Southern California - Cool Breeze 2007 ride reports

Looking forward to all your ride reports.

:beer:

i saw a bunch of them ride by as i was eating breakfast downtown.

My sad report: got up late, went to CSUN instead for a boring 60-miler.

It's like almost 2:00pm - where are some of the reports? Slackers! :p

Just Kidding! I can't wait to hear and see pics. I got back about an hour ago from an 81 miler. It was nice in the morning, but HOT as the afternoon neared. I was going to try for 100 and make this a back-to-back century weekend, but the heat wore me down. I can't wait to hear how Cool Breeze was. I bet the air was fine...at least I'm hoping as that will have meant good rides for all the little BFers out there pedaling their hearts out. :D

Woke up and went on a ride right past cool breeze, took me a second to realize wtf was going on. There sure were a lot of you out... I drafted a big group at some point, but I think they were a local club out for their ride (Hazards) because only a few of them had numbers on.

I just got back. I had a fun time. I did the DM route and did it in 6:04. It was a good course with lots of small to moderate climbs on roads without a lot of traffic. I saw some BF riders at the start, but they said they were doing the century, so I rode by myself for the most part. I would hook up with small groups of riders and would trade pulls. But for the most part I rode it solo.

hope everyone had as enjoyable time as i did.

cheers
Pat

I just got back. I had a fun time. I did the DM route and did it in 6:04.
Damn, dude, you are fast! ;) Glad you had a nice ride.

BigDraft is all bidness!

I'm not fast, but I did the century in 5:56 @ 16.9 mph avg. The turnout seemed good, the air quality was a non issue, and the temp. was great. I really like this century and it felt great to still be pulling 24 mph at mile 95. I had a couple of buddies pass, because of the air worries. Too bad they missed a great ride.

STeve

I'm not fast, but I did the century in 5:56 @ 16.9 mph avg. The turnout seemed good, the air quality was a non issue, and the temp. was great. I really like this century and it felt great to still be pulling 24 mph at mile 95. I had a couple of buddies pass, because of the air worries. Too bad they missed a great ride.

STeve

Sorry..that is fast...
I was 6:58 ..14.8avg...
I didnt make my 15mph avg goal...but what the heck..I gave it everything i had...
Overall a great day...beautiful there...nice and cool...great cool breezes off the ocean....
I rode with tpevost and vmc to rest stop, then I headed out fast...I knew I needed to keep going...
Would run into magicant, scootcore, nygirl and efficiency....I would start out with then then promptly get dropped...
However...I did hang on for great pullls, by magicant and scootcore on the 101 home stretch...
There were tons of bf'ers there..as well as a large contigent from SFVBC
Overall a great day...at least until I finished....then the **** struck...
I crossed the finish line...hung for minute talking...then mounted to ride back to my truck...my brain wasn't in gear yet...so I miss clipped and of course fell right in the middle of the finish area...
I heard major gasps as i kissed pavement...knee is pretty scraped and have chain ring puncture on the other side...nice...I am such a ****...

Ahhh...Herb. Sorry. :( You're not a ****, silly. Those things happen. But other than that, good to hear that you had a great ride. Any pics? :)

Hi,

Did anyone happen to see the Lightning Velo contingent out there? Was there a large pack of them?

I pulled into the lot around 6:15 or so. Saw quite a few BFers outside and around registration. I saw Thomson at the starting line. As I was talking to him I realized I was wearing my glasses and not my sunglasses. d'oh. Back to car! By the time I got back to the start the BF crew had gone, double d'oh, the chase commences.

I caught up with the bf peleton at the first sag. I almost skipped it since it was only 15 miles into the ride. Glad I stopped though. We took off from sag 1 and started to ride... fast. But, we were in paceline for most of the way so it didn't seem so bad.

I left Sag 2 a little before the bulk of the crowd so I could take my sweet time on the big climb and figured they'd catch up, sure enough, everyone caught up in good order and again we went... FAST

I did the same trick after sag 3 since it worked so well after 2, but didn't realize Joel was having some mechanical word done, so I wound up getting pretty far ahead riding with Asia and Sheldon. Between 3 & 4, I ran into some old TnT friends who are pretty much hammerheads. They were clearly taking it easy, but even so, keeping up with them had me going .. FAST

Coming out of Sag 4, I was starting to feel it and hit something of a wall around mile 80. I could manage the flats, but my climbing legs were gone. I dropped to my easiest gear at almost every roller and tried to make up the time on the flats.

After SAG 5. Asia, Sheldon and I hammered for about 10 miles when we split up, I was having a hard time doing anything but around 19mph at this point. Any slower and my legs started to hurt, any faster, well, I really couldn't do any more as my heart rate was pretty much through the roof as it was.

Sheldon took off ahead as he got some burst of energy and Asia fell a little back (sorry!) I wound up coming in with a another group of TnT'ers as I knew one of them in the group.

I really need to do a better job of managing my pace on these rides, less time in sag and a milder pace will get me back in fine time. I do great with it in small groups, but it's tough in large groups.

I can't get the ride uploaded from my Garmin (curses!), but it was something like 6:15 ride time and around 7:30 overall for the 102 miles. It was great seeing everyone, great ride and great conditions.

If anyone has a garmin, please post a link from your motionbased.

That is all.

Ahhh...Herb. Sorry. :( You're not a ****, silly. Those things happen. But other than that, good to hear that you had a great ride. Any pics? :)

You had to be there...but yes its true...

Hi,

Did anyone happen to see the Lightning Velo contingent out there? Was there a large pack of them?

Actually no... sorry Cleave..I never noticed any LV kits..I would have caught that for sure...but they may have started later...

It was pleasure to meet some of the BF'ers I havent met before...
chuckleheard for one....I missed meeting him in Oceanside....
Nesdog...dang your fast...
spingineer...ron your fast too....

Great to see James...matt and melissa, Lee, trac and wayne of course, bernie and everyone....this really is am awesome ride....

I was riding with my wife today, this was her 3rd Century, the others have been with Team in Training at a slower pace.

We got to reigistration about 6:30, got a chance to see Herb and the BF gang before they rolled. We rolled out about 45 minutes later. Saw Big John, several times today, and also saw Karen a few times.

My wife did great, we finished just a little over 7 hrs with an average speed of 14 mph. She did great on the flats, averaging 18-20, but she was still having problems climbing. The climb after Manning Park, I had to put my hand in the small of her back several times to help her get up the hill. People would say as they passed "how cute", a few of the ladies stated they wished their husbands would help them like that.

She has been riding less than a year, and every time we do rides like this she just keeps getting better and faster. I am sure within a year or two she will give me make me work a lot harder.

The weather today was great, no poblem at all with smoke or ash.

Woke up, got out of bed, dragged a comb across my head (be de be lah lah)..

oh sorry.

Dragged my butt out of bed at 4:30 am. Rudely woke the dog and sent her outside to do her stuff so I wouldn't return home to some awful mess (the wife is out of town so I'm the dog watcher).

Got to registration around 6 and hooked up with the BF crew. At 6:30, we were at the line and away we went.
The Bicycling Guide to doing Centuries says to start out slowly and ease into the ride. Save some juice for later on. It's my usual strategy.

Ha! Not this bunch. It was a hammerfest from the get-go! We screamed out of Ventura and out to the coastline. If you didn't suck a wheel on this stretch, you were done.

Man oh man, we reached RS1 at Rincon averaging 19.3 mph. "Oh c***. This is gonna kill me. I can't keep a pace like this!" I was thinking.

Quick turn around at the clifftops and out we went again, figuring we would take it a bit easier.

Ha! Again, not this bunch! We rocketed out of the RS. The most memorable portion of this segment was a 3 or 4 mile stretch where there was a fairly sizable group riding together. I was riding with Ron (Spingineer) and we found ourselves drafting at speeds approaching 27 mph. It was both exhilarating and a bit scary as we flew through the backroads. At one point, I became the lead rider and lasted about 60 seconds before completely blowing up.Took me a while to get any energy or air in my lungs. I felt already cooked!

From pretty much the 2nd RS on, I rode with Ronjon, Asia and others. We had easy and light hearted conversations as we climbed the foothills and descended into the canyons under sunny skies. The past 3 years on this ride, it's been foggy up there. This was quite a change. There was little of the feared smokiness we worried about so skies were clear.

After lunch, we hightailed it into SB proper, still at pretty high speeds. Along the main drag, one of the group was hit on the left side by a pickup truck mirror. Luckily, he held his position and did not fall.This was the worst section as traffic, both car and foot, was high. On one street, we had to stop suddenly as a car made some quick turns trying for a parking space. I skidded as my back wheel locked up; I should have relied more on the front.

After the final RS, Asia did a great job of dragging Ronjon and I along the 101. Asia, you are super strong! After a 4 mile stretch, we traded pulls.

We approached the last freeway overpass and for reasons completely unknown to me, my body suddenly powered up. (maybe it was the Hammer Gel I was downing in a big way at that point). I went up that little tiny incline fast! and held a very solid pace all the way to the end of the course, just flying through the bike path. I guess it's just the adrenalin firing as I know we are about done.

In any event, I passed under the balloon finish line with a Century PR of 6:06:54, overall average of 16.7 mph for the roughly 102 miles, shattering last year's PR of 6:23. This was clearly not due to any strength that I had, but rather the very fast pace set early on and the willingness of my fellow BFer's to let me suck wheel!

Thanks to all for a fun event! It was great meeting many of you for the first time and riding with you. I hope we can do so again soon!

Sheldon

Cleave, I saw one group of LV riders. There were about 12 riders or so and mostly women. I passed them about 3 miles before the Rincon SAG stop. They were flying the colors in style.

and ty merider and redal:L:

Redal, you iz da biz my friend. You've been racing well this year!!

Hi,

Did anyone happen to see the Lightning Velo contingent out there? Was there a large pack of them?I did! There were about 8-10?? of them. I asked about you, and they said you were a slacker and didn't come. No, really, they didn't know where you were.
We had a fun ride, we did a modified metric double. The smoke was never an issue, and the weather was great until the climb up Cali hill, (after the second trip to Manning Park), where is was very hot for a while. I didn't need that climb, should have gone the century route at that point. I did have two popsicles at the last stop, though. Had chicken, tri-tip, salad, vegetables, pasta, and a roll at the end. There were about 10 in our group for a casual, social ride. No stats, not even sure of the mileage, just the way I like it.

Got to the start at around 6:05 am, and met a bunch of BF'ers there. Nesdog, tprevost, vmc, herbm, ronjon, magicant, and scootcore, among others. A little later, say nygirl777, travis, and Lara. My plan was to ride with BF'ers till the 2nd stop, then ride with my friends from Whittier Flyers.

Before I start, a quick comment on the air quality ... breathable. The sky was blue, not orange. I was talking to one of the workers, and she said it was orange yesterday, but today, it was blue ... so no problems with air quality.

We rolled a little after 6:30 am. Rode primarily with Nesdog. We see Magicant and Scootcore hammering away like it was the Rose Bowl Peloton. I didn't have my Heart Rate Monitor with me, so I couldn't tell how hard I was working. All I can see is I was breathing heavily, and I continued breathing, so I was still alive (but just barely). By the time we reached the first rest stop, my average speed was 19.7 mph ... :eek:

I later found out Magicant thought Herbm was ahead of us, but instead, was behind us. That is just too funny.

Oh, BTW, Magicant was nursing a bit of a cold, so there was no singing on the road today. No "Born to be Wild" or "Wild Thing" on the ride. hmmm ... not acceptable, Joel.

Got to the 2nd rest stop, and after about half hour, my friend Mary shows up. It turns out their group had some mechanical problems. By the time we were ready to roll, it was 9:40 am.

Met up with travis and lara at lunch. We eventually hooked up, and our pack rode with travis and lara. I especially liked it when Travis was pulling. Our train was steaming through ... thanks a lot for the pull, Travis. Not many times we can go 28 mph effortlessly, unless Travis is pulling.

A few people experienced some cramping problems, so we all pulled together, to make sure they had everything ... thank god for e-pill.

We finally rolled in around 4 pm (I think).

Finally got to meet Big John, face to face ... although didn't get to ride with him. Maybe next time.

Stats:
Riding Time: 6:15
Distance: 102.91 miles
Altitude Climb: 4677 feet
Average Speed: 16.4 mph

It's like almost 2:00pm - where are some of the reports? Slackers! :p

Just Kidding! I can't wait to hear and see pics. I got back about an hour ago from an 81 miler. It was nice in the morning, but HOT as the afternoon neared. I was going to try for 100 and make this a back-to-back century weekend, but the heat wore me down. I can't wait to hear how Cool Breeze was. I bet the air was fine...at least I'm hoping as that will have meant good rides for all the little BFers out there pedaling their hearts out. :D

ME,
You would have been fine. The air quality was fine. It was a great ride. I'm glad I did it finally this year. I only wish I had last year's jersey. This year's was kinda lame.

Cleave, I saw one group of LV riders. There were about 12 riders or so and mostly women. I passed them about 3 miles before the Rincon SAG stop. They were flying the colors in style.

I did! There were about 8-10?? of them. I asked about you, and they said you were a slacker and didn't come. No, really, they didn't know where you were.

Thanks for the report gentlemen! :)

I just got back from 2 weeks in Hawaii with the family on Thursday night (actually Friday, a bit past midnight) so I didn't think that doing a century on Saturday was a great idea. :o

Glad you both had a good ride.

I later found out Magicant thought Herbm was ahead of us, but instead, was behind us. That is just too funny.



That was because as we rolled out I realized I didnt have my freaking water bottles...so I had to roll back to the truck...then trac vmc and I kicked out...
vmc hung back I pulled trac...of course she thinks I was out to kill her...
she dropped back and had vmc pull her back up to me just before rincon...

ME,
You would have been fine. The air quality was fine. It was a great ride. I'm glad I did it finally this year. I only wish I had last year's jersey. This year's was kinda lame.

+100....I had no asthma problems at all....

Didn't take too many pictures, but here are a few.

BF Riders ready to roll
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170038.jpg

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170042.jpg

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170043.jpg

First rest stop
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170045.jpg

Ocean View
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170046.jpg

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170047.jpg

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170048.jpg

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170049.jpg

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170050.jpg

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170051.jpg

The ride was nice, great weather, etc. . . . you’ve heard it all already. But – are you ready for the REAL story of the Cool Breeze? Hang onto your seats – this is good.

It started Friday night. Asia, Karen and I drove from Vegas to stay in Ventura. Asia’s husband, Travis, was driving up separately and bringing Asia’s trusty steed since we couldn’t fit it into Karen’s MV (macho vehicle). Asia opens the car door to help him unpack and promptly asks, “Where’s my bike?” Dammit. It’s back to Fontana to retrieve her bike. A 3-hour round trip.

The morning of the ride we all rolled out at the start with the group – everyone that is except Karen. She was obviously on her own schedule today, so we left her in the parking lot knowing that she would find somebody to ride out with. As she was tooling around the ride area looking for a familiar face :), lo and behold Gene (JustMe) calls her. He was running late and looking for someone to ride with, too. Little did he know the adventure he was in for today.

As the story goes, around mile 30 Karen asks Gene if he minds taking a detour over to Santa Barbara. No big deal, right? D’oh! :eek: On the way to SB, Karen casually asks “Do you mind if I get a haircut?” Whaaat?? :rolleyes: Karen pops into a salon and leaves poor Gene to wait outside. (Did anyone pass by and see him hanging around a Paul Mitchell sign?) Ok, bangs trimmed and then it’s off to SB again. At some point Karen casually pops the question, “Do you mind if I stop to see my aunt?” She failed to mention that Auntie Helen lives in a nursing home. So, they roll their bikes into the lobby and click, click, click their way down the hallways of the home sounding like football players wearing spikes. After a quick visit with Auntie, it’s back on the bikes. They finally made it to SB, grabbed lunch at some burger bar :beer:, and eventually rolled back onto the course and back to Ventura.

Gene – you are some kind of nice guy to tag along with Karen on her “errand day.” Apparently, we forgot to mention to her that this was a bike ride. Well, at least she didn’t stop for groceries or pet food. I think after today Gene might want to change his BF name to WhyMe. :p

More pics ...

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170056.jpg

Bike parking restrictions at the lunch stop on an organized bike ride???
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8180058.jpg

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8180059.jpg

Here's the group I rode with
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8180062.jpg

Didn't get her name, but she rode with us for quite a bit. Notice the pink bike. She knows Karen.
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8180063.jpg

DISCLAIMER: What follows is a lengthy depiction of the physical and emotional turmoil, effort, and pain endured. If you are offended by lengthy, meaningless, drivel, by all means you should stop visiting bikeforums.net.

...did it in 6:04...

I needed you, BigDraft!! Where were you??!!

Just got home. Boy, are my legs tired.

Long Report(well not as long as M.E.'s ;))
Well, going into this ride, my intentions had been to set a personal best time for a century--a benchmark against which future centuries could be compared. However, last Saturday afternoon, I guess God had other plans: I came down with a fever, chills, body–aches, and stomach upset. For me, having gastritis, this can be really upsetting. I spent Sun/Mon/Tue in bed, finally getting back to work on Wed. I took my first ride Thur evening––a short 8–mile spin around the neighborhood, and up a small hill just to assess form. Friday, I did my long commute to work (40–miles round trip), feeling not-so-good in the morning, but better in the evening and hammering the 20–miles home.

Because of my cold, I wasn’t sure whether to do the Century or Double Metric. I was going to do the DM with Big John, Sarah, Keith, et. Al., hoping to latch on to their train and set a good time. However, after being sick, I resigned myself to doing the Century within my limits. I arbitrarily picked a goal of finishing in less than 6 hours.

Today arrives, and I get to the start at about 5:45. Check–in goes wonderfully quick (well–organized). I get dressed, air up my tires, lube my chain, and am ready to roll. I meet over in front of the start at about 6:25 with MarkAJ, Herb, Thompson, and a few others. Mark hands out the tattoos––wonderful little things––that I would get asked about by another rider later.

We set off, with Herb forgetting his water bottles and doing a quick u–turn before crossing the start line. Mark doesn’t wait and he and I are together off-and-on pretty much for the rest of the day. (Thank you very much for your company, Mark. It was well appreciated. My apologies for riding on ahead, but as you know, I had an agenda :o )

About 6 miles into it, Joel and a paceline of BFers come rolling past. Maybe this is my opportunity? I jump and go with them. We’re flying down old PCH at a good clip. After about 4 or 5 miles of this, I hear Joel say, “Man, how far up can Herb and Mark be?” I turn to him, “They’re back there. You passed them a couple miles back.” :D Good stuff. So of course, Joel then turns off the after burners, and the paceline slows right up. But I have other objectives, so I keep going with a handful of other riders from differing groups (except Thompson was also there) going with me.

First rest stop, we regroup and get moving again. Magicant and I (and another whose name I am forgetting) climb the short climb up to Rte 150, and slowly pedal at the top waiting for others. Down 150 to Casitas Pass Rd. Left turn––I really like this scenic little climb––and I power up the hill. At the top, I see someone’s shadow on my wheel and so I start pulling. A little later, I look over my shoulder––it’s not anyone I know!!

At rest stop 2, I catch up to MarkAJ who had skipped stop #1. I wolf down some watermelon, and he and I start the climb. We see Herb and others rolling into the stop after we left. It's the last I would see Herb et. al. that day. :( The climb is pretty steep in parts, but in other areas, very nice. Once at the top of East Mountain Rd (or whatever)––what a great route!! Loved it. I’ve went on without Mark at this point, and manage to catch a small group of 3, one from PAA. We work well together, and catch another group.

And then pull into RS#3 and lunch. Mark catches me (which he did all day long :) ) and we enjoy some small talk and leave after not too long. We cruise along the waterfront down through Santa Barbara. Somewhere along the line, I’ve lost Mark again. I keep going, and back up to RS #4 (repeating RS #2). Lo and behold, Mark catches me again. We leave together, and stay together until after RS #5.

Mark forces me to try one of the popsicles––they’re pretty good :D. We roll out and onto Hwy 101. I enjoy getting pulled along by the car’s draft so I cruise along. At the end, Mark and I regroup and we trade pulls like this until Old PCH.

I look down at my computer and notice two things: 1) I’ve ridden 5–1/2 hours so far, and 2) there’s about 8–miles left. Uh–oh. My sub–6 hour century is in jeopardy. So, I say good bye to Mark and jump up to racing speed (hitting 28mph on one stretch of Old PCH). I fly up the hill, and off onto the bike path. My speed drops to 22–23ish through here. Back out onto Main Street, left onto Olive and the last bike path––ugh!—head wind! I’m crawling now about 17–18ish. Across Stanley, through the banner.

Did I get my sub–6hr time? Hmmm…maybe I should save that for another time. Well…okay…here’s the stats:

Distance: 102.51 miles
Time: 5hrs, 52mins
Avg Speed: 17.45mph
Elevation Climbed: 4,475 feet

Yay!!

And of course, Mark caught me at the finish!! :D

Saw a bunch of BF jerseys out there especially around lunch time.

Although I did not notice it the air quality really bothered by riding buddy. ME you were right to stay home. Everything was covered with soot and there was a large, cloud of smoke that got larger as the day went on hanging overhead. Plus this year it was hot. It was only cool in the am.

As always however the Ventura group did a nice job. I always love the Tri-tip at the end!

I didn't take alot of photos just 2 that turned out:

The Cloud:
http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o288/bcipam/TheCloud.jpg

My favorite little climb on the century - no water this year!

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o288/bcipam/TheClimb.jpg

Oh yeah, there was this plumb hovering Ojai, visible from the freeway. I managed to take a shot of it from inside my car (that explains the weird reflection on the left)

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170035.jpg

Oh I see you had traffic going home as well! :rolleyes:

Oh I see you had traffic going home as well! :rolleyes:

Actually this was Friday. It was really difficult getting from Santa Barbara to Ventura. But today, the drive to Monterey Park was bad too.

The ride was nice, great weather, etc. . . . you’ve heard it all already. But – are you ready for the REAL story of the Cool Breeze? Hang onto your seats – this is good.
. . .
:roflmao::roflmao::roflmao::roflmao: I can't believe it. You guys aren't even back home yet and your already posting gossip. There are a couple details that have escaped notice. 1st, I suggested having a cup of coffee at the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in Carpenteria when Karen decided she needed to run across the street and get her bangs trimmed. 2nd, Karen's aunt is in Goleta, not Santa Barbara, so the extra miles were a bonus. 3rd, I'm not that much younger than Karens aunt, so I figured I should scope the place out just in case. Turned out to be a nice place, so if I decide to check in, at least I'll know someone there. :D

Hi,

Did anyone happen to see the Lightning Velo contingent out there? Was there a large pack of them?

Oh I did. I sat on their wheels for much of the section from Manning Park to the Popsicle stop. Thank them for me. Report of my adventure soon coming.

More pics ...
Didn't get her name, but she rode with us for quite a bit. Notice the pink bike. She knows Karen.
http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8180063.jpg

noticed her and her bike on the route and at the lunch stop, a 'Holland' I believe.

was a fun day, especially since I(Jurij) did connect with Seamus(Jim) and '+1'(Des) and had huge fun looking at all the riders.
things never start out as one expects, so in spite of prep on Friday evening, I still had 'surprises' in the AM, which kept me from hittin the road until 7:10. Before that Jim and I connected via cell and were gonna connect at the Rincon stop. WIth the late start I figured I better put the hammer down until I could gert reasonably on the century route and catch them 'coming'. SO I rode hard until Manning Pk and then 'backtracked' the route.
One thing you notice are the SEGs on everyone descending Ortega Ridge road to East Valley. And since I was climbing in reverse, as I top the Ridge and work down you see Grim faces on those still climbing up.
FUnny how that works.
Anyway, rode out to the SHepard's Mesa area where the 150 and 192 connect, and still no Jim and Des. So I take a chance he might have the cell on. Call him, and lo and behold, they're back in Summerland, ready to climb Ortega. I missed them, they missed me...
Saw A LOT of riders over the stretch. WHen you;re going against the flow, it becomes apparent how large the ride really is.
So the choice is, go ride around OR Hammer back and maybe catch them somewhere.
Beings I haven't seen them in almost 2 years, the decision is easy - its the Hammer.
SO around I turn and bury it until I get back to Manning Pk. And, surprisingly they're still hangin there trying to fix Des' leaking camelback.
Out we ride together, Dorothy, The Lion and the Tin Man.
Was an AB FAB day, with no effect from the fire that I could detect. East Mtn Drive never disappoints. Its in my top 10 of most favorite places to be. Today was no exception.
We rode on to Las Canoas, another fav of mine. Came across a large group(15+ish) of young teen riders who were obviously totally stoked and really into riding. Always brings a smile when I see young people stoked on ridin the bike!
The ride to the lunch stop was great.
Lotsa riders there, some fun and interesting hardware as well as 'software'. Gotta say though, that Cool Breeze Jersey - not pretty...
Had hoped my pic post might find a few BFers coming over to say hello, and I tried to connect avatar or other remembered pics with people I was seeing, but no luck either way.
Did chat it up with a few folks at the lunch stop. ANd looked longingly at the tasty offerings. I was working a my 2nd powerbar and a gel. Need to really carry much more than I have in the past. I do better when I can really chow a bit more.
Left lunch with Jim and Des and Daniel (friend of theirs) and stayed with them until Hope Ranch, at which point I had to bail and start pointing back home. I had commitments for mid-afternoon, so 1:30 was gonna be a drop dead arrival time for me.
Ended up back at the ranch at 1:20 with 92 really fun miles. Looking forward to connecting with Jim and Des on a more regular basis...
no cam, no pics, except the ones in my head

Ride Stats:
Distance: 96.54
Time:6:21.32
Avg: 15.2

Strange distance right?

Well, I met up with the crew of BFer's at the start, but then took off on my own around 6:35AM. I wasn't sure if I was going to do the DM or the Century, but they make you decide on the first turn. Since I turned right, I was doing the DM. I figured I would be caught by some other BFer's eventually, and I was right. After getting a flat in the first section, I was eventually caught by Shai (Shprung), who then dropped me on Thatcher Road, the first climb.

After the first water stop, I followed the route down into Ojai, where I invoked my amazing powers of getting lost. I was looking around for orange marks on the ground when I saw some cyclists about a block over. I rode over to them and saw some orange marks again. Thinking I was back on course, I asked them which way they came up, trying to discern where I had missed the turn. They said they came up Santa Ana ("Didn't I already ride up Santa Ana?") Shortly after, I realized I had ridden this section already. So I got in a paceline with these friendly locals, went up Thatcher Road again, and back to the 1st water stop. A volunteer informed me that I was one of the last on the road for the DM. HHmmm. I explained that I got lost, so he offered to SAG me to the next rest stop at the fire station near the lake, and gave me a routeslip. However, instead of dropping me off at the fire station, he dropped me off at the bottom of Hwy 150 so that he could help another few riders.

I rode up to the 2nd rest stop, and a few minutes later, the SAG guy arrived and told me it may be difficult for me to get out to the lunch stop in Stowe before 2:00PM, when they closed (it was around 10:30 or something), and I may have to bail out at Manning Park. So I thought if I could make it to Manning Park by Noon, I probably could make it to Stowe without issue. I set off and tried to make it to Manning Park in time. During this time, I managed to get stung by a bee while descending which stuck to my arm. I would have gotten a pic, but I was trying to make time, so I just flicked it off and went. My goal of making it to Manning Park by Noon was thwarted when I got my rear kicked by the silly little hills on the DM route. I ended up in Manning Park at 12:15. During this whole time I basically rode alone and saw hardly anyone on the road.

At Manning Park, I saw a few BFer's, had some food, then headed back to Ventura at a 20+ mph pace trying to catch the BFer's who left the rest stop before me. This is where I ran into a few Lightning Velo people, including 1 tandem, and sat on their wheels. I nearly caught a jersey with a red star on it (I think it was ronjon), but he immediately made a turn off course on a bridge over the 101 then turned right to ride on a road on the east side of the 101, which confused all the riders behind. Check routeslip, no turn there. Not wanting to chase ronjon down and ask him if he really wanted to take that detour, I rode on to the popsicle stop.

Had a popsicle, saw BFer's again, including Shnuddy and her husband. Rode off back to Ventura, mainly on the wheels of two guys in plain red jerseys. Got back to the school, had some pretty good food, took a shower, drove home.

Perhaps next year I'll do the DM properly.

Here are just a few photos I took. More pics here:
http://www.flickr.com/gp/9895405@N06/891M4v

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1081/1167159519_c7a4f9fee2_o.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1081/1167159519_c7a4f9fee2_o.jpg
Friendly locals that paced me to the 1st stop after I got lost.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1379/1167158957_142aece6df_o.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1379/1167158957_142aece6df_o.jpg
I really was at Lake Casitas.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1011/1167158079_e6cd158166_o.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1011/1167158079_e6cd158166_o.jpg
MMMM . . . Popsicles.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1057/1167158329_1aecc66cf1_o.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1057/1167158329_1aecc66cf1_o.jpg
The coast.

Bonus Pic:
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1229/1167156587_bd159c2e61_o.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1229/1167156587_bd159c2e61_o.jpg
Ovoleg, it's calling you . . .

Well, here's my report on my first century: in short, it was a fantastic experience. Weather was great, not a whiff of smoke in the blue, blue sky, great route, friendly people, *tons* of food... This was a perfect ride to get my feet wet as it was very well organized, had great support, and most of the hard work was before lunch. ;)

The day started kinda funny when I heard that the two buddies I planned to ride with today both cancelled. I rode alone almost all day. One problem was, I couldn't really recognize any BFers, and since I left about 7:15am, I missed all the BF jersey-wearing folks who left at 6:30. The jersey's would have been a dead giveaway, and a great help in the brain addled/tongue tied condition I get into when I'm riding. Never saw a single one, though. I was wearing a plain red jersey and had my new bike: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=320388

My pace was hard to find at times, so I just did what what suggested here: go hard when I felt good, and slowed when pooped. When it came to riding with people, it seemed that my timing was all wrong however- I was passing or being passed all day. Probably what comes from riding solo most of the time.

I tried not to spend too much time at the rest stops, but it still seemed to take longer than expected just to get something to eat, drink, fill the bottles, pee, and move on. I ended up spending almost 90 minutes total for the various stops. Is this typical?

So many thoughts, and I'm sorry but it is hard to put the whole experience into words. Overall, I think the experience was quite fulfilling, and I look forward to more of these. Maybe it'll make more sense as I get more experience. It was just a bit overwhelming at times.

One puzzle: My computer gave slightly inflated mileage for the ride. I ended up with a reading of 105.7 miles for the ride. While we did take a brief detour right at the start of the Emma Woods bike path turn, I suspect my wheel size setting is slighly off.

Saddle time was 6hrs. 35 min.
Total ride time was 7hrs., 57min.
Average speed was 16mph


I'm tired, happy, and had a ton of fun!

Just got back from DM/dinner/shower. It was a nice ride! As most have already mentioned, the air was fine.

I rode with Jason, Voltaire, Paul, James, Matt and Mel from the start. I slacked at the end, skipped Cali Hill and took the century route back along with a few others. James, Matt and Mel did the final hill. Bumped into raiderdave a few times. Afterwards, we had post-ride meal at Olive Garden.

Ride time 7h57m including traffic stops, 123.90 miles, 15.6mph avg, 6302 ft of climbing

efficiency, sounds like you had quite an adventure out there!

DScott, congrats on your first century. :beer: Don't worry about the computer mileage. Over that distance, you're not off by very many percent. There's a good chance your car's odometer is less accurate than that. 90 minutes of stops isn't bad if you're not trying to set a good overall pace. If you are, you definitely can cut that down a bit.

Dave, nice job. I knew you could do it.

http://i174.photobucket.com/albums/w112/spingineer/Cool%20Breeze/P8170048.jpg
Reprezent!
:D

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1011/1167158079_e6cd158166_o.jpg
Love this pic!

Thanks, guys, for all of the reports (no, Mark, yours wasn't anywhere near as long as mine tend to be :p) and PICS! :) Glad you all had fun out there. I've ridden the Century 3 years in a row, so I pretty much can imagine what the ride was like. I look forward to tackling the DM next year. :D

I tried not to spend too much time at the rest stops, but it still seemed to take longer than expected just to get something to eat, drink, fill the bottles, pee, and move on. I ended up spending almost 90 minutes total for the various stops. Is this typical?

No...usually we spend much more time at the stops :D

No...usually we spend much more time at the stops :D

Yea, but did anyone spend 40 or 50 minutes at one rest stop? And that wasn't even lunch!

I really hate to spend any time in stops even lunch. I averaged 6 minutes at each sag and I took 15 minutes for lunch (I ate a sandwich, pee'd and left). Yes I guess I should spend time socializing and smelling roses but I do enough of that on the ride. This time I rode with one buddy so it was easy to stick to my schedule. In the past with larger groups ts so hard to get in and out. You have to wait for everyone.

DScott great job on your first century. Sometimes it's better to do it alone as it gives you the opportunity to ride your own pace etc. Next hanging with the group will be easy!

Well, here's my report on my first century: in short, it was a fantastic experience.

Congrats!!!

Ride time 7h57m including traffic stops, 123.90 miles, 15.6mph avg, 6302 ft of climbing

And you were worried. Sandbagger.

Glad you set the story straight WhyMe (Gene)! I bet the ride with Karen (PinkinInk) was fun. It's always an adventure riding with her!:D

And you were worried. Sandbagger.I was drafting off the group. :p

longer than expected just to get something to eat, drink, fill the bottles, pee, and move on. I ended up spending almost 90 minutes total for the various stops. Is this typical?


I'm tired, happy, and had a ton of fun!

Sorry to hear you rode alone. I've done Centuries that way and it sucks!
Great time for your first...congrats!

Figure there were 5 rest stops. Even a scant 15 minutes per RS costs over an hour. We were in and out in most (I think we spent 25 min at the lunch stop) and I still recorded well over an hour offbike. It's hard to tell because we really don't allow for non-rolling time at stop lights, signs, etc. which adds up over a 6 hour time period. On the other hand, it's not a race. Some of the fun of the event is being at the RS and hearing others talk about their pain ('cause it means we are not the only one suffering!)

Anyway, great job! Welcome to the Century Club.

Sheldon