Epic Training Systems- 2009 San Diego 400km Page 2

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2009 San Diego 400km Brevet Page 2

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At mile 77.5-- 11am Temecula Control --We got our "proof of passage" and continued on in search of food.
We ate at Wendy's about one mile from the control on Jefferson Ave. I had a double stacker. Brandy had a
grilled chicken wrap and we shared a baked potato. As we were leaving I gave the wheels a spin and checked
the brakes. It's a silly little habit I have. That's when I noticed Pia had a broken spoke on the rear wheel.

It's funny how lately I've been packing things that I normally don't take with me on a ride and then end up
needing them. Maybe I shouldn't bring them in the first place LOL!. This time I brought a Leatherman tool and
sure enough I used the pliers to unscrew the nipple on the broken spoke and remove the spoke. The wheel has
32 spokes. The wheel was only slightly out-of-true with one missing spoke. Pia has disc brakes so even though
the wheel was out-of-true we didn't have any issues with braking like you would with rim brakes.

Mile 108--2:15pm Hemet Control-- The terrain was slightly uphill with no major climbs from Temecula to
Hemet. On our way into Hemet someone attempted to hit us with a snowball or something similar. They were on
the other side of the road traveling in the opposite direction and somehow we were bothering them. I guess as
cyclists in these rural areas we are considered "game" and people love to throw things at us. I was so glad that
we were on a tandem. I would be worried sick if Brandy was doing this event on her own. Even though it was
only 30 miles after eating in Temecula we were hungry again. We stopped at Sonic's. We had a couple of
burgers some fries and a couple of Diet Cokes. The girls there were on roller skates as they serve you at your
table or car. I got a kick out of that. We left Sonics and rode to the designated control, Denny's, and then
headed out of town on Stetson and State Street.

Mile 115- Sage Rd. The next 50 miles were the toughest part of the ride for Brandy and I (52 miles with almost
5000 feet) . Sage Rd is a climb that undulates as it climbs in elevation. Every now and then there were steep
grades that caused us to grind up in our "granny-granny" (smallest chain ring and 28T cog). On one of those
steep grades we dropped our chain and it got jammed in between the frame and the smallest chain ring.

Here we are on a blind corner, steep grade and no shoulder whatsoever trying to dislodge the chain. I felt
exposed to the traffic. Many of the vehicles on this road are diesel pick-up trucks towing trailers along with their
compulsory wide-ass side mirrors. When I mean there was no shoulder I MEAN NO SHOULDER. Like many
roads in these rural areas of San Diego there was the lane for vehicles, a curb, about 1' foot wide dirt and then
as a bonus this section had a 20 foot drop. The drop was convenient for the repair since it put the crankset at
eye-level without me bending down LOL! While we were working on the jammed chain two MTB'ers traveling
in the opposite direction pulled over. I thought it was very nice of them to stop. I believe one of them said their
name was Dave Barrett. He offered me help but I had the chain jam under control. When I was done we walked
back to his car and cleaned off my hands with some paper towels and water. Thank you Dave!

Mile 126-- 4:16 pm- Wilson Valley Rd. Was very difficult for us. We were getting tired of the up and down
terrain and the steep grades. At one point we came around a corner and I saw the "corkscrew" up ahead and
actually exclaimed aloud "OH MY GOD!" I don't usually do that. Heck I'm the guy that loves climbing. But I
was hurting. I was really looking forward to the fast descent on Hwy 371 into Aguanga and get some reprieve
from the climbing.