Started the weekend trying to get out of work early.. Put my boss on notice early in the week I would leave at 2. After a dysfunctional meeting with senior management, where memory is not one of their stronger talents and processes are demanded but non-existent, I was in react-mode to make some plans for the following week. My plan to get on the road to San Diego to ride a road bike century could not start soon enough. Out the door by 5:30 and I had hideous traffic for at least half the drive.
Arrived in Alpine, the last decent place to stay, where I me Jack.
Up at 4:45AM and then on the road for an hour to start the ride that begins in Ocotillo…
At the starting line it warmed up fast and after some cone adjustments to Jack’s front wheel we were moving. Climbs were small relatively speaking but still caused many to slog up the hills. We stopped at the checkpoints taking in the view of the Badlands in Borrego. Lunch was served at mile 55 on the return trip back to the start.
The winds started kicking in and I teamed up with a few folks to share the work breaking the wind. This is where I took too big of a pull and burned out my legs, only to find the last hill humbling. I finished casually without a sufferfest and waited for Jack to finish. A well deserved beer at the Lazy Lizard was a good way to end the ride. I had to make it back to town and decided not to fight the traffic on Sunday but drive home after a beer and a burrito… Needed that… Home at 9:30PM.. Long day..
Recovery run on Sunday.. 12 miles in Pt Mugu State Park. Sycamore, to Blue Canyon, up Boney Trail and down the hill from the Cabin site. Legs were worked but I needed it. Monday was MLK day.. so slept in, took the dog for a walk then off to run in LaJolla Canyon. but in 17 miles but felt more like 20… Up Ray Miller Trail, getting hot since I started after 10AM, down Fireline, up Serrano Canyon in the cooling shade. Serrano was refreshing but still not as green as I remember since the ferns have not come back yet. I spotted some movement on a far hillside but could not figure out if it was coyotes or some other small critter.. Needed binoculars but rarely carry them. I was heading down Old Boney trail playing Dire Straits with some new headphones on this technical downhill. Only to find a rattlesnake in the middle of the trail. I was moving too fast to stop so I jumped over him and took this video:
I was pretty amped after that.. Hammered down the rest of the trail looking for other snakes but none to be found. Then up the Backbone Trail running every step. Finished with a float down Ray Miller.
RMT is magical.. today there were a few sections that i felt very relaxed and harnessed the gravity effortlessly. These days this is about all I get to control since other parts of my life are far from controlled. As I hammered out the last quarter mile, I peered out to the ocean and it was sparkling. The picture does not do it justice.. you just had to be there.
Back to reality tomorrow..