"Back In The Saddle Again"?

SUV tire where it rolled over my helmet!

At home I would soon start going over to the "little gym" and spin on their stationary bike. It had a few settings like: Endurance, Climb, Sprint, Long Distance, etc. I would sit there and spin till the program ended. Maybe a couple times a week. Also walk over to a small park across the street and soak up the sun.

Was back on the road bike soon enough, with a ride here and there to get things sorted out. The first real rando Populaire was the easy Coffee @ Peet's on October 4th and that took a while. Legs seemed OK, except the right knee. Right shoulder was the problem, as I couldn't lift it. There goes out of the saddle work.

Mike Trone & Keith Olsen check Madison.

Later that week, also started riding a few more Populaires, including 11-City Loop, Walkin The Dog and a few others. On one ride I was chugging up Torrey Pines and Rando Dave Nocolai pulled up and started chatting. Soon it was "have a good ride" and off he went. I couldn't keep up with my shadow!

First longer 200Km route was University Loop on the 25th. My would ride a a "controlled slo pace".

John & I finally did manage to pick up the Madison from the Sheriff's Substation. Front end was a bit mangled up: Open Pro wheel was bent, headset seemed jammed in there and the hoods and seat were ripped up. The steel held up OK. Took the bike over to Joe @ Nytro to access the damage.


- randorides

"The Lights Are Out, The Party Almost Over!"

Kelly in ICU for several days

Writing this in retrospect after I got home, my body was beat up. I had the normal cycling injuries plus a few more: 9 breaks total including the Scapula, ribs, a few vertebrae and several other bones. A couple of jumbo hematoma on my shoulder, hip and side of knee. The SUV tire rolled over my head, fracturing the jaw and eye orbit. The left hand was buggered up also.

I was rushed over to the new Palomar Medical Center in Escondido. In the ER, they stopped the main bleeding by stitching up both eyes, my hand, arm, leg and icing down the hematomas. I managed to get a nurse to call my rando buddy, John Mestemacher at home. He went over and picked up Zaharah (who was doing an outside event at the San Marcos Senior Center).

Busted up left werewolf hand

Several hours later, I was up in Intensive Care Unit. I hung around for 3 days and received great care. Zaharah was there all day and John stopped by after work to check-up. Didn't seem my legs were hurting too bad, so I was anxious to get up moving again. They had enough of me by this time and transferred me down to a regular room (floor 4) They are all "private" rooms in the new hospital and it was nice. Unfortunately it was near the nurse station and sleep was a premium. I finally convinced them to keep the door closed so I could finally get some sleep.

SUV rolled over my Giro Helmet

Doctors were waiting for things to stabilize before jaw surgery. They had to put a plate in there to keep things together. Had surgery in the morning and all was well. Dr was an upbeat LaJolla Plastic Surgeon and liked loud music. Another day of rehab and I was released the next afternoon. Less than a week at Palomar Center.

John picked me up in his Element. We swung by the San Marcos Sheriff's Substation on the way home to see if the Accident Report was available or I could pick up the Madison from evidence. No to both. Once home, I could get out in the sunshine for some exercise again. I managed to set up the bike trainer in the garage and was soon trying to spin that in some semblance of exercising again. 


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North To South Brevet & The Big HIT

San Diego Top To Bottom 200km Route

Sandy had a organized Brevet today... his 200km down to Imperial Beach and back to Oceanside. I didn't like the entry fee or the whole day out, so I opted for a 130km populaire starting in San Marcos. I'd ride the route over to the College Ave. start and join up with them down to Torrey Pines before cutting off and finishing up the route.

I had been riding the Madison SS of late and had just done a new recon out to Pine Valley on the 22nd (Old Barham Town To Pine Valley #3160), several populaires each week & dusted off the Ursa Minor(#2084) & Rainbow 1.24(#2376) this last week on the blue single gear. Feelin' good, I left home early under nice weather and 2 layers up top.

I met Sam near the College Ave. McDonalds in Oceanside around 0600. No one around the big parking lot, so Sam checked the revised start location on his cell. Just down the street near the SLR Bike Path at Mace Buchanan Park. I handed Sam back some Cygolite cables and rolled down the hill ( I had borrowed cables to try to get my Cygolite 720 to work on the fly with external batteries. Sam's model 800 works but my #720 never did ). Sam wasn't riding today.. had to prep for a trip back to Indiana on family things.

I handed out some 10-paks of SDRando Cards to a few riders, chatted around and paid attention to Sandy's route instructions. I rode with Lisa N. and Osvaldo C. as we hammered along the SLR toward Oceanside. Several riders missed the Market control near downtown. I backed off and soon Hector joined up after Oceanside. I left our small group at Carmel Valley and headed Eastward. After a free banana stop near Camino Del Sur, I was pushing good as I arrived back in San Marcos on So. Rancho Santa Fe Ave.

Rolling northward, just after a green light intersection (San Marcos Blvd) and a slight downhill, a SUV abruptly turned
right, crossing the bike lane into the 7-Eleven. No signal, no warning, no chance! I was near 10 feet behind the SUV and couldn't turn left due to traffic flow. I eased the brakes, yelled and thought about jumping the curb. NO. The SUV did a slight curb hop into the driveway, so no chance there either. LIGHTS OUT!

Accident Scene: SUV dragged me some distance from the bike

I quickly realized people were buzzing around me.. a fireman and a off-duty nurse took charge. Ambulance only a few minutes away. Cover me up with something, stabilize my neck, keep me calm. I was lying in a puddle of fresh blood as the SUV driver came over and stated: "Sorry, I didn't see you". A San Marcos Sheriff soon arrived, cleared out the driver and took charge. A few minutes later, I was loaded up and on my way over to Palomar Medical Center in west Escondido.

Then the tough-stuff really began!

- randorides

Ursa Minor Rear-Ender, Curb Hop & Brush Fire

Ursa Minor 209km route we rode today.

We'd planned on doing Ursa Minor Permanent with rando George Retseck from Pennsylvania today. George was out in San Diego doing freelance illustration work and needed a 200km to continue his R-12 quest. I wired up the local randos for interest and Keith Olsen from Point Loma along with John Fry (San Marcos) were good to go. George sent me a last minute email indicating his work was piled up and he couldn't squeeze in the ride.

Bill Stevenson showed up at the 7-Eleven start in San Marcos. He'd ride with us over to Carlsbad and then ride home with other morning commitments. Bill is training up for his long awaited 2-week Italian cycling adventure. Keith was riding his new hi-end fixie, John his rando titanium and I on the steel Madison. Recently, Keith and I had upped our one-gear flip-flop training for longer future rides.

Shortly after 0600 we rolled out to overcast skies and temps in the high 60's. Short sleeve weather for sure. I was spinning a good warm-up with a 18T in the rear as we sped over to Del Dios Highway. Lots of traffic moving our way this morning on the way to work in San Diego land. Bill upped the pace on the rollers leaving Rancho Santa Fe town. Right on time, Mac Imacseng met up at Solana Donuts at 0715. After a short bottle reload and some chit-chat, I did a quick flip-flop to a 16T and we were off.

On the bridge pedestrian overpass shortcut, Keith picked up one of my plastic bar end plugs. Made good time chatting up thru Encinitas to Carlsbad, where Bill headed eastward toward home. Soon Mac was feeling hungry so he made his turn-around stop at the Carlsbad Starbucks. Just Keith, John & I making our way thru Oceanside.

Keith made an unannounced stop at a yellow light and me, riding just off his wheel, plowed into him. Buggered up a few right side ribs, skewed left brake lever and dropped a few things on the road. Turning car ran over a gel pack & that loose bar-end plug. After a short band-aid break, we were soon off northbound again. Bikes on I-5 are good-to-go, so we all jumped on that route instead of thru Camp Pendleton. John hadn't been along this way before and seemed to enjoy the pseudo tailwind. A brief water stop at the Rest Area and we were soon into the Las Pulgas turn. I-5 bike shoulders were clean, smooth and fast today.

A few campers out as we rolled thru San Onofre Campground and stopped at the last bathroom (#1). I tried a curb hop and didn't make it. Skewed the rear rim enough that I had to do a quick half-ass re-alignment to eliminate the rear brake rub. Wobble wheel and I joined the others up Old Hwy. 101 to San Clemente. Lite car traffic as we passed thru town and onto the protected bikeway to Doheny State Park.

When we saw this sign it meant one thing: GO CHECK IT OUT!

The last few months, San Juan River Trail  had construction detour signs at the far east end, entering San JuanCapistrano. Today we thought we might see how far we could get along the Trail. Passing around the detour signs, we did manage to get another 1/4 mile up the Trail before being blocked by active heavy equipment. Instead of following the detour signs, we backtracked and ended up at a Dana Point McDonald's for our break. Keith had his usual Kid's Meal Deal, John a gel covered sundae and I hung around sucking my ice cream cone. Had some time to pull the rear brake calipers off & packed them into my bag. No need to worry about the wobble-wheel rubbing the brake pads now.

Easy riding with a half tailwind on the way back to San Clemente. I did manage a decent climb up thru town with the aid of a Tylenol to knock the edge off those sore ribs. Made good time back to the Campground bathroom #1, where I took a few minutes to true the rear wheel a little more. We were all looking forward to the SB I-5 route today.

Not to disappoint, it was smooth and clean to the Rest Area. After which we did dodge a few bits of tire pieces. I was spinning up while sucking John's wheel as Keith was a few meters up the road. At the Harbor Drive regroup, we decided to swing by Dan's Auto Shop for a water break. He was real busy and the parking was full of Marine Corps vehicles waiting to be serviced. 10 minutes later we were back on route heading east with a nice tailwind. Keith was way out ahead as John & I were chatting away sort of enjoying the tailwind on the way toward Bonsall.

At the AM/PM, first thing I did was flip my rear wheel to 18T before refilling the bottles. A little busy there this time of day, so I got the cheapest thing going: 43 cent cookie. I stretched out as John was helping Keith flip his rear wheel. Soon we were off with tailwind riding on Camino del Rey.

Gopher Canyon fire, looking west from above Lawrence Welk Resort

We noticed a lot of fouled traffic above as we passed under I-15 and onto Old Hwy. 395. SMOKE! Large billowing clouds of white smoke ahead as we climbed southbound on 395. Traffic was snarled here, with fire trucks and police cars zipping in and out of traffic. They already closed Gopher Canyon Road and will they close 395 too? A super long detour if they do! We crept along the bank of cars watching the air tankers & helos attacking the white clouds ahead. Passing thru one smokey area, I figured it only could get better ahead. Grinding away up Champagne Blvd. counting passed cars and watching the firefighters doing their thing on the hillside to the west.

Deer Springs regroup at the top. After that smokey stuff, we were more than ready for some downhill easy riding to the finish in San Marcos. Slight headwind didn't deter us as we powered up for the final few miles. John & Keith had their R-12 for August and I had my skewed rear wheel to straighten out*. Keith offered up a Costco Ensure for recovery and I was soon off homeward bound.

Nice of Bill to show up to get in a few miles today with us. Mac is always interesting to ride with as he dreams of retiring someday and entering cycling nirvana! Weather was cloudy the entire day till we headed eastward from Oceanside. Temps were only elevated when we entered the fire/smoke area and started the Champagne Blvd. climb.

-randorides


* Wheel update: After I got home, never did get the wheel to true-up correctly as it had tweaked on the curb hit and left red paint on the tire and rim. I ended up stripping down the wheel and using the clamp-pull method to slightly straighten out the stiff aluminum rim. After a re-lace, I managed to get the wheel spinning true and did a 82 mile rando ride after. Lucked out on saving that OpenPro rim ~!

Mule Hill To Black Canyon - Cervelo C5 Test

Had an opportunity to check out the Cervelo C5 "Endurance" bike for a few days. Joe Morgan @ Encinitas Nytro Multisport set it up as a "test ride" during the week. The C5 is the latest and greatest Endurance bike from Cervelo... loaded with all the Dura Ace Di2 electronic shifting, HED wheels and of course a full carbon spread weighing in at 15.3 lbs! Sounded like a chance to catch some dirt riding and also test out a fast bike.

Cervelo C5 set up rando style

Monday, on the return leg of a Rando route, I stopped off at Nytro in Encinitas to pick up the Cervelo C5. Joe switched over the bottle cages from my Fuji Stealth Carbon ride as I was transferring over the seat bag & Garmin mount. Tires were Conti GrandPrix, same size as my normal Gatorskin Hardshells...28mm, so my repair kit/tubes would work OK, just in case.

Joe took some time to explain how the Di2 "button" shifting worked. Said it would take about 10 minutes on the road to figure it out. The Fuji was stuffed away on a hanging rack in the back of the shop. Forty-minutes after arriving, I was off on the Cervelo C5 to finish the Rando route back to San Marcos. I noticed a few things right away, namely the ease of shifting and the pleasant ride quality, even with higher air pressure in the tires.

I had planned to do a nice long ride on Tuesday, but after checking out the C5 at home, I figured a Tuesday night ride was in order. Being a "Test Bike", it was dirty... the chain still had the factory "cosmoline" and several layers of chain oil on top of that. After several cleaning tries, I opted to get my Park Chain Cleaning Gizmo out of retirement. Easily pulled the wheels with the slick MTb type thru-axles and did a full detail clean job with a final coat of Pledge.

Modified fanny-pak bar bag

Finally satisfied, I now needed to figure out a handlebar bag to carry a few things up front. My regular rando bar bags all had a rigid brace attached or were too big, so I came up with a idea to chop down an old fanny pak and sew on some double sided Velcro! This took me forever with the double leather sewing, but I finally finished up. Next up was mounting the GoPro and Cygolite. I was also testing a new battery pak for the light, which would fit nicely in the new fanny handlebar bag.

I rolled out of San Marcos around 5:00 PM and took the Inland Rail Trail to Escondido. C5 rode great over the root-errupted Bike Trail and I managed to catch several sections of dirt. Temps were on the rise as I checked in at the Mule Hill Chevron Station for a start receipt and a ice fill-up. Time to start the RUSA official "Mule Hill To Black Canyon" route # 1191.

Temps were still hot as I rode fast on the easy Mule Hill Trail. Not many people out this late in the afternoon. C5 handled the lite sand well as I had lowered the air pressure to 70/80 psi. Several patches of deeper, soft sand proved a wider tire would have handled much better than the 28's. Soon I was off the dirt and grinding up Highland Valley Road. Really needed another rear cog or two on the double-digit climbing. 11-28 was doable, but I was hot and cooked by the time I crested the last hill. Good thing for downhills and fading temps. The last miles into Ramona were quick and cool.

Black Canyon sunset selfie

After a short stop at our favorite rando JIB stop, it was full bottles and side streets to miss the downtown evening traffic. Not to worry, as the last turn onto Black Mtn. Road produced less cars and more climbing. Road quickly turned to soft sand laced with washboard riding. C5 seemed to soak up the bumps much better than my carbon Fuji did. I was soon gagging on the dust from a passing pickup. Thanks guys! No place to pull over with the soft shoulders, so I just covered my mouth with a damp rag. Mostly 6% climbing as the road got better toward the top. Nice fast downhill to the bridge while the sun was setting.

Loitering around the Historic 1913 Bridge offered a few nice photos and I was soon "lighting up" for the dark climbing ahead. My USB/Battery Cygolite was plugged into a 16800 mAh battery pak for the night ahead. All my reflective gear in place, time to get serious about this night gravel grinding stuff. Only one truck passed me later on the way to Mesa Grande. I pulled over as it passed slowly with no dust storm. Welcome relief! More washboard as I neared hard surfaced Mesa Grande Road. Spent a few minutes at the mailboxes before smooth riding eastward and down the fast, curvy road to Hwy. 79. Only one car along the way. Construction signs were up denoting "One-Lane Traffic Ahead" into Santa Ysabel. Flashing signboard indicated daylight hours only! Don's Market was a quieter relief.

C5 at Mesa Grande Control

Lots of lights but nary a parked car at this hour. I opted for some 25 cent/gallon water from the machine. Big mistake, as it was awful warm! Nothing turns the body like electrolyte in warm water. Next time it's the outside tap. Temps were now down to mid-70's as I looked up at the star studded sky. I quickly adjusted the Cygolite for a further-out beam for the upcoming speed run toward Ramona.

Whee was all I could say. Only one car passed and maybe I met 6 others on the way. Plenty of light, nice handling bike and super grippy GrandPrixs made those miles a lot of fun. At night, everything seems faster than it really is.

Short stop at Ramona AM/PM. Been thinking about a bottle of Vitamin Water. $2.49 Nope. Gatorade...$1.89 Sorry. Opted for a Big-Gulp Gatorade for $.99. Filled one bottle and drank the rest. Guy at the counter said it's all overpriced. Temps were now hoovering around 75F. Just right.

Mule Hill To Black Canyon route map

I was feeling good now for 24-sleepless hours. Had only one GU Gel and two bananas along the way. A few hours ago, I was crawling up Highland Valley Road in the heat. Now it's time for some cool payback! Nil traffic, smooth riding and just a few little bumps made the end of the route pleasant. I worked those nice hydraulic brakes real good on the downhills, especially the last twisting descent into San Dieguito Valley. Took is easy on the last few miles of dirt trail, as I kept seeing eyes and little critters running about. Guess the coyotes were looking for a late lunch? Pulled into Chevron as the clerk was a little confused why someone was riding this late (early?). Final water fill and I was off to San Marcos via the Inland Rail Trail.

After a good cleaning, I re-lubed the C5 chain with my usual Beoshield T-9. On Thursday, I rode another Rando route and joined up with the OFR Gruppo for a few miles. The next day, I rode the Cervelo C5 back to Nytro, my "Bike Test" complete.

In the few days, I managed a little over 300 miles on the Cervelo C5. Overall, it handled well, took the sting out of the bumps and the shifting was something else. Hydraulic brakes were superb. All said, it was much better than my present carbon rando ride. I could never get the Fizik Antares Saddle to adjust comfortably, but that could be easily remedied with your favorite saddle.

Check out the Route Video for more C5 & route details:


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Crusin' The OC - Bike Path Heat Adventure

Crusin' The OC-Bike Paths route.

66F when I rolled out at 0430 today. Caught the Sprinter train over to Couch St. in Oceanside. Then a few mile warm-up with ample time to check the Pier. Around noon today, the RAAM Teams will set off for their cross country race. Wouldn't that be nice to do some day? That's way out of my reach. Maybe a RandoRAW route would suffice instead?

Chatted with Point Loma Keith in the parking lot, before the group started off. Mel Cutler came down from LA yesterday for the ride. Sam Thomas from Fallbrook, Dan Phillips with ride in from his Oceanside home. Troy Buss from Carlsbad was to meet us up in Dana Point. After lots of chit-chat, we rolled out at 0600, anticipating a warm riding day in inland Orange County, CA.

Passing thru the Marine Base, traffic was nil. Much different than at the same time on a weekday. Stopped off at San Onofre Campground bathroom #1, the last one northward. For some reason, this one is always open year-round. Trestles Path brought the usual multitude of surfers carrying their boards. Watch out for those swinging tail rudders!

San Clemente town was a pleasant ride thru... guess it's still too early for the coffee shop dwellers on the main drag thru town. Temps were really nice as we passed thru Doheny Park parking lot/bike path. Sam pointed out where he went down after hitting a speed bump a while back. OUCH! Troy was waiting at the Golden Lantern intersection. We opted for a Dana Point bathroom break, where Keith took forever. Next up was the short, steep Cove Road.

The gruppo soon made it's way along the overview bike path. Looking down on a few new beach homes under construction. $5mil and up there! After a short loop-around, the route hits Salt Creek Bike Trail. After leaving Sea Terrace Park, this skirts a nice golf course as it climbs inland. If you're not familiar with all these bike paths, it's best to plug the route into your Garmin type computer, or you might miss a turn.

Keith lost one of his lenses somewhere. Maybe you'll find it?

We were soon off on Niguel road for a short downhill run before turning into Irvine Park. They have a lake there called Sulfur Springs. Must be some history there with that name. Soon we were on the Aliso Creek Trail headed northward. Moulton Pkwy. took us to the JIB Control stop. Mel loaded up with a jumbo egg sandwich, while the rest of us were loaded and ready to go. Keith had lost one of his lenses somewhere while putting on his mirror... great photo-op there!

After a slash on roads, we jumped on San Diego Bike Path westward. Not even close to the city of San Diego, so don't know why they named it after the San Diego River Channel? Harvard Ave. took us northward again on Como/Peters Cyn Bike Path. Made a loop over to Irvine Trail, which eventually led us to Jamboree Road. Then it's a climb up to the 1/2-way point at Chapman Chevron/Subway Control.

Several TT cyclists there hanging around in the shade. So did we. Dan wasn't feeling that great and opted to leave early for the long haul down Santiago Cyn. Troy, Sam & I soon followed suit. Keith & Mel left later. Temps were supposed to be real warm today, but with the breeze, didn't feel that hot. We had a lengthy regroup at Cook's Corner. I managed to ride over and get some footage of  "Harley Town".

Aliso Creek Trail is a nice downhill ride, passing over several bridges and lots of shade on our way southeast. We exited the Trail near Laguna Hill High School and after a climb or two, made our way onto Forbes Trail. They have added a new section of smooth Bike Path. This soon leads cyclists to believe that they can miss all the local traffic and the Mission Viejo Station. Not so, as I re-conned the Trail to dirt and a big fence! Regroup at the local shops. where Sam pick up some caffeine/nuts & Dan water to wash away his stomach problems. Keith & Mel rode past on a mission. We soon followed and joined up again on the San Juan River Trail. Next stop was Dana Point.

Dan wasn't feeling it at Cook's Corner, but came on strong later!

Now well over 100 miles, we said our good-byes to Troy at Lantern Park. and soon flew on the Bikeway toward San Clemente. Sam had thoughts about jumping on wheel of a electric bike, but backed off. Group made good time thru the heavy traffic of San Clemente town. The race was on after Trestles, as Dan was getting his legs back again. I chatted with a guy riding a MTB near San Onofre Plant. He used to be really large, but for years I would occasionally meet him riding his bike from San Clemente down to Las Pulgas 3x per week. He since has lost lots of fat and has a new MTB!

Final regroup at Campground bathroom #1. We watered up and told a few stories. Then it was off to the races toward the finish. I rode with Mel as we made our way thru the Camp and back to Oceanside again. He stopped off at the LaQuinta Inn to pick up his bag before hopping the next Metro Train back to LA land. After a little little chat with the Randos in the parking lot, I was off back to San Marcos.

The day wasn't as hot as the forecast predicted. With a light breeze and afternoon clouds, the ride was quite pleasant as temps only reached the mid-90's.

Route Video

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FIX MY BIKE Populaire-RAAM Start

Route map for our Oceanside start, FIX MY BIKE Route today.

Today was rando Sam's birthday AND the start of RAAM/RAW riders from Oceanside on their hard quest to Durango, Colo OR Annapolis, MD. I thought it might be a good idea to combine an early rando route with the RAAM send off. Last year we did a similar ride and managed to just barely make the RAAM start at noon. A little wiser this time, the route was changed and we did a reverse course this year. Arrived back in Oceanside before 11:00, which gave us plenty of time to browse around in the pits.

Rando Sam Thomas had a birthday today... Flag Day too! Joining Sam were Keith Olsen from Point Loma and John Fry from San Marcos. Of course, I was there too, with GoPro & old Canon PowerShot hand-held camera to catch the action.

 The temps were perfect for riding today. Sunshine would have been nice, but overcast followed us the entire route.
Sam set an early birthday tempo, blasting down the coast @ 20mph, leaving a wake of passed riders and ladies on cruiser bikes. Welcome stop at Solana Donuts. They only have Red Velvet on Saturdays now. Bummer. Sam grabbed some donut holes and I a cake donut to eat along the way.

Massive traffic after Rancho Santa Fe. Cars heading to the coast and work in San Diego. Glad we were going the other way today. I rode with Keith up Del Dios and past the dam. Water was all green with springtime algae growth. Not looking good at all. Back way into San Marcos for a stop at our favorite 7-Eleven. Too bad no bathrooms there for randos. Keith managed to dump water on the sidewalk to feed the ants, while he poured a double RedBull into his bottles. Hope that helps!

Managed a few action shots of RAAM riders at the Pier.

We did take the climbing way to Bonsall via N. Twin Oaks Valley Road. That was peaceful enough. Not so with Gopher Cyn. Road and increased traffic. Sam blistered the pace and we were quickly past all that and on the quiet Little Gopher Cyn. Road. Later on we did manage more easy hi-speeds along Hwy. 76 to the San Luis Rey Bike Trailhead. A stop a Mance Buchanan Park for water refill and time for a photo-op of our bikes.

Keith set up the first pull on the Bike Path westward with John doing the latter damage into the finish. I did manage a few nice shots along this section which I included in the route video. After the finish, we went over to the RAAM Start at the Oceanside Pier. The pits are the best place to be pre-race. Riders & crew are buzzing all over the place. At noon, it was over to the starting line to watch a few solos and teams leave the pleasant temps for punishment in the desert. I left a little early to ride down to Encinitas to get a new Shimano 6701 bike chain. (Of course, back-ordered again!)

Sam looked like he had a good ride. Later he was going out to a movie with the Ms. Nice way to spend a birthday! Keith & John hung around for a while, before heading home and prepping for our scheduled hot Permanent ride up thru Orange County on Saturday. (RAAM Team Start Day too!)

Ride Video With A Few RAAM Hi-Lites


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