Lunch Ride - A TT Training Ride With Obstacles, Traffic and a Hill

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/86054622

Mondays and Wednesdays during lunch are the unspoken TT training ride days...so much so that those of us who come out on them don't usually coordinate or plan them.  We just show up.  I rode alone last week, but today it was nice to see that Todd had come in with his TT bike too.   This doesn't mean only guys on TT bikes can ride as Jaffe and Hiroshi also came out on their road bikes and opted to join us as well.   The bonus for them is that they get to sit in the draft all they want on these days, but the down side is trying to keep up.  Shannon had arrived late at the gym with his road bike also, but he had hills on the mind and opted to do a a solo double Pelican route instead.

Todd had called out the El Morro route, and I thought that might be a fun one to do with him.  We talked beforehand whether we were going to do so individually or work as a team, and he opted for the latter, which meant it was going to be a fast one (i.e. E-ticket ride).

The pace is always fast in the beginning simply because the TT bikes seem to have a mind of their own...or a motor.  Despite the pace down California and on the University bike trail, Jaffe and Hiroshi hung on.  When we arrived at the top of Back Bay, it was still considered "closed" but that was more for vehicles than anything else since people were still riding and running through it.  The gate was half way open to let a work truck out or in, so Todd took the opportunity to take off as he hit the descent.  He gapped us pretty quickly, but closing in with my own TT bike made it possible for me to catch up and ride with him.  However, the sudden acceleration was too much for Steve and Hiroshi, and they dropped off shortly after entering BB behind us.

They were still working the bushes beside the trails, so Todd and I had to check up a lot as we went through a section with a lot of debris on the road.  It wasn't too long, but it was enough to break the momentum.  Once we got past it though, we were off again.

As we neared San Joaquin, there were people walking across the whole width of the road since the gate ahead of them was closed.  I guess they didn't realize cyclists and runners used the road too.  We had to check up a lot for them as well and then after passing through them had to pretty much ride our bike on the gravel beside the gate to keep going.   No fun, Indy.

Todd and I pushed on after that where Todd decided we should just go up NPC instead on our return route.  Due to the detour, we opted to take the bike trail by the trailer park to make up for some of the lost mileage.  

We traded pulls on PCH as we headed up to and past Jamboree, and had to once again slow for some more work being down on the side of the road before downtown CDM.  Downtown CDM was equally troublesome due to traffic, a truck that decided to stop on the 2nd lane just ahead us and thus blocked traffic, and just trying to keep safe making riding together difficult.  Plus, Todd doesn't slow down much so there were a couple instances of gaps formed that needed closing.

We were together again once we were exiting downtown, and the trading pulls resumed.  We saw two guys ahead of us and realized it was Hiroshi and Jaffe, who skipped the trailer park bike trail, so we were in chase mode.  We were able to catch them before El Morro and had called out to them as we were starting to pass to have them jump on, which they did.  

When we turned around, Todd and I kept pushing on with our pulls, and found ourselves alone again before NPC.  I started us up on the hill, but I knew Todd would hold a better pace where I ended up latching on as he passed me.  I stayed there for as long as I could, but after the last light before the 2nd Pelican, he started to gap me.  I didn't let up too much though and pushed on hoping to not let him get away at the top with a lucky light.  I wasn't far behind him, but he got through the Vista light ahead of me where I had to stop for the red.  Fortunately, he got caught at the next light and I was able to catch up to him there. 

When we got going down NPC, I had the initial lead but Todd took the lead shortly after and led us all the way down to the 73.  I was a little behind, but made up ground by that point and passed to take the lead for the rest of the way down. 

On Bonita Canyon and all the way back, we just pushed all the way back leaving us with an average of over 22 mph (Strava knocked mine down .2 again from what my Garmin read).  Considering all the obstacles we encountered, this was pretty impressive.  It's even faster than the last time we did a similar route with more of us out there albeit on road bikes.  I still don't know how I got a PR on NPC while on my TT bike, but that's how hard we were pushing today.   Compared to the Saturday sufferfest though, there wasn't anything we could do today (in my mind) that would be comparable.   Whatever works, right?

Good training ride today, gents!  Thanks!

The Triple Canyon OAB TT Route - Brutal!

Strava: http://app.strava.com/activities/85562996

When Todd mentioned wanting to do a triple Santiago Canyon OAB ride earlier this week, I was reminded of the suffering I endured during previous training rides on it.  Not only is there a good amount of climbing but we also try to do it without any stopping to better simulate the TTT race in January. Thus, I knew we were in for some work.  Maybe drinking the night before was not a good idea.  HA HA

As always, we start from the Rock N Road Cyclery in Mission Viejo.   I rolled up to the parking lot and was a little worried that the starting temp was in the low 50s.  I knew it was going to be a warm day though (just didn't know how warm...ended in the 90s), but it actually wasn't too bad by the time Todd rolled up from having ridden from his house.  Both of us were set for the long ride and warmer temp by having our hydration packs on, so we were off to take on the canyon soon after his arrival.

I always worry about taking off with Todd already warmed up since this has resulted some pretty quick starts in the past.  However, Todd wasn't feeling it early on and was agreeable to tone it down a bit and let me ride his draft until I can get warmed up too.  What a great guy!  That's not to say our pace was slow as we headed to the canyon since we still did reel a couple guys in before Cooks. 

Going up Cooks, or pretty much all of the significant climbs for the day, I thought it best to follow Todd's pace given he's so much better managing his power than I am.  When we would be close to the crest or soon after going over it, I would try to pull up and start doing my share of the work.  Todd was cool with this, so this pretty much was the game plan we followed. 

On the first pass to Jamboree, we had a 22+ mph average, which was definitely a lot better than I expected.  We were trying to manage our power with Todd wanting to keep the output at around 300 watts or less.  I guess there were some sections that I was registering 400 watts on his PT, so he called me on it like he should have and I was able to make the adjustment.  I appreciated this a lot because this helped me from blowing up sooner than I did.   Even when one guy wanted to mix it up as we were climbing up Dump, Todd kept his cool and we kept our power under control letting the guy get to the top way ahead of us.  We still managed to pull past him on the descent though, so....BAM!

Our return pass to Cooks was good, and Todd and I worked well together keeping the pace up and staying together the whole time.  Todd continued to lead up the big climbs, and I'd work as much as I could in between them.  We're still passing people the whole time, and no one latching on because of our pace.

The 2nd pass to Jamboree was almost as strong as our first pass, so the power management was working very well.  We were able to pass even more people, including guys on TT bikes, and although there were some attempts to latch on, we were just passing too fast for them to do so successfully.

On the way back, this was where I started to really feel the miles and intensity.  I don't know if it was due to having the hydration packs on, the intensity level, or all the climbing, but my lower back was really starting to become uncomfortable.  I started having to sit up more just to try and loosen it back up, so this is really an area I need to improve on as we continue to train.  It makes it hard to keep up when I'm sitting up as much as I was. 

After the descent from Dump, there's a couple small climbs that I was able to stay with Todd on but after that he started to pull away a little.   I was hoping I could close the gap as we continued, but I think Todd checked up after he noticed I wasn't on and let me latch back on where we were once again trading pulls.  Of course, Todd did the bulk of the work, but I would do what I could when I could.

When we got to Cooks, I was definitely feeling worked, but I kept going as we started our way back up for our last OAB.  Having ridden Todd's wheel as much as I did on the previous pass back, I was able to have some left for the climb and still managed to stay with Todd.  Even on our TT bikes, we were passing people on the climbs and surprisingly still not getting passed.  I was feeling guilty near the top, and I was pushing to the front to take over, but Todd told me to just chill in the back if I'm not feeling it...so I did.

I ended up pushing up on the way down and taking some pretty good pulls as we made our way to Jamboree.  It was really tough, but knowing that this was our last OAB was definitely motivating given that I just wanted to get it done.  I was running low on fluids though, and I think Todd was probably low too if not out at this point, but neither of us wanted to stop and made the U-turn at Jamboree to head back without even considering getting more water. 

The climb up Dump was rough, and Todd started to pull away a little, but then I found a good rhythm that let me latch back on.  I even took the front for a little, but Todd made his way past me again before the descent.  We were descending together, but at the same place I started to fall off the last time, I started to do so again.  My back was just worked and I couldn't stay on the aeros as long where at that point, all I could do was watch Todd pull away.   I was even trying to find a rhythm, but I was purely on survival mode simply because my lower back was aching.  Although Todd eventually ended up disappearing ahead of me, I was surprised no one came up on me to pass given I was just trying to get back. 

At the top of the canyon and on the descent toward Cooks, I knew it was almost over and just threw caution to the wind and pushed on both on the aeros and while sitting up.  I was totally out of fluids but this didn't matter anymore as the adrenalin would help me get back.  By the time I got back, I was pleasantly surprised that my average for the ride was still 20.9.  Todd was 21.2, so he definitely kept pushing on ahead of me.  Todd had met me at the parking lot since he went to get water and saw me rolling up when he got out of the store.  We were both aching and his lower back was definitely feeling the effects of the ride as well.  I just am glad my ride was done whereas he still had 3+ miles left to get back home.  After a couple of waters at my car, he was off.  Stud!

The lasting effects of the ride was felt throughout the afternoon.  It's been a while since my legs had tightened up as much as they had on this ride, so I was definitely not interested in doing a lot of walking.  To add to that, my left foot had cramped up real bad after the ride and I couldn't even put any pressure on it.  I still managed to watch my son's soccer game though, but I must have looked like a cripple as I hobbled around on the fields. 

Now that it's Sunday while I write this, I guess the training ride did what it was supposed to do.  I'm just hoping we can revisit this route with 4 or more people out with us rather than just us two, which should help provide even more recovery time.  This might mean we'd have to throw in Live Oak too, so maybe I should be careful what I ask for. 

Thanks for all the work, Todd!  You rocked it!

Team NFS Strikes Again

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/84846793

Today was a good team TT training ride.  It was fast, the rotations were more organized, and the pace wasn't anywhere near as erratic as how our interval-like lunch rides.  More importantly, we all stayed together the whole time.  I'm thinking we may be onto something here....

I felt better this morning than yesterday and stated this to the guys, including Gary who we saw in the locker room.  Maybe "more recovered" is probably a better way to describe it. Gary did point out that it's not typical BAM to complain about pain or being tired, and I guess maybe I shouldn't have mentioned that on yesterday's blog.  I was just hoping to justify my lack of contributions, but that's probably not a good idea among these maniacs.  Oh well.

We talked a little bit before we took off and decided to try and time the rotations better.  Thus, as we made our way toward Portola, everyone seemed to follow the agenda for the most part.  I think we still have to work on our smoothness as far as transitioning to the front and making sure latching back on isn't going to require mega wattage, but I suppose that will come in time.  A couple of us (names withheld to protect the innocent) opted to sprint to the top of Portola, but Shannon and I (ha ha) didn't want any part of that.

The rotations continued on Portola after and we tried to stay in order (Todd, Galen, Shannon and me), but that's not as easy when we come across lights, traffic, etc.  We would, however, try to get back in that line up when we could.  We took a little different route but still managed to make our way onto Irvine Blvd.

Alton and Barranca is always where the pace seems to pick up a lot and we get a little less organized, but we still managed to stay together despite the chaos.  I know if I was not on a TT bike though that this would not be a fun section to try to keep up or catch up.

When we got to Laguna Canyon and started heading toward Quail Hill, we were chatting it up a little trying to figure out if we wanted to get some extra miles in.  Due to time constraints (and our pace), we opted to do proceed toward Ridgeline and follow the normal end of the route.

Shannon had offered to do a lead out on the 405 bridge, but Todd ended up doing so since he had gotten onto the bike trail first.  He had a great pace heading toward the bridge, so we waited until after the last dip to finish strong.  Galen rolled out and started to go for it, and I was cheering him on to push him faster.  When I realized we could push even harder, I started calling out to move over...so he did.  HA HA.  I was not able to pass Galen though since he was pushing some mad power but I did get right beside him taking the KOM for that segment.  Sorry and thanks, Galen!

The pace didn't slow down much with Todd and Shannon pushing on as we headed up University.  Going up Ridgeline, we all lined up behind Todd who kept a great pace while the rest of us stayed on all the way to Turtle Rock.  That was probably the tightest we were all together going up that hill.  Great work, Todd!

I was a little blown out at the top after the 405 sprint and that climb, so as we headed toward Sunnyhill, I actually threw up in my mouth no joke.  Shannon was behind me at the time, and I wonder if noticed me sit up as I tried to swallow the vomit rather than spewing it out all over my bike.  Hey...it's all about the bike according to Velominati, right?

Galen started us off going up Shady, but Todd came around him and took over.  Adhering to our earlier strategy, I took the front after and was also relieved by Shannon subsequently.  However, when these guys got us over the crest, I had to back off a little just to recover some and got gapped.  I wasn't sure I was going to recover in time to help anymore on the descent, but I caught my wind halfway down and started to push toward the front to lead these guys out to the bike trail.  We finally got into the top 10 on that stretch as a result.

You can see based on the Strava bling we received that there was still no let up on Bonita Canyon, McArthur or even Bison.  The NFS (Need For Speed) crew knocked it out again this morning with a 23+ average for the route and with enough power generated from the other guys to light up a small building.  Needless to say, I'm in awe whenever we knock out a ride like this.

Thanks for the training again, gents!  Until the next time.... (Cue the Need for Speed music here)

Lunch Ride - Tired and In Pain Are Not Valid Excuses.

Strava:  http://www.strava.com/activities/84682144

Attendees:  Vince, Shannon, Todd, Adrian, Mitchell, Jaffe and me

I rode 193+ miles last week including an 86 mile solo ride on Saturday.  I ran 6+ miles on Friday as well bringing me close to 200 total miles of training.  My body felt like crap after the weekend, but I still managed to get my morning workouts in this week along with a solo TT lunch ride yesterday.  Despite all of this, I still looked forward to riding with the team knowing full well I would be in for another pain sesh.  I just didn't think it would come with some mad dogging too.  HA HA.

When the guys took off from the corner today, Shannon had led us out and already had me panting midway up E. Peltason.  With my left knee hurting as well, I just knew I was in for a long day.  At that point, I realized that the only way I could keep up was to stay out of the rotation as much as I could get away with it.  Now I could have been a jerk (which seems to be what was expected of me despite typically participating in the rotation normally) and pull to the front at the end of known segments, but I never contested a single one.  I think I even called this out, but I guess that fell on deaf ears.

I did take a couple tiny pulls, but Todd, Vince and Jeremy definitely did the majority of the work today (Shannon opted to ride off the pack but close by).  Trying to keep up was definitely still quite painful.  Turtle Rock was when the group started to splinter where we lost Jaffe (in his brown bike shorts) and Adrian.  Mitchell and I stayed with the others enough to watch Jeremy launch an attack to the top of Turtle Rock to go head-to-head with Todd.  Todd, despite having led most of the way up, is always up for the challenge.  Vince and I were just behind them, and managed to make it across Ridgeline all together.

The guys still kept the pace up going up Shady, and even sprinted toward the top, so I really had to push just to stay with them.  On the descent, I kind of felt like they were trying to ditch me probably tiring of me just lurking in the back.  This was substantiated when we got on the trail by the 405 when Vince just gave me that look and seemingly tried to block me from launching a sprint to the bridge.  I got around him just to latch back on to Todd and Jeremy.  When Jeremy had come off the front and Todd passed, I told Jeremy to get in front of me and got a disapproving head shake ultimately followed with a wave of the arm to pass.  HA HA.  I guess I better get up front and do some work, or these guys may lynch me at the Ridgeline stoplight post.

When we got to Ridgeline, it was cool to look back and see Shannon at the corner with us as we waited to cross and start the climb.  Jeremy had started us off up the climb at first, and he and Todd took off when it first pitched up leaving the rest of us behind.  I gave chase only to hope that they didn't get too far away from us, but I ran out of steam and Shannon passed me looking focused and keeping a steady pace.   I was never able to catch any of them on the descent and was fortunate that they all got caught at the light on Bonita Canyon.  Vince had rolled up and past me just before I got to the light.

Todd led us up Bonita Canyon at first, and I stayed with Shannon only until he opted to push up to the front and lead us toward Shady.  I think I almost surrendered before the crest as I watched Vince stand up and start sprinting just to keep up with the rest of the guys.  I didn't though as I'm sure that would have come with more verbal flogging.

I was trying to do more on Bonita Canyon mostly because we were close to the finish, but I never got held out for very long.  Due to time constraints, Shannon, Vince and Jeremy ended up making a right on McArthur, but Todd and I went up Ford to include the Condo.

Since it was just Todd and I, I figured I may as well lead him up Ford and try to offer him a good lead out up Jamboree.  I did what I could to keep up the pace, but Todd passed me just before the false flat stretch that led to Bison.  He probably would have broken away from me on Bison, but the lights didn't work to his advantage.

Todd led us onto the 73 and I called out and passed just after to help us finish strong.  Once again, my pace wasn't fast enough and Todd passed me just before we got to California.  Boy I was glad the ride was done after that.  A 22 mph pace for this route was just brutal.  While I know the guys were probably sincerely "annoyed" with me not taking enough pulls, I know it's short-lived and only because they're caught up in the heat of the moment.   That's how rolling with BAM is.

Thanks for the training, gents!

The 133 Back Bay Loop Barn Burner

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/83668327

Needing to get rid of the extra calories from having celebrated my anniversary yesterday, what better way than to come out on an early morning barn burner with the guys, right?  Galen had mentioned earlier this week he planned to ride this morning, so I was definitely expecting to get worked. Vince also opted to come with us to ride in invisible mode since he was on a road bike while we were on TT bikes.  Although this would concern some, I knew Vince wouldn't have any problems keeping up as long as he stayed in the draft.  That's no easy feat considering our average today, mind you, so props to him for coming out.  We did see S-Gary in the gym with his bike as well, but he had an early meeting to attend and couldn't join us.

We didn't decide on a route until last minute, and ultimately I figured we should just go ahead and do a route that Galen is most familiar with...the dreaded 133 BB loop.  We thought about going the opposite way, but I'd rather do a loop making mostly right turns vs. lefts to minimize stopping.

Having seen the speed and/or times Galen has achieved on this loop on his own, I was definitely not going to be too eager to jump up and help him up front right away.  He's a trooper anyway, so he didn't mind.  Galen pretty much lead the whole way to the top of the 133 with me maybe having relieved him only a couple times.  I just didn't think I wanted a "fresh" Galen climbing up the 133.  Believe me...that's no fun.

I finally took the front once we got to the top of the 133, and the rotations continued from there.  Galen had a tendency to power up during passing early on, but this improved throughout the ride.  I'm glad it did because everytime he'd pass me, I felt like I had to turn myself inside out a little just to latch back on.

We had a great pace going down the 133 and then going through Laguna Beach on PCH.  There was one idiot who made a u-turn in front of us and opted to block the bike lane as we approached, a lot of traffic through CDM, and a bus who blocked us as well along with the lights we caught that broke some of the momentum on PCH.  We may have taken more medals home had that not been the case.

We had some good rotations through Back Bay and Vince had considered helping out at the time, but rightfully decided that doing so would probably leave him off the back after he rolled out from the front.  Galen took us to the top of Back Bay and ultimately also took us to the base of CA where his Garmin was showing an average speed of 24.8 at that point.  Mine and Vince's showed 24.6.

I was able to catch my breath some as we waited for the light and decided to have us finish strong going up California after it turned green.  We were lucky to hit a green at the 2nd light and were already in the 20s early on.  I was hoping for a green light at Bison, but had to slow for the red and ended up getting a decent average up that hill (2nd best).  Galen and Vince PR'd it.

All together, I show a 24.4 average while the others showed 24.5.  Not too shabby.  Not too shabby at all.  It was definitely an excellent workout, and a great way to start the day.  Thanks, gents!

Team Morning TT NFS Training Ride

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/83253349 (It's nice that Strava knocked it down .4 mph from what Garmin showed)

You've heard that saying "Be careful what you wish for," right?  Well, those words definitely rang out repeatedly in my mind before the ride this morning given that Galen now has a TT bike.  I mean, it's good that he does given that we'll be able to take advantage of his power on our training rides, but "taking advantage of" can easily be replaced with "be abused by."  Adding to this Todd and Shannon coming out on TT bikes and the power they put out as well just made it downright scary.  Todd pointed out that I seemed depressed or sad in the locker room before the ride since I was so quiet, but what he didn't realize was I was just praying at the time hoping to survive the anticipated madness.

We decided to do the same route we've been doing in the mornings, which includes a run up to Portola.  Unlike before, however, I think Shannon had different ideas as to how he was going to approach the ride where he opted to participate in the rotations less than normal.  When we got to the the bike trail after Harvard, he decided he would pretty much ride it on his own vs. trying to do the interval type pace we were doing as a group.  Considering that he was always just behind us for the length of the ride, even catching us at intersections here and there despite the three of us working together (or Todd and Galen working together while I hung on for dear life), we were amazed that someone solo could do that.  Then again, folks, we're talking about Shannon McGee here.

Working with Todd and Galen was pretty tough.  They almost snapped me off at the top of Portola, but Todd heard my brakes rubbing in the back and they stopped once we got on Portola to let me fix it.  I not only fixed it, but it also gave me a chance to catch my breath. From there, it seemed that they did a bulk of the work where I felt like I was only able to offer them a short reprieve here and there.  It was tough mostly because I was behind Galen most of the time where he would let Todd do monster pulls to the point seemingly until he (Galen) was recovered (with Todd not complaining one bit I might add), pull after at a pace that was tough to stay behind and then have me try and come around after working so hard just to keep up.  I tried to ride behind Todd at one point since his power delivery, while high, is more flat, but Galen got between us shortly after.  Damn! HA HA.  Maybe this was what Shannon was talking about.  We'll definitely need to improve our "flow" as we continue training during the next few months.

We kept the pace up, getting some PRs and even KOMs,  all the way up to Ridgeline.  I was a little worked on the 405 bike trail, so I stayed behind Todd and Galen the whole time, but shamelessly got a KOM as a result.  At least it was a shared KOM with Todd and Galen, so it wasn't like I stole it.  Still...I don't feel I deserve it.

Todd managed our pace going up Ridgeline perfectly, and we all stayed together all the way to the top.  Galen and I helped out on the last part that pitched up, but Todd led us onto Turtle Rock.

When we started up Shady heading toward Bonita Canyon, Todd once again took the lead early on and held it for most of the climb, with Galen and I offering relief closer to the top.  Todd and Galen came around me at the crest and led the charge down but I took the final pull that took us to the bike trail giving me a PR for that section.  Cool.

Most people would probably tend to cool down toward the end of a ride today, but the pace on Bonita Canyon was equally as intense as the earlier part.  This is substantiated with the Strava hardware I received.  There wasn't even really any let up on Bison, where I think Galen was trying to race a Scion to CA.  I think we did slow down a little as we rolled into the parking lot (finally!), and it was wild seeing Shannon again rolling in even before we could get onto the sidewalk.  Mad solo effort on his part for sure.

While overall not as fast as the last time, mostly because we got stopped by a lot of lights but also because of the change in today's dynamics, it was still an excellent training ride.  There's talk of another on Friday morning, but ummm...let me sleep on that for now and see what my body tells me tomorrow.  Thanks for the ass whooping today, gents!  

Lunch Ride - The REAL Rich is a Wuss Ride

Strava:  http://www.strava.com/activities/83106146

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

Were the brakes rubbing today for me?  Nope.  Did I get enough sleep last night?  Yup.  Was there any  legitimate excuse I can use based on how I did in today's ride?  Nope.  Well then, I guess the truth is out...I AM a wuss.  Okay, so it was a windy day out there and the jersey I wore was 2 sizes big (I accidentally grabbed a spare red jersey from my drawer), but I'll save that excuse if I were only a couple seconds behind the guys in a sprint.  That was definitely NOT the case today.  The guys who came out today were definitely legit, but I didn't expect to drop off as early as I did.  If it weren't for Mitchell fulfilling his ultimate wingman status, I'd probably still be out there trying to make my way back.  It was definitely a rough day in the saddle.

Shannon wanted to get some climbing in, so the route planned was a hybrid of what Shannon proposed and how Todd wanted to finish.  I sent a map out before the ride just to make sure everyone was on board, but there must have been some disconnect ultimately since a couple guys skipped out on the Vista climb.  The total route was 2K work of climbing in 20 miles, which is vertically comparable to our dreaded "puke" route.    Speaking of puke route, its creator rode 3.5K of vert just yesterday in 20 miles by doing Park in Laguna Beach 4x, so I seriously need to man up. 

It started out simple enough, and I wasn't really eager to get up front early on given the pace Shannon started us on.  I thought Vin and Jaffe fell off early on, but they managed to latch back on before we got to Anteater.  Jeremy, Vince and Todd rotated up front to keep the pace up, and I took a subsequent pull before we got to Bonita Canyon. 

Jeremy and Todd had gapped us a little on Bonita Canyon, but I was able to slowly reel them back in with the crew in tow just before NPC.  When we got on NPC, Todd and Jeremy had brought the pace up right away, and Shannon and I had to make our way up to Vince who was directly behind them.  Jaffe and Vin were the first casualties on this climb, but when Shannon started to make his way to the front, it wasn't long before I, too, thought "No mas!" and did the unthinkable...I backed off.  We hadn't even reached the 2nd or 3rd light yet, but I just ran out of steam early.  I apologized to Mitchell, who was behind me, for falling off.  I was hoping he would pass and latch on for a free ride with the 4 guys ahead, but he stayed with me instead and played my wingman throughout the rest of the ride.  Did I mention that Vince did Park 4X the day before?  God, I'm a wuss.

For the rest of the ride, it was just Mitchell and me making our way up the climbs together.  Mitchell never even faltered throughout, took the front on some of the climbs, and even gapped me a little on Vista early on, so he was definitely very helpful in keeping the pace up. We didn't see anyone in front or behind us for the rest of the ride, so we were definitely left to fend for ourselves.  I did sprint up the last climb on Vista gapping Mitchell and kept him off only for him to come up behind me just before we made the left to San Joaquin.  He even took some strong pulls down San Joaquin and on McArthur, keeping our pace pretty respectable.   Again, thanks, Mitchell!

Shannon, Jeremy, Vince and Todd were already at the gym when we got back, and Vin and Jaffe came in not too long after Mitchell and I did.  For the most part, it looked like today's ride was basically split in groups of two.  I guess that's how it goes sometimes.  In any case, what matters is that we got a great workout, right?  I only wonder how tomorrow's TT training will go.  I better start eating some humble pie this evening. 

Thanks for the training, gents!

Triple BB Trainer with Mr. McGee

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/82911609

After yesterday's race, which was only a total of 9.4 miles, my legs felt thrashed, and I can't imagine Shannon's being any different.  Race miles, even a short one, can put some sting in your legs simply due to the level of sustained intensity throughout.  Despite this, Shannon and I opted to get some more TT miles in today during lunch, although merely by coincidence since we never discussed it beforehand.

We decided to do triple Back Bay since 1) it's a great TT course and 2) it's friggin' too hot to ride inland.  Even this route presented an average temp of almost 90 degrees, so I can't imagine what a Portola run would have been like.

Shannon told me beforehand that if I gap him to go ahead and keep going and he'll work his way back up to me if he can.  While we worked together to head toward Back Bay, I did get a little ahead of him where we pretty much ended up doing the first part to San Joaquin solo.  Shannon caught me just before that street and we took turns making our way onto Jamboree, PCH and eventually the trailer park bike trail.

When we got back on BB drive, Shannon pulled ahead and I opted to try and keep up outside the draft for some good training.  At some point, I was thinking maybe this wasn't such a good idea and thought maybe I should just speed up to latch on.  However, that idea pretty much went out the window when I realized I couldn't make any ground on him at all.  We did see Jaffe on the way through hoping he would turn around and latch on, but I think we were both moving a little too fast for that to happen.  Jaffe should be able to attest to the sizeable gap Shannon had on me as we past him.

Shannon had maintained the gap even to the top of BB and ultimately to the beginning of the climb up Jamboree.  I was able to make it past him during the climb, but we hit a series of light after light where the two of us pretty much stayed together all the way to PCH and back onto BB drive.

Once we got onto BB drive, Shannon pulled to the front and offered a lead out.  I graciously refused and indicated I wanted some more wind time and I'll try again to match his pace.  No sooner than I said that did I realize that I may have made a BIG mistake since Shannon started to hammer and this time pull away all the way past San Joaquin and through the first significant right curve in the road.   If he kept that pace throughout, I'm thinking it would have been like the TT we did yesterday where he would pull a David Copperfield and disappear.

Fortunately for me, he slowed to recover after the curve, which allowed me to catch up to him and take the lead.  I called out as I passed, so he took off again behind me for the chase as we made our way to the top of Back Bay for the final pass.  On the climb, Shannon sprinted by me where all I could do was watch as he got onto the sidewalk ahead of me.

We hit a little bike traffic on the way to University, but after we cleared it, we took off for a fast run all the way to California.  I kept the intensity up on the climb up California, mostly to burn off some junk I ate yesterday and to make up for lost miles, so I was gasping for air at the top.  Shannon came up behind me breathing calmly probably like how rides should end where one day, I'm just going to have to learn this.

Overall, it was a great TT training day with Mr. McGee.  Thanks for coming out, Shannon!

Hwy 73 Time Trial in Hesperia

Strava:  http://www.strava.com/activities/82680234 (Shannon's)

When Shannon brought up this race earlier this week and how he was planning to do it, I just couldn't resist.  1) It's been forever since I've been out on any event with Shannon and 2) it was a time trial and we get to use our time trial bikes.  Despite not knowing anything about this race, these two reasons were enough for me.  I guess this took the place of Tom's Farms TT due to some construction on the road where these used to take place.  That doesn't really say much given I've never raced Tom's Farms TTs either.  HAHA

Driving out to this race, one of the first things that came to mind was why would anyone want to race way the hell out here?   I was certain we'd be able to gamble legally after the race if we wanted.   The town we drove through seemed pretty desolate, so it's even a wonder how the location for the time trial was chosen.  You're also misled to believe that the race may be on smooth roads as there were a lot of resurfaced roads as we were driving in.  However, once we got to Arrowhead Lake Road that leads to the start point, the roads started to show their wear.  Oh great.

Arriving at the start point, it was basically just some cars and trucks pulled over to the side of the road with a couple tables setup for registration and also a porta-potty.  Shannon got a nice spot under some shade, but the temperature was a little cool upon our arrival.  Registration was quick as it took just completing race form, paying, getting our number and being assigned to a class.  Shannon had signed up for CAT 4/5 but I ended up signing up for Masters 45+.  I didn't really think about what class to sign up for as the lady just said to me "45+" to which I responded yes.  In a way, I was glad because I thought signing up in the same class as Shannon would just mean one more person ahead of me.

Since we arrived early enough, Shannon and I got to get out and do a dry sighting lap through the course.  This came in handy just to know how some of the turns were going to be since they did caution us about one spot where entering it too hot may be dangerous.  After all, it was NOT a closed course and vehicles were sharing the road even while we were racing.  Wha?  We found the road to be a little rough but manageable for the most part, and the course seemed like there were two climbs with one at the start of the way out and the other toward the early part of the return.  After each of these climbs, however, were some pretty fast descents...especially on the way back.  The tricky part of it all was trying to figure out how to ride the course in terms of when to power up and when to recover.  In the end, we decided we would just do what we can and try somehow to manage our power accordingly.

Now for the race....

Shannon had signed up just after me, so he was scheduled to leave 30 seconds after me.  I knew based on this that it was just a matter of time before he caught me, so I told him to let me know when he was coming so I can make sure to give him space.  They didn't have a starter to set you on your bike to take off while clipped in, so we everyone had to start with one foot down.  This, along with trying to make sure I was in the right gear, totally had my mind consumed with just trying to make sure I was ready to go once I rolled up to the start.  Sure enough, starting off had my gears changing unexpectedly as I wasn't able to get it in the right gear from the start and I missed the first couple crank rotations before finally being able to get my right foot clipped in.  Sigh.

Once I got going, I was already in chase mode as the guy who started in front of me was on a road bike.  There is a short climb right away that I decided to stay seated for where I watched the power number spike right away, but once I got over it I started making my way quickly to pass the guy in front of me.  When I did, I took another look down and saw that my Garmin had actually turned off by this time.  I was so focused on the gear and pedal at the start that I totally forgot to start the damn thing.  Craaaaapppp!!!  From this point on, I felt like I was navigating blindly.

As best as I could, I pushed on but at some point during the climb, I started feeling like I was in the red and getting deeper fast.  I ended up dropping to the small ring at some point and may have even gotten down to the shortest gear just to try and recover.  One guy had already passed me who seemed pretty legit, and as expected, Shannon came by offering words of encouragement as he made his way passed me too.

I was able to pick it up a little, especially as we were getting close to the descent where I wasn't too far behind Shannon.  I didn't want it to be believed that we were riding together so I rode more toward the middle of the road just to ensure that I was not in his draft.  Knowing that the road wasn't closed, this had me looking back a time or two to make sure I didn't get taken out.  On the straight section of the descent, I was able to make my way past Shannon again but that didn't last long and he was in front of me again by the time we reached the turnaround point.

Shannon had a good turnaround and gapped me immediately.  I could still see him ahead after I turned around, but there was definitely a lot of road between us.  The climb on the way back is reminiscent of the backside of Live Oak (the side that comes from RSM), and I was trying a little harder to not blow up a second time and have Shannon continue to pull away.  As we were reaching the top, I had actually closed the gap a little and thought to myself how I think once I hit the crest, I should still be able to see Shannon.  However, upon doing so, I was amazed that Shannon was just gone.   I thought I'd peer around a corner and be able to catch a glimpse of him, but no luck.  I'm surprised I didn't hear a sonic boom when he took off.

I did manage to reel in one more guy (making for almost 4 passes during the race), but I just came in behind him in the finish line.  Shannon was already turned around and heading opposite of me on the way out, so I knew he killed it.  In the end, Shannon had beat me by a good minute and 18 seconds.  Believe me, folks.  I had no visions of glory in believing that I even had a chance to come close to Shannon here.  Too much power and too much climbing.   He ended up taking 2nd in his class with a 23:45 time and although I took 2nd in mine too, there were only two people in my class.  :)  I still got a ribbon though.

I'd definitely like to try this race again, and hopefully with some idea of how I'm doing from Garmin perspective.  I'd still prefer a flatter TT course, but if I get to race with Shannon or any of the others, I'll take what I can get.   Congrats, Shannon!

Team Morning TT Trainer - Lighting up the Irvine Streets and Trails

Strava:  http://www.strava.com/activities/81721161 (missed last 11 miles!)

A true testament of the advantage a TT bike gives over a road bike would be how a monster like Galen ended up picking one up today after riding with Shannon, Todd and me this morning while we were on our aero rigs.   Effectively, I think he was finally convinced after trying to take a turn up front and giving up on more than one occasion.  I don't mean to call the guy out or anything, especially because I'm sure he can make me pay for it and more, but someone who's done a solo 23.7 mph average on a 25 milers on his road bike and humbled by today's ride speaks volumes about the TT aero advantage.  Of course, the company he chose had a lot to do with it too.  :)

Todd started us off on California and was already hauling ass down the hill with Galen in tow.  Once on the bike trail, Galen took the lead first and usually this means hold him out for a while until he can deplete some of his aggro-ness.  However, I came around and pushed passed him early and everyone else started rotating as well.  With how fast we were going on the bike trail, I just knew we were going to get some serious Strava bling here and there.

Every one of us kept pushing all the way up to Portola, which resulted in a 24 mph average to the top.  Keep in mind that Strava measures the average for segments based on total time vs. moving time, so yeah...it was definitely fast.

Shannon took one of the last pulls on Portola and although I tried to relieve him, I just wasn't able to right until we got close to the very top.  Once we got on Portola, he was telling the rest of us to go on.  We weren't sure why and tried to have him come with us, but he didn't end up doing so.  Thus, the three of us ended up going on by ourselves.

When we took off, I lead us over to Jeffrey where Todd and I rode side-by-side for the longest time as we made our way to Irvine Blvd.  Galen had gotten in front of me after a while, and the both of us lined up behind Todd as we made our way to the left turn.  We all kept the pace up on Irvine Blvd and offered each other relief at the appropriate times. 

When we got to Alton, we picked the pace up even more and had a great run toward Barranca.  I knew it was a good run since I was on my top gear and still pushing a pretty good cadence on that stretch. 

This continued on to Barranca and ultimately onto Laguna Canyon drive.  It was at the intersection of Alton and Laguna Canyon where I inadvertently stopped my Garmin missing out on all the bling that Todd and Galen reaped after this point.  Bummer.

We had to slow up a little as we got onto the bike trail after the Sand Canyon circle due to an old timer and a lady on the trail, but we got going with Todd at the helm shortly after passing them.  We did opt to take it somewhat easy on this trail because it's a little hairy being on the aero bars and going through the dips, but we were still moving nonetheless.  Galen came around and relieve Todd at one point, and I opted to come around and bring the pace up knowing all the dips were gone after.  Galen must have thought I was going for the segment as he yelled words of encouragement to me as I passed.  Ummm...I was just passing to take my turn.  :)

Todd led us up on University and eventually onto and up the first part of Ridgeline.  What I like about Todd leading is that his pace is so rhythmic and not too erratic where it's perfect for drafting behind even on TT bikes.  Thus, Todd led us to the first rise where I ended up taking the front just as the hill pitched up.  I think I may have slightly gapped the guys a little by doing so, but they were right behind me again as I hit the 2nd part that pitched up.  Both Todd and Galen passed after it flattened out a little where I jumped on right after.

We were a little cautious going through Turtle Rock and Sunnyhill, but we started pushing more once we got on Shady heading toward Bonita Canyon.  We had a real good pace as we did so, which may have discouraged any sprints to the bike trail if anyone was thinking it. 

When we made a left to Bonita Canyon, Todd took the front and gave another monstrous pull where I was caught sleeping a little at the light requiring me to close a pretty sizeable gap.  I was happy to be on my TT bike though, so I was able to be back on Galen's wheel just after NPC.

We really pushed after going under the 73, and this was evident with the KOMs that Todd and Galen acquired.  Todd never stopped pushing to the end, and I was barely able to catch him as we neared Bison to finish the ride.  In the end, the Garmin's were showing a 24 mph average for the whole ride.  That's about 1 mph faster than our ride on Friday, which had more people.  TT bikes are fun!

Great workout today, gents, and glad to be on such a strong team.  I'm seeing the word "redemption" in our immediate future...more specifically during the January timeframe.  Go team BRCM!

Lunch Ride - Tired, Are Ya? Ain't Nobody Got Time for That!

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/81558540

What a crazy day on the saddle.  I had sent out the ride and route notification a day earlier only to have Todd indicate how he couldn't see the map.  When I sent him a different link to the map, which happened to be one to a ride he did last week and posted on Strava, he responded with "Regroups at Starcrest and NPC?"  I did respond with OK and was kind of glad for this given my legs felt like junk from yesterday's run.  Of course, having mentioned this before the ride probably gave Todd (and Vince) incentive to breakaway early.  Who'd have thought they wouldn't honor the regroup points?  Sigh.  I'll come back to this....

It was a fairly good sized group with Jeremy back from surgery (with more aerodynamic ears), Todd, Vince, Vin, Adrian, Hiroshi and Jaffe.  Now Hiroshi and Jaffe also did coffee crew this morning, and I'm not sure how I feel about that.  Obviously, doing both rides should be considered impressive and deserve props, but does that mean our lunch rides are getting too easy for them?  Hmmm....  Despite their morning outing, however, they were definitely still in the mix today, so for this I will give them props for sure.  Props!

Jeremy, despite his little hiatus, still did the stand-up thing and led the group out.  I was behind Adrian, who was behind Todd, on the way out, when Todd decided on Anteater he wanted to break away already.  I'm thinking...doesn't he have the advantage already given today's ride is hilly?!?  No one really reacted early on and as a result, Todd almost made the light to turn left to Bonita Canyon with out.  Vince picked it up and got the rest of us going through the light but also started to break away immediately after making the turn.  Adrian went with him, so the two weren't too far away from Todd while the rest of us gave chase.

It was after making the left that I thought I'd take the front and try to keep the gap manageable behind Vince and Adrian.  When we started nearing Campus, Jeremy came around and decided he was going to close the gap for himself and catch the two ahead of us.  I kept my pace steady, however, and eventually had the other guys get ahead of me as we made our way toward Turtle Rock.

As we approached the light to turn left on Turtle Rock, Todd, Vince, Jeremy and Adrian made it just ahead of us where it just wasn't safe for the rest of us to go through...so we stopped. What's the big deal anyway?  We're suppose to regroup at Starcrest, so.... Once the light turned green, I figured there was no need to chase since 1) catching Todd, Vince and Jeremy on the hill from that far back was pointless and 2) did I mention there was suppose to be a regroup point at the top of Starcrest?

Vin took the front early on and led Hiroshi, Jaffe and myself up.  I took advantage of riding behind them figuring I'll make it up later.  It was on Starcrest when we caught Adrian, and when it pitched up some, I made my way to the front and unexpectedly (wink wink) gapped the rest of the guys behind me.

To my chagrin, I got to the cul-de-sac where we were suppose to regroup only to find that there was no one there (can you just see Vince and Todd laughing as they read this?).  Of course, this sparked a little fire from under me and I took off hoping to catch them somewhere along the way.  As I was making my way down toward Turtle Rock via Ridgeline, I see Jeremy doing circles trying to figure out where everyone was given he, too, expected a regroup. We decided to take off together after them, and after slowing for the first stop sign after making the right turn, it was good to see Hiroshi, Jaffe and Vin up with us again.

From that point on, Jeremy and I were just taking turns working the front as we made our way down Shady and onto Bonita Canyon.  On NPC, he and Vin got going ahead of me, but I started accelerating on the hill toward them where I called out to Jeremy to come with me...so he did.  We ended up breaking away from the others and hoping the catch the two guys in front of us.  Once we got past the 73 offramp, I could see Vince and Todd near the top and was hoping that that we would be able to ride with them after the regroup point on NPC.  Of course, after getting to the top and not seeing them up there, the chase continued.

Jeremy and I were working together and I was hoping it was enough to catch them.  However, it seemed we were catching light after light on San Miguel and San Joaquin where it almost seemed futile.  At one point, Jeremy mentioned how it would be cool if the guys behind us caught up to work together in Back Bay, but they just missed the light on McArthur toward Back Bay that may have given them a chance...especially with the lights we kept hitting.  At one point, I thought I saw red jerseys on the San Joaquin/Jamboree intersection so I sprinted off hoping to catch them only to find that it was just a figment of my imagination.  Sigh.  Jeremy probably thought I was trying to snap him off when I took off.

When we got on Back Bay, there was still no sign of them and we were both taking turns pushing pretty hard.  As we neared the sprinter hill to the top, a cop decided to pull to the left of another car that had stopped literally blocking the lanes of traffic for us.  Jeremy and I had to check up a LOT just to squeeze between the two vehicles and then be rewarded with a climb up the hill with absolutely no momentum.  Thank you, Newport Beach PD!

After having to perform a complete and safe stop at the top, make our way across, and start heading toward Jamboree, Jeremy led the way.  I was still a little amped about the road block, so I stood up and started making my way to the top.  Jeremy fell a little behind, but he was able to make the left turn light with me onto Bison.

Once on Bison, I saw Vince and Todd at the McArthur intersection at a red light.  I started hauling ass at that point hoping that the light would stay green but just before I approached it turned yellow and red where I had to stop and only be able to watch the two guys ahead of us ride back toward work.  Bummer.  Jeremy and I looked back to see if the others were going to catch up, but we were all alone and made our way back to BRCM together.

In a way, you have to kind of see the humor in getting ditched based on my expectation to take it easier anticipating regroup points.   I mean...what was I thinking?  HAHA.  Ultimately, I think we all still got great workouts and that's really what it's all about on these lunch ride, right?  All I know is I'll not be caught sleeping again if Todd/Vince come out on a ride.  They're sinister.

Team Morning "Cruiser" Training Ride - Yeah, Whatever....

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/80499544

I looked up the word "cruise" on www.dictionary.reference.com and found some pretty interesting definitions:

- to travel about without a particular purpose or destination.
- to fly, drive, or sail at a constant speed that permits maximum operating efficiency for sustained travel.
- to travel at a moderately fast, easily controllable speed: cruising along the highway enjoying the scenery.
- to move slowly through or visit (a street, park, bar, etc.) in search of a sexual partner.

If you don't believe the last one, look it up and tell me I'm lying.  The things you find on the Internet....

Anyway, I can't seem to line up any of those definitions, ESPECIALLY the last one, with how our last couple rides have been.  I mean, I've heard the words cruise or cruising used to describe what one might anticipate as the pace, but I'm thinking now that we actually have our own definition.  When you hear the word "cruise" in an e-mail inviting you to ride with team BAM, think Tom Cruise as in Top Gun.  Why?  Because "We feel the need, the need for speed."  I really need to stop using movie quotes....

For this morning's "cruise" ride, team BRCM's power crew, consisting of Shannon, Todd, Vince, Galen, Mitchell and myself, were in full effect once again not having tortured one another enough from yesterday's lunch ride.  Sure, there were talks of taking it easy in the locker room, being tired, it being too early, blah, blah, blah, but sure as shiz, all of that went out the window upon the first crank rotation on everyone's bike.  I will say that Vince, being a new daddy and all, did legitimately look lacking of sleep, but welcome to fatherhood, son.

When we took off and started heading down California, Todd took the lead and already started amping it up from the get go.  I was in the number 2 spot, but as he was pulling away, I turned and looked back at the others pointing out to the guys, do you see this?  Then again, it was nothing new.

When we got going on the bike trail, I'd say the pace was pretty fast as it required a little sprint to latch on to the guys who made it on ahead of me.  The rotations were pretty smooth and everyone (except Mitchell, which was fine) was putting forth solid pulls.  It seemed at one point that for each pull, the next guy would try to outdo the one before, which has BAM written all over it.  Or maybe it was just what I was thinking....

We saw one guy coming the opposite way on the bike trail with a light on looking legit, and as he approached we realized it was S-G coming in on his morning commute from the train station.  You go, G.

As we started to head toward Portola after Harvard, Vince wisely decided to skip the rotations with Mitchell in his weary new-father state.  The rest of us ensured that we kept the pace up taking turns and picking up where the other left off as best as we could. That speaks volumes considering the company.

As we made our way onto Portola together and still intact, there were definitely some outstanding efforts out there in terms of pulls.  Shannon had a notable super-pull on Irvine Blvd, and Galen and Todd had some on Jeffrey or Alton.  Vince was getting back in the mix here and there and took some super-pulls himself in his now commonly seen TT posture (hands over the handlebars).  And despite the speeds we were reaching, at some points extending over 30 for a good duration, Mitchell stayed with us the whole time for the most part.  Pretty legit wingman (another Top Gun reference) if you ask me.

As we made our way to Laguna Canyon and onto Quail Hill, Todd ended up making the light just before the Sand Canyon circle but the rest of us checked up.  Fortunately, Todd didn't opt to play rabbit (as it would really have gotten nutty) and waited for us on the bike trail.  Once we got moving on the bike trail, we were once again MOVING.  Todd led us out to the straight, and Galen and I took subsequent pulls after.  Then, from what seemed like a football field distance away, Shannon decided he was going to launch a marathon sprint to the bridge.  Galen jumped on his wheel and was yelling out words of encouragement along the way helping Shannon to secure a #2 spot on the Strava board for that segment.  Todd didn't react, and I figured I wouldn't either only because I knew Ridgeline was still up ahead of us.  Of course, Vince asked me after "you didn't want any of that?", to which I responded "Nope, I'll save it for the Shady bike trail."

As we started heading up Ridgeline, Mr. Jacobs set a great pace and I had his wheel where we were all climbing together in harmony.  After it pitched up, I took the opportunity to "relieve" Mr. Jacobs and attempt to lead the rest of us to Turtle Rock together as a group.  After getting past the 2nd part that pitched up, Todd sprinted by without so much as saying "thanks."  Even Vince thought it was a little rude.  HAHA.  While expecting that we needed a regroup point on Turtle Rock, it was hardly necessary as everyone was pretty much together by the time we got there.

We rode together back to Shady, and Todd once again was leading us up the hill.  Galen and I were behind him respectively, and I think it was at one point that Galen tried to wave me on.  Now I'm a trooper and all, but I had to answer that with a resounding "I can't" because I didn't have anything at the time.  Galen let Todd know he was going to hold him out to the top (at least he was polite about it and let him know, right?), but I did opt to relieve Todd once I was actually able to do so.

On the descent, I can't really remember who was up front and what our positions were, but I do remember Vince sprinting by at one point toward the bike trail opening.  I think I've let Vince down on my sprints lately, so I had to give it a go just as I said I would back by the 405.  Vince had a good gap, but I was able to close and pass hopefully restoring his confidence in my sprinting abilities.  I got cooked in the process, but whatever....

When we got on Bonita Canyon, everyone wisely decided that McArthur was the best way to go back simply because this seemed like one of Galen's favorite "haul ass" sections.  Ain't nobody got time for that.  When we got going, sure enough the pace was pretty tough and I asked Todd and Galen to rotate in front of me at first just because I was still struggling to recover.  It was good that Vince was up there helping to keep the pace up as well, so I got back in the rotation once he rolled out.

Everyone was pretty worked but keeping the pace up nonetheless, but Shannon decided he'd launch one more interval just before getting on McArthur.  I remember coming around from behind Galen and thinking "God, please help keep me from passing out."  It was nonstop madness all the way back to California with the final numbers for this route being 31 miles at a 23 mph pace according to my Garmin.  Strava knocked it down a couple ticks like usual to 22.8.  It's those damn immobile ducks we had to slow down for on Portola TWICE that did it, I tell ya.

The only thing that would have made this morning's ride better is a nice cold hoppy drink after, but I had to settle for the rest of the coconut water I had put in my water bottle for today's blazer.  Good enough.  It's great to ride with such amazing riders, I must say, and I'm already looking forward to the next one.  Thanks for coming out this morning, gents! 

Lunch Ride - The Super Stacked Edition By Way of the El Moro + NPC Route

Strava:  http://app.strava.com/activities/80346740

Given the heat lately, I had sent out an e-mail yesterday wondering if anyone was even going to make it out for a lunch ride today.  I even mentioned that IF we did go out, I was good with "cruisin."  Who'd have thought that the ride would be as loaded as it was today with Shannon, Todd, Vince, Galen, Adrian, Mitchell and Vin coming out?  I had even forgotten my water bottle in my car and was just going to wing it without it, but once I saw these guys rolling up to get ready, I got dressed quickly and rode over to my car and picked it up.  It would have been suicide otherwise.  I will say that it was nice to have Vince back from paternity leave, Galen coming back out on a lunch ride, and Mitchell also leaving the comforts of his air conditioned office and return to riding with us again.  Woo hoo!

Todd got us started heading down California, and like a trooper, pretty much led us out most of the way to Back Bay.  I know I wasn't in a hurry to get up front with this crew (even having told Mitchell I'll stay in the back the whole time), but that's only out of respect for the amount of power I expected would be generated from today's ride.  Think nuclear....

The rotations began slightly before the drop down into Back Bay, and we were off!  Now the head/cross winds were definitely upon us as we rode down, so having achieved a ~25 mph average definitely took some good strong pulls.  At first, I wasn't sure if everyone was going to push up to the front today, but Mitchell, Adrian and even Vin pushed up to bear the brunt of the winds.  Not all pulls were equal (you can definitely tell when the power monsters were up front) I must say, but a pull is a pull is a pull.

The pace continued on and everyone stayed together as we made our way to Jamboree.  I had darted up after it was clear not expecting to separate from the others, but I did.  Let me just say that this is never a good thing to do with this crew as it just incites some to want to "return the favor" at a different part of the ride.

When we got on PCH, we started the rotations again and Avocado seemed to come up pretty fast.  We made our way toward Fernleaf (that steep hill) together, and half-expecting that others were going to rush up the hill, I took off and gapped the others again.  Yep...another stupid move on my part.  I slowed at the top and then pointed out some eye candy walking across the street ahead of me at the intersection hoping the others would forget that stunt.

When we got going on Ocean, Shannon took the front and kept us moving at a pretty good clip to Poppy.  Needless to say, admiring the local scenery on a hot day like today was not on the agenda.  Bummer.

We got a little bunched up as we were making our way onto PCH, and sure enough, being at or near the back was definitely not the place to be given the major accordion affect.  I don't know if this was caused by Vince or Shannon, but regardless, it hurt!

We got stopped at a light before hitting the long stretch, which was a great way to catch our breath, but another rider who was ahead of us made it across and seemed like he was working hard to keep a good pace.  Once we got going, however, we made our way passed him in no time given that our group had the strongest guys out there.  The other rider was able to latch on and stay with us, albeit never pushing up to help keep the pace up, but we had enough people working already anyway. He even turned around with us once we reached El Moro, so I guess he was having fun riding on the Team BRCM super choo choo.

As we started nearing NPC, most of us were preparing for the long climb, but Shannon had other ideas.  He took off, and you hear Todd saying "don't let him get away" or something to that effect.  My thought was, is this something we can actually control?  HA HA

When we started climbing up NPC, Todd and Shannon were just ahead of me, and I was able to just get behind Shannon before the first Pelican light.  Now I could swear I looked up just before entering the intersection that the light just turned yellow, but I saw Shannon check up and stop. Having seen that no one was behind me, I kept going.  I wasn't too far behind Todd, but when I got caught at a red light that he was able to get through, I knew he was gone.

Shannon and Galen rolled up at the light with me, and once it turned green, I tried to keep a good pace going up but good wasn't good enough to keep up with Shannon.   From my vantage point, it seemed like he was making some ground on Todd.  I was working on my off-the-seat climbing and was doing good where every once in a while, I'd check behind and see that Galen was with me.  When I dropped down to my seat and spun up, however, Galen's earlier training got the best of him and he dropped off.  I got to the top to an awaiting Todd and Shannon, and Galen, Vin and Vince came up shortly after.  Vince, being vince, kept going, so after looking down the hill behind us and not seeing anyone, we opted to wait no longer and continue.

When we got going down NPC, Todd led first followed by Galen.  Now since I was on a standard crank today, I took the front hoping to bring up the speed to a highly respectable level.  Leave it to Shannon to pass me and serving me some humble pie simultaneously.  I spun up even more to try and match his speed but we were arriving close to the underpass.  We were still moving pretty fast as I made my way across the right turn lane thinking okay...I'm moving fast again only to have Vince pass me on my left.  Todd and Galen eventually passed me too, and I was just able to latch on as we made our way to the bottom to regroup.

On Bonita Canyon, I believe Todd or Shannon started us off, and the reason I didn't really know was because I was focused on the fact that I was behind Galen.  Galen seems to LOVE this section, so I was not looking forward to relieving him after he pulled.  However, when I did, he gave me instant kudos, which is always nice to get.  Shannon relieved me after, and sure enough brought up the level of instanity to where I wasn't sure I was going to be able to hang on anymore after a few more rotations.  Vince gave me the spot ahead of him, and I guess he was done at that point.  He expected he'd be off the first 1-2 miles originally, so not too shabby after a couple weeks off.

I barely hung on and eventually got to rotate back to the front one more time as we made our way to Bison.  I may not have though and it could have been just from being delirious and believing I helped.

As for a sprint to California, I thought about contesting it but when I saw Vin pass to take off, I really didn't feel the need to show off my sprinting prowess given how easily he got passed the last time.  I'm sure he believes otherwise, so who am I to crush his dreams?

It was a great turnout today with outstanding efforts by everyone.  I know they're talking about riding in the morning tomorrow, but let's just see if my legs will be up for it given the beating they took today.  THESE are the kind of lunch rides I love and hope to be a part of more often.  Thanks to everyone who came out despite the heat!

Lunch Ride - I Expected To Go Solo But Always Enjoy BRCM Company

Strava:  http://www.strava.com/activities/80098455

Although unspoken and definitely unplanned, Mondays and Wednesday have been days when some of us would get out on the TT bikes to do some training.  I had expected today to be the same but was pleasantly surprised to have Shannon, Jaffe and Hiroshi make it out today to join me on their road bikes.  Being I was the only one on the TT (aka cheater) bike, I would go ahead and take the front being 1) it was safer and 2) it IS a cheater bike.  Plus, at the speeds one can hold on these bikes, everyone could still get a good workout.
We opted to do triple BB as the cooler (temperature-wise) route since it's closer to the ocean.  However, I think a 97 degree average temperature isn't really considered "cool."   A Portola run would have cooked us for sure.

I was interested to keep us together as much as possible, but I knew Back Bay would probably be the hard part for some.  I was mindful not to take off right away once we got on the bike trail on University and even after making the right turn down into Back Bay, but after that I went into TT mode.  It was a little windy on the way out, so the average speed by the time we got up to PCH was only about 23.6.  Shannon, as expected, stayed with me, and Hiroshi (from all his CC riding) was there too.  Side note...Hiroshi is doing the Nautica Tri this weekend, so kudos to him for opting to come out with us and keeping up for the first pass.

As we went through the bike trail by the trailer park on our way for the 2nd pass through Back Bay, we saw an awaiting Jaffe making a U-turn upon our approach.  I called out to let him know I was going to pass him on his right (given he was riding on the left lane - ahem), and he latched on after we passed.  As we exited the bike trail (and on both occasions), there was cross traffic both times.  I did slow down, but I'm sorry to the guys behind if it seemed unsafe and wasn't enough...I tried.

The reverse pass through BB was definitely a lot more fun.  From a distance, we could see a decent sized group riding together ahead of us.  We seemed to be reeling them in little by little where I thought we would catch them before we got to the top of Back Bay.  They may have turned it on a little toward the end, but we still managed to see them at the top of Back Bay upon our arrival.  Too bad they turned right.

I led us up Jamboree and was trying to hold a decent pace, but Jaffe coming up beside me made me realize I could actually go a little faster...so I did.  Thanks for keeping me honest, Steve!  We pushed ahead and timed and made the first 3 lights, which includes San Joaquin.  We did get stopped at the following light, and after taking off from there Shannon gets a flat.  He got the flat fixed after a 2nd inner tube (much like what happened to me on Saturday), thanks to a crusty 5 dollar bill that Jaffe offered up to help cover the cut on Shannon's tire.

When we took off, we managed to catch green lights to PCH so we were back on pace in no time.  The pace was not as high going through the trailer park again, but by the time we got back on Back Bay drive Shannon and I were alone.

We started going again and seemed to have even a better pace on this last pass back.  Some time after we got passed San Joaquin, Shannon's BAM kicked in and he passed where he really brought the pace up (34-35ish).  This was despite having some shifting issue where I believe he ultimately had to drop it to a shorter gear just to keep it from jumping.  In any case, I latched on somewhat and was definitely working much more than I'm accustomed to when I'm in TT mode.  Doing so allowed me to keep the pace up once I passed him again to take the front, which resulted in some Strava bling for me in that section in the end.

Climbing the top of Back Bay after that pace was definitely more difficult than the last time, but when I saw a cyclist just ahead of me, I started to pick up the pace again as we headed toward University.  I was able to catch up to him just after the Jamboree underpass only to realize it was Ron Chan.  I kept the pace up all the way to California where Shannon came in just seconds behind me.  I would say that's impressive, but come on...it's Shannon!

Going up California still needed to get done, so Shannon started the pace up and I followed and eventually led us to the top.  It was definitely a great workout, especially considering the heat.  Maybe this can spawn a regular TT training session for us moving forward and put forth our best outing at the Stagecoach in January if we ultimately end up deciding to do it again...maybe...hopefully.  All I can say if we do is this:  Make no mistake, it's not revenge we're after.  It's a reckoning.  (Tombstone - 1993).

OG Crew Coastal Ride

Strava:  https://www.strava.com/activities/79624018

It was a year ago today when S-Gary had his accident and broke his hip.  Thus, when he suggested an anniversary ride of this event, I considered it a celebration of his recovery and hoped that it would kick off his return to where he could once again be a constant fixture in our lunch rides and regular events.

As an added bonus, it was nice to have Shannon back from his Maui trip and raring to get back out on the bike.  He's always good company on rides, not just for being a workhorse, but also just always having the very thing you need (aka bike McGyver).

We all agreed to do a non-race pace today to help being Gary's base miles up.   His last long ride was about 40 but in the absence of BAM company, so a 60 miler was the plan.  I was more than fine with this given my near death experience on Saturday (massive dehydration) , and I'm sure Shannon having just come back from vacation didn't want to do any more than that either.  It was going to be a true team ride where no one gets left behind but everyone gets a great workout.

We rolled at shortly after 7 and were surprised that the weather was actually quite pleasant...a little cool even.  The only problem was the fog and the headwinds here and there, but overall it was definitely a better day to ride than Saturday or Sunday.

We had a great warm up on the way to the bike trail that heads down to Doheny where the rotations started.  It was like old times rotating with these guys...smooth and timely.  We held a good pace all the way to San Clemente where we came up on some other cyclists who I thoughtay want to mix it up.  They didn't.  

We kept the pace up with only a few BAM surges here and there as we made our way to Dan Onofre State Beach.   We took a quick bio break once we got there, and after rolling out got passed by a group of other cyclists.  At first, we didn't jump on as they seemed like they passed us at a pretty good clip, but after we started accelerating on our own with Shannon pulling us, we rolled up on some of them and eventually their front group.  While we were going to take advantage of their draft, Shannon had indicated that they seemed to ride rather erratically, so we dropped off and did our own thing.  Sure enough, they were again stopped in front of us and even blocking the trails and making u-turns that It was obvious Shannom had judged them correctly.

We rode on through the base where Gary was wanting to manage his output to make it for the distance of the ride.  This, Shannon and I took turns up front and worked together to get us all to the McDonalds to take a break.  

When we took off to head back, it was nice that the weather was still cool...maybe a little too cool but still better than unforgiving heat.  We made our way through the base and the state beach seeing more people going the opposite way the the way we were heading.  It was a good ride back, but I did end up getting a flat just after the protected bike trail that lead away from down town San Clemente.  Two spare tires later (Shannon, I owe you a spare tire and Co2), we were off. 

The headwinds on the way back seemed pretty gnarly, but we still managed to keep a solid average all the way back.  61 miles for all of us...perfect.

When we got back, we tossed back some beers and this is truly the part I enjoy.  Doing a lot of solo riding lately, drinking while my kids watch the ABC family channel isn't the same as doing so with the guys.  We got to talk about future rides and stuff, so I'm hoping this will be a stepping stone to more group riding in the weeks to come.  I'm really looking forward to this....