The Shady 133 PCH BB Beatdown

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/69466015

Since I missed yesterday's lunch ride, which sounded like a doozy, I opted to get out this morning and extended an invite to anyone else wanting to come.  Galen answered the call and opted to come with me, and Vince warned me how it may not be a good idea to ride with Galen a day before a race.  I figured what the hell...I'll go anyway.  If you're an Indiana Jones fan, think "big mistake, Indy."

Galen promised to be nice (not that he's ever mean...unless IPAs are involved), and I figured I'd just hold draft behind him and maybe help out some after we get over the 133.  He didn't mind and even offered a warm-up pace in the beginning.  Awww.  Of course, once we crossed Bonita Canyon, it didn't seem like a warm-up pace AT ALL.

Going over Shady and through Quail Hill was no easy feat either despite being behind him the whole time.  I think I could hear him chuckling as I panted heavily behind him trying to keep up.  Once we started up the 133, then the madness really ensued.  Fortunately, saving the 30% of power being in the draft worked, and I was able to not get dropped as we made our ascent to the top.

On the descent, I started to rotate up front a couple times, but once we got near the 73, Galen took over and just made it impossible for me to get ahead of him.  He even took off up that little kicker hill that connects to PCH, and I was just barely able to latch back on at the top.

With us being on PCH, I thought I was good to go.  I thought wrong.  After getting out of Laguna Beach and going through the rollers, at one point I thought "This is not good" and just popped off.  There is just no way trying to keep up with him ('trying' being the operative word) would help me in my race tomorrow night.

I think he popped me off a couple (few) more times on the way back, even when a tall slender guy on a Pinarello teased at how Galen was being mean to me. He thought he was fast at one point, but Galen showed him otherwise for sure (with me in the draft for as long as I could stay).

Thankfully, there was no more popping off on Back Bay, University and California, but probably just because Galen was just being nice (or tired of hearing me crying).  Looking at the pace on my Garmin, Galen and I definitely agreed it was not one of our faster ones.  I think I even did a better average pace on my TT bike last week solo.  It was a helluva workout nonetheless, with Galen killing me on the interval type riding.  What sucked was how when we got back to the gym, I inspected my BMC, which I just put back my newly serviced Spinergy wheels on again, and saw that the left rear brake pad was sitting up against the wheel where I couldn't even spin it.  It spun freely last night after I installed and reset the brake, but I guess it moved after really getting on the brakes creating that rub.  Bummer!  It doesn't take anything away from Galen killing me on that route and making me wish I was on a TT bike, but I'm sure it didn't help either.  In the end though, the objective of getting a good training session in was met.  Let's hope I have some left for GP.

Thanks, Galen!