Lunch Ride - Todd's Ride Report

Great turnout today guys:

Adrian, Mitch, Vin, Jaffe, Shannon, Vince, Galen, and even a Noah.  There was one notable missing person so I will have to make a lame attempt at a write-up.

Highlights:

Jaffe picked the route after a bunch of us sat around jawin’ (sorry, listening to Brooks and Dunn while typing this).  He also sported a “new” old Trek 5200 in which he got a great deal on it. 

Vin has a new Cervelo S3 that looks awesome.  However, it needs some adjusting since when asked how the bike was, he said, “it was fine, but I think it needs some adjustments especially since the handlebars fell off.”

It was pretty cool having a decent size group out there again.  It has been a while.  Vince led the charge up S-Gary East Peltason, and he put a pretty good gap on the rest of us.  Galen and I chased and eventually the whole group was back together for Shady.  The Turtle loop was brutal as ever with Shannon, Galen, Vince and Adrian all taking pulls. After the descent to Campus, I led to the top of the stop sign.  Shannon led us on much of the bike trail through Shady.  Vince and I did some pulls and Galen took the charge to the summit of Shady.  I passed him on the way down and we were flying down the bike path along the 405.  Shannon, Galen and I all took pulls and I actually took the unofficial sprint at the bridge since the usual person that was missing wasn’t there to take it from me.  Galen gave me a good lead out as well, and I don’t think anyone else was really going for it.  I think I took it by default.  Heading towards Ridgeline, we saw Adrian coming from the other direction.   Turning around Adrian became the wabbit while the rest of us chased.  It was a great chase with Shannon, Galen, Noah, Mitch and I all racing up the hill after Adrian.  We caught him about half way up and kept going at a pretty mad pace.  We all traded a lot of pulls until we hit the condo.  I led out with everyone blowing by me half way up.  Noah turned on the jets and took the summit.  There was a bit of a sprint to the finish with Vince, Galen and Adrian, but I’m not sure who did what.

Here are the stats for today. 

http://app.strava.com/activities/29886015

SJC to Carlsbad OAB TT Trainer

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/29359301

Attendees:  Shannon, Adrian and me

Weather:  Very cold at the start (~43 degrees and averaged for the ride 55 per Garmin).  Very clear but windy on the way back.

It's been awhile since I've trained on the weekends with the crew, so it was nice to be out with Adrian and Shannon again for a longish ride.   The premise behind this training ride was to get some long miles in on the TT bars in preparation for the Stagecoach in January.  I had Eddie's bike, Adrian had his aero bars installed, and Shannon had his Trek fully modded as a TT with the bar shifters on the aeros and brakes setup accordingly. 

When we started out, I led us out to the bike trail by the wash that goes down to Doheny.  I was trying to set up a pace at a power level that I think had us moving at a good clip but was sustainable for a good distance.  Once we started rotating, Adrian pushed ahead and started to just go for it.  I didn't respond right away, but Shannon pushed up too and both of them had a good gap on me early on.  Our pace led to us getting top 10 in the segment that rode down to the beach.  When we got to Doheny, I caught up and rode by asking whether they realized we were doing an 80 miler today.  HAHA.

We still kept a decent pace through the parking lot and out to the bike lane on El Camino Real (aka the Doheny drag strip), but at that point the rotations were mostly between Shannon and I.  Adrian started not to feel as good so he opted to stay in the draft for most of the ride just to be able to stay with us.   No worries.

On the TT bikes, our pace, while elevated, was a lot less erratic and we were able to stay together easier.  This, however, led to a few guys latching on and riding with us mostly for the free tow.  No one wanted to rotate at all.  When they would push to the front, it seemed more to try a breakaway than anything else.  However, both times that happened, they would come around Shannon to try and break away, but I was there each time to show them the error of their ways. 

On the 2nd attempt, there were actually three guys who were in our paceline and they all held Shannon out for some time.  Shannon, pulling the way he does, did manage to cause one to drop and the other to not want any after he slowed up, but at his pace, this also caused Adrian to drop off some but not too far off.  We were all able to regroup at the top of the Vandegrift climb just before the McDonald's. 

We took an early break at the Oceanside gas station to get Adrian some Tums for his upset stomach, and left shortly after down the coast.  As always, it's never much fun riding through downtown Oceanside, and at one point, a car had pulled ahead and caused me to slow down and have to work my way back up to Shannon and Adrian.  However, on the TT bike, it was a little easier to do so. 

Shannon and I had been exchanging pulls and just making our way past everyone in our path all the way to Ponto Road (the 40 mile turnaround point).  On our way back, we did opt to stop one more time at the liquor store we normally stop at just to prepare for the rest of the ride home.  This was actually my planned stop, so I wanted to make sure we had enough fluids for the rest of the ride back.  We only refilled a little in Oceanside, so.... 

On our way back, we definitely could feel some headwind where we knew we would be working to make good time back.  Being in the TT position was definitely helpful in this regard, so I think we still maintained a pretty good pace despite the winds.  Of course, downtown Oceanside was busier by this time, so we did have to stop a lot through there.  However, once we got on base, it was straight pedaling from there. 

Adrian was feeling a little better, so he took a couple pulls on the base, but Shannon and I did most of the work given the pace we were holding.   We held a good pace all the way to the San Onofre State Beach parking lot, but once we got past the fence, the other guys were starting to feel it from the ride and slowed up for a little bit.  I was interested in keeping the pace up, and while I wanted to regroup and have everyone latch on, I wasn't sure they were both up for it at the time.  I was interested in still trying to manage my output and pace, so I ended up going ahead on my own. 

While I rode through the state beach, I was feeling good and felt like I could hold the pace I was holding for a good distance.  However, I started feeling some serious discomfort in the chamois area, so I tried shifting around the seat to feel better.  It didn't work, so as I neared the entrance to the state beach, I looked back and saw Shannon and Adrian making their way up to me.  I took the opportunity to check up and give my taint a rest, but once Shannon and Adrian drew near, I was able to get back on it and led them all the way to Trestles. 

Shannon started exchanging with me up front again once we got to the road next to the freeway that headed back toward El Camino Real.  We made our way to San Clemente and after going through downtown, there was one guy we caught at one of the lights who appeared wanted to show us how fast he was.  Once we got on the downhill, he took off so I gave chase and catching him at the bottom.  I thought he was going to ride with us after that since he said he was heading back to Irvine, but we popped him off on the first protected bike lane. 

When we got to the 2nd protected bike lane that led to Capo beach, we were still reeling people in ahead of us and Shannon and I kept pushing through all the way to the parking lot.  We tried to keep the pace up in the parking lot, but cars, kids on bikes, etc., made that pretty much impossible. 

Once on the bike trail that heads back up the wash from Doheny, we picked up the pace again.  Shannon and I were really pushing here and it was at this point that Adrian finally pulled a Roberto Duran stating "no mas."  After yelling out to him to let him know where to turn, Shannon and I kept going.  We probably could have gotten that segment had it not been for one idiot who caused both of us to check up since he was on his TT bike riding straight toward us on our lane.   Shannon actually had to yell out to him to get him to switch back to his lane, but the damage was done to our efforts timewise.  I was going to push up for a final pull, but didn't because of having had to check up.  Shannon still got #2 though with an average of 26.4 mph for the 1.5 miles.   Nice work!

Since Adrian didn't know his way back, I ended up waiting for him while Shannon road back to my house.  Adrian was pretty spent and couldn't manage to stay in the draft any longer at this point, so we moderately made our way back to my house as a result. 

Overall, it was a great training ride with the two, but we talked about how more people need to start training up for January where more people would have made it even more intense.   There's always next week.   Thank, Shannon and Adrian!

Extended Pre-Turkey Lunch Ride

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/28849115

Attendees:  Shannon and Todd (Adrian for partial)

Weather:  Nice and cool in the beginning, but winds picked up during the ride

It's been a while since I've ridden with the guys for a longer ride (more than our 20 mile lunch rides anyway), so I guess I forgot what it takes to get ready for such an event.  I've been doing solo rides for a few weeks now during the weekend, and despite the distance on those rides, it does nothing to prepare me for riding with the likes of Todd and Shannon.  I definitely wanted the training, especially before feasting tomorrow, but I didn't think it would bring me to the brink of death.  That's what I get for only bringing one water bottle (with water) and no food.  BIG mistake, Indy.

The pace in the beginning was pretty fast, but I think with Todd and Shannon being veteran distance riders, they knew not to go all out right away.  Thus, I've definitely been up to Portola faster than our pace today, but that doesn't mean we weren't working.  I think the 3 of us work really well together as a matter of fact, so we all did our share of the work throughout the ride.

When we got out to Jamboree, I was worried about not wanting to hinder the other guys' pace, so I did let them know to feel free to drop me if that happens.  Todd wanted us all to stay together though, so I wasn't getting out of it that easy. HA HA.

Todd was definitely helpful to set the pace up the hills, but I think when I took my turn going up Jamboree, I may have changed the pace a little and Shannon wasn't willing to expend that much energy right away.  Todd and I got away for a little bit, but regrouped as we went up into the canyon.  Todd helped set up the pace going up toward Dump as well, which was perfect for me, as I stayed behind him.  Shannon wanted to pull back some on the hills and was going to work to get back up to us on the downhill and flats.

When Todd and I crested, I took over but he alternated with me as we rode through the canyon.  After we passed Silverado, we saw Adrian heading the opposite way, and slowed down to let him come back around to ride with us.  We also spun up at this point to let Shannon regroup since it was pretty windy through the canyon so it must have been a bear to ride through it alone to try and catch Todd and I.

Once we got going, we had a paceline of 4 as we made our way past Modjeska and onto the climbs right before Cook.  Todd and Shannon got into a groove, and I thought I was going to fall off when they did, but I managed to find mine and worked my way to pass them before the first crest.  Well as expected, Todd wasn't going to have any of that, so he made his way past me as we hit the first crest. What he didn't realize, however, was that I was hoping he would so I could set him up for a pass on the last and final crest before the descent to Cooks.  Once I found the opportunity, I stood up and sprinted past him just after the short descent and kept going all the way to the top.  Oh man, you can tell after Bruce Banner, I mean Todd, passed me that he was starting to turn into the Hulk.  It's not that he's mad at me or anything, but more so at himself for not defending against that.

He passed after the top and led us down with Shannon and I behind him.  When we got near the bottom, my chain dropped (happens when I pedal backwards while in the biggest gear for some reason).  After stopping to fix it, this allowed for Adrian and a Sho-Air guy to catch up and pass us after we started rolling again.  With the Sho-Air guy ahead in the beginning, Adrian saw to it to sprint past him and all of us and try and break away.  I responded first to chase Adrian down with everyone in tow, and then passed to lead us toward and up Glenn Ranch.

When I rounded the corner, Adrian did pass me for a bit, but I made my way past him and started working to climb up the hill.  I was thinking the Sho-Air guy was coming to chase me down, so I was trying my best to hold him off only to realize that as we neared the top, it was actually Todd.  I was glad since I planned to try and stand up and mix it up some more if it was Sho-Air.

Given that Glenn Ranch was the last real hill for the ride, I started taking more opportunities to push the pace up front, which later I realized was the dumbest thing I could have done.  Had I pulled back some, I may have been able to finish strong at the end, but ultimately, I ended up bonking pretty bad as we got on Bonita Canyon and just after the 73 underpass.  I was already feeling starved while we were on Barranca, but I still took opportunities to get up front here and there.  Once I realized I was nearly about to pass out, I asked Todd and Shannon to rotate in front of me as I tried to hang on.  By the time we hit Prairie, I could barely focus in front of me.  Needless to say, the two took off and I pretty much soft pedaled the rest of the way back.

Shannon waited at the corner to make sure I got back okay, so it was nice of him to do so.  When I got into the gym, I pretty much just threw everything off me and made a beeline to the break room to get a much need Coca Cola.   I think I downed that thing in less than a minute.  Just what the doctor ordered.

What a great training ride, despite my pre-finish bonk.  I guess I'll have to plan the next one better.  Thanks for coming out, gents, and Happy Thanksgiving!

Lunch Ride - Shady 133 PCH NPC Loop - Broken Spoke

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/28686993

Attendees:  Todd, Shannon, Vin, Mitchell and me

Weather:  Temperature was good but windy windy windy

We opted for a slightly longer route today just to get some extra work in just before the holiday weekend (at least that's why I did it), and I chose it as the opportunity to take out R5 on its maiden voyage.  Let me just say that it is NOT a good idea to use a lunch ride to get accustomed to a new bike geometry and position.  It was pretty immediate that I noticed my seat may have been set up a little too high, but I'd try and make the best of it nonetheless.

Shannon and Todd were pushing the pace immediately out of the gate, so I just hung on as best as I could but was definitely off the back on the last section of Anteater just before Bonita Canyon/Culver.  Hell, even Vin passed me before we got to the light.

Despite this, I did take front initially after the light turned green but LTJ got in front of me where I latched on and waited until closer to the top to resume taking the front again.  Shannon relieved me shortly after and he and Todd took turns leading us up to the top of Shady.  The cool part was we were all together as we crested and then made our way down to Quail Hill.

I rotated in with Todd and Shannon as we made our way to the 133, and Vin and Mitchell joined the rotation as we made our way up the hill.  This, however, led to Vin popping off, but Mitchell remained with us as we crested and made our way down the other side.  It was good that he did, because the wind just felt brutal even as we were descending.

When we got to the little shortcut that leads you onto PCH, LTJ and I duked it out to the top and he was able to nose me out.  I heard him coming and picked it up just as he was starting to pass, but I couldn't hold him off...plus, we were coming up to a stop sign so....  :)

Shannon made his way up to us as did Mitchell, and Shannon and Todd worked together to get us through Laguna Beach.  I may have jumped ahead once, but I was already feeling worked and started having Stagecoach flashbacks.  I did what I could when I could, but tried not to overexert before the NPC climb.

Shannon led us onto NPC, and Todd came around and broke away early on.  I had found a pretty good rhythm as well and managed to pass Shannon early, but as everyone knows, doing this is often temporary on a hill.  After a couple lights, he did work his way up to me, and although I tried to hang, I fell off a bit but still had a pretty decent pace.  I got up to Shannon and Todd not too much longer before they arrived at the top to regroup.  Once Mitchell arrived, we were off again.

Todd kicked the pace up early, but we were able to stay pretty close to him.  Shannon must have gotten tired of the space I left between me and Todd, so he got in between us and eventually took the front around the San Joaquin intersection.

He and Todd led the charge down the hill, but I took a few stabs up front to try and keep the pace up.  It was after going under the bridge and a stop light or two where I had been behind Todd when I heard a pop, clank, clank, clank....  At first I wasn't sure what happened, but as I slowed realized that I must have lost a spoke.  Stopping to inspect, I found the broken spoke on the front wheel.  Bummer.  Shannon and Mitchell had stopped as well, but Todd didn't hear and broke away solo for the rest of the ride back.

Now this is where it gets a little corny, but I'm going to write it anyway.  Shannon going back and picking me up, Mitchell staying with me until then, and Todd calling to check on me when he got back is such a big reason I like riding with this team.  I know on occasion we get wrapped up in competitiveness, which is what happens when most everyone who rides with us is an alpha male, but I think as a group we all genuinely care about each others welfare.  Okay, so it was only a busted spoke incident, but still.  Team BRCM for life, baby.

Thanks for the training and the support, gents!  Let's ride again tomorrow!

Noah's AZ IM Race Report

Drove out to Tempe early on Thursday to get registration done before the crowds arrived.  Managed to get in a 90-minute ride and 30-minute run on parts of the course that afternoon, then tried to relax that night.  Got in a short 30-minute ride the next day and finished as much of the logistics as possible – coming up with a nutrition plan (apparently I was supposed to do that in July), packing transition bags, etc.  You drop your bike & bags off on Saturday for these things, which is actually nice for procrastinators like me – it forces me to get everything put together early instead of the morning of the race.  I was sort of winging it on the nutrition plan, but figured I’d just eat all the gels I could shove in my face and see what happened from there.  I bought some shorts and jersey at the expo to wear during the race, so I guess I was winging it on that side of things too.  That’s probably something I should work on in the future…

Got down to the race site fairly early on Sunday.  Weather was looking great for the day – it’s the desert, so there’s always going to be some wind out there, but the temps were going to be in the upper 70’s, which is pretty nice.  Racing in the 90’s is pretty miserable.  The water temp was around 62/63, which was a lot better than when my friends did it last year, so I was pretty happy all around.  It’s a deep-water start, so you end up jumping off a dock into the lake about 20 minutes before the race starts so you can swim 200 yards under a bridge and then cram in tight with 2500 of your closest friends to wait for the canon.  I was in the front row for a while, but then more and more people were crowding in and swarming, and the kayaks were trying to keep us behind the start line so I was probably in the 3^rd row when the race actually started.  Lots of incidental contact goes on in these swims.  I was apparently starting between 10 water polo players doing egg beater kicks.  It’s tough to sit in the water for 10 minutes with one hand treading water while the other is protecting your junk.  Got lots of kicks to the quads and calfs.  Wetsuits are buoyant folks – if we all just sit here and float, no one has to get kicked…  The other issue with these starts is that you’re basically shoulder to shoulder with everyone, and then when the canon goes off, everyone gets horizontal and starts kicking.  There’s really no way to avoid getting kicked by the row in front of you, but hey – that’s half the fun.

Besides getting mildly molested and taking a heel to the lip, there’s really nothing to report on the swim.  It lasts a long time, you have no indication of how much time has passed, you start to recognize wetsuits of people that you plan to punch in the face if you meet them in the transition tent – pretty normal stuff.  The exit of this is up a steep ladder and the lowest rung is about 6 inches below the water line, so it’s pretty tough to climb up.  There are volunteers to try to pull people up, but lots of guys were trying to get their legs up and would fall back in the water screaming “Cramp!!!”.  No real issues for me, so I was off through the transition tent and on to the bike.

It’s a 3-loop course of a gradual uphill which steepens a bit near the turn around, then you get a nice slight downhill all the way back.  Maybe five 90-degree corners in each direction so you could watch triathletes try to corner (note:  I’m not the worst one out there).  I’d been slacking on my training a bit over the last six weeks, so I was nervous about taking the bike too hard.  I really wanted to save it for the run so I wouldn’t struggle late.  Based on testing and previous training rides, I should have been okay keeping the watts in the 200-205 range for the day and still would have been able to run okay.  Yes, I know that sounds ridiculously low compared to LTJ and his 370W TT’s, and it is – but I have a decent aero position and tend to get a lot of speed for my tiny watts.  I wanted to take the first lap easy, so I was keeping the power around 190 watts.  I don’t look at speed when I ride, but I had a Garmin screen set up with the overall average so I could get a ballpark estimate after each lap.  I was in the top 12% or so of the swimmers (which just shows the sad state of triathlon swimming these days), so it wasn’t too crowded on the first lap.  By the time I was on the second, everyone else was on the bike so I had to dodge a lot more people.  After the first lap, I looked at my average speed and I was just over 22mph.  I had wanted to be in the high 21’s to get a low 5-hour split, so I was happy to see that it was going well.  Since I wasn’t putting out too many watts and had a speed I wanted, I decided to hold back for the rest of the bike to try to bank some energy for the run.  The next two laps were kind of a blur.  Ate a lot of gels, had the straw fall out of my front aero-bottle so I had to switch up the plan a bit, got completely soaked in all sorts of sports drink, snot and sweat, passed a lot of cheating drafters and more than a few crashed cyclists – again, pretty standard IM stuff.

Off the bike and onto the run.  My only goal for the race was to break 10 hours.  Throughout training, that goal seemed reasonable or ridiculous depending on the week.  When I started the run, I saw the clock leaving transition and knew I had to run around a 3:45 to make it.  Seemed possible, so I was in good spirits.  Tried to run the first lap conservatively, which is difficult in these things.  I wanted to sit at 8:30’s, but my Garmin kept showing low 7’s and high 6’s during the first mile, so I would actually start walking to slow down.  It’s amazing how whacked out your perception gets coming off the bike, but taking the first 6 miles easy is pretty crucial to not collapsing in a pile of tears around mile 22.  I finished the first lap right on pace, so I decided to do the next lap at the same effort.  I sped up for a few of the flatter miles to try to bank a few seconds, but really I just wanted to be stead and keep up with the nutrition.  Lots more gels – yummmm…  Started the 3^rd lap and figured I would keep it steady for a while and then give it what I had left for the last 3 miles, after the final hill.  And that’s pretty much how it went.  Felt good, sped up late and finished strong.

Crossed the line at 9:57 and felt pretty awesome.  Felt much better than any previous IM – probably a combination of actually training and then racing conservatively.  Got a massage, ate a bunch of pizza, chatted with other finishers – felt great, when I wasn’t trying to walk.  I probably could have pushed the bike a bit more and maybe sped up the whole last lap instead of just the final three miles, but I was hitting my goal and there wasn’t much difference to me of a 9:51 vs a 9:57, so I’m happy with how it all went down.

Thanks for all the support & cheers.  Glad that’s over with…

Noah

Todd's Santiago TT Race Report

It was another learning experience.   There were some really competitive guys out there with the full on TT rigs, speed suits etc.  I finished 3rd in Cat4/5 with only 18 seconds between me and first.  I would have finished second in my age group and I finished ahead of all Cat 3, but one guy.  I woke up at 4:00am and was amped up for the race.  I looked outside and saw that it was pretty wet.  Since it wasn't raining and the clouds were breaking up, I was all in for the race.  After training, I would have raced in a downpour if it was still going on.  The temp was pretty decent and once I got to R N R the sun started to shine periodically. Before checking in, I actually drove up to Cook's Corner to park and check out the turn coming out of the tunnel once more.  When I parked and started to unload my bike, a Sons of Anarchy dude asked me what I was doing.  I said I needed about 5 minutes to ride down to the tunnel to check it out for the race.  He said that was no "F" ing excuse and that my truck was going to be towed.  Keep in mind, the parking area was completely empty and Cooks wasn't even open yet.  I thanked him for his hospitality, told him that I will probably never be going there again (actually I have been there several times to eat, drink and listen to music),  packed up my bike and headed to check in.  Needless to say, I was a bit pissed off at this point.  I decided to use that for motivation along with the 3 cups of coffee and the natural adrenaline that I get from racing.    I cranked up the AC/DC("Spoilin' for a Fight" was one of the songs along with Hells Bells),  checked in and then went to the start.  I had about 20 minutes of up and down the bike path for a good warm up.  My start time was at 9:19 so after a bunch of warm up efforts I headed to the start.  The climb from the bike path to the peak was pretty brutal in TT mode.  It was a constant grind.  I caught the first guy ahead of me at Cooks.  I stayed mainly on the aero bars for all but a very short distance of the climb.   I started to weigh whether I should stay on the big ring or drop to the 39.  I decided to grind it on the big ring.  I caught the next rider at the peak of the climb and blew by her at the start of the descent.  Much of the rest of the ride was just trying to get enough oxygen and keep the speed up.  I had to pass several casual riders, but fortunately traffic was light and there was nothing to slow me down.  It felt like I was flying.  I went as hard as I could for the last mile and it took all that I had to not collapse at the finish. On the ride back I saw a guy sitting at the top on of the climb waiting.  I asked if he was ok and he said ya so I kept going.  My wife Pam talked to the guy to see if he needed a ride, but he was waiting for someone.  He said that he got a flat on the fast downhill and his bike took off into the oncoming traffic lane.  Fortunately, there were no cars coming.  He was bit shaken though.  Thank God he was ok!

Here are the results:

http://santiagocanyontt.com/Results.html

Overall I was pleased with the power output of 369 watts.  It was 10 more watts than the Great Park TT.  Even though I dropped my handle bars lower than the GP TT, I'm going to take Noah's advice and drop them all the way down next time.  Pam said I was up much higher than the other top guys.  Better aerodynamics may have made up those 18 secs.  I'm also looking forward to that speedsuit coming in. 

BRCM Lunch - Triple Bypass Route

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/27891257

Attendees:  Shannon, Vince, Vin, John L. and Mitchell

Weather:  Overcast with not too much wind and a little cool (i.e. near perfect)

Good to see John L. come out and join us today, but he was wanting to do some hills and opted to find some after the first pass through Back Bay.  Good showing though.

While we did see Todd in the locker room, he was up for some solo TT training to prepare for this weekend's race.  Cool...one less aggro dude on the ride.  Galen and Adrian also let me know they weren't going to make it, but despite this, we pulled off my fastest average for this route...23.5 mph.  Not too shabby.

Then again, those of us who did come out were all working and rotating together for the first 2 passes through Back Bay.  That's not to say we weren't trying to drop anyone, because it wouldn't be a Broadcom ride otherwise, but that's what makes our lunch rides such a rush.

Vince was definitely up to his "tricks" of trying to stage breakaways, including solo ones, but this is why him coming out makes training that much more interesting.  I can recall 3 sections where he just stood up and started cranking away.  The first time, he came up from behind Shannon pulling at Shannon's pace and basically started to sprint ahead.   I was behind him where he asked me after why I didn't grab his wheel.  Since when do we sprint during pacelines?  HA HA...no thank you.  The 2nd breakaway was on the bike trail behind the trailer park.  He just tore off, but since Shannon didn't react, neither would I (given I was resting comfortably behind Shannon...haha).  Oh and the last one, I had taken a pull on Jamboree before Back Bay drive and was recovering but as I rounded the corner, he took off and was followed by Shannon and Vin where it looked like they were ALL trying to drop me.  I did manage to latch back on after sprinting ahead to do so, but I definitely had to recover a bit and didn't jump immediately into the paceline.  I ain't as dumb as I look.

Mitchell and Vin were also doing their share of rotations (wha?) today, which definitely helped out a lot.  Vin even came up behind Shannon, Vince and I at the top of Jamboree and re-joined us for the final pass through Back Bay.  He must have had a taro bun this morning.

With Shannon coming out regularly again, the pain train is definitely once again in full effect.  In the locker room after, he was saying how we were short a couple miles during the ride and it wasn't enough of a workout.  Vince tried to assure me that he was kidding, but I honestly don't think he was.  He scares me.  He did get to the gate first on the way out and the top of Back Bay first on the 2nd pass as well as mixed it up with Vince for the sprint to California (which I could have sworn Vince said last week was probably too dangerous to do...such a trickster) after having gotten up front all the way from the bridge.  These are examples of why he scares me.

As for me, I was also on Vince's wheel for the sprint to California and I did remember what he said about it last week.  When he took off first and then had Shannon chasing him, I slowed up enough to where I was able to make the light to cross and go up California ahead of the two.  I took full advantage of this and opted to stage my own breakaway.   I learned from the last time I tried this to not go too hard or as before when Todd caught me, Shannon and Vince working together would be able to do so also.  What's funny, however, is that they probably used the hill as an opportunity to cool down, but I didn't care.  I just wanted to get to something first today.  BAM!

Thanks for the training, gents!

Lunch Ride - Turtle Rock Shady Ridgeline Summit Condo Loop

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/27727772

When you think of the word dry, a few things may come to mind:  a martini, what my jersey is NOT after a ride, or Jaffe's and Vin's bike chains.  However, this would be how I would describe today's weather.  My eyes are bloodshot and my face feels like it's been sitting in front of a hairdryer for a few hours.  The temperature wasn't too bad otherwise, but man my eyes hurt.

It's been since the Santa Barbara Century when I last rode with Shannon, so it was nice to be out with the Irishman again today.  Todd, Adrian, Vin and Hiroshi also came out, but Hiroshi came out of nowhere on Shady given he didn't start with us.  We saw Jaffe in the locker room, but he won't be on a bike probably until next year given he's waiting for his R5 to arrive.  Nice choice!

The pace of the group was pretty fast going out, and I had a little trouble being able to hang on right away with Todd and Shannon pushing the pace early on.  Once we made the left turn onto Culver, I was dropped like a bad habit by everyone.  I tried not to panic when I saw them pulling away, but they literally went up and over the crest at over a mph faster than what I was doing.  I think Adrian was responsible for getting that started again, and with Todd and Shannon there...forgetaboutit!

I was still off the back on Campus and the beginning of Turtle Rock, but I saw Adrian pop off the other three during the climb.  I made my way up to him, and we began exchanging pulls all the way up to the first bridge on the Shady bike trail.  Once it pitched up at that point, he fell off.

I saw a red jersey ahead of me, and eventually made my way up to him by the 2nd bridge where it was Hiroshi.  He jumped on for a bit, but also fell off on the last part of the rise before the crest at the top.  Thus, I was on my own at this point.

I couldn't even see where Todd, Shannon and Vin were as I made my way down to the bike trail by the 405.  However, after it rounded to University, I did catch a glimpse of Vin at that point.  He was still a good distance away though, so I just worked on trying to close the gap once I got on Ridgeline.

I did see Todd and Shannon climbing up for a bit, but lost them after they made their way past where it pitches up the first time.  I was starting to close on Vin and was hoping to get up to his wheel before the stop sign, but I ran out of steam and just came in a little behind him to an awaiting Shannon and Todd at the regroup point on Turtle Rock.

Adrian had told me to not have us wait for him, so once I got there, I let the others know and we were off again.  Todd's been pushing the pace the whole time, and once again jumped to the front and had a little gap in front of the rest of us.  Even as we climbed the Shady rise, Todd was still trying to break us off, so I decided to close the gap and then take a turn with him.  When he went to pass me for his turn, no one was behind him, so he and I mixed it up for the sprint to the bike trail.  I wasn't sure he was going to go for it at the end, but I did bring the pace up just before thinking it would be enough to deter him.  It wasn't, and sure enough he passed me just before we crossed the bike trail.

We did get the light on Bonita canyon ahead of the others, and Vin jumped on the curb to try and join us as we made our way up Turtle Ridge and eventually Summit.  I tried to stay on Todd's wheel as we climbed, and managed to do so for about half way up, but he snapped me off at that point and that was that.

I got to the top and saw the others climbing behind us as I descended, and I ran into Todd and the light on Turtle Ridge just before Bonita Canyon where we agreed to regroup again there with Vin and Shannon.  Once we got going, Todd took off again and I had to work just to pull us back onto his wheel.  Now I should have just sat there for a bit to let him work, but I opted to be a team player and rotate up front.  Shannon and Vin also were team players and rotated in as well.

Once we got across McArthur, Shannon and Todd were a little bit ahead, but Vin and I caught up to them where I tried desperately to try and catch my breath to prepare for the condo.  What sucked about it was that there was a car sitting at the corner as we approached where we didn't really get to have too much momentum going onto it, but se la vie.  Shannon had a good pace going up, and Todd kicked it up a notch passing him.  I found a pretty decent rhythm also which allowed me to eventually catch Todd.  Now the "smart" thing to do at that point was just wait a bit and make a move later since he's been crushing it everywhere else, but I opted to pass since I had momentum.  I wasn't sure if he was behind me after I did, but I continued to try and bring the pace up to finish strong and hopefully deter him from passing here.  Nope...he did so there too.  Nice.

The 4 of us were able to regroup at McArthur, and I thought to myself I just can't let Todd have everything today.  I just can't.  When the light turned green, he took off and I was watching the lights trying to make sure I didn't waste any effort unnecessarily.  Vin got ahead of me and I started pacing him while Todd was ahead of us.  Once I saw we were a go for the 2nd light over the 73, I busted a sprint.  Now although I know this is not Todd's strength, I still expected that he may jump on after I passed him.  Thus, I probably hammered much longer than I needed to, but I wasn't falling for it a 3rd time today.  :)

Great training today, gents.  Thanks for coming out.  By the way, did I mention it was dry out there today?

Lunch Ride - Bike Trail Laguna Cyn Shady Bonita Cyn Eastbluff CA Loop

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/27115055

Attendees:  Vince, Vin, Galen, Paul and Jaffe

Weather:  Mild temperature, but heat and wind seemed more noticeable once we got to Laguna Canyon

Highlights:

• Saw Shannon coming out of locker room in running clothes.  I asked him why he's not riding with us, but at my age, you tend to learn not to push for things that won't be pleasant.
• Saw Todd at the end of the ride and told him likely, he would have gotten dropped today.  I hope he forgets this by the next ride.  If not, I was just kidding!
• I heard Adrian made it out today as well after we left and ran into Vin/Jaffe.  meh
• Pace was fast from the get go on the bike trail with Vince gapping early.  I slowly worked to close it, but Galen stepped up and got it done.
• Vin took a pull at one point, but that just gave us enough time to rest where subsequently, Vince, Galen and I broke away. 
• With a fast pace initially, I was just doing what I could to keep up.  If it weren't for the road crossings, I think I would have popped earlier.
• On the bike trail after Jeffrey, I took a turn and worked to keep the pace up, but blew up just before we got to Laguna Canyon.  Thank goodness Galen got lost.
• The three of us went up Laguna Canyon together with everyone taking strong pulls.  I think I was being overzealous considering the company, and going up Shady, I just couldn't hold their pace.  Vince and Galen duked it out, and Vince I think got to the top first.
• I crested only to not see anyone so I made my way down Shady and through the gate where I saw the two making their way up toward Bonita Canyon.  I was fortunate to catch them both at the light.  Vince mentioned as I arrived how he thought I must have stopped to pick flowers.  Nice.
• We rode together on Bonita Canyon and I gotta say, I don't like it when Galen passes me after I pull.  As Vince points out, it's Adrian like where it's tough to latch on.  I stood up on a full sprint right after a pull just to be able to do so.  Thanks?  HAHA
• We sprinted to catch the light to cross McArthur, and then we rode through Eastbluff where I went into TT mode and towed the guys all the way to the Jamboree bike trail underpass.  
• Galen took over after and kept the pace up getting us some good times to CA.  Vince went for a pass and the two duked it out to the light where they decided subsequently that it was probably not the safest thing to do.  
• Going up CA, they said they would take it easy, but I thought I'd try to keep the pace up to a respectable level as we climbed.  I tried to pull back a little where I would have enough to respond, but both of them passed me before the final pitch near the top.  

Vince is definitely coming back to form making for great workouts once again.  Thanks, gents!

Lunch Ride - Halloween Powered BB NPC Loop

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/26663352

Attendees:  Vince, Todd, Galen, Adrian, Jaffe, Mitchell and Vin

Weather:  Cool start with slight winds but everyone was warm by the end of Back Bay

Highlights:

• Galen was already sandbagging in the locker room about a hacking cough.  No one bought it. 
• I led down CA and onto the bike trail in the beginning (wha?) and then my wingman, Mitchell, took over (wha?) and I got to sit in the back to rest.
• On Back Bay, being in the back was not a good idea as the group started hauling once they hit the descent.  
• Jaffe was the first casualty and a couple of us had to come around and close the gap on the guys up front.  NO fun
• The pace was solid on the first part of BB with everyone rotating up front.  We may have been able to have upped the average a little more, but some where hung out probably a little bit longer than ideal.
• I took us past San Joaquin and then Galen and Todd came around with no one latched on.  I was just able to latch on where others had latched onto me subsequently keeping us all together to the end.  No one dared sprint to the end.  HA HA
• Todd and I kept the pace up through trailer park and out to the other side, and we all caught the light going onto PCH.  
• I led us up the rise on PCH, but Galen and Todd helped keep the pace up after all the way to Avocado. 
• Adrian darted up that one sprinter hill to show off his fresh legs given he hadn't taken a pull since Back Bay.  LMAO!
• We all were able to make the right turn to PCH headed toward NPC together without it being crazy for the guy in the back to keep up (me).  Vin was worried he may dropped, so he let me get ahead of him, but he was there the whole time as we all made our way to NPC. 
• Going up NPC, Vince and Todd were up front but they didn't realize the route was to go on Pelican.  Those of us who knew called out to them, but they were well ahead of the light already by that time so they kept going.  
• Another rider got to mix it up with them going up and created a nice little gap during the confusion.  Todd chased him down though and caught up to him by the 2nd Pelican.  
• The rest of us went on Pelican and Galen and I eventually broke away from the others.  I got ahead of Galen and he jumped on and rode with me until about half way up the last climb.  He then pulled away for a bit but didn't get too far ahead.  I reeled him in and tried to sneak by, but he caught me and shot ahead just as I was starting to pass.  That was mean.  HAHA
• We stayed together hoping to catch a glimpse of Todd or Vince, but we didn't do so until Bonita Canyon despite flying down NPC.
• Galen led a lot on Bonita Canyon, and I jumped to the front just before the last rise.  When we saw  Vince, however, we went racing off to make the light to cross Bonita Canyon.  Galen had snapped me off as a result, but waited for me after.
• Galen started to pull away on the descent just before the condo, but that always makes it fun to chase someone there.  He had a decent gap after rounding the turn, so it took until after the crest to be back on his rear wheel.  
• We saw Vince at the light on McArthur, but there was no sprint in anyone for the ride toward Bison.  Cool.

Great training today, folks.  Glad it's over.  Now onto more Halloween candy....

BRCM Lunch - NPC Double BB Route

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/26510133

Attendees:  Mitchell, Todd, Vince, Vin, and Jaffe

Highlights:

• Nice day with perfect weather, but surprisingly a smaller crew
• Crew was together for the most part all the way to NPC.  Todd and Vince had a slight gap, but Vin helped closed that once we rounded Bonita Canyon.
• Todd and Vince got a gap early on NPC and kept extending it after the bridge.  I had my wingman, Mitchell, work with me to the regroup point at the top.  
• Vince, Todd and I led the group out to Jamboree and eventually to Back Bay, but Mitchell and Vin rotated in as well to keep the pace up with some solid pulls.  Jaffe was monitoring from the back.  
• On the climb to Eastbluff, Todd and I made it up together but we all got stuck trying to cross the street to head up Jamboree.  
• On Jamboree, I stayed on Todd's wheel on the climb initially but I jumped ahead for a pull as well.  Todd wouldn't have it though and took the front again, and I think we both alternated 1-2 more times.  Ultimately, we broke away from the others as a result.  
• We made our way to Back Bay drive again working together, and saw Vince ahead of us before San Joaquin where the 3 of us would work together again all the way to East Bluff.  Vince saved some for a quick pass before the top, but I was just behind him and Todd just a little off the back.
• Todd closed the gap behind us before the underpass, and we took turns after that.  Todd had a great pull toward California, and Vince swung around for an uncontested sprint finish.  
• Up California, Todd got the jump but we were all stopped at the first light.  Once it turned green, Todd missed the clip in so I tried to take advantage and break away.  I had a pretty decent gap on the two, but I exploded about half way up where Todd worked his way to pass me and eventually get to the top first.   

Great averages today, so it was good that everyone was pushing the pace.  Thanks for the workout, gents!

Lunch Ride - Anteater San Miguel Spyglass SJQ Pelican NPC Vista Horseshoe McArthur

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/25893676

Attendees:  Vince, Vin, Jaffe, Adrian, Hiroshi, Mitchell and Steve Lusky (new guy)

Highlights:

• Steve (yes, another one) Lusky came out to join us for his first time and he was on his "vintage" Klein bike that I believe he said was over 10 years old.  Ironically, Jaffe's bike looked older.  I told him about the group, so he should now know about our alpha male-ness.  
• Hiroshi cautioned us before the ride about the increased police presence due to the recent deaths, so what does Adrian do?  Blow the light on Bonita Canyon and NPC just as a police car was sitting at the front of the intersection.  Reverse kudos.  
• I was willing to do a little more work than I have in the past month or so just because I have no more excuses.  I'll need to come up with some soon as this ride hurt. 
• Vin first led the group up Spyglass, but I took the reigns after trying to hold a decent pace.  Vince pulled to the front before the top and led us down to San Joaquin.  
• Vince and Hiroshi broke away a little on the climb up San Joaquin, but they missed the right turn before NPC as was on the map.  Of course, the rest of us couldn't pass up the shortcut. 
• There was a mini regroup on NPC down toward Pelican-1, but Vince opted to break away once we made the turn.  Mitchell and Vin didn't react when he broke, but as I went to go chase him down, sure enough they jumped behind me.  Teamwork?  HAHA
• We ended up catching Vince after the first rise and he and Vin got a little ahead of us and opted to turn right on NPC to start the climb from the bottom.  Mitchell and I followed. 
• Vince started to gap on the climb as did Vin in the beginning, but I reeled Vin in and kept he and Mitchell behind me for that climb.  Hiroshi came by, broke me off and started to reel Vince in on the climb.  Impressive, but ummm...somebody skipped the start from the bottom.  He wasn't alone though as Adrian and Jaffe did too.  HA.  Adrian pulled his signature move here though where he, too, passed me, but detonated sometime after. 
• On Vista, I tried to close the gap on Hiroshi and Vince but Vince was too far ahead.  Hiroshi, however, was within reach and I tried to set him up for a pass on the last climb, but after almost getting right behind him, I "pulled an Adrian."  BOOM!
• We regrouped at the top and went down Ridge together, but on the right turn to NPC, Vince opted to go straight.  We tried calling out, but he didn't hear us.  
• We did hit the horseshoe after getting on San Joaquin and Mitchell started the initial charge.  Hiroshi, Vin and I rotated but it wasn't in the cards today to beat the KOM time for that section.  It doesn't really matter though...it's my KOM.  HA
• We saw Adrian ahead of us on SJQ and after rounding the turn, Vin jumped to the front and started chasing him down.  He was reeling him in pretty good, but I had to finish closing in.  Adrian and I started to see what each one was made of after, and took some pretty hard pulls heading downhill.  That was gnarly. 
• When we got to McArthur, Hiroshi took the initial pull.  When Adrian came around, he started hammering and held a good speed heading toward Bonita Canyon where it took a while to pass.  
• Adrian, Vin and I rounded Bison and started to set up for the final sprint.  Adrian had gotten a good gap early but I was able to close it just as we were going over the 73.  When I passed him for the sprint, he responded and I didn't think I had momentum to be able to hold him off but I guess he was still recovering from McArthur.  When I looked back, he was off.  

Good training today, gents.  Way to put the hurt on, guys.  Thanks! 

2012 Santa Barbara Century

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/25670266

Attendees:  Shannon, Todd, Galen, Jeremy and me

When this Santa Barbara Century came up a couple months ago, someone came up with the brilliant idea of vying for the team KOM challenge.  I was all for just going up and hanging out with the guys hoping to cheer from the sidelines but somehow got roped into being part of the team.  We were under the impression that there was a minimum of 5 to form a team, so I figured I may as well since that's exactly how many of us planned to go.  You may think that makes me a team player, but believe me, I was pissin' and moaning the last few weeks before because I knew it was going to be a sufferfest given the strength the others attending have shown in their climbing.  Either that or I was severely going to affect their results and be blamed for blowing the challenge.  Talk about pressure.

One cool thing about the weekend was Todd and Pam found us a nice place to stay just up the street from the Start/Finish (you even pass it on the way back).  It was just across the street from the ocean and had all sorts of amenities like a jacuzzi, large ocean facing deck, garage, outside and inside showers, etc., that made for an awesome location for post-ride festivities.  Lisa was suppose to accompany me and Dina was going with Shannon, but both ended up not being able to make it in the end.  Nevertheless, the post-ride festivities drinking beers and eating pizza from the jacuzzi definitely made it memorable.

Here's a panoramic view from the front:

Given how it's been mostly hot the last few weeks, we were glad to see that the expected temperatures for the day of the ride was going to be fairly mild with the highs barely exceeding the 70's.  However, we woke up to find that these mild temperatures were actually going to be accompanied with some precipitation.  Now I wouldn't say it was raining or even call it a slight drizzle, but it was definitely quite damp when we woke up, so this presented an unexpected element to the day's ride as well as the KOM challenge.  As expected, the other guys never even flinched and were still eager to go and get it done.

Craig, one of the guys who ride with us on occasion as well as with Shannon on some of the mountain bike outings, also showed up and left with us where the plan was to ride a moderate pace to the base of the hill climb.  Talking in the jacuzzi the night before, we even made sure Galen, the group cowboy, was aware of this strategy so we can apply all our efforts to the  challenge.  Surprisingly, everyone conformed and we rode with a group without really putting out too much effort.  However, as there was some climbing in the early part of the ride before the challenge, once we hit one with a pretty decent pitch, Jeremy, Galen and Todd took off to test out their legs.  I was even a little guilty of pulling ahead of most of the group, but I did pull it back once I realized it and slowed back down.  Shannon, in his infinite climbing wisdom, never let himself waste more energy than needed, so he stayed back and was just saving it ALL for the climb. Having climbed the hill the day before, he knew full well what he was up against, so it always makes me nervous when he's falling back early on.

The roads were still quite slippery as we were working our way to the SAG just before the climb, and as expected the wet roads took its toll on a few riders who didn't have enough respect for wet roads.  Todd saw a crash happen after a couple guys passed him, and Shannon saw 3.  There were definitely some technical roads on the way out and we even went over a lose gravel section and some cobblestones, but all of us managed to be incident free.

For the section just before the climb, we remembered it was a part of the Cool Breeze double metric century we did last year, but we were definitely going a lot slower than then.  We still passed some people here and there, but we were also getting passed where we exercised a lot of self-restraint doing so.  As we got closer to the base of the challenge, one guy had passed us and started to point out how we were going so slow that girls were passing us.  I looked at him and said "oh yeah?   Let's see who gets to the top of the KOM challenge first."  He laughed but a little nervously, and then when we did one last climb before the challenge, he fell back and that was pretty much the last time I remember seeing him.

We all regrouped at the base of the challenge, and once we were all ready to go, we all started across the timing mat together.  I was the last one to go over, and just after going over, wanted to go back to my big chainring up front but after a few misshifts, I opted to just increased the gearing in the back.  Of course, once I got going, the other guys had gotten a pretty good gap on me.  I knew it would be pointless to try and close the gap early on, so I just dug in and prepared for a climb on my own.

I was working and passing people as I made my way up, while I watched the guys pull away ahead of me.   I had a good pace and was definitely planning my output based on what I saw from driving up the day before...plenty of solid hills with not a lot of reprieve.  It was also on very narrow roads with conditions that one would expect to see only in 3rd world countries.  Santa Barbara, are you reading this?

I did see a familiar face as I was making my way up, and it was Craig who took off just ahead of us.  I was thinking he was going to be able to match my pace, but he didn't jump on as I passed.  Thus, more solo climbing for me.  I kept reeling people in one by one and looking ahead trying to see if I can catch a glimpse of the other guys.   After about 3/4 to 2/3 of the way up, I thought I recognized one of our jerseys.  When he stood up to climb, it confirmed for me it was Jeremy.  I could see that I was making some ground on him, so I expected to catch and have him ride with me.  However, I guess his break from training due to illness may have gotten to him where after I passed, he only rode with me for a little bit.  Once it pitched up steeper at one point, that's when I started to pull away.  I did hear him groan at a point while we were riding together, so that was an indicator that he was not having one of his better days.

In the end, Shannon finished first, Galen, Todd, me, then Jeremy.  It was a lot of climbing over with and we were all ecstatic that the challenge was over.  However, we didn't really realize there was STILL a lot of climbing left to do.  We still had 5 more miles of climbing to do to get to a required check point to get a finisher's medal and/or wine glasses.  Then, after coming down from that, there was some descending followed by even more climbing.  Now considering Jeremy rode 7 sisters every week for a while, you just know there was a lot of hills on this ride when he was complaining about yet another climb.

And for every climb, usually they are followed by a downhill that more than makes up for all the pain suffered for climbing.  However, the descents on this ride were some of the most technical, if not the most technical, I've ever seen on an organized ride.  I wonder how many people actually crash on this ride given how technical some of the descents were.  Jeremy had a helluva time slowing on his carbon wheels and at one point almost ran into a truck coming up the hill on the opposite side of the road.  There were still some wet sections, the roads were trashed and super narrow, and there were switch backs and even a toilet bowl that required a high level of technical skill to maneuver through.  I know I found myself on the opposite side of the road once or twice as did the others. 

After all the climbing and descending, we met at a SAG with just a little over 25 miles left.  After regrouping, we were off.  Galen, the cowboy that he is, led us for a while at speeds upward of 26 to 27 mph.  We sat behind him comfortably as he did so and we just needed to get him to release some of that crazy energy he had.  Once he finally started to slow, we began taking turns and we were moving pretty fast as a group where no one even tried to jump on with us.  We were passing people at an insane clip that it was probably impossible for someone to do so without knowing that we were approaching at the speeds we were.

The guys kept pushing the pace all the way to the end, and Jeremy was the first casualty.  I ended up dropping after I started experiencing some cramps, but Shannon and I worked together after he waited for me letting Todd and Galen go nuts ahead of him.  I hadn't experienced cramps like that for a while, but it was nice to know that Shotbloks still worked well in fighting these.  I would get some relief from the Shotbloks, catch up and work with Shannon, and then hit the repeat button.  This happened all the way to the end of the ride.   It was nice to pass the house where we stayed with Pam cheering us on as we did.  Woo hoo!

Jeremy made his way back shortly after, and it turned out he made a friend on the way.  While we were eating, a guy came up to him and said "hey, aren't you the sick guy?"  Of course, he was outed at that point where we expected even more people to approach and say the same thing.  LOL.  Sorry, Jeremy, but I told you it would make the blog.   Jeremy's the young one of the bunch, so he knows I'm just pushing him to beat me up on our next cycling event.  It's how we do. 

So after all that reading above, I'm sure you're ready to read about the team KOM results.  Looking at the times, they posted our results first and we were the only ones on there.  Our times, as a group, were definitely great considering that Shannon, Galen and Todd were in top 11 overall.  With mine and Jeremy's time being in the top 40, we thought we had it.  However, after the announcer read the results of the top two, we found ourselves not even in the running.  What we didn't realize was that a team can actually consist of more than 5 where they would pick the top numbers of the team.  Further, they adjust the times based on a person's age, so if you're collecting Social Security, you have a REAL good chance of winning the team challenge.  I'm not going to take anything away from the other teams, as there were some good results here and there, but as far as a group averages I think we should have been up there.  I'm still quite proud of how our team did regardless of their "official" results.

As for repeating this century in the future, Shannon and I agreed this is one we can check off our team bucket list and not have any problems in never doing it again.  The SAGs were good, but the "required" stops, the road conditions, the hill profile, etc., just doesn't make for a ride that seems worth repeating in the future.  Etc. does include the rules.

The after party was great, and like always, I always feel the need to apologize to those in attendance for my behavior...especially Pam.  Pam is great though, and I'm glad she was able to make it out with us for this event despite the other women not being able to.  She's been the best team cheerleader and I hope she continues to come out with us despite my behavior.

Thank you all for coming out and representing as always.  Shannon, 6th overall is crazy, and Galen and Todd kicked arse as well.  Jeremy, considering this is your second outing, awesome job and much respect, young man.  Once again, people should remember who Team Broadcom is and what we're about because of you guys.  I love this team. 

Update:

Link to team results here:  http://www.santabarbaracentury.org/2012%20Team%20Results.htm

I created a table that showed the winners based on ACTUAL time:

	La Grange	Velo Allegro	Broadcom
Top 5 Times	0:46:05	0:45:07	0:45:25
	0:48:56	0:45:00	0:43:55
	0:46:21	0:47:52	0:45:03
	0:50:26	0:54:23	0:50:03
	0:49:29	0:56:59	0:50:30
Combined Times	4:01:17	4:09:21	3:54:56
Average	0:48:15	0:49:52	0:46:59

Go Team BRCM!

Early AM Hill Trainer with Vince (AKA the Energizer Bunny)

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/24570323

Vince sent out an invite last night to ride this morning and mentioned that the route is TBD but we were going to do hills.  Given my need to continue training for hills as a last ditch effort to not fall off too far in Santa Barbara for the KOM team challenge, I was compelled to accept.  Of course, upon arriving at the Bldg 11 gym, Vince mentioned that the plan was to do the full Monte for the Puke route.  This meant extra credit both times and even a Summit finale.  A 2500 ft 23 mile morning trainer?  Great.

We did see both Todd and Galen in the spin room and in typical BAM fashion, we mocked them for not joining us in the ride.  However, once the door was closed, Vince and I both agreed that we were glad neither of them were coming out.  HAHA.  

It was nice to do a warm-up pace through Anteater, and Vince and I were trading pulls early on to further help each other warm up.  This continued up NPC all the way to the top, so it was nice that we rode together the whole time.  

Once we got on Ridge Park though, Vince had gotten a little gap on me, but I closed in and passed him gapping him as well.  This lasted until the last part of the climb before the stop sign where Vince started to close back in on me and eventually passed me before we got to the stop sign.  I stayed with him as we went over the top headed to the El Moro cul-de-sac, but he started to gap me and just never stopped.  By the time I turned around and got over the top to head onto Vista, Vince was no longer in sight.  He was just gone.  Nice.  

I got caught for a little at the bottom of Vista, but going onto NPC and Pelican, I had hoped to catch a glimpse of him, but no such luck.  I figured with me looking down to make sure I was on the small chainring every so often, even with the compact crank, he would continue to gap me and he did.  

I went on to NPC and Vista, and still no sight of Vince.  It took until I was headed toward the cul-de-sac again for me to see him going the opposite way.  This also occurred as I climbed up Summit where I could see him on the opposite side of the road descending.  That was pretty much it.  Vince ended up going back to work via Anteater, whereas I went onto Bonita Canyon to McArthur since we never really discussed how the route was supposed to end.  Either way, we both got over 2400 feet of climbing in for a morning ride, and my stomach was really jacked by the time I got back.  The puke route remained true to its name.  

Guys, you have to know Vince like I know him where if he continues at this rate, he will once again be scary on the hills.  Strava tells no lies, and while his times from 2011 were better than this year, he seems like he's on his way back.  He did do a track workout yesterday, so had he been more rested, I'd have been riding alone a lot sooner I'm sure.  Good job, Vince!

Lunch Ride - Good to Be Back...I Think

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/24505808

Attendees:  Todd, Adrian, Hiroshi, Mitchell and Vin

Although not the biggest crew today, it was still nice to be back out on a bike with the guys even after just a one week hiatus.  Mitchell also made his comeback appearance today and looked just as strong as the last time he was out with us.

The route did include going to Back Bay and up San Joaquin, but at the top, we found that they had closed the road and had to come up with a slightly different route.  We ended up proceeding through Eastbluff to Jamboree and adding Pelican and the Horseshoe to the route as well as coming back in via McArthur.

On the bike trail, Hiroshi, Adrian and Vin had a little breakaway while Todd, Mitchell and I just watched from afar.  Todd eventually reeled them in with us in tow.  It was only after we proceeded past Back Bay though that I finally started taking some pulls with Todd.

Vin must have had a Taro bun before the ride, as he kept trying to breakaway here and there.  He did so on San Joaquin, Pelican (to me anyway) and even on San Joaquin (down).  Either it was a taro bun or he finally got a new chain after abusing (not oiling) his last one.  Funny how a bike works better when it's maintained, huh?

Todd was being a team rider today (wha?) and was doing a lot of the work up front (as expected) on the climbs . I was trying to give him a good workout by trying to alternate some pulls here and there, but for the most part, I just hung on as best as I could.  That only lasted until about 3/4 of the way up Ridge as far as the climbs go.  I did fall back on the NPC downhill as well, but I just wanted to make the Pelican climb interesting.  Adrian was talking trash after about my downhill skills, but boy it didn't take long to pass him once we started climbing.  AHA.

We did go on the Horseshoe where Adrian ended up launching an attack for the KOM, but once I hit the detonate button just before the crest, BOOM!  I passed him there too.

I did try to breakaway after I finished the horseshoe, but got caught pretty easily before the downhill.  The downhill did get pretty fast.  As I mentioned above, Vin did try and breakaway but he slowed where we caught him before McArthur.  The turn here was a little hairy with a car coming into the turn with us, but we all got by unscathed.

Todd took off ahead of us rounding the corner first, but we were able to reel him in eventually.  Adrian came around from behind me and took the next pull, and then I did the same subsequently.

After rounding Bison, it seemed like there was some setting up for a sprint, but after the last light going over the 73, I ended up going off alone.  Adrian says he's saving it for the ride home.  Ummm...okay.

Good ride today with plenty of elevation gain.  Hopefully, we'll do a few more of these before Santa Barbara, but there really isn't much time to make vast improvements between now and then.  Still good training though.  Thanks, guys!

2012 Tour De Poway - Team of One

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/23630293 (Epic failure - now I'm convinced I need a new one)

Having to do the ride solo (team-wise) today, I figured I'd work on my endurance riding not having ridden much over 60 miles for a while.  All the recent running I've been doing has definitely helped build up my conditioning, so I thought this would be a good ride to put it to the test.  I would also take advantage of other teams just, but after that got old, I was pretty much on my own some time after mile 40 (more on this later).

When I arrived there, I parked where we parked last year, which is just by the start of the ride.  It was nice given that the porta potties were right across the street as well.  Of course, my selection of the first porta potty was not ideal.  Who misses and craps on the seat?  Seriously.

It didn't take me long to get ready, so I lined up just before 7 somewhere in the vicinity of the Descenders.  I was hoping they would recognize me and allow me to ride their wheel.   Unfortunately, no one did and I just sat there and waited until they let us go with the motorcycle escort to Poway Drive.   I was shivering at the start with temps at around 64 degrees, but I stopped by the time I was on Poway Drive for a bit.

Bob Raibert, one of the Descenders, did recognize me as he was passing, but I wasn't sure who he was...so I asked.   He was cool and wanted to ride with me, but I told him I'm not planning to charge up the hill and would like to just draft the whole ride if I could.  HA HA.  I guess he had bigger plans and started to step it up whereas I...well...didn't.  Those who ride with me know I don't like starting out hard anyway, so this ride especially will never be where I expect to kill it on the Poway.   I'll leave that for the nuttier ones in our group.  There was still some mixing it up going up the hill, but only so I can have others to ride with at the top. 

At the top, I made it up with a few other Descenders and rode with them for a bit letting them dictate the pace.  We did pass a couple guys who latched on and then one of them rode up beside me as I was on the #3 spot and said, "man, you got some serious pistons!"  I hope he was talking about my legs.  Otherwise...awkward. 

Shortly after that, I decided to push up to the front and start to reel people in ahead of us.  While there was probably about 10 or so of us in the line originally at the top, after a while there were only 2 behind me.  As expected, I was held out for a while up front, but the guy who gave me kudos on my "pistons" eventually took the front while the guy between us held him out for a while.  That let the group that dropped off behind us reel us back in and we started working to catch a group of 6 just ahead of us.  Of course, when that wasn't happening fast enough, I pushed up from probably the #5 spot and closed the gap.  Yay!

Now those guys seemed like they weren't going too hard, but I waited patiently to rotate to the front again.  I did make it up to the front and ended up pushing the pace from 21 back up to 25 mph again.   I was relieved eventually, and at that point, I decided I'll just ride in the group and wait for the downhill section.

When we finally made our way to the downhill section, there were probably about 15-20 rider, but attrition lowered that down to 5.   I was wanting to jump to the front to get to the bottom first, but I opted to just ride with the other 4 for a while until the group behind caught back up. 

I was rotating in and doing my share of the work as we made our way to a pretty decent size hill.  Then I noticed that one guy fully kitted was starting to break away while others where trying to chase him down.  Being pretty warm at this point, I stood up and started to reel the guy in.   As I passed the guys chasing him, they jumped on my rear wheel and I sat down and began to spin up even faster making my way to and past the breakaway guy before the top of the hill (he was cool...he gave me props). 

On the other side was a downhill, so with my momentum, I ended up breaking away from the group all together and figured I'd try to find my way through the route on my own.  After I passed 2 older guys (I ended up waiting at a corner for them just to tell me which way to turn - HA HA).  I ended up thanking and passing them again and was on my own for a bit.  It was after that when I saw that they actually had orange markers on the ground to show the route.  Cool!

I had to make a left not too long after I passed them, so I got caught at the light for a while and some of the people I was riding with earlier caught back up to me.  However, when the light turned green and we went left, I went first but another guy with long hair passed me at a pretty good clip.  When I looked to see if anyone was going to chase him and saw no reaction, I stood up and chased him down towing the others behind me.  He looked a bit surprised when I got on his wheel, and I even took the front to relieve him after.   He ended up pushing up front again, and I rotated with him a couple more times even pushing up from the back when I'd see no one giving the guy any relief.   After taking a pretty good pull, he was passing me again and the guy behind him says to me "don't you know this guy's a professional?"  I responded by saying I was just trying to help, but decided if my non-professional help wasn't good enough, I'll just conform and ride with the group.   In my mind, however, I'm thinking professional what? 

After a few more miles of riding and being somewhere past 40, we arrived at a SAG station where EVERYONE stopped, including the "professional."  I slowed only to see if anyone else was going to keep going, and after realizing no one was put my head down and went into TT mode.  I still had 1 1/4 fluids, so there was really no reason for me to stop yet. 

Now there were some guys I knew that were still ahead of me from earlier on, including a few Descenders, but one guy in a Jetta kept driving by me thinking I was at the front.  In a way, it felt like it but that was just because the guys who were ahead of me had a pretty good gap and I ended up gapping the guys who stopped at the SAG pretty good. 

I was riding alone all the way to Coast Hwy and ended up passing regular riders on that road hoping that someone would want to work with me, but that didn't happen.  I got on La Costa and ended up hitting a light for the bridge to go over the 5 freeway.  I kept looking back beforehand and didn't see anyone at all, so when the light turned green, I decided to relieve myself of some methane only to look back and realize that someone was right behind me when I did.  It was hilarious!  Now he wasn't a part of the ride, but he did ride my draft for a while.  When we passed a Descender fixing a flat (I offered to help to which he declined...they must be experts on it given they have so many...lol), my passenger had dropped.  Of course, my immediate thought when I noticed was did he get tired or did the methane toxicity kick in?

I kept on riding on my own but hoped that the one Descender I passed would catch me at a light where we could work together.   That never happened, but I did see another Descender (Dave) after a while and reeled him in.  Once I passed, he did take my wheel and then took a pull subsequently as well until we hit a light...a nice exchange for about a mile.  He was saying he was tired and was just struggling to make it back home where he was saying I'd probably drop him on the hill.  I told him I didn't think I would, but once we turned left and as the road pitched up, he was right. 

From this point on, it was just me for the rest of the ride.  It was getting mad hot as I was going further inland, and I was finally low on fluids just to stay hydrated.  I made it to the 80 mile SAG though with no problems (i.e. cramps, dry mouth, etc.).  There wasn't really anyone there, so I asked if there were plenty ahead of me and the lady said there was only one who came in before me.  Cool.  After filling up 1 water bottle, I was gone. 

Now I did start seeing other cyclists as I made my way back, but they were all from the 60 mile route.  One guy had even stopped and asked me at a light if "we" were at the 50 mile mark.  I told him I was doing the century, so I was more like at 90.   Curiously, he didn't say anything after. 

Not even the 60 milers wanted to work with me, but it was fun just reeling them in one by one.  It was MAD hot when we got to Poway (around 96 degrees), so I was going through that water bottle pretty quick.  I didn't really slow down though and eventually made my way back to the finish. 

Although my Garmin failed on Coast Hwy (it was displaying the diagnostic screen), I think it did capture my total elapsed time for the ride 5 hrs 23 minutes.  Based on that, I think my actual average for the ride was around 20.1 to 20.2 based on a comparison for someone who had 5 hrs 26 min elapsed time.  It's not a scientific calculation, but good enough.  It was also 20 minutes less than last year's elapsed time.  Not too shabby.

In customary fashion, I did have a Peroni after the ride and got my free beer (Stone Pale Ale) from the event.  While it's more fun to drink with someone after, drinking alone was still fun.  Cheers!

Shannon's Mt. Whitney Ride Report

White Mtn, ugh, in the bag!

http://app.strava.com/activities/23636429  (Garmin date issue, rode it 9/29)

We were on the trail at 4:30, with a bit of lighting.  The day before we dropped 3 SAGs across the mountain so were rolling pretty light and fast.

The first up is 6k of climbing, about half of it unrideable.  We finished that a little before 9.

Once we had regrouped, we knew we had to really get moving, we were way behind schedule.  The next section had some climbing, but was mainly just wide open fireroad, so I started going about as fast as I figured I could maintain.

A little before noon I regrouped again with Danno (our other member Marcus had turned back).  It was clear to me that he, Danno, wasn't feeling well, having eaten about 1/10 the calories he needed.  But, we kept pressing on and made it to our 3rd SAG without issue.  We watered up and headed for Barcroft, which is at 12.5k.

I kept the pace up, figuring Danno would be pushing hard and fast if he could, and if he couldn't (stomach issues) there wasn't anything I could do.  We lost contact soon after.  I last saw him at 13.2k.

White Mtn is immensely vast, and there is no way to describe how daunting it is.  I looked across at it from 6 or so miles out and felt like it was on a different planet.  Plus, I was walking, barely, due to the air being so thin, and due to the steeps.

Across one hill, then some rolling stuff, then dropped a long chunky section (pretty much a worthless down, since I still had 1k of climbing to go).

Finally I was to the switchbacks: (attached, the shack is a dot at the top).

It took well over an hour to crawl my way up them.  I stumbled around at the top, very light headed, tried to get on the roof of the shack up there, but thought better.  Fell asleep, it got past 3pm (our turnaround time), so had some caffeine and headed out.

After the second switch back, or so, slashed my rear tire bad enough the Stans wouldn't seal it, tried CO2, no luck.  Had to tube it.  At this point I was in a very chunky section and had a long way to go, White Mtn is deserted, and the guys were way way off. 

With no pump, half a CO2, and a ripped tire I had to ride as gingerly as I could.  At our 2nd SAG there was another tube, once I got that I went as fast as I could for the next ten miles and found Danno at the top of the final drop, Silver Cyn.

We ripped that off as fast as we could until the brakes overheated and then had to back off a bit.  It was getting dark though so we kept on at a good clip, blasting through water crossings.

Once we were a little ways away from the mountain the moon was on us, we could see our shadows and the white of the road, and that was it, done.

Morning Trainer with Galen - Standard Loop with Shortcut due to Flat

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/23298129

Anyone want to get a hold of me by phone, please see Galen as he definitely had my number today.  He was saying early on in the ride he wasn't feeling it, so I did throw caution to the wind and pushed up front more often than I would before the 133.   I know how hard he pushes up that damn hill, but I took the bait anyway just for the sake of good training.  My word to the naive and mortal...don't do it.  A select few in our group can get away with it, but I did say "mortal," didn't I?

Our time going up Anteater and Shady were nothing to brag about, but that is probably more reason to expect that Galen is going to punish you.  I was up front on the way to Laguna Canyon, but he took the front just before we got on it and already started to make that section hurt.  I wasn't about to take the front anytime after that, but it didn't matter.  Once we got on the 133, I stayed on his wheel for about a little halfway up, but then he just started to kill it.  Watching him pull away was quite impressive (and humbling), but it was one of those things where you can see it happening but you just can't do anything about it.  He did get his PR going up that hill, so lesson for today would be to tire him out just a little more before going up that hill.  He LOVES that hill.

Over the crest, I was thinking I was riding on my own since he gapped me pretty good, but he did ended up turning out to wait for me, but I didn't realize it until after I passed him.  Slowing down to wait for him, he rolls up and immediately takes the front and off we went.  I was barely hanging on, but I did manage to push up front just after the 73.  He took over after a while, and again I was just hanging on for my life.  I did manage to finally pass closer to the bottom just before the kicker hill that leads to PCH, but he did resume pulling once we were on PCH.

I was really feeling worked as we went through Laguna Beach, but I hung on and even took a pull for a bit.  Once we started climbing before the drop by the beach though, Galen got up front and I was just doing all I could to stay on.  When we did start to descend, he started to pull away from me a bit, but my bike felt like it was vibrating more than usual.  As he pulled away on the climb after, I stopped at the bottom to find that I had gotten a flat on my rear tire.  Now some may sigh after getting a flat on a ride, but inside I was jumping with joy.  I figured Galen was gone and I can ride a normal pace after fixing my tire and not feel so close to death.  Lo and behold, Galen had realized I was off the back and came back to help fix my flat.  Damn!  HAHA.  Actually, it worked out well because my first attempt to fix it failed so I needed to use his spare and CO2 dispenser (mine broke!!!) to get it done.

Due to the delay, we opted to cut the ride short and take McArthur back vs. NPC or Back Bay.   I was still taking turns despite just feeling beaten up, but once we got to the top of McArthur just before the San Joaquin intersection, Galen asked me if I was ready to have some fun.  "Fun" he says.  His version of fun was dropping me like a bad habit there as well.  Nice work!

The rest of the ride was uneventful, but nonstop work nonetheless.  Not as long as usual, but intensity once again made up for distance today.  Now I'm actually contemplating skipping any training at lunch and calling my wife to take me out.  It's definitely how I felt right after the ride, but that tide may slowly be shifting back. I have yet to call her.

Thanks for the training, Galen.  Amazing power out there, bud!

Lunch Ride - Turtle Rock Ring Loop

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/rides/23132513

So I go into the shower after the ride and upon entering felt like I needed to burp...nope, burps aren't solid.  Nothing like swallowing vomit before going back to the office.  This pretty much sums up today's ride for me.

Today's group consisted of Todd, Galen, Jeremy, Vince, Vin, Hiroshi and Jaffe.  While we stayed together for the most part up through Anteater to Bonita Canyon, the pace got hot going up the first Shady rise with Galen, Todd, Jeremy and Vince up front.  When it started to string out behind them, I had to work just to be able to keep the 4 guys just ahead of me but outside of a draft.  I was hoping Vin, Jaffe or Hiroshi would come around but looking back, they had dropped off on the rise and was never to be seen again for the rest of the ride.

On Turtle Rock, I was still not willing to rotate up just because I actually was afraid I would cause anyone behind me to be split off from the rest.  I let Jeremy rotate in front of me only to hear him sound like a disgruntled postal worker for me not willing to help.  These guys were pushing a good pace though without me, and it wasn't like I was on someone's wheel the whole time.  I'd drop a little and have to work every so often just to close the gap.  It wasn't until we started climbing on the other side that I was able to latch back on.  Going up, the 5 of us pretty much stayed together all the way to Ridgeline with maybe a couple individual efforts for a last second charge beforehand.  When a person across from us was suppose to turn left but just sat there...and sat there...and sat there, I decided to push ahead past the stop sign ahead of the guys but not for very long.  Galen came by, smiling as he usually does, and the rest of them passed me as well.

Going up the bike path on Shady, I was a little off the back as we were navigating through the sidewalk to the actual bike trail.  I tried to catch up here and there, but the 4 guys had gotten too far ahead where all I could do was watch as they stayed together while I rode alone (insert crying sounds here).  By the time I crested Shady, I could see that they were already at the bottom working their way through the other bike trails, so I was definitely on my own for the 405 section. I did peek back just in case the other guys were catching up, but I couldn't see anyone so it was just me.  The 405 trail was windy, but I managed a decent pace as I worked my way toward Ridgeline where I would run into the 4 guys who were caught at the light.

Going up Ridgeline, I was riding with the guys for a little bit, but Todd and Galen had broken away a bit and Jeremy was just behind them.  Vince was ahead of me, and I just couldn't reel him in and could only watch as he rounded to Turtle Rock ahead of me where I knew catching him on the downhill would be impossible.  I kept sight of him though for the whole way down, and fortunately again, was able to catch the 4 guys at the light to turn left onto Culver.

Going up Culver, Galen took the lead and that pretty much caused me to be off the back again with Vince just behind me.  As we climbed, a black Suburban nearly grazed every single one of us as we climbed up the hill (a hole in one minus "in one").  I was lucky to catch them on the first light, but then Todd took over and split me off again.  They got caught at the light at Shady/Anteater where Vince and I were able to roll up on them again.  Crossing onto Shady from Anteater, who do we see but Mike Z. back in action representing the BRCM white jersey.  Woo hoo!

As we proceeded to Bonita Canyon, I think I did take my one pull to relieve Todd at one point where I felt like the pace could go up a little bit.  I was relieved by Vince after and then we all made our way to the light on McArthur where we got caught along with another cyclist who looked like he was going straight.  Once the light turned green though, he decided to cut across and make a left turn at the light.   We do tend to have that effect on people.

Going on Ford, the pace was definitely a little hotter than what I like before going up the condo...but I followed.  The turn onto the condo pretty much sucked given that the cars crossing Ford/Eastbluff on Jamboree had just gotten the green making for a timid turn onto Jamboree for all of us.  Todd and Vince started charging up the hill while Galen and Jeremy stayed together, so I decided to do what I can to accommodate Todd/Vince in my home.  I was making ground on the two and was hoping to pass before we got to Bison, but they were able to stay just ahead of me.  Strava showed their pace as 20.4 compared to my 20.8.  I tried.

On Bison, everyone was taking off after the Condo, so I was glad that we all got caught at the light on McArthur.  I would have ridden the rest back by myself again.  HA HA. I had a little sprint in me at the end, and so when I decided to make my move past the others, I set it up just enough to get by Todd, Jeremy and Galen right after the last light over the 73.  Lo and behold, Vince had some game as well and went zooming by to my left catching me totally offguard and as he would call it "making me his son."  Nice.  We did give Todd props for the leadout though...he gets angry otherwise.

Tough ride today, and I can't make excuses since Irish people tend to object when I do.  HA HA. I will say I did set all sorts of PRs today...for my run this morning that is.  :)   Thanks for making me vomit, gents!  Now that's good training!