Woke up to my alarm, got dressed, and had some cereal and a banana. Filled one bottle with water and the other (a big one) with electrolyte drink. I was running a little late for the planned 6:45 meeting time. It was a little chilly on the downhills and across the lake to the Via Rancho Park n Ride. Of course, I was late and still the first one there. Joe showed up soon after, and Mike went to the wrong starting location before coming there. I loaded the route into my Wahoo, and away we went. Up Via Rancho Pkwy to Felicita Rd, taking it to Escondido Blvd, turning right and then left onto Sunset Dr. Up and then down to BVP, where we turned and headed up to San Pasqual Valley Rd. A jog over to Citrus Ave, taking it back to BVP. We were all pretty much riding together on this initial stretch, other than the little climb up BVP, where Mike and I realized it was going to be a long day. We took BVP out to Valley Pkwy, turned right and rode up to Beven Dr, where we turned left. Then we took a short section of the Escondido Creek Trail to El Norte Pkwy, turning right there and riding together down to Broadway. I was keeping my pace steady, knowing there were a lot of miles to come and that I hadn't trained for this distance. We took Broadway out to Jesmond Dene Rd and then rode up to the top. Here, Mike and I got out in front of Joe pretty significantly, so we waited for him to catch up before going to Centre City Pkwy. Headed out toward Champagne Blvd, enjoying that long downhill. Thankfully, it was warmer by this time. We stopped at a little market off Lawrence Welk Dr, had coffee, snacks, and a break at about 20 miles. I stopped to pee there and somehow Joe got ahead of me and Mike, and away he went. Eventually he realized that we weren't in front of him, so he stopped and waited for us to catch up. No big deal, we were back together soon. We rode to Camino del Rey and started heading west. It was early enough in the day that, initially, we didn't have much of an offshore breeze to deal with. Riding was smooth, and, initially, Joe was able to stay with me and Mike. But he started slowing down, as he was correctly looking to conserve his energy. Once we got to Mission Ave (aka the 76), my map for the route started to act screwy. This was the portion of the route that I had edited extensively to try and lower the total elevation gain, and I think some of the edits created little loops and other issues. Mike knows this area pretty well, and he was a big help, but we probably lost a couple of miles of the route on this stretch (more on that later). I made one wrong turn, but Mike helped correct that, and we found our way onto the San Luis Rey bike path. The two of us would get out in front of Joe, then either slow down or stop to let him catch up. This happened several times around here, was the roadmap for the rest of the ride, it turned out. We stayed on the bike path, which had a nice gradual descent, until we exited it using Bennet Rd to get back to the 76. Took it a short distance to Canyon Dr, where we turned left and rode up a short little climb, dropping Joe again. Turned onto Eagles Crossing and we were in the condo complex where Mike lives. Rode over to his place, left our bikes in the garage, and had our second break there. I met his girlfriend Jen, and we all chatted and rested up for the next segment. The original route had us riding into downtown Oceanside, but the Half Ironman competition was going on, so Mike routed us through neighborhood streets to Cassidy St via Bush St, Canyon Dr, Crouch St, Grandview St, and Hunsaker St. Then we took Ditmar St to Vista Way and thus to PCH. At this point, we had a breeze coming from the northwest, and it was really beneficial on the long ride down the coast. I was hoping it would blow Joe along and speed him up, but he kept his pace moderate, as he should have. Mike and I rode together for nearly all of this section, getting ahead and stopping periodically to wait for Joe. We made decent time through Carlsbad, Leucadia, Encinitas (took the little jog to avoid riding through the central part of town), and Cardiff. Again, I wasn't pushing hard, just going at high Zone 2 / low Zone 3 pace for the most part. We rode into Solana Beach, at this point I had gotten out in front a bit, was a little frustrated at our overall slow pace I guess. We stopped for lunch at Pizza Port, where I had a slice and ate one of my Clif bars. I had eaten a banana with my coffee at the first stop, then I had another banana and a tangerine at Mike and Jen's place. But I was feeling hungry when we stopped in Solana Beach. We took a long break here, Mike and Joe had pizza and a beer. It was a good recovery stop. From there we rode up through Del Mar and then turned onto Carmel Valley Rd, taking it to El Camino Real and heading south. Another little climb there, we dropped Joe and waited for him at the top. Right on Carmel Mountain Rd and over to Vista Sorrento Pkwy, taking it down to Sorrento Valley Blvd, which we used to get over to the beginning of the bike path on the west side of I-5. This was a nice way to get up onto the mesa, gradual and not too long. Joe dropped back, and we waited for him a couple of times. He was tiring out now, both physically and mentally. And I was in the mindset to get this ride done already. Up to Pepper Canyon Dr, using it to get over to Gilman Dr, where we turned left and got onto Medical Center Dr (never been there before). Through the UCSD Medical Center, then a right onto Athena Cir, which dropped us right at Eastgate Mall. This is a nice little section to consider for future rides, much easier than taking Torrey Pines Rd. We rode on Eastgate Mall over to Miramar Rd and turned left. Here on this 4+ mile stretch, we again had the benefit of a tailwind. I rode at slightly elevated pace and again got out in front a little bit of Mike and a lot of Joe. All the way to Kearny Mesa Rd, where we crossed the street and stopped for our last break at a gas station. I ate my second Clif bar, and we refilled our water. Joe was pretty tired by this point, but he hadn't had any twinges from his leg muscles, so he massaged his feet, we rested for a good bit, then we continued on. Up Pomerado Rd to the top, and that was really slow going for Joe. We waited for him several times, but he made it up. He said later that, near the top, he felt his legs twitch a bit, but he dialed it back and was able to finish the little climb. Down the hill and over to Metate Ln, where we turned and took it to Community Rd. Rode over to Twin Peaks Rd and turned right. All this time, Mike and I would get out in front and wait for Joe to catch up at the turns. We took it up to Espola Rd and turned left, our last little climb for the day. Thankfully, the breeze was neutral for us, maybe even a little bit beneficial. It took a while for Joe to get to the top, but he made it, and I knew we would be able to finish the ride together. Down the hill, then down Espola Rd to Pomerado Rd, and that was a nice little section, even if it was into a headwind. Turned right on Pomerado Rd and took it down to the lake, riding across the pedestrian bridge and over to the mall. We still needed a couple of miles to complete the century, so we ended up riding twice on the outside loop around the mall, the last time coming to Via Rancho Pkwy and riding this road back to Del Lago Blvd. Mike and I both still had decent strength left in our legs, and we motored to the finish point. Joe was over the moon at being able to complete the century, and he thanked both of us for supporting him in his effort. We drank beers, including a nice Tripel that Mike had bought for the occasion, and chatted about politics for a while. I was happy that Mike offered to drive me home, could have ridden it but it would have been dicey.
Avg speed = 15.3 mph (15.4 mph). Total mileage = 103.7 mi
Avg power = 118 W. Weighted avg power = 137 W
Total elevation gain = 4230' (5120')
Avg heartrate = 124 bpm (Coospo)
Relative Effort = 150 (157)
Training Load = 315
Intensity = 62%
The ride took the entire day. I had hoped to keep our breaks a little shorter and our pace a little faster, but all in all it was a very good day. No mechanical issues, nobody had any mishaps, and the weather and route both contributed to a fine ride. I wasn't super hungry when I got home, had some spaghetti and snacked while watching some TV to unwind. It wasn't too difficult to fall asleep at the end of this day.
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