What a glorious day!!!

When I made the drive down the hill, I was stunned by the beauty of the day. The air was so clear, I could see all the way to Big Bear. To make the view even more astounding, there were beautiful, high, delicate clouds.

I had to go into Santee for an appointment at 11:30, so I cut the ride short, as did Deanna, Christina, and Larry. We rode up Dehesa Road descending the steep, exciting South Grade. Along one stretch of road, we went over 40 mph.

Wow, what a day for a ride

This October has been hotter and drier than any I remember and today was another hot day, but it was perfect for our morning bike ride. We took off from the parking lot almost on time, but Pete wanted to secure my GPS unit better, so the two of us fell behind at first. I caught up to the group, but lost them again and so I pedaled by myself except when Deanna joined me for a short while.

The Dehesa hill went by easily today because I was talking to Christina most of the way up that grade that is perfect for pedaling and conversation, unlike some of the grades going up Harbison Canyon where I can only huff and puff like the character in the wonderful French film "The Triplets of Belleville."

We stopped at the Starbucks and visited for a long time before heading back down through oven-like heat, even during our fast descent on Dehesa Road at 36 mph. Here is the profile of our ride:



After the ride, Steve, B.J., Tom, and I visited at the RSD Starbucks and I even braved some conversation about politics, in particular, Proposition 8, a proposition I feel is mixing religion with government, something that shouldn't be allowed . . .

A "little" ride to Jamul and back

I needed to exchange something at the hardware store, so I decided to ride the Gios Torino down to Jamul and back. Getting there was great fun, but getting back up the hill, sometimes at less than five-miles-per-hour, was a struggle. Without the extra gears my old mountain bike, and my newer road bike, have, I really had to pedal hard, something that probably wasn't that good for my old knees.

Here is the profile of today's short ride.



I had trouble with the eggbeater pedals again today, so I'll switch out those pedals and try out the Shimano DuraAce pedals I got at the Velodrome Bicycling Swap Meet a week ago. I can do that now that I exchanged the too-big allen wrench at the hardware store for one I hope is the right size . . .

A very quick Saturday ride

The Bike Buddies group was sponsoring a race at the Velodrome, so only a few people showed up for the Saturday ride including Steve, Rich, and Fax. A few others on the "A" team were also there, but they were doing the "Great Western," a ride from RSD up Dehesa to Japatul Valley Road to Lyons Valley Road and then back to RSD down Skyline Truck Trail and Jamul Dr.

I had my "Vintage" bike, but even with my other bike, I couldn't have gone on that ride, not unless I wanted to ride by myself, since there is no way I could have kept up with Pete and the others.

So, after visiting for a while in the Ralph's parking lot, our little group finally got started. I had a hard time with my Crank Brothers eggbeater pedals and the cleats on my new-to-me Sidi Mountain bike shoes.

We only rode to the top of Dehesa Road and back down, so the profile is quite dramatic.



After the ride, Steve and I recovered by having some tea and coffee outside the coffee shop. He told me about his friend Angel who has a motorcycle shop in National City and who knew the real person Anthony Hopkins plays in the wonderful movie, "The Fastest Indian in the World," a movie I highly recommend to everyone.

A shorter ride than usual up to Alpine and back

It was a beautiful, warm day for our ride today. We went up the steep road through Harbison Canyon and right through Alpine to the Starbuck's on the east side of town. During the break, the conversation took a political direction and I was distressed by some of the things that were said . . .

This is the Profile of today's ride.

Another ride all the way out to the white church

My second ride with the "Bike Buddies"

It was a warmer day for this ride than it was last Saturday, and that was welcome. Here in San Diego, we are fortunate to be riding in mid-October wearing shorts and short-sleeved jerseys. For that I am very thankful.



When the weather really turns cold, I wonder if I'll be as excited about getting up at 6:00 on a Saturday morning to go for a bike ride . . .

A little different ride around and back from Alpine

Another ride up to Alpine and back

My first Saturday ride with the "Bike Buddies"

This was a short ride just up to Alpine and back. I rode with Larry, and his wife and son. Frank usually joins them, but he was in St. George, Utah preparing for a Senior Olympics bike race, a race he won by one second!!

Another ride out to the little white church

My first ride through Bonita and around Otay Lake

Another ride up to Alpine and back

My first ride out Highway 94 to Otay Lake