Double Back Bay with Points Revisited!

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1800910

GC:  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/117978288

With a point system in effect for today's ride, I was hoping there would have been a bigger turnout as there was notably some people missing.  However, there were still 9 (10 including me) who were able to make it out to participate.  Eric came out but took off ahead of the rest of us, but got caught by the group on Anteater given the fast pace on the way out.  Joseph came out too, and although didn't start with us, he tried to drop in from San Joaquin to Back Bay on our 2nd pass but wasn't able to jump on based on the pace.  Thus, 8 of us got to mix it up and pretty much went like this:

Galen took off for a breakaway once we got on NPC and had PV just make the first light behind him while the rest of us stopped for the red (funny how penalty points can do this).  Galen managed to stay ahead of PV up to the 73 bridge, but PV was able to get by him to the top.  Shannon and Vince followed with everyone else behind.  Shannon and Vince traded pulls, but we got past the 73 offramp, Shannon decided to turn it on catching and passing Galen before San Joaquin.  Vince wisely decided not to blow up early trying to stay on Shannon's wheel during that surge.

When Vince and I rounded San Joaquin, Galen had made his way up to PV again while we made our way back up to Shannon.  The 3 of us were trying to reel them back in to keep it interesting, but we got caught at another light that they made giving them even more of an advantage.  Their luck run out though by the time we got to McArthur as we were able to reach them there along with the rest of the group behind us.

Even though there were no points, these guys were still hauling ass on McArthur and on PCH.  Unbelievable!   Despite, the 8 of us were able to stay together once we got onto the Back Bay section.  After the light, Galen worked an early breakaway.  The first to respond was David, who got up to the front starting at the gate while everyone latched on behind him.  PV finally came around at one point followed by Shannon, but they weren't able to reel until after San Joaquin.  Nice!

There were some good pulls on the 2nd section, but I think it was a back-to-back pull between Adrian and Shannon that started to splinter the group up where David and Mitchell fell off.   You can tell that there was some strategizing going on prior to the hill climb to the top, and ultimately Vince was able to take it.  Galen got by Adrian but Shannon got by Galen before the top.

Crossing the street on Jamboree was a little chaotic.  There were cyclists heading toward Back Bay and some cars that were approaching, but Vince, Shannon and I got through first it seem.  This would not be any different than the light situation earlier on though where it's just a matter of chance.

Vince kept the lead all the way up Jamboree to Bison, but Shannon and PV were mixing it up.  Shannon was ahead first, but PV came up from the back and passed first.  Closer to the top, Shannon returned the favor.  PV did try to respond, but didn't have enough in the tank at the time.  I had to make my way around him so I can keep shooting footage of the front.  I also got by Shannon for a bit to keep it interesting, but he was on chase mode once we started descending on the other side.  Unfortunately, Vince got caught at the San Joaquin light.

On the last pass on Back Bay, I thought I'd keep it interesting and lead out the first section.  PV launched an attack after the first bend, while the others stayed behind me.  To keep it MORE interesting, I did work to close the gap some on PV, but as we neared San Joaquin, I gave Vince and Shannon the sign to pass.

PV ended up gassing after that attack where Vince and Shannon ended up leading an attack of their own right after and dropping PV as a result.  This, unfortunately was also when Joseph came up on us and tried to latch on, but it was definitely not a good time to do so.  For the rest of the 2nd section, Shannon and Vince were alternating pulls and just going for it.  Ultimately, Vince took the top with Shannon just half a bike behind him.

Vince took off after and broke away immediately.  He held the gap for a long while and I was trying to coax Shannon to chase him down.   When I saw that Shannon didn't respond, I went ahead and started to pull him closer to Vince.  Vince was too far ahead though by that time, and Shannon had to settle for 2nd place at this section also.

PV and Galen caught up at this light and apparently still had some fight in them.  Galen immediately took off after the 2nd light near the bottom and had pretty much gapped everyone.  However, PV went into chase mode and eventually caught and passed him on the last rise on the hill.  I tried to tow the other guys toward the two to make for a real scrappy ending, but they were already worked.

In the end, here's how the points worked out for those who were in contention (point system and rules below):

	PV	Galen	Shannon	Vince
To 73 Bridge	4	5	3
top of NPC	5	3	4
BB to San Joaquin	4	5	3
Top of BB		3	4	5
Top of Jamboree	3		4	5
BB to San Joaquin 2	5		3	4
Top of BB 2	3		4	5
To CA	3		4	5
Top of CA	5	4		3
BRCM White Jersey			4	4
Other BRCM Jersey
Totals	32	20	33	31

Points for each section:

1st – 5

2nd – 4

3rd - 3

Point Sections

-    First to 73 underpass entrance on NPC

-    NPC Crest (before San Joaquin)

-    First to San Joaquin on Back Bay

-    Top of Back Bay

-    First to Bison light atop Jamboree

-    First to San Joaquin on Back Bay (2nd loop)

-    Top of Back Bay (2nd loop)

-    To light at CA from University bike trail

-    Top of CA (before Bison)

Additional Points

-    Broadcom WHITE jersey worn - 4 pts

-    Any other BRCM jersey - 2 pts

Deductions (based on judging panels discretion)

-     Stop sign/Red light breakaway (minus 5 pts for each)

-     Rubbing on someone’s rear wheel (minus 5 pts)

-     Any other unsafe acts (5 pts)

-     Transparent or shorts with more than one visible hole (3 pts)

Shortcuts can be taken once again (e.g San Joaquin on 2nd BB loop), but you must be within the pack to attack for pts.

Wednesday Lunch Ride - Damn you, Strava!

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1788928

GC:  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/117764058

Todd, Shannon, Jaffe and I made it out today for yet another painful hammerfest.  Shannon wanted to hit it hard today and see if we can take down a couple Strava segments, but we just missed here and there.  It was a good day to do it weather-wise, but I think I wasn't able to help enough to get us some KOMs.

On Back Bay, we pushed pretty good but we started to prepare for the charge up San Joaquin to Jamboree.  Todd and Jaffe never really set it up, but Shannon and I did to make sure we can sprint the whole segment.  In the end, neither of us were able to take it away from Noah (or his girl friend with the bogus speed data).

After this sprint, I really felt like just the rest of the ride, but with LTJ pushing up San Joaquin, there was no choice but to just push on.  He and Shannon broke me off pretty early on the hill, but we did get to regroup on NPC.

We tried to setup the Strava segment on Pelican where Jaffe was going to lead us out.  The problem, as I saw it though, was that he began to sprint after making the turn onto Pelican because he came in so tight from NPC.  When they began to sprint, they were putting down some good power but Shannon and I held back so we can save it for when we ascend from the bottom.  Todd was broken away for a bit as a result of the lead out, but we closed in by the bottom and we all started the charge.  Unfortunately, we hit a light in the middle so that screwed everything up.  Again, I felt pretty blown up after and for what?

Shannon wanted to start at the bottom of NPC vs. turning left from Pelican (to complete a whole segment...Damn you, Strava!).  After we made the u-turn, I was just doing my best to make it up the hill where Todd, Shannon and Steve had gotten away from me even before Pelican.  I did reel Jaffe in eventually (who held my wheel for a bit after), but Todd and Shannon were too far up.

I only managed to see Shannon again on Vista after they disappeared by the time I got to the crest on NPC.  I saw LTJ for just a little bit, but didn't see him again since he took off and had to get back to a meeting.  Shannon waited for me at the top, and we both waited for Jaffe before going down Park.

We opted to go down San Joaquin and back via McArthur.  That's always a fun way back.  Shannon and I were alternating for the most part, but as we were nearing Bonita Canyon from McArthur, Jaffe swung by and took a strong pull to lead us up to the intersection.

Shannon must have wanted to get all the energy out as he took off once the light turned green, and Jaffe wanted to push on Bison where I was encouraging him to go, go, go in the process.

I did take a video of the above since I wanted to try out the full 1080P HD setting.  The sucky part is it plays back all choppy on my laptop.  I guess I'll have to watch it at home on the Mac.

Another good workout today, guys.  I almost fell asleep at my 2 PM meeting as I was pooped.  I think I may have just enough for one more ride this week, so tomorrow should be it.  Let's make it good!

BRCM Lunch - Turtle Rock Shady Ridgeline Summit Bonita Cyn

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1777870

GC:  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/117540963


Highlights

- Loaded ride today with 12 riders out...not one you want to take off too early.  Galen seemed to have learned this lesson, but Gary and Verm took a little more coaxing. I took some pulls early on, but just to control the tempo a little...didn't work.

- Gary, Galen, Adrian and Verm formed a little breakaway on Culver to Campus. The rest of us knew better and stayed behind Vince and Shannon.

- When we got to Turtle Rock, the pace slowed down some where no one seemed too eager to bring it up.  Where's LTJ when you need him?  After a while, I finally took the front to bring the pace up to a respectable level (HA HA).  Vince rotated in, but passed at almost sprint speed with no one seemingly wanting to close the gap behind him.

- We apparently gave Verm a 2 mile lead out where he attacked the top before the stop sign.  He ended up missing the turn as a result, so those of us left kept going onto Shady.  

- Vince and Galen took off up Shady where the rest of us didn't get to close the gap enough at the crest.  Nice work.

- I was going to give chase on the downhill, but Shannon thought it best to reel them in together on the bike trail.  So we did with Shannon taking the long pull to do so.  Nice to see Mitchell was with us at the time.

- We tried to keep the breakaway but got held up at the light on Ridgeline where the others were able to regroup.

- Vince had a good pull going up Ridgeline at around 21 mph with Galen behind him.  They were starting to gap early on, so I jumped ahead to get behind Galen where others latched on behind me.

- I did come around to relieve Vince, but may have been a little aggressive in my speed where I "thought" I created a little gap.  However, Galen came by and decided he wanted to sprint up the first rise with me.   Nice, but he forgot there was another rise.  Good job until then though.

- I looked back and thought there wasn't anyone around, but after it flattened out a little, Vince came zooming by.  It wouldn't be the only time today.

- Shannon came around and helped Verm and I get back on Vince's wheel on Turtle Rock as we turned left on Sunnyhill.

-  Verm took the initial pull up Shady although having gapped us a little when he started.

- I took the last pull to get us up and over the crest, and both Verm and Shannon graciously offered a lead out for the sprint section.  Vince was off the back a little, so I wasn't sure who I'd sprint against, but took both Verm and Shannon up on it.

- Shannon's lead out was a little painful, but I was going to pass for the sprint finish.  Next thing you know, Vince is sprinting by me as well.  And there's the 2nd time.

- On Summit, Vince took off first, but Verm decided he was just going to go for it.  He passed and gapped Vince pretty good, but Vince was able to reel him in and pass him on the last section before the U-turn.

- We lost Vince on Turtle Ridge, so it was just Shannon, Verm, Galen, Mitchell and myself on Bonita Canyon.  The other guys weren't too far behind though as we saw them making their way up Summit on the way down.

- Thankfully, we skipped the duplex today, but we did keep a good pace all the way around to Bison.

- Galen took off after the last light over the 73 for a sprint, but I think I got him.  ;)

Good ride today, gents.  Thanks!  I hope you can make it out tomorrow too!

OCGF Pre-Ride...Strava Style

Strava: http://app.strava.com/rides/1754493

GC:   http://connect.garmin.com/activity/117104094

When Shannon set up this weekend's ride to prepare us for the OC Gran Fondo, who would have expected a 21 mph average pace for a 76 miler with 2700 feet of elevation?  It didn't help that Strava segments were specified as part of the agenda, but even that didn't summarize the ridiculousness of the ride.  To boot, Shannon came out with the aero bars installed! 

In the beginning of the ride, Vince suggested that we learn from the Como Street ride and actually warm up for the first 5-6 miles or so.  While I agreed wholeheartedly, that about got us only from the BJ's parking lot to the opening of the bike trail that heads toward Harvard.  Further, the plan was to save some energy for the actual Strava segments Shannon called out on SART.  That was the plan anyway.   So how come we kept hitting max speeds of 27+ after the first mile?   We're going to have to find a way to contain all this BAM energy for the OCGF or we're screwed.

Here's the video on Back Bay:

I brought along the GoPro for this ride and had it mounted on my handlebars this time.  The assembly to attach to the handlebars could be hand-tightened, so this was what I opted to do.  However, once the guys started going, the camera would either shift to one side  or tilt downward.  Working to get it straightened out is painfully difficult when the other guys are hauling ass.  Even after adjusting it with a screwdriver after Back Bay, it still moved but at least not as much.  I think I managed to get some good footage with it, but unfortunately, it stopped recording somewhere in the canyons due to lack of space.  I forgot to delete the video from Thursday.  Doh!

Speaking of the GoPro, I think both Vince and Shannon want me not to take it anymore given that they felt I didn't get to contribute to the timed Strava segments.  Some people just don't appreciate my "sacrifices" like not getting any KOMs.  HA.  I did contribute elsewhere and tried to take the pulls in between the segments to give them time to rest.  This includes the TEN mile section at 20-22 average (I thought it was only 6 or so until I looked at the GPS stats) between the first Strava segment on SART and the last one from the bridge to Weir.  The funny thing was after pulling them for that long, they didn't even let me recover and immediately jumped on the bridge and started hammering after.  Gotta love 'em.

We ended up taking a break before going up Serrano, which is a pretty respectable hill.  I tried to find a good rhythm off the seat, but Vince caught me eventually and passed.  I tried to hang on his wheel, but that is not a good thing to try on a hill that I'm less than familiar with than he is.  I ain't dumb.

Shannon's 3 weeks off must have caught up to him at this point.  I kept thinking he was just sandbagging, but understandably, he should have been tired not only from the hiatus but also from the pounding earlier on.  He was on chill mode for the rest of the ride, but I would NOT expect things to stay this way for too long.

The rest of us broke off and were hammering down the other side of Serrano where I have some good footage of it.  Fast and furious for sure.  I'll insert the video once I have them all uploaded to Youtube.

After a quick regroup on E. Santiago, I decided to go ahead and find a rhythm to pull the guys to the canyons to record that run.  I guess I was going faster than I thought where Verm finally asked "Rich, are you going for a Strava segment here?"  HA HA.   Vince eventually jumped up to the front, and Verm took the last pull to reel in and pass a Sho-Air guy who passed us while we regrouped earlier.    We didn't realize he'd want to play.

Rather than wait for the others, Vince and I decided to play Doc Holliday from Tombstone (quoted on the e-mail threads) to Mr. Sho-Air and became his huckleberries...whatever that means.  Vince decided not to stay on as we ascended up Dump, but I ended up pulling Mr. Sho-Air (SA for short) all the way to the top.  As common with this team, he decided to take off at that point and I slowed contemplating on waiting for the others.  BAM got the best of me, however, and I just did not want SA to even think I dropped off.  Thus, I chased him down and mixed it up with him through  the canyons.  Vince impressively caught us at one point (mostly because SA wouldn't take a long pull and always slowed up a LOT so I'd pass him), and it was nice to see him.  I didn't realize, however, that when I did see him, he was still recovering from chasing us down.  I asked him to pass so I can capture him on video, but he was just not ready yet.   Once he did, he jumped ahead while SA just held his rear wheel.  When I finally relieved Vince, Vince got a double hammy lock and had to roll off.

I was left to defend the BRCM jersey solo at that point, so I did what I could.  Another guy started to work in with us, but I led out the first rise heading towards Cooks.  Of course, both SOBs decided to launch an attack there, but I knew there was a slight down with a final ascent where I'd go ahead and give chase.  I wasn't able to reel both of them in by the crest, but I was definitely on chase mode heading down.  I passed the guy we picked up about a quarter of the way down, and I was coming up to SA quick.  However, as I was getting closer, he decided to turn off at Cooks.  Damn!  I'd have kept chasing him if I had to all the way back to BJ's.  HA HA

We all regrouped after Cooks and decided to hit up Glenn Ranch Portola and Back to get back to Irvine Blvd.  I figured I'd go for the Strava segment on Glenn Ranch, so I took off.  When I waited at the light, Gary, Verm and Adrian mad passed me on the green light so I knew they were still hungry for speed and chased them down.

Vince mentioned he wasn't feeling the race pace on Irvine Blvd, so Verm, Gary, Adrian and me decided to light it up on our own.  While it wasn't a record breaking pace given some wind, we were still moving.  We did pick up a straggler who said as he rolled up behind us on one of the lights, "You guys are nuts."  All I could say was..."Pretty much."

Gary was uncommonly strong at the end of this ride (wha?) and kept charging after every light.  I went to even take a pull and the guy stands up and starts full on sprinting.  Verm kept egging us on in the process, and I just kept telling Gary "don't do it."  He didn't listen.  This would have made for good video.

We were all pretty worked at the end, with Vince and Shannon rolling in shortly behind us.  I guess they must have been working too.  Great training ride today resulting in a lot of movement on Strava including some KOMs.  Awesome!   Tour de Poway next week!

Here's the footage of the first Strava segment on SART:

2nd Strava segment on SART:

Bombing down Serrano:

Lunch Ride - BB PCH Ocean NPC Pelican Vista San Joaq BB CA

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1725876

Seeing that it was just Vince and Todd coming out today, my anxiety level before the ride pretty much peaked since the pace tends to get manic with these 2 guys together.  I got our earlier than them and sat at "the corner" hoping that someone, anyone, would come out of the Bldg 11 gym;  no luck.  And unlike the last couple days, I didn't have my camera today where I couldn't use it as an excuse to ride diva-style in the back.   Today, I had to work.

Heading out on Back Bay was pretty tough.  We could barely keep the pace above 22 against that wind.  On top of that, Todd wasn't 100% and neither was Vince's bike.  Even my bike was knocking like it was running on bad gas, so we were not exactly firing on all cylinders out there.  That didn't stop us from trying though.  I think we all pretty much shared pulls pretty evenly as we made our way out to NPC.

Before we made a left on NPC, I asked Todd if we really needed to do Pelican and Vista...essentially echoing Vince earlier when he found out on Back Bay.  LTJ said we can do it but we'll take it easy (where have I heard this before?).  Once the light turned green, he tore off trying to get the segment from NPC to Pelican.   I tore off after him and probably would have gotten a pretty good time as well, but after uploading to Strava...it didn't register.  WTF?!?  Maybe the segment starts from across the street vs. the left turn.  In any case, boo!

On Pelican, I thought I'd try something a little different today so that these guys aren't waiting too long for me atop each of the climbs.  Rather than trying to manage their pace, I found a rhythm that I thought I could hold instead.  While it did have me drop off their back for a bit, I was able to be just behind them at the crest and also made the same light getting back on NPC.

I was a little more worried on Vista, and they did get a pretty good jump on me at the start.  However, I was able to again find a rhythm (albeit I would have preferred a faster one with a compact crank) and have Vince lead me up the first steep climb.   Vince gapped me pretty good once he got up on the false flat in the middle of the hill, but rather than try to make ground there, I saved up for a charge up the last hill.  This worked today, and I was able to catch up to Vince and we rode to Park together to an awaiting LTJ.

We decided to hit San Joaquin and BB for some extra credit and that's always fun.  Vince was hanging back a bit here and there, but it seemed more by choice since he'd be up with us again when it counted.

Back Bay was a lot more fun heading in, and we definitely got to pick up our pace here more.  Good transitions between the 3 of us, and all of us putting in the work.  At the top, LTJ got on the sidewalk first and decided he was going to turn it up.  So Vince and I chased him down and only managed to get on his wheel after the bridge where we sat there trying to recover rather than sprint to CA.

Todd started to lead us up CA, but I thought I'd kick it up a notch passing them both on a big gear (how do the big gear boys do this?!?).  There was still some fight in LTJ, so he worked his way to pass me where we ended up sprinting to the top.  I think he beat me, but I was delirious at that point.

Another good workout for the books, gents.  Thanks!  Let's see what I'll have left over for Sunday.

BRCM Lunch - Bike Trail Laguna Cyn Shady Bonita Cyn Duplex Loop

Attendees:  Todd, Shannon, PV, Verm, Marc, Seon, Vin, Eric, and David.  Vince was out too, but  appears to have had a mechanical on the way down CA.

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1714879

I think I'm going to volunteer to video tape all the BRCM rides from now on.  It gives me the excuse  of being able to sit in the back so I can capture others on video.  The perspective of being up front  is just not interesting to watch.  Let's see if the others buy off on this.

It was a good sized turnout today, but it was unfortunate that Vince didn't make it past CA.  I  didn't know he had a mechanical until David mentioned it as he rolled up to the light on University.  Knowing Vince, if he couldn't get his bike going again, he probably ran back up to BRCM at a sub 6- min pace with his bike on his back...and then ran some more after.

The pace on the bike trail was fast, and since I captured it on video (to be edited and uploaded  hopefully later), you can see almost everyone working to keep the pace up.  You will also see Shannon  and Verm's breakaway just after Jeffrey where Todd was just able to reel them in before getting to  Laguna Canyon. Unfortunately, the rest of the crew got blown out behind us as a result. We did end up  catching the light on Alton as well, but everyone else got caught.

I continued to stay and film on the back as we made our way to Shady.  All 3 guys were working well  together.  Once we got on Shady, however, Verm decided to show off his triathlon conditioning and  started jamming up the hill.  Shannon started calling out to Verm that we're coming to get him (in  typical BAM fashion), but Verm never looked back and just kept hammering.  Todd started to give  chase, but I wasn't too sure he would pass Verm before the crest.  I decided to make it interesting  and jammed past both just to see if it would motivate them to go even harder.  I guess I jammed too  much (after all the drafting).

We ended up running through the gate at the bottom vs. going across due to a car, and since Shannon  didn't appear to want to slow down at all today.  The guys kept alternating as we went up and over  the crest heading towards Bonita Canyon.  Verm did jump ahead as we neared the bike trail opening  (finish of one of our sprint zones), but it didn't look like anyone was really interested in  contesting.

Todd and Shannon started jamming on Bonita Canyon, and verm temporarily dropped off only to catch  back up to us on Prairie Road.  To stay together, we ended up skipping Summit and staying with Todd  who had to get back for a 1 PM meeting.  As we got to Ford, the guys were strategizing how to attack  the duplex, and I think Verm offered a lead out.  However, once we got on Jamboree, Shannon came in  wide from Ford and just took off with Verm in tow.  LTJ had been working hard throughout the ride, so  he got separated from the two.  I gave chase to continue capturing it all on video.  After getting by  Verm, I started to come up on Shannon and encouraging him to push on.  The wind was not cooperative  though, so it ended up not being an ideal day for a KOM attempt here.  My record stands...for now.

Good ride today, fellas!  Nice effort on everyone's part.  Nice to see movement on Strava as a result.  One more day left in this work week, so I hope others can join for another ride tomorrow.

Lunch Ride - The Return of Braveheart

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1705193

On Shannon's first outing since he got back, it seemed the thought of riding with him thinned out the participants today to only Eric and me.  Eric was smart enough to get a head start though, so we only saw him here and there throughout the ride.  PV was suppose to come out too, but had a flat tire that kept him from coming out on time.  Why didn't I think of that?  Good one!

I had my GoPro on so when I get home, I'll have to publish the video somewhere and add to this blog.  I watched the raw state, and it was pretty decent although I could probably opt to do wide screen next time.  In it, you'll see me following Shannon about 80% of the ride.  It wouldn't be as interesting if I rode up front more, now would it?

Anyway, I think I know why everyone ditched under the premise of meetings, flat tires, etc.  I got worked today.  It may have been the anxiety that did it from Shannon already naming Strava segments for this ride and no one else but me to suffer the punishment.  In any case, I felt pretty wrecked when we got back.

I popped of Shannon's wheel both going up NPC and Pelican, but at least I could still see him on the video.  Shannon ended up getting a 3rd on the Pelican drop from today's effort.  No wonder.

We did check up a little once we got on PCH and as we made our way through CDM, but we picked it up some after getting back on PCH from Avocado.  We did get a little held up on Bayside (or is it Bayshore?) by an SUV, but picked it back up some as we rode by the trailer park.

As we got on Back Bay Drive, Shannon had asked me about a strategy for Back Bay.  In my mind, the warning bells started to go off where I started to prepare for pain.  We took off and alternated throughout the run (probably 60/40) and between the two of us couldn't get through all the shifting wind on the ride where we managed a 27.1 average only.  Only?!?  I need new riding friends.

We still kept the pace up on University, and at the bottom of CA, Shannon asked me if I had enough?  I would have answered with a resounding YES had me asked me at the top of NPC.  Despite this, we still worked through the winds pushing each other as we went up CA.  I'll seriously need to dub the video later so you can't hear me crying.

Our average for today may not have reflected how painful this ride was, but I was beyond cooked when we got back.  It was nice that PV did the same route (minus the trailer park and Ocean Blvd) at nearly the same average.  What a stud!

I hope there will be more reinforcements for tomorrow's ride.  Welcome back, Shannon!

Here's the video:  (I know, I know...just messing around with iMovie for the first time)

Lunch Ride - Portola OAB + Jamboree

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1695231

GC:  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/115900603

Highlights for today's ride:

• Gary once again got the natives riled up with a fast descent down CA and some early rotations on the bike trail.
• Todd and Galen also worked the initial bike trail where the pace felt like it was blistering at times snapping off some people before the bridge.  
• The pace remained high through the 2nd bike trail heading toward Portola with Todd getting to the top first.  PV, Galen and I were just behind him.  
• PV decided to do some extra credit and took off from there.  
• Todd, Galen and I broke away at the U-turn but at some point on the bike trail were caught by some others.  Nice!
• Vin offered to pull on Harvard, so we pretty much let him tow us all the way back to the bike trail at Barranca.  
• Galen took off once we got on the bike trail, and I caught him at the bridge.  We tried to keep the others off, but we got reeled in by Todd and I think ultimately Seon.  
• The wind on the bike trail on the way back was tough.  
• On Jamboree, Galen got a jump and took off up the hill followed by Seon, then Todd and me.  Todd and I made our way past both, but Galen got scrappy after where he gets up to my left (5.10g violation?) and we start duking it out.  He got the better of me.  
• Seon made it to the top of the hill and showed he was the fastest among the contenders from my earlier e-mail.  However, Vin gets extra credit for his Harvard pull.  
• On Bison, the guys were swarming to set up a sprint and didn't get to do so until after the last light over the 73.  Vin and Galen were hammering and it seemed Vin got the better of Galen there.  Wha?  I was able to chase Vin down and pass him, but it definitely wasn't as easy as I remembered it.  Okay, so maybe throwing up my arms in victory after was a little much.  

Good ride today, gents.  Tomorrow's another day.

The 2011 Nautica Bike Leg - My Report

 http://app.strava.com/rides/1658331

Preparing for this event was tough in terms of the evening before the event.  I knew I had a 90+ minute drive (where the closure of Internstate 10 W didn't end up helping this), so I had to factor that time along with getting up to be able to get bike and some last minute items loaded up.  Being the freak that I am, I woke up at 2:50 a.m. and was out the door by 3:30 a.m.  I was meeting with the others on my team at 5:30 a.m.  Fortunately, a large cup of coffee was one of my accompaniments.

I didn't eat my usual pre-ride meal (oatmeal) as well because 1, it was a long drive and 2, I didn't want to stop for one of my mandatory pre-ride routines.   Thus, a protein bar had to do.  I also brought some honey waffles in case I got hungry, but I ended up just having half a bagel during the ceremony.  For 24 miles of effort, it would have to do.  I did have a pre-ride Cytomax, which ended up working out for me as I didn't once reach down for my bottle during the ride.

It was dark when I arrived and I thought I should just walk up to the packet pickup leaving my bike locked up.  However, half way to the registration, I ended up going back and grabbing everything since that's what everyone else was doing.  Yes, it took me being half way to figure that out, but damn it was early.

It was nice to see the other cycling guys there  (Mike Z., Noah, Seon, Vin, David, Eddie and Hiroshi) plus some of the other BRCM attendees.  There was also a lot of other "scenery" there, but I'll leave that up for your imagination.

For the relay, everyone waited in the transition area for their swimmer to finish their leg of the race.  Since mine was an external recruit, I wasn't sure what he looked like but managed to recognize him as he slowed for our aisle.  I was suppose to remove his leg chip timer, but there were other cyclists in the way waiting for their swimmer.  Eventually, he ended up handing me the timer, and I got it on my leg to go.

Not being a triathlete, I wasn't too keen on running to the bike start point and especially in my cycling shoes.  I left the cleat covers on while I ran, but didn't run too hard because...well, because it's not like we were really trying to win this thing.  When I got to the bike mounting area, a couple idiots were having problems getting on their bikes just at the line, so I had to make my way around them just to get started.

Not having warmed up (I didn't know you can bring a trainer until I saw some guys out there), I didn't push too hard as I made my way out of the parking lot.  The dreaded speed bumps were also a speed inhibitor, but I still made my way past several people here.  Then, making our way to the tunnel and makeshift bridge was also a little slow as we had to go on it single file.  After the tunnel though, I just put my head down and took off.

The cool thing about the event was just how many people you end up passing on the course.  Some of the guys on the TT would come back on the downhills, but once it flattened out for a while or pitched up, they pretty much dropped off eventually.  I think one guy ended up passing me once, but I didn't keep track of him and I'm not exactly sure he stayed ahead or if he was swallowed up by some of the gobs of people that were on the course.

I did see a few guys with BRCM jerseys on the course, but none who I recognized. I heard someone yell out and encouraged me to go but I only found out it was Mike Z. going the opposite direction after I got back.

Focusing on the people ahead of me was my mode, and I was always working on reeling everyone I can in.  On the way back, I did try to turn it up a little more to make sure I expended all my energy for the race.  Even then, a few more guys tried to mix it up but met the same fate as the earlier ones.  On one of the hills, one of the guys passed said "go BMC," which helped me want to push even harder on it.

Near the entrance of the parking lot on the way back, I worried a little that one of my legs felt like it may start to cramp but I didn't stop pushing hard and it never did...fortunately.  As we actually went through the p-lot, a lot of the people on it seemed to have checked up but there was still a good distance of racing to go here.  I managed to make my way past them and the speed bumps without incident, but it was definitely not an ideal situation to sprint to the finish.  I had hit 23 mph average just before the finish, but when I stopped my Garmin, it showed 22.9.  As to my official results, however, my average came out to 22.6 where I finished the leg at 1:05:48.

Noah had a better bike time than I did officially, and that's even after getting a flat near the end where he rode through.  His Garmin stopped halfway through the route though, so he won't get to upload to Strava.   You know the saying though:  "It it isn't on Strava...."  Just kidding.  Good job.

The other guys had some good bike times too and credits the training rides we do along with their other weekend riding that's helped them improve.  Doh!  Ha Ha.

The company provided brunch after and it was good.  The best part:  open bar.  It's never too early for Mimosas.  Thanks, Broadcom!

Lunch Ride - Shady Turtle Rock Starcrest Ridgeline Bike Trail Jamboree

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1612843

Another good ride today with 12 of us tearing up the roads and bike trails in Irvine.   Actually, I can't take any credit for the speed in today's ride since I only took the front twice and for short periods of time to save up for this weekend's Nautica.  Others were definitely stepping it up today, and it was great to hang back and watch everyone keep the pace up. 

When crossing Bonita Canyon to go up Shady, the guys just took off and I was off the back right away struggling just to catch up.  I guess Jaffe must have stepped it up big time here as he ended up getting the best time up this section according to Strava (http://app.strava.com/segments/745435).  Nice! 

Everyone was still pushing on Turtle Rock.  After one of Gary's pulls, he ended up coming all the way to the back behind me where I wasn't sure he was going to survive the pace.  Then at the bottom, he makes his way up to the front and he and Jaffe (I think) end up breaking away for a bit as we headed toward Starcrest.

I started making my way up and upon getting beside Todd, thought it best not to pass again.  He was also cautioning that it was a long hill, so I heeded it and rode beside him while everyone else hung on.  We ended up catching up to Gary and Jaffe just at the base of Starcrest and the climb was on.  I tried to manage pace to stay with LTJ, but after a couple back and forth passes, he breaks me off again near the top.  One of these days....  The sucky part is as we waited for others to regroup in the court, our Strava segment included that time as well ultimately returning an average of 7.7 mph for it.  Weak!

As we waited, the first 2 to make it up behind us were the bike twins, Seon and Vin.  Nice!  We really need to keep an eye on these guys.  Others were close behind, and it wasn't long before we were flying down Ridgeline with Gary and Adrian pushing the front.  One thing I did notice was Vin's line going down the first part of the hill before Turtle Rock.  Scary.  HA HA

Everyone was pushing once we got on the bike trail after Jeffrey.  David had a nice pull, so it looks like his time trialing on the bike trail seems to be paying off.  Vin took a good pull as we were next to Main, but the pull got the best of him.  I tried to have him jump on mine as he started to fall off the pack, but he was cooked.

When we got to University, I decided to get on the road and work on some solo riding for this weekend.  Adrian had led Todd out though and it was windy as all hell, so I ended up passing a couple guys but broke off from most of them before California.  When I jumped back on the trail, I was still solo and kept working on my TT position/effort.

As we got beside Jamboree, the light stayed green unusually long and Todd, Seon and Adrian got a pretty good jump.  I was still trying to catch up and got just behind Gary as we, too, were able to cross with the light green.  By the time we got across, Todd was charging the hill and Seon had broken away pretty good as well.  I stayed with Gary for a bit as he reeled Adrian in, but I decided to chase Seon down some time after.  It took a lot of effort to reel him in, but I managed to get past him.  Super effort on his part though.   I was getting close to LTJ, but not close enough to make him push a little harder like I'd expect if I came close.  He likes to tease me this way.

When several of us were at the light on McArthur, it was eerily quiet where no one spoke.  I finally had to ask what was going on.  I thought maybe they were just mad at me for not helping enough up front.  If so...sorry!  Of course, once the light turned green, everyone took off.  Gary and Adrian had the lead, but Todd and I were going to work together to reel them in.  However, when they got the light just before going over the 73, Adrian took off!  Although LTJ decided not to pursue, I was game for some sprint training.  Fun!

Good training ride today, gents.  Sorry I lag on the blog, but crazy afternoon today.  See you guys tomorrow?

BRCM Team - 3 Sisters, Los Alisos, the Canyons + Silverado with Jamboree Finish

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1591130

What perfect weather to get out and get a big ride in...no ridiculous heat, no rain, no thunder/lightning and no hail.  The winds were light early on, but it did pick up some through the canyons.  Nothing major though, so I'll take it. 

James and Todd coming out, we knocked out 77 miles with 5200 ft of elevation.  James couldn't do the whole route as he had to cut it short from Mission Viejo, but he was definitely good to have out there with us since he contributed to a lot of good rotations.  On the way down to PCH via Back Bay, Todd even mentioned how that was probably one of the smoothest rotations with each doing their share of pulls.  Good job!

After going through CDM, there was a triathlon being held, but we were able to squeeze through and ride their bike course as it made its way to the tip of Laguna Beach.  There were some guys actually doing the bike leg already while we were on the course, but we pulled all the way to the right so they can pass.  We did slow up some as well just so we don't interrupt the race in any way, but there was no way to get through otherwise.

As we made our way to Park, Todd and I tried to prepare James for the climb.  I guess he was a little nervous after reading about Todd indicating how others have fallen over, but we assured him it he could do it if he managed his output and not go too hard in the beginning.  He still ended up going ahead of Todd and I early on, but once it started pitching up pretty good, we reeled him in and got by.  Todd was actually behind me in the beginning, but he got by me just after we got by James.  Both of us were a little tentative to pass since James had been doing the paperboy route once the hill pitched up pretty good.  He actually did it several times joking at the the top that he must have done twice the distance Todd and I did.  Still, he wasn't too far behind once we got to the top.

Descending was another story.  Todd and I started bombing down the hill but we ended up having to check up behind a Prius.  As we decided to turn on one street to avoid riding through downtown, we waited at the intersection to make sure James doesn't miss the turn.  After a while, we started to worry since James seemed to be taking a while so Todd and I both started to work our way up the hill again.  Thank goodness James finally came around the bend where we didn't have to climb that monster again. 

We made our way to Pac Island, and I was hoping to get a good pace going up where I passed Todd and James early on.  Todd jumped on and eventually kept trading places with me as we made our way up.  Eventually, he snapped me off near the top but helped me get my PR on that hill.  Sweet!

I thought Todd would stop at the top, but he kept going so I started to chase him down.  He was a pretty good distance ahead when he got on Highland, but that hill has one of those pitches I can find a good rhythm on.  I guess he knew, so as he was making his way up kept looking back.   When I got up to him, I kept going thinking I could hold the pace where it wouldn't be easy for him to jump on.  I guess that would be a good assumption if it wasn't for LTJ.  He got on my rear wheel quick and held the pace where eventually, I gave up.  I did end up getting a KOM for that section, but that's just until Todd can get his Garmin stats posted. 

We did make our way to Los Alisos and eventually ended up splitting off from James who took Trabuco to get back.  One guy jumped on and started to ride in our draft for a while as we continued on to Marguerite.  He hung on for a while despite us holding a pretty good pace and even launched an attack at one point but we neutralized that pretty quickly where he never made his way ahead of us after.  BAM!

Todd and I continually pushed each other as we made our way through the canyons and up Silverado, and every hill was like a Strava segment.  We traded off on who would get up each hill first, and it was intense and non-stop.  One guy on an Orbea Orca tried to ride with us for a while, but fell off because of the pace.  Dump hill was pretty epic and it was like we were both going for Gold as we must  have traded places a few times.  In the end, we were side by side near the top and I once again succumb to defeat to LTJ.   It was a blast though!

It was much of the same as we went over Jamboree, but I had a pretty good pace where I ended up leading us up that hill.  We passed one couple who were climbing up the hill at a pretty fast clip as I don't think we even dropped under 20 where they must have thought "WTF?"   We didn't stop alternating and pushing until we got to Irvine Blvd where I was trying to hit 30 on the last flat stretch.  In the end, both of us got worked.  The pizza and beers were a perfect way to end the ride.

Thanks for coming out, guys! 

Friday Lunch Ride - Shouldn't These Be Easy?

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1562291

GC:  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/113065661

You'd think leading into the weekend, you'd want to drop it down a notch when going out on a Friday lunch ride...especially after riding consecutively for the last 2-3 days.  Wishful thinking I guess.  Even with the size of this group being relatively small today, we still knocked out some pretty impressive times where everyone seemed to advanced in the world of Strava.

LTJ and I took turns on the bike trail keeping the pace up where at the end, we were both really close to previous PRs for the segment that leads all the way to Laguna Canyon.  Not bad considering we were the only ones in the rotation.  I think Peter dropped off before the bridge, and David some time after, but Jaffe managed to hang on for the length of that run.  By Laguna Canyon, my Garmin had us at a 23.1 average.

We made our way to Shady, and Todd started us out going up the hill.  I jumped ahead and thought I had a good pace going up (got my PR) but LTJ flat out sprinted by me just over half way up.  All I could do was watch at that point.  He ended up getting his PR on that segment and moving up to 4th on the leaderboard.  Good job!  Although he says he was dying at the top, I tried chasing him down on the descent and couldn't even close in on him.  Thankfully, he waited for me and Jaffe at the gate.

LTJ started us off from there as I was still in recovery mode, but once we started climbing toward the crest, I jumped ahead to keep the pace up.  When we crossed the street from the bike trail, both Todd and Jaffe had dropped back a little so I thought I'd take advantage and see if I can keep them off.  Well that didn't happen.  They were able to close in on me, and had they launched a sprint attack, I probably would have just watched them go by.  Thankfully they didn't, but we were all panting pretty good at the light on Bonita Canyon.

Now the route originally was to make our way through Eastbluff, up onto the bike trail to University and California.  However, Todd offered me a lead out on the Duplex where at first, I didn't think I had anything left and refused.  However, after a few more deep breaths, we decided to go for it.  We recruited Jaffe to pull us on Bonita Canyon, and like a team player, he did.  We hid behind him all the way until after the 73 bridge, but relieved him over the last couple rollers before McArthur.

Todd took the front once we got on Ford, but I asked Jaffe to jump to the front and play rabbit to give us even a better chance of doing well up the "duplex."  As we were making our way toward Jamboree, Jaffe rounded first with Todd closely behind but taking a wider line, and I pretty much did the same as Todd to get momentum.  Once I got going, I knew I found a good rhythm and was quickly coming up on Todd who had passed Jaffe.  I recruited Todd to jump in the draft, and although he did, he realized he had accidentally dropped to the small chainring up front and couldn't hold the pace where he dropped off to try another day.  I  kept going and thought I had a good chance given I was able to stay off the seat longer than my previous attempts.  As I was coming up toward Bison, there was a car ahead that was turning right so I did have to check up just a little before hitting that intersection.  If anything, I thought THAT would be why I wouldn't have taken the segment today.  It turns out, however, that I was able to get the KOM and am now the sole proprietor for the duplex.  I'm thinking of redecorating and knocking down the shared wall.  People can still come over and bunk it.  What makes this even more rewarding is having Shannon comment on the ride from friggin' New Zealand.  You can bet it'll be on for him when he gets back though given this.  That's right, boys...worry.

Great ride for a Friday, and thanks to Jaffe and Todd for the lead outs!

Lunch Ride - Strava and Hot Days are NOT a Good Mix!

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1550026

GC:  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/112861277

While today was slightly cooler than yesterday, the route, the pace, the number of guys (12) along with who came out for today's ride made for even hotter conditions where I was deep in the red for a while after the ride.

David and Gary led us out originally, and it seemed like they were on a mission to break away from the rest of us.  Or maybe it was just me being in the #3 spot and not wanting to push so hard in the beginning knowing what was in store for us on this hot day.  I guess others behind me were on board with my "strategy" at least until we got on Anteater where others finally reeled David and Gary back into the pack.

We all pretty much stayed together on Bonita Canyon Road, but Galen took the front on San Miguel causing a gap at one point. Unfortunately, he and the guys behind him didn't study the route and almost missed Spyglass where we had to yell out to let them know they were going to miss the turn.  Fortunately, they heard us, but they had to turn from the light to cross whereas some of us made the left hand turn.

I took advantage of making the turn and decided to play rabbit for those who wanted to give chase.  Seon was the original rabbit, but I was able to get by him about midway up the hill.  By the way, this is a good hill that we'll need to incorporate more often.  I never got caught on this hill until we got to the bottom on the other side, but Strava shows that Vince and Todd had a better pace pushing me down the ranking after they uploaded their data.  Nice.

On San Joaquin, there were some early surges by Adrian and someone else (I can't remember who), but eventually it thinned out to Vince, Todd, PV and me.  There were some exchanges in taking the front as we were going up, but ultimately the 3 of them started to gap me near the top.  I was already on preservation mode knowing we still had to climb Pelican and vista, so I figured it was okay.  When we got on NPC, Galen, Vin and Adrian got in the line-up and helped keep the pace up as we headed down toward Pelican.  I'm not sure trying to gap on the downhill is the best "strategy" though, because once the road pitched up on Pelican, they seemed to have gassed enough to let us attack on the hill.

Vince led the initial attack, and I was just glad to be able to sit on his wheel.  Todd actually fell off a little bit, but slowly made his way back up and ultimately pass me on the final climb.  PV had a chain problem, so he fell off as a result, but he had a good pace and ultimately made his past everyone else...I believe.  Vince and Todd kept their pace up on Pelican, but fortunately got caught at the light where I was able to catch them on NPC.

On Vista, I started the climb ahead but Todd then Vince passed me here as well.  They didn't hit the first crest too far away from me, but they did gap me good from there once I hit it.  As I was approaching the final hill, I could see the two ahead of me, but to my surprise I also glanced back and saw PV making his way up behind me.  Sweet!  At that point, I decided to sprint up the hill as much as possible and totally got cooked in the process.  when I got to the top where vince and Todd were waiting, all I could do at that point was let them know I need to get back to a meeting and just kept rolling.  I don't think I pedaled once as we headed down Ridge.

On NPC, Todd took the front all the way down to the bridge, but I tried to help and keep the pace up after.  I definitely went deep into the red again doing so, but that's how BAM rolls, right?

On Bonita Canyon, the 3 of us were still trying to keep the pace up, and at one point, PV jumps up to the front unexpectedly...at least to me.  Good to have him back.  Vince was pretty cooked from all the hill charges at that point, and I gave up as well since I was taking a shortcut (McArthur) back due to time.  Todd and PV still went on to hit the "duplex" where PV tried to see if he could challenge the top spot.  Unfortunately for him, he missed by 26 seconds.  :)  Anyway, the duplex is full.

Vince ended up catching back up to me on Bison, but he and I were both just glad to have made it back at that point where there was no more sprint left in either of us.  Thank goodness.

I was definitely cooked in today's ride, so maybe 1700 ft of elevation gain on a 98 degree day was not the smartest thing.  It should be cooler tomorrow though, so one final ride for the week should just about do it.  Thanks for coming out, gents!

Lunch Ride - Irvine Newport CDM Route...Africa Temperature

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1538415#

GC:  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/112653945


They say what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger.  After riding in today's heat, however, death seemed like a more appealing option.  Todd, Noah and Jaffe were also brave and came out in today's heat with me, but feel free to replace "brave" with "crazy" or even downright "stupid" (borrowed from Mitchell).  GC shows the max heat being 102, and that seemed just about right on NPC.

It was nice to see Noah bring his R5 out with his new tubulars on (what a conformist...ha ha). He would have gotten kudos from Mitchell not only because of the new hoops, but the bike looked immaculate as well (what?).

I knew after reading how Todd got blown away by Vin and Jaffe yesterday, Todd was going to see if he felt different today and sure enough took off from the very beginning at a pace not suitable for the heat.  We got separated from Noah and Jaffe for a bit but got to regroup just before the climb up NPC.

On NPC, Todd took off again, and I was just not feeling like climbing.  I'm sure the pizza, frozen yogurt, Mexican Food, Filipino food, Vietnamese food, beers, Reese's, steak, butter toffee peanuts, etc., (just to name a few things) that I ate over the weekend had a lot to do with it.  Noah and Jaffe stayed with me for a while, but Noah probably got bored and went ahead to ride with Todd.  I was gasping for air the whole way up like a big, fat fatty.  10 more rides, and I should be half way back to where I was at last week.

On Pelican, I was trying to setup the first rise (as I always do) and Todd was ahead of me seemingly aware of what I was going to do.  I pulled a Vince or Adrian and broke him off in the climb, but it was short-lived and he reeled me back in by the next light.

We both kept the pace up as we finished down NPC and got on PCH, but I was literally dying on PCH just wanting to be done with the ride already.  We regrouped with Jaffe on Poppy, but Noah had turned around on NPC and decided to do more hills (not a fan of BB).  There was some nice "scenery" as we rode by the beach, and Jaffe called out from behind to focus seemingly aware I was distracted.  My response:  I was!  I think he meant on the ride though.

When we got back on PCH, Todd would take off from the lights with seemingly bad intentions, and it took sprinting to just get back on his wheel.  He led for a bit all the way through the trailer park bike trail and the beginning of BB, but I finally relieved him some time after.  I did notice the gate was closed as Shawn mentioned to us before, so we ended up taking a detour up San Joaquin onto Jamboree.  I saw it as the perfect opportunity to improve my position on the "San Joaquin" kicker section where it seems we need to flag the current leader (a female) who shows a 41.7 mph pace.  Hell, we should even flag Noah as his 18.5 mph pace seems suspicious.  Here's a link if you agree:  http://app.strava.com/segments/633713.

On Jamboree, I tried to setup the duplex but as Steve mentioned previously, it's not ideal trying to get that segment from the bottom.  I had a good pace starting from the bottom where I got past Todd, but blew up just past the Ford/Eastbluff light.  Todd passed me shortly after, and although I can't remember what he said, it might as well have been "ha ha, you idiot."  I lost Todd at the lights on Bison where it looked like the one to cross McArthur just waited for him to get through despite no cars crossing for some time.

Thanks for the Africa-like training session today, guys.

Signed,
Fatty McFatterson

Lunch Ride - Anteater San Miguel San Joaq NPC Pelican PCH CDM BB CA

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/1461469  (brought in the cable from home and it works!)

GC:  http://connect.garmin.com/activity/111113250


It was a beautiful day out today, and the weather couldn't have been more perfect.  Winds were pretty light, and the ambient temperature was ideal.  It was a good turn out, and everyone rode really strong today.  I was hoping to stay in the back the whole time, but this group pushes too hard to do so.

The pace going up Anteater was ridiculous, so I did choose not to partake in the madness.  Vince and PV were pushing real hard in the beginning, so we got a little strung out and being in the back to me was fine.  Adrian told me he was on the verge of blowing up, and that was even before we got to San Miguel!

There was a lady in a black suburban who got a little close to PV on the left turn lane onto San Miguel, but fortunately there was no contact.  This is another example of why we always need to assume that they don't see us and just be careful out there.

On San Miguel, I finally decided to get up front and help Vince out with the pulling, and Gary took the last pull before we got to San Joaquin.

On San Joaquin, Jeremy was asking me if I was saving it in preparation to launch an attack.  I honestly just wanted my legs to make it through today's ride, so I chilled.  Vince attacked the hill and PV wasn't far behind.  Jeremy had a great pace up the hill as well and broke everyone else off where I didn't catch him until near the top.  We got caught at the first light at the top, and everyone else caught us by taking Ridge Park Rd. shortcut.

PV was just ahead of us, and we managed to reel him in on Pelican.  Adrian tested out his new compact crank on the first rise at the bottom and had a good pace as he passed PV.  I got to chase him down though and just nosed him out at the first crest.  I broke away for a bit, but he and PV reeled me back in.

On PCH, we were working together to reel Vince in and it was cool to see Jaffe in the mix here as well.  We may need to rename him Jaffinator.  We almost caught Vince before Poppy, but he held us off.

We regrouped after checking out the waves today since the surf was suppose to be big today.  Vin asked why we were resting when he arrived 5 minutes later where a simple "thank you for waiting" would have probably been more appropriate.

We stayed together on PCH and on Jamboree and since we had to cross a few lanes, Vince is suggesting we do it a little different when we hit lights as a group and cross the streets rather than hit the left turn lanes.  I'm cool with it if everyone else is.

On Back Bay drive, PV conveniently loses his bottle where I had just enough time to swerve and avoid it while Adrian had to bunny hop it.  The group must have been anxious to go as we didn't even stop to wait for PV and rolled on.  Gary took the initial pull followed by Vince.  As Jaffe was behind Vince, I told him he better get up there and relieve so he did with a nice strong pull.  When I finally relieved him, I was sure he was going to pop but the guy was able to jump back on.

The pace on the 2nd section was fast also with Adrian, Gary, Vince and I keeping it high doing rotations.  Jaffe had worked his way up after a few rotations, and was going to take the last pull leading us up to the top.  Vince saw this as the perfect opportunity to attack, and sure enough blew out the guys behind him.   As he was working on his attacks, I was working on my defense and chased him down also snapping the guys off.  THIS is what we need to do during race time.  We sprinted to the top of the hill together, and he did get up on the sidewalk before me, but I was satisfied with slowing at the gate.

Vince kept the pace up once on the sidewalk and bike trail, and all I could do was hang on.  He had broken me off just a bit but I got back on his wheel and decided it best to just stay there.  I didn't opt to relieve him until we got closer to CA where I figured I'd taken the fight out of him.  Damn...that "blocking" really works!

Seon must have taken a different route as he was waiting there when we arrived, and the others had rolled up behind Vince and I not too long after.  When the light turned green, I guess Seon was hoping to contest the Strava segment and took off.  Vince didn't chase, but I thought I'd keep Seon honest and chase.  Vin came along and hung on my rear wheel for about half of the hill.  As I want Seon to keep coming out and improving, I just had to get to the top first so I passed him just on the last rise.  You can say I'm just trying to help the guy...or you can call it BAM.  Same thing.

Another good ride for the books...thanks, guys!  It's nice to see some Strava awards again, albeit the KOM I got lasted only until PV and Vince uploaded their stats.  HA!