Diablo Day 51 - Saturday Junction

 Today's excuses for being slow:

1. Knee was hurting.

2. COVID booster shot yesterday.

3. Windy!

Wildlife Encounter: coyote crossed in front of us on the Prologue, with lunch in his mouth. Looking for a picnic area near Little Pine Creek.

I was really tired by the time I got to Junction. 

JB and I talked about the weird weather - not as many heat waves, not as many fires, better air quality, than most previous years about this time of the season. Also discussed was the dead opossum that I had to remove from my backyard. 

2022 Diablo Day 50 - Wednesday Junction

Got a break from the heat today - warm and breezy.

Bike pullout lane construction on SGR, but there were gravel trucks and such going up and down NGR. Check out this KPIX report:  LINK

Charlie broke his pedal the other day and hasn't gotten a new pair yet, but he rigged up the old one well enough for a Wednesday Diablo Ride. Somehow the whole body came off the spindle and he was able to screw it on again. We talked about pedal options - he's been using Look KEO and isn't sure he'll stay with that system, but he does already have the cleats. Rick had that same problem with that same pedal a few years ago... I wrote about it HERE.

COVID booster shot scheduled for Friday - hoping it won't make me feel too crappy for a Saturday ride.

OK, let's do some analysis. This was my 50th Junction ride for 2022.

• Best time was 52m00s
• Six rides sub 55m
• Thirty rides sub 60m.
• May June and July have been my fastest times - so I conclude that my strength and fitness are still improving, and my knee is still non-compliant but at least not bothering me as much.
• Two rides to Juniper this year, and I can feel a Summit building up in my legs. Usually I'm pretty spent at Junction so a Summit will take some planning and training. Standby, fans.

I kept my distance when I was behind Charlie in case that pedal gave out...
I wanted to get the results on video without hurting myself.

Photo Credit:  Punkin Jay 
I'm pointing to an empty spot on my jersey where there's room for a sponsor logo...
send me an email if you're interested.

2022 Diablo Day 49 - Saturday Junction

Started off a little on the chilly side this morning, not cold enough for long sleeves though. Then it got windy too, which I like even less.

South Gate Road has been closed all week for construction - they kept the entrance closed but allowed people to go down from Junction to the SGR picnic areas. They'll probably do North Gate Road next so that will require some ride adjustments.

Hey - it's time for a 

Product Review: Electrolyte Caps

Hammer Endurolytes vs NutriBiotic Performance Essential Electrolytes

I frequently get leg cramps before or after riding, especially in the heat, especially on rolling hills, and occasionally they're bad enough that I have to dismount and scream in pain.

I have been taking Hammer Endurolytes for years; they work pretty well as far as I can tell... that is I get cramps on fewer occasions and they're not as bad. They're not perfect though and I've had a few of the screaming cramps even when I've taken them. A while back I found these other electrolyte caps at the vitamin store and they were cheap so I bought a bottle.

I have no idea which of these constituents plays the biggest part in preventing cramps, but NutriBiotic's blend has all the ones Hammer has, plus some other ones, except for Manganese. NutriBiotic also suggests one pill vs Hammer's two. But I've been doubling up on the NutriBiotic caps so I get a higher dose of everything in two Hammer caps and it's still cheaper. It's been working well and it's still cheaper than Hammer. All I really care about for purposes of this review is not getting cramps - and they seem to be about equal in that regard and NutriBiotic is cheaper.

I can't give a score for these things because there is no DiabloScott Electrolyte Rating scale... but if you get cramps I suggest you keep trying capsules and gels and powders until you find the one that's right for you... or just use all of them and hope for the best.

2022 Diablo Day 48 - Wednesday Junction

Me and Charlie decided to go a little early and beat the heat... WORKED! We talked about COVID and heat and flat tires.

Construction on the SGR bike turnouts has started - SGR is closed to everybody except on the weekend... probably take a couple weeks.

Wildlife Encounter:  turkeys

At Junction this dude pulled a perfect Swiss dismount. We made sure he was good and embarrassed. No damage to human or bike, except his handlebar mirror fell off.   He almost took Charlie down with him though.  

Haven't seen today's Tour stage yet - don't spoil it for me.

The toughness was pouring out of this guy's pores. I later realized we'd ridden before, with Club Sport.

I rode through his toughness cloud and absorbed a smidge.

Emergency procedure #1 - make sure he's OK.
Emergency procedure #2 - put his ignominy on display for my blog readers.

2022 Diablo Day 47 - Saturday Junction

Well this Tour de France thing has everybody excited about riding... so I did my regular routine. The Markleeville Death Ride is this weekend though, so the hard cores were out of town.

Thursday's Tour stage was amazing - the way Pidcock and his challengers were descending Galibier at 50+ mph. I mean those guys are ALMOST as good as me, and I was scared just watching.

Special Guest Rider: Mark. He humored us for about a mile before showing us his heels.

Wildlife Encounter: turkeys on The Approach

At Junction there was a group of riders speaking a language I didn't recognize... they had some high zoot gear though and then I heard a tire explode. It was on a bike that was just parked there and it sprayed sealant goo all over everything - fortunately none got on my nice frame that was close by.

And good news everyone -- the SGR bike turnout construction begins Monday:

Getting close to competition weight.

 

MARK! and some other guys.

Kasters!

What a MESS!

2022 Diablo Day 46 - Wednesday Junction

Not too hot today, good riding weather. Charlie invited a friend but he didn't show up.

I went for some knee PT on The Bump and opened up a big gap. Then when I was waiting for JB and Charlie to catch up, they never did.

I've seen this "Drone Team" truck on the side of the road for several rides now - not sure what they're doing.

Wildlife Encounter: cute little alligator lizard.

Then near the Ranger House I see a guy pulled over with his bike upside down and I asked if he needed anything, expecting him to say no, but he didn't... he asked if I had a chain tool. Turned out he either broke his derailleur or broke off the hanger and he wanted to just make it rideable so he could go back down. So I stopped to help and pulled out my multi-tool with the emergency chain tool and I saw that the pin had come out... worthless... I need to upgrade my saddle pack with newer stuff. 

JB came by while I was talking to the guy, and then I let him beat me to Junction.

On the way down, I almost took an antler to the arse.

Wildlife Encounter: deer with antlers on the approach, hiding in the shadows.

I drafted this truck all the way down Walnut Ave.