Busted In DeLuz Permanent-R

Busted In DeLuz Garmin Stats

A little foggy for the ride-in to LaCosta. Left the Circle K at 0700 and hit the coast easy like. Only picked up one racer going north and tagged along to Carlsbad. Met Michigan George at the O'side Pier at 0800. We rode the O'side Bike Path all the way to Hwy. 76 and jumped on for the quick ride to Bonsall. Since we were doing the "reverse" route, no real jumbo climbs on the way to Rainbow and Temecula.

Took a short break at Carl's Jr for Ice Cream Sandwich(cheapest thing they have for receipt) and headed the back way around up to Rancho California Rd. Did the DeLuz Road under perfect weather. George kept saying the weather was so great... He's here for a month from Michigan, that's why!

On the backside of Sleeping Indian climb, George ran out of gears on the shortie 15% climb. He kept saying he had a 11-28 cluster on the rear. That didn't look right, so we stopped at the SLR Bike Path and I check it out... SRAM 11-25! No wonder he was gassed! Back to Nytro for a real 11-28. Just under 100 miles. George said he never rode this long in decades. He's feeling good on his new Scott carbon.

I left George near his daughters home in O'side and picked up a racer guy on a Masi Carbon hammering south. He took off and was keeping ahead at 25mph. Young dude with cargo shorts. After he was cooked, I went around him before LaCosta Ave and told him how fast he was. He said "It was really fun"!

At LaCosta finish, I took off and went the back way via Rancho Santa Fe climbing back to San Marcos before dark. Ultegra 6701 chain is stretched out 1/8" already. Re-lube with Beoshield with quiet it down some. Prob. need to rebuild new 13-30 cassette too. Front chain ring doesn't look too great either$ Seems like stuff only lasts a few months anymore.

-go figure

North County Club Ride

North County Cycle Club meets every Saturday in San Marcos

I had invited Michigan George to ride with the North County Cycling Club on Saturday. I met George last week along the San Luis River Trail riding into O'side. He was out from Michigan to stay with family while his daughter gave birth. He may be here till mid-January, depending on what happens.

He actually showed up on his son-in-laws FELT. I figured I would introduce him around and ride a bit... nothing too long. Maybe 15-18 riders showed, due to 'iffy" weather earlier overnight. We grouped up with Bill Stevenson and Mike Shaw. Riding the longer route, we somehow got out in front and kept on hammering. George seemed to enjoy it and was riding well. Back home he rides during the week with a group for 30 miles so anything longer is a real treat for him.

A few mile after the Bonsall regroup, I cruised off and rode over to Performance Bike in Oceanside to check out deals before riding back home. Weather turned out to be just right.

-randorides

Pines To Cactus Brevet

Dan, Bill & John at Monty Overlook

Nice guy John M. drove out to the start in Pine Valley via I-15, Hwy. 67 and around Lakeside as a shortcut. Didn't miss any turns and got there at 6:15 for the 7:00 AM start! Enough time to ride around taking a few shots and even ride up Hwy. 80 for a warm up! 46F at start time.

Nice group at the start. I knew some of them and a few new faces to me. There was another group there and I later learned they weren't riding with us, but doing another shortie route. Mike Shaw and Sandy Ayala were supposed to ride with us, but I later learned they showed up 20 minutes late. Lots of chit-chat till we crossed the bridge and started up Pine Creek Road. The group broke up early and I was sort of riding with Amy, John, Bill and Dan Phillips from O'side. Tough to keep up on a 19% grade when you are taking pictures in the low clouds.

Wind was howling at the turn onto Sunrise Hwy. as the clouds were blowing by. Mostly side winds pushing us along into Julian and down Banner Grade. Sun was out now and temps gained 20F from up above. Big tailwind as we cruised at 23mph into Tamarisk Campground to strip and get local campground news from the rangers. Nice push up Yaqui Pass and into Borrego Springs. Passed Amy at the Pizza Place as we went further along and stopped at our normal Gas Station/Mart. Temps were around 79F as we started the climb up Montezuma Grade. I remembered a few years ago when John and I were right here climbing up at 1 AM and it was 31F. Horrible night as part of the Die Hard Double we met up and rode with Joseph Mauer from San Fran. area.

Bill, Dan & John at Ranchita

Ranchita was -19F colder than down in the desert, as we met Amy at the store. We all packed on the layers as the winds were kickin' butt here. Nice easy ride down to San Felipe Rd and up to the summit before the nice long downhill to Scissor Crossing. Met 2 riders there on the way to the Stagecoach Store for control stop. Took our time there and then reversed course and hit Banner Grade. Got a few nice video shots on the way up. We stopped by the roadside to check out Amy, who had a rear derailleur problem. We cleared that up in due order and she was off to the races.

John, Bill, Dan and myself stopped at the Cozens station in Juian for final layering before making good time through the Cuyamacas and back to the finish. On the last downhill into Pine Valley, I hit a massive hole in the road while racing Dan and got a snakebite flat front and rear. Hell, I rode 'er in the last few miles and called it a day. Got a overpriced choc shake at the PV Restaurant and chatted with Dennis and others a bit.

Overall, not a bad ride at all. Sandy and Mike made it in OK. One rider had broken spokes, another mechanical, so their rides were cut short.


Informational video of the entire route:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPy6IOIa0Yk

-randorides

PIE Ride (Camels To Yaqui Pass Permanent)

PIE Route plus Camels To Yaqui Pass Route

John M. drove us out to Ramona to start the Camels To Yaqui Pass Permanent. We'd meet up with the OFR Thursday riders at Santa Ysabel and ride with them part way before branching off and going down to the Borrego Springs. Rare chance to ride with John on a weekday!

Damp, foggy and cool in Ramona when we left around 6:30 AM. Fog was off and on heavy as we wound our way up Old Julian Hwy. By the time we reached Hwy. 78, it had cleared and the sun warmed us up a bit. Temps near 50 as we rolled into Santa Ysabel at 8:10 and mingled with the North County riders who were getting ready for the ride. Good time to hit the head and take a few pre-PIE ride snapshots. A few riders arrived late, so we waited around before rolling out well after the announced 8:30 AM start time. 19 riders made up a nice group.

John preps up at cool, damp Ramona start

Great photo ops riding up the Mesa Grande climb under bright blue skies. Coolish downhill to Lake Henshaw and a regroup at the bottom near Hwy. 76 and the biker bar. I took some nice pace-line photos and video rolling down to the Hwy. 79 turn. That section to the Hwy. S-2 turn is real tight with traffic as there is very little bike lane outside the "fog line". Had a nice regroup after the turn and chatted with several drivers who were pulling trailers to the desert. Bill Stevenson, John Mestemacher and I turned left to Ranchita at the junction. The PIE group went straight up to Teofulio Summit and a long 10 mile downhill to Scissor Crossing before the climb up Banner Grade. They regrouped at the Banner Store before riding up to Julian and the nice downhill back to Santa Ysabel. Judy Richwine had a flat on that section and no one noticed. She later got help from some Harley riders and got on her way. They ended up with a nice 55 mile loop with nice weather.

The rando trio rode up to Ranchita and then down the FAST Montezuma Grade. Today there was no wind, which made the descent half-way safe. We had a nice break at the station store before the long trekkie climb up Yaqui Pass. Of course we had some cross wind near the top. Stopped at Tamarisk Campground. It is now open. We chatted with the rangers there and got the latest update. Never liked riding the next section of Hwy. 78 to Scissor Crossing. It gets real tight in the "narrows" with no bike lane. This is direction you want to avoid on Sundays when the "desert rats" are going home.

Frenchie and John chat at Campground

We also stopped at Banner Grade at the store. I got some water around the left side at a hidden fountain. Never did find the "perfect" gearing for that climb. Lots of tourists having pie in Julian as we rolled through on our way to Santa Ysabel. Bill left us here and loaded his bike up. John and I finished the Camels To Yaqui Pass Permanent and arrived back into Ramona before November darkness set in.

This is a ride the OFR Thursday Group does every year around November.
They start at 8:30 AM, every Thursday at Magee Park in Carlsbad, CA 

Good time and nice weather too!

Here is an interesting video of this route on YouTube

-randorides

MTB For Rando Bike-Packing Routes

Cannondale Trail 29'er SL4 - $1000 retail

Here are a few of the bikes I've been researching. They all are 29'ers, have 9 speeds, hydraulic brakes and are the lower end of a series. The same frame is used in much more expensive bikes, the difference being in the components. Looks like one of the main differences is in the front suspension. Of course they all have lockout forks, some have rebound adjustment. Some of these seem real heavy... around 32-35 lbs! Wheels and tires make up a whole lot of this weight. Even going tubeless would save over 1 lb. (2x220gm).

My present thinking is of getting the basic good framed bike, then changing out components as I went along riding and testing things out. As long as you get the same frame as the much more expensive and upgraded models in a series, there is daylight ahead.

2013 Felt Nine60 - $1029 retail

Right now the Cannondale and the Felt looks good. I may be able to get these at a BIG savings. The Trail 29'er SL4 by C'dale has a 1.5" steerer tube on the fork. This could be a problem upgrading. Would need a adapter bearing set to convert to basic 1.125 steerers on common replacement forks.

After testing on several future Rando Route trails, I may opt for a solid front fork. Two which come to mind are the Salso Fargo fork and the Surly Ogre fork. Both have a whole bunch of braze-ons and can handle tires up to 29 x 2.5". Both around $100 retail. Another good future option.

Of course, in additon to the basic bike, more money would have to be thrown at the project: Bikepacking stuff from racks, bags, bottles, holders, etc. Whew!

Motobecane 29'er - $699 - online

Motobecane Phantom 29'er - $699 delivered

Gt Avalanche 3 Hydr. - $585 -Perf bikes

Bautista Conservation Camp36 Permanent

BCC 36 logo

A tough 222km route, Camp36 hits several dirt roads on the way to and from Anza.

Some of my favorite instrumental background music on this route video:
Complete route video on YouTube.

Technical DePortola downhill

Forgotten Roads Recap - Turkey Hunter's Delite!

Garmin Stats from today's ride

RIDE RECAP:
We left Albertson's parking lot a little after 0800, and warmed up before we climbed Viejas Grade. We ended up riding together most of that dirt section. Downhill on the hard surfaced section, we did meet a rugged looking Asian chic, riding a loaded up Mtn Bike. John said she looked just like she was finishing up the Stagecoach 400 route! We regrouped at the Descanso Store, 40 minutes over control cut off time. What else is new? Store was busy.

After a lengthy stay and a few stories, we were off to tackle Boulder Creek DIRT! One 12% climb before we turned onto Boulder Creek for a nice downhill before the water crossing.. Hardly any water there, but lots of slick algae! A few more climbs and we came to the "hard surfaced roads ends 300' sign". We were noticing quite a few cars and trucks on the road ahead. Must have been a Easter weekend thing going on at Three Sisters Trail-head?

Don was riding ahead, but not to worry, for he was using 700 x 23mm tires. Not that great for downhill dirt roads. Boulder Creek surface was the best I've ever seen it! It had been graded and lots of black gravel was trucked in for fill. A little loosie in places, but quite ride-able. We grouped up with Don before the hard surface section and the creek crossing. More water there. Turkey hunter trucks are tough when you are trying to climb 14% on washboard roads and it was a little close in places. Must have been 25 cars at the trail-head. Snow white dudes were lathering up with sunscreen to impress the bikini clad soft bodied girls before they walked the trail to the Three Sisters Falls with backpacks full of BEER!. It was like a parking lot there. Temps were in the low 80's now.

One dude said he passed us and felt sorry for us, riding all that way and eating their dust.  We felt sorry for us too and we hi-tailed it out of there, pronto! More steep climbing ahead, some 14%, but the roads weren't bad at all.. for dirt! We did two regroups and climbed the last section to the Engineers Road Fire Station for cool water and a blow!

Hard surface and tree lined roads were in order during more climbing up to highway 78/79. Then off to Don's fave gas station and market in Julian, among the many touristas and bikers. Too many cars and motos at the station for Dave, as one van kept backing toward him as he was devouring a sandwich pak! Dave hit the Mtn. Dew hard, and I got a can of that too! Tasted like aviation grade gas!

We were soon out of there and took a jaunt down Old Cuyamaca Road, before more climbing toward the Lake. Good spirits for us as John pulled and I took over with a nice tailwind around the Lake and a big ring climb up to the Fire Station, where we hit the cool water at the 24/7 faucet. John led out on the long, fast downhill on Hwy. 79 toward Descanso. Quickly on Hwy. 79 and on to Wildwood Glen Lane and across the bridge.

Nice road with no cars as we hopped the gate and continued down real Old Hwy 80. It got narrower and narrower. Soon we were on a trail, which turned to a rocky path between boulders. No fence to climb this trip and some packed their bikes to the steep downhill walk to I-8. Time for tire clean and exam. Good thing. O-Man pulled out a small wire in his rear tire.

Nice downhill to Willows road and a left past the Viejas Casino, with several disgruntled loosers waiting at the cross walk. Don pulled the train into a slight headwind as we motored into the parking lot... just 17 minutes from cut-off! Whew! Crazy Dave rode in from around HillCrest, and didn't look in too good of a condition to ride back home again, so John and Don coaxed him into a co-op ride and bike lift caravan back to his house. I'm sure he enjoyed the ride home!

Another classic Saturday ride.. Shortie but toughie with 6768' of climbing, a lot on dirt roads. We saw lots of turkey hunters, Harley riders, short short hikers and white bodied college bail-outs!

Thanks to Dave, Don, Osvaldo & John for the nice "camaraderie of long distance riding" Special kudoz to Mike Berry for the route. He couldn't make it on this ride, due to a "mechanical"?

If you missed this one, see you on the next ride,
kellyjay
sandwich pak! Dave hit the Mtn. Dew hard, and I got a can of that too! It's like aviation grade gas!