Diablo Junction 16 miles

I was expecting it to be really hot this afternoon, maybe even near 100°. It’s been in the 90’s for the last couple days and it was hot all last night so I brought my insulated Polar water bottle with Cytomax and ice, wore my 15 year old sleeveless baggy Nike jersey, and drank lots of water before the ride. It was warm, but not nearly as hot as I thought it was going to be.

Moss (of Moss Landing fame) Nicole, Amanda, Robin, Tiffany, and I all met up at the bottom but when the Diablo Cyclist pack (with JB too) rode by I decided to ride with them. I had to sprint for a couple minutes to catch them but I joined up near the Double Dips and prepared myself for a fast ride. The group started to splinter well before the Bump and I stayed near the front. At this point, one of the regular riders, Ron, drove by in his new convertible and everyone got excited. Ron’s been unemployed for a long time so he must have gotten a new job.

Seven riders became five riders, then just three including me. One of the other two guys was the beefy guy from a few weeks ago; I think his name is Tom, he had a Cadex bike and shaved legs. I think I heard the other guy’s name was Don, he had a double century jersey, shaved legs, and an XT rear derailleur on his GIANT TCR1 with about a 34t cog in his cassette (Death Ride special). They didn’t say anything to me but didn’t seem to mind that I was there either.

I stayed with these two guys past the top of the Bump, which we took a little slower than I usually do, but before the Upper Washout I pulled to the front expecting them to stay with me while I made the pace for a while. They didn’t come though so I rode a bit faster and did my own ride at my own pace. I had some good split times and passed a few other riders (one guy in an older but very nice Klein Quantum II that I’ve seen a lot recently). With one mile to go though, Tom and Don caught back up to me so I tried to stay with them but they slowly pulled away. The double century guy finished about 10 seconds before the beefy guy, and I finished another 10 seconds later with a very good time of 38m30s. Somewhere along the way, my max heart rate reached 182. I’m starting to think my idea of sprinting at the start isn’t so smart because my fastest times recently have been from moderate starts with harder pushes at the end. It was by no means a real competition today, but I definitely earned quite a few Diablo Rating Points with that ride (I just made that up, but I like it).

Most of the rest of the riders rolled in over the next ten minutes or so. JB hung on for a low 40’s time (his Atlantis MIGHT be ready for Saturday), Tiffany did a high 40’s, and Moss just broke 50. When Moss came across the line I said “All right, you got that out of the way for another year!” The Diablo Cyclists went down South Gate Road and JB turned around to go home before Robin, Nicole, and Amanda finished.

Wildlife Encounter A raccoon hoping for a handout at the Junction, and a coyote on the shoulder on the way down.