to bring everybody back together, but we couldn't find Jamil. Gideon called him a couple of times and gave me garbled information about his location, so I ended up waiting >5 minutes for him at the corner of 13th Ave and Centre City Pkwy, while it turns out he was ahead of all of us and waiting. Eventually, I found this out and kicked in the jets to try and catch up with him and the others, as I generally retraced our route back toward the mall. They were just finishing up a nature bio break at the entrance to Kit Carson Park when I showed up, all except Jamil, who had gotten tired of waiting and continued on. We rode back through the mall parking lot and over to the bike path to the pedestrian bridge. Once we got to W Bernardo Dr, Andy peeled off and headed home via Pomerado Rd, while the rest of us did the climb up to RB Rd. I led out again and was able to stay in front of the others, along with Fritz. We caught up with Jamil, and I slowed down to say hi while Fritz kept pushing hard. So, I had to dig deeper to catch up with him. At Poblado Rd, Gideon split off to ride home, and we waited for the others at the turn onto RB Rd. After they all made it, I rode from the back to catch up with Rob at the front, who was dealing with a slow leak. I led the group up to Matinal Rd, then rode with a smaller group - me, Rob, Jamil, and Jed - up to Via del Campo, where Rob stopped to pump some air into his tire before turning around. I was ready to be done as well, so I turned around with him, and we both rode back through the neighborhood on Matinal Rd to W Bernardo Dr, then over to Duenda Rd. He turned right there and seemed to have enough air in his tire to get home, while I rode home the normal way from there. Legs and lungs felt fine on this ride, there were a couple of times where I put in a big effort, but overall I took it pretty easy. I can tell that my cardio fitness was impacted by COVID, as my average heartrate was higher than it would normally be on a ride like this.

Avg speed = 15.8 mph. Total mileage = 46.7 mi

Avg power = 127 W. Weighted avg power = 161 W

Total elevation gain = 2260'

Avg heartrate = 127 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12410287065

It was a lazy afternoon for me. I had some lunch when I got back and watched most of the last half of LSU-South Carolina, then I read for a bit and had a little nap (was pretty tired). In the late afternoon, we drove down to Fenton Pkwy and took the trolley to SDSU for a concert. This went smoothly, which was good. Ray LaMontagne was the headliner, but we had signed up primarily to see the opening act, The Secret Sisters. I had looked on the web before we left home, and it appeared that there was going to be a different opening act. That turned out to be the case. Erin Rae was the first act, and she was okay at best, just not very energetic. Then there was an extended set by Gregory Alan Isakov, who was really more of a co-headliner. I liked his voice and the lyrics to his songs, but the staging was a little to emotive for both my and Ann's liking. LaMontagne's set was spare, and his songs are decent, just not something I was very familiar with. None of the three sets had many high-energy numbers, they were generally more contemplative. Still, it was a mildly entertaining evening. In hindsight, I should have spent more time listening to his music to familiarize myself with his sound. No trouble getting back on the trolley and driving home, got there a little before midnight.

09-13-2024 Ride

Woke up, had some breakfast, then went for a ride. It was ideal riding weather all the way through the ride. Downhill and by the park to get over to Pomerado Rd, where I started the gradual climb. When I got up to the entrance to The Trails, on a whim I decided to turn left and take Bernardo Trails Rd into the neighborhood. This road has lots of ups and downs, and on the return there is a 0.5 mile stretch that goes well into double-digit gradients. It isn't so well-traveled, and my time was the 7th-fastest ever on this segment. After I got back to Pomerado Rd, I kept going south to RB Rd, then followed the time trial route for the rest of the way back. On this ride, I pushed my pace more than in the previous rides this week, and I felt generally good, just a little more tired than usual and not quite as much stamina on the power pulls.

Avg speed = 16.3 mph. Total mileage = 21.9 mi

Avg power = 150 W. Weighted avg power = 177 W

Total elevation gain = 1540'

Avg heartrate = 129 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12400375977

After I got home, I cleaned up the area under the kitchen sink and did my best to hand-tighten the nut for the faucet. It's better but not as tight as I would like. I finished watching a Marvel movie as well. In the afternoon, which was a quiet one, I tried to reduce the clatter in my handlebars by putting some foam in there to keep the cable from rattling around. Will see if it works. After doing the dishes in the evening, I realized that I didn't have enough steps, so I went for a 30 minute walk. It was dark when I left. I got my tri suit package, and it looks to be decent quality.

09-12-2024 Ride

I went for an early-morning walk/jog, sprinkling in two 30-octave jogs per mile. Finished the 3+ miles in around 50 minutes. Then I had a fairly quiet morning, not doing much around the house. I rode over to HP to meet him around 11:30 and help with the Tech Man Tri training ride. Headed through the neighborhood and over to Via del Campo, then around the back side of the campus to meet the riders near the back patio. There was only one other rider who joined us, Paula Dragu, who Blair had met on the Padres Pedal for a Cause ride. She is a solid rider, not super fast but experienced with longer distances. Before we left, I had a short conversation with Linda Vaisman-Rashkovan, who is looking thinner and her hair is growing back. On the ride, we headed out Bernardo Center Dr down the hill and up Carmel Valley Rd, past Black Mountain and then down to Camino del Sur. I was sweeping on this ride, so my pace was modest the entire time. Right on Camino del Sur, then we followed it all the way back to Bernardo Center Dr, where we turned and rode back to the starting point. It was a simple loop, and the weather cooperated well, not too hot and with a little offshore breeze pushing us on the return segment. Then I rode home the normal way from there.

Avg speed = 13.7 mph. Total mileage = 18.3 mi

Avg power = 105 W. Weighted avg power = 144 W

Total elevation gain = 1280'

Avg heartrate = 111 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12394678712

It was a light day for the rest of the afternoon and evening. I spent a fair amount of time working on the GPX file analysis code to get a better, working version of the routine for marking Strava segments along a given ride. This is turning out to be more complex than I originally envisioned, but at the end of the day I had some breakthroughs to get a first working version. Still likely to be bugs in the code, but it was gratifying to see the code spit out the starting and ending Strava segment positions. A major issue currently is that the code is slow. As an example, processing a large GPX file, 70 miles and sorting through about 150 Strava segments, took about 5 minutes, not super bad for a batch operation but unworkable for real-time analysis. It's hard to see how I can speed this performance up by an order of magnitude, but at least I got the logic worked out.

09-11-2024 Ride

Got up and had some breakfast, no real rush to get my ride started because it was going to be a cooler day. I decided to ride a little faster, aiming for more Zone 2 than Zone 1 and little Zone 3. Largely successful. I headed through the neighborhood and then through the 4S Ranch neighborhood the short way to get to Camino del Sur. Then I took it to San Dieguito Rd, down the hill, where I found the newly paved road taking me over to Camino del Sur. Another rider passed me while I was cruising along, so I decided to get on his wheel and follow him to the turn. At the turn I thanked him for the pull and decided to dial my pace back. Headed up the hill into Del Mar Heights, slowly, then took the slight downhill over to the 56 bike path. From there, I rode back to Camino del Sur at moderate pace, not pushing it too much but not going slowly either. I rode back home the normal way from there, using the Camino San Bernardo and W Bernardo Dr route. Not too tired at the end, and it felt good to be out in ideal riding weather.

Avg speed = 16.0 mph. Total mileage = 34.8 mi

Avg power = 124 W. Weighted avg power = 155 W

Total elevation gain = 2000'

Avg heartrate = 117 bpm

https://www.strava.com/activities/12384674687

I had a couple of planned tasks lined up for the day, starting with painting the door from the house into the garage. Before doing that, Ann and I reviewed the roofer and painter quotes and agreed on which ones to go forward with. The door painting went fairly quickly, it really needed a new coat, as did the trim, which took a fair amount longer and was not as enjoyable. Still, I got it all done, then started on the next task, lubricating the front fork on my old bike. That one also went fine, although it seems like the tightness of the bolt tensioning the fork is not so high. But everything seems to be solid there, so I'll keep an eye on it. I also made a minor adjustment to the cable tension on the rear derailleur, and now the shifting it butter-smooth. It's ready for taking on the camping trip next week. We may have to find another spot beside Sequoia NP, due to wildfires in that area. Will check later this week, since we would need to cancel the camping reservation on Saturday to get a partial refund. The rest of the day was light duty and a little boring. I'm getting cabin fever from the COVID isolation, even with the exercise outings. Ann went to the Pink concert at Petco Park, her seats were six rows down from the very top of the stadium. I didn't have anything else to do, so I went for a walk right around sunset, a little over a mile. Was a nice night for a walk.

09-10-2024 Swim

Got up and went for a walk, after a decent night's rest. The worst of my COVID reaction is behind me, I'm pretty sure. Now it just feels like recovering from a mild cold: some congestion (not much), an occasional cough, and infrequent sneezing. After the walk, I headed over to the WWC for an easy swim with Avi, keeping my distance from him and others by swimming in the farthest lane. I went for 1000 yds at an easy pace, the first 500 without devices and the second 500 with a snorkel and the pull buoy. The rest of the day was spent around the house. I did some minor cleanup on the code for working with the database of ride stats that I created, including showing an average power curve when displaying a power curve for a specific ride. I also spent some time going back to the issue of displaying Strava segments. By the way, a cool website containing very useful information about these segments (including starting and ending latitude and longitude) is veloviewer.com. I was able to make progress on matching my existing, abbreviated list of Strava segments to a particular route, but the matching routine is super slow, too slow to be practical for a large number of searchable segments, even if the routine were run in the background in a batch file. There are also definite bugs in the search routine that would need to be fixed.

09-09-2024 Ride

Felt better when I woke up, still isolating. I got a decent night's sleep and decided to go for a bike ride while it was early and, hopefully, not too hot. I chose a route that had distance without significant elevation change, so I rode down the hill and over, via the pedestrian bridge, to BVP. Took the back way around the mall to get over to Escondido Blvd, then to Centre City Pkwy. Through Escondido and up to Deer Springs Rd, doing my best to stay in Zone 1. I was largely successful for the ride, ending up in Zone 1 about 70% of the time, the rest in Zone 2. Over to Twin Oaks Valley Pkwy, where it was easier to stay in Zone 1 all the way back into San Marcos. Took Barham Dr to get to Mission Ave, which I used to get back to Centre City Pkwy. From there, I retraced my route back home. No obvious feelings of being out of breath during the ride, and it seemed to clear my sinuses a little bit.

Avg speed = 13.4 mph. Total mileage = 32.0

Avg power = 84 W. Weighted avg power = 104 W

Total elevation gain = 1260'

Avg heartrate = 104 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12367132189

I stayed around the house for the rest of the day. Ann ended up going to the beach with Johnnie. Replaced the tire and wheel on my old bike, and I cleaned and waxed its chain as well, since it had gotten pretty wet on the Friday ride. I had some success coding, including adding in the function of loading the GPX file analysis stats and using them to bypass calculations that have already been performed. I changed the program to load power curve data, and comparison power curve data as well, from this database rather from separate power curve files, as I had done in the past. And I updated the batch file analysis routine to add file stats to the existing database rather than generating the entire database dataset again. Finally, I added custom HR values into my Strava profile so that it matches the threshold values on my Wahoo. Still some work to fix odd errors that will crop up, but I believe the heavy lifting is done here for this functionality.

09-08-2024 Entry

Had a rough night's sleep, was feverish at the beginning but never really got more than an hour or two of uninterrupted sleep. Head was also congested. When I got up, I decided to go for a walk to judge my energy level. Felt better on the walk, although I got a little more tired near the end than usual. I walked for a longer time because I was pretty sure my movements during the day would be limited. When I got home, I took a COVID test, and it showed a positive result. Bummer. I let the brothers know, as well as Ann and the kids. So, the rest of the day was a light duty one. I did, after it cooled down (it was over 105 at the highest temperature), feel good enough to put my Fuji bike back together. I also took the rear tube off and patched it, letting it sit overnight. Other than that, not much else, other than catching up on blog entries, doing a little coding, and reading. Of course, I isolated from Ann.

I finished reading Anthony Doerr's All the Light We Cannot See. This was a good read, lyrical and compelling in its storytelling. The end seemed to be a tad rushed and not quite as fulfilling as the main body of the book. But Emily's choice was a fine one. Now I'm back reading David Brin's Existence. It is sprawling, with a large number, maybe too large a number, of storylines interwoven. The essential theme seems to be around discovery of ancient stones that serve as communication devices with a collection of alien cultures who are looking for humans to join the collection. The world is post-apocalyptic and fairly chaotic in a way that is actually fairly plausible.

09-07-2024 Entry

Travel day. I woke up fairly early, since I couldn't sleep well anyway, and went for a walk where I walked along every street in Lake Shadows. Mom still wasn't up when I got back, so I went out into the garage and started taking my bike apart to pack it up. About halfway through that task, she came out into the garage looking a little worn out but better than the previous evening. I told her to go back in and rest for a while as I finished my packing. By the time I was done, she was in better shape, on the mend from whatever had bothered her the previous night. She felt good enough that we were able to go do a little shopping at Walmart, better to do that while I was around, since Ross might not be available on Sunday for a shopping trip. I was a little concerned that Ross wouldn't be able to drive me to the airport, but he called early in the morning and let me know that he would be back to the lake house in plenty of time to drive me there. I kept my Uber reservation just in case. Watched a little bit of TV in the late morning and early afternoon, and I was starting to feel a little worse, still not too bad. I ended up canceling my reservation, and Ross and Mom drove me to the airport. The flight was not crowded, I had an entire row to myself, but I was feeling worse. It helped to eat something during the flight, but I knew that I was sick with something, hoping it was just a cold that I picked up from Mark. Got to San Diego, picked up my bike bag, then Ann drove me home while I shared some of the details of the trip with her. I isolated when I got home and ended up having a really rough night, running a mild fever and getting up frequently to pee. It was not restful at all.

09-06-2024 Ride

Well, this was an eventful, in some good ways and one really bad way. It was overcast when I woke up, thought I would go for a bike ride on the back roads. I was feeling a little bit run down but not anything to keep be from doing stuff. Drove up to the intersection of Foley Rd and FM2100, where I parked the car and got the bike out. It was sprinkling a little bit but not too much. I headed north on 2100 until I got to Stroker Rd. This section was a little dicey. There is a large emergency lane on this highway, but it has a lot of debris on it and really isn't well suited for riding. After I got onto the back roads, things were better. Headed east on Stroker Rd to Peters Rd. The wind was definitely coming from the north, so riding into the wind was harder. These back roads had decent quality, not perfect but rideable. Took Peters Rd to Ramsey Rd and followed it over to Old Atascocita Rd. Seemed like there was a little bit of an eastern component to the wind, so traveling west was a little easier. I took this road back across 2100 and then to Fairlake Ln, which links into FM1960. I rode to that intersection, then turned around and rode back to Old Atascosita Rd, turning right to get down to the lake shore for a picture. From there, I just retraced my route back to the starting point. I put in a pretty big workout on this ride, as evidenced by my average heartrate. Definitely a tempo ride. The southbound stretches on the way back were pretty great because I had the tailwind to help me along.

Avg speed = 18.5 mph. Total mileage = 22.3 mi

Avg power = 171 W. Weighted avg power = 179 W

Total elevation gain = 60'

Avg heartrate = 146 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12340991275

There were times during this ride when the rain was pretty steady, and I was completely soaked at the end, wetter than I have been in a very long time. Packed the bike into the car and got a cinnamon roll from the donut shop there before changing into some kinda dry clothes for the drive back to the lake house. I ate some breakfast, then took the time to stack the stuff in the garage into a smaller space so that Ben and I would have room to stage the items we brought down from the attic. It was pretty gross at times, much of that stuff should be thrown away, but Ross needs to make those decisions and carry that clean-up out. Ben showed up after noon with Adri, Suzanne, and Abigail. We had a little talk, then Ben and I went into the garage and started pulling stuff down from the attic. We did it in two stages, and at the end of each stage we called Mom out (the others joined as well) to help with the disposition of items. Mom was surprisingly ready to let go of things, so we ended up with large piles of trash and recycled metal, items to go to Goodwill, and items to give to family members. We didn't put too much stuff back in the attic, which was the main objective after all. Then we drove over to Atascocita and had dinner at Italiano's. Mom and I shared a pizza, it was pretty good. This was the fine part of the day. I was feeling okay but not in tip-top shape. In the evening, Ross came home and went ballistic when he found out that Ben had taken the ShopVac (Ross's, but we didn't know that) back to his house to use for a home project. Ross was completely out of control, and it took quite a while to calm him down. He thought Ben had intentionally stolen it, and he was right that Ben had taken it without asking for Mom's permission. So, we screwed up there, big time. Ben drove back to the lake house and dropped the ShopVac off, without stopping to let us know that he had done so. This was a very good thing because Ross was still on the edge. After I showed Ross that the ShopVac was returned, he and I had a very detailed and personal conversation about how he saw his current life and future. So, he was in a better state of mind at the end of the evening than earlier. I couldn't sleep after all of that energy, and my night was a fitful one, probably compounded by not feeling 100%.

09-05-2024 Ride

Woke up super early, I was worried about the problem I found with my front fork setup when I loaded my bike in the car the previous evening. And Ross gets up early, so that helped me wake up too. I took the bike out and reseated the front fork bearings, and this time I got it right. Left for Mark's place with what I thought was plenty of time, but I ran into a lot of traffic just getting onto 90. Once I was on the highway, it was smooth sailing onto I-10, then when the traffic slowed way down I relied on Waze to find me a way through it. Took surface streets near downtown and that got me onto the 59 past the worst of the traffic. I ended up being about 10 minutes late, which was pretty good, all things considered. He was still getting ready, so I wasn't really late after all. The sky was overcast when we headed out. Check Strava to see the route, but we took surface streets for about 3 miles before getting on a wide sidewalk and riding on it. Not my preference, since it slowed us way down, but it did allow us to have a nice time chatting while riding. We kept on that road (University Dr) until we got to about 10 miles, then we turned around and rode back to an intersection and turned left. Stayed on this road until about mile 15, including a spell of about 5 minutes when it rained pretty steadily. The rain let up, before we turned around and rode back to the intersection, stopping for a coffee at a Starbucks. A nice long break and a good conversation before we retraced our route back to near Mark's house. We rode the last half mile or so through his neighborhood streets. Ride successfully completed in the face of the risk of significant rain.

Avg speed = 14.6 mph. Total mileage = 29.0 mi

Avg power = 92 W. Weighted avg power = 104 W

Total elevation gain = 300'

Avg heartrate = 108 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12340448878

I kept my Fitbit from tracking the ride because I was worried I wouldn't be able to charge it before getting home on Saturday. I drove through several light rain squalls on the way back to Mom's house, got there a little before 1:00. I had some lunch and talked to her, then I got some quiet time. Later in the afternoon, I went back to her room and did some troubleshooting of her wireless headphones for the TV. The Bluetooth transmitter worked, as did the headphones. So I figured it was in the TV settings. That's what did the trick, setting the TV audio to the headphone out jack instead of the TV speakers. She was happy to get it fixed. I went to the store afterwards to get stuff for dinner. Arlans didn't have what I was looking for, so I ended up at Walmart. After I got back, I realized I had forgotten a key ingredient, but luckily Arlan's had it. So dinner was late, but Mom didn't mind. Stuffed shells and corn on the cob, they turned out okay. After dinner I watched some football.

09-04-2024 Run

Woke up pretty late for me and got ready for a run. I headed over to the new subdivision to the north of Foley Rd, ran around a couple of streets there, then jogged back. I had hoped to get in 5 miles but came up a little short. It really reminded me just how humid it is in Houston, I was drenched when I got back.

Avg pace = 8:27/mi

Total distance = 4.35 mi

Elapsed running time = 36:48

https://www.strava.com/activities/12323614806

Was still sweating even after my shower. Had some breakfast, and a little later in the morning Mark and Ben came over. The four of us talked about Mom's living situation, and I think we clarified for her what her current options are. She is still capable of making her own decisions here, and I will be surprised if she is fed up enough with Ross's lack of support to make any significant changes. Still, it was a good conversation, and now she knows well how the three of us are feeling and how we will support her. After they left, I took some time to put my bike together, it seemed to go smoothly. In the afternoon, Mom and I took Lillie to the vet in Atascocita, and got a check-up. All good there, which made Mom happy. We went to Walmart later in the afternoon to get some stuff for dinner (stir fry), and she did well there. She had a little nap right at dinner time, so I went ahead and ate. She then came out, and we talked while she had a pretty good amount of food for dinner. It was a quiet evening for me after that, talked to Ann and filled her in on some of the news about Mom and Hannah.

09/03/2024 Ride

Woke up a little before 6:00, after having gotten up in the night, had something to eat, and watched some TV. So I was late for leaving on my bike ride from the original plan. This was a planned slow ride, and it went as intended. Through the neighborhood and then through the 4S Ranch neighborhood the short way. I followed Paseo del Sur down to Camino del Sur and then turned left. Around this time, I unplugged my Wahoo from the charger and put it its holder. Again, a slow pace over to the 56 bike path turning west there and riding down to El Camino Real. I rode up through Del Mar Heights and then down to San Dieguito Rd. I turned there but quickly turned around when I saw it was covered with gravel in preparation for repaving. Instead, I headed over to Via de la Valle and took it to Calzada del Bosque to get to Via de Santa Fe and El Apajo. Back to San Dieguito Rd and up Three Witches at a slow pace. Home the normal way from there via W Bernardo Dr. This ride was an easy one for me, just getting some miles in before the Houston trip.

Avg speed = 14.8 mph. Total mileage = 35.8 mi

Avg power =111 W. Weighted avg power = 144 W

Total elevation gain = 1930'

Avg heartrate = 103 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12316059316

We left home for the airport around 11:50 and got there with no issues. Checking the bike also went smoothly. I had a middle seat for the flight, and the young woman next to me was large, so it was pretty cramped. I took a sandwich and a peach with me, and eating the food helped to pass the time. The flight was on time, and Mom and Ross picked me up from the airport after I had retrieved my bike bag. Ross was in a good mood, and Mom was glad to see me. We chatted for a bit when we got back to the lake house, then I went to bed.

09-02-2024 Ride

Woke up with enough time to get ready for the Tour de Labor with John from our house. He was early so I had to hustle a little bit to finish getting ready. We left early about 6:50. Headed over to Highland Valley Rd the normal way and enjoyed the cool overcast weather. We made decent time on the flats, then I pushed fairly hard on the first climb and ended up setting a PR (5:32, 297 W, 154 bpm), mainly by digging deeper near the top and finishing strong. I rode a little further on, then turned back to meet him at the top. Did something similar on the second and third climbs. The sun was out at the top, but we avoided the heat on the way up. The descent was thrilling as usual, I felt a little more comfortable at the higher speeds. Waited for John at the bottom, then we headed back home the same way. He was a little drained by the ride but made it fine. I was still pretty fresh at the end, took it slow up the last climbs to the house.

Avg speed = 15.3 mph. Total mileage = 21.7 mi

Avg power =157 W. Weighted avg power = 196 W

Total elevation gain = 2040'

Avg heartrate = 125 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12306833842

After the ride, I had a little time to relax and get ready for my Labor Day volunteer shift. The shift was fairly busy, I knew most of the nurses working, and they seemed to be the more senior ones. Nothing special, although I saw Ron Hinrichs and Jennifer Pauley, who were in there with their grandfather/father. He was in decent shape, nothing life-threatening as far as I could tell. The rest of the shift went smoothly. After I rode home, I had a little bit to eat before riding over to Kit Carson Park to meet Emily for a walk around the park. We had a nice, often funny conversation, and it was a good time. I ate dinner when I got home and had a quiet evening. <>

09-01-2024 Ride

Got up early and had some breakfast, then went back to sleep. I work up around 6:30 and had to hustle a little bit to get ready for my ride with Jim. We took the time trial route, and I rode slowly, at his pace or just a little bit faster for most of it. I was in Zone 1 for more than half the time and Zone 2 for the other half, so it was an easy pace. Jim had a flat on Poway Rd, so that slowed us down a little bit.

Avg speed = 13.3 mph. Total mileage = 17.6 mi

Avg power = 100 W. Weighted avg power = 120 W

Total elevation gain = 1040'

Avg heartrate = 101 bpm (Coospo)

https://www.strava.com/activities/12299457879

When I got home, I had to hustle again to get ready for church. Made it in about 7 minutes. Church service was pleasant, it was the first time I heard Pastor Lisa preach. She's not a great preacher, but I like her positivist attitude, and others seem to feel the same way. Hoping for the best for her. We stopped at Sprouts on the way home, and the afternoon was a quiet one. I washed my old Fuji bike, then took it apart and loaded it into my Airport Ninja case. It fit in there pretty well the first time, still some maneuvering to do to include the other items that will go into the case. Then I read and did some cycling statistics program checking to try and track down the source of the error that has been shutting the program down and crashing the computer at the same time. I think I got it figured out because the program can now go through an entire folder of GPX files and process them into the database stats.