




Couser Canyon caught me by surprise this year. I had forgotten it's steepness. Additionally, I was having Rear Der issues in that I couldn't use my 27T cog. I was using an 11-27 cassette with my 53/39 chainrings. When I would place my Rear Der in the 27T cog it would hit the spokes on the wheel. It's funny I manage a bike shop and can't get my own bike worked on. But business is good and the mechanics have been really busy. Anyway, I climbed Couser Canyon in my 39/24 all the while wishing my 27 would be available. I found out on Monday, when my mechanic looked at my bike, that my der. hanger was bent and that is why the rear der was hitting the spokes. Dave and I descended Couser Canyon separately. I believe Dave is a cautious descender. A smart move because Couser Canyon has a lot of tight corners and the pavement isn't that great. As we started the climb up Rice Canyon I said to him that it wouldn't be long before Drew would catch us. And sure enough Drew caught us mid-way up Rice Canyon. We checked in to Rainbow about 11am. From Rainbow it's pretty much all downhill to the finish. Sure you have a couple of little hills but basically it's downhill and into the headwind as you head West. Drew and I did most of the work since Dave was having cramping issues. I was fine with letting him sit on since I have been in his shoes many times before and besides I was having a great day on the bike. On the San Luis Rey bike path Drew did most of the pulls and I rotated through sparingly. He had aerobars on his bike and I kind of wished I had mine on as well. The bike I rode was the same bike I rode at the 2009 Furnace Creek 508 (Cervelo Soloist SL 16 lbs with pedals, Power Tap and everything needed except water bottles) and I had aerobars on it then. I have been riding with roadie groups in Orange County and so the aerobars have come off. I rode my Cervelo Soloist SL, Sasha, without aero bars. Once on Pacific Coast Hwy at about 1230pm, Drew again did most of the pulls. He was maintaining a good pace and I was having some cramping issues now. From the beginning of the day I had wanted to go sub 7 hours on this course because I had never done it. We were cutting it close but it was looking good. Sub seven hours would mean before 2pm. We were about 30 miles from the finish with less than 1.5 hours AND the most traffic laden section of the course still do. I find it amusing when riders on the coast draft US and then sprint up a roller and look back to see if they've dropped us. It's funny because they don't know we have been riding for close to 7 hours and have done 7000+ feet of gain. We pushed as hard as was necessary to maintain a sub seven our pace and let the rabbits go. I remember one time Drew was tempted to chase and I said "let him go" he agreed later calling him a "putz" I think. LOL! On the Torrey Pines climb I was getting tired and my power production was not really there. I was ok with just sitting on Drew's wheel. His pace was good and honestly if I was up front we might have slowed down a bit. We were still able to pass everyone that was on the hill even though we were nearing the end of our 200km. Torrey Pines Climb after almost 7 hours Training Peaks Screen Shot of my Power Tap download I climbed Torrey Pines at 3.6 w/kg for a 7:15 total time. We arrived at 1357 or 1:57 pm. We rolled at 7:02 so our total time should be 6:55. I'm very happy with my time OUR time since I have never gone sub 7 hours on this course. Thanks to Drew and Dave, I achieved MY goal. By the way, it doesn't come easy to do this course in sub seven hours. I was really tired, had had cramps and lots of leg fatigue, and a few aches and pains throughout the event. It's just a question of how much suffering you want to subject yourself to in order to achieve your goals. By Monday my DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Sorenes) was in full force. I wore my Skins Compression tights for recovery over the next two days. I'll only be doing the 300km brevet this year since I have schedule conflicts for the 400km and the 600km. Once again thank you to the RBA and all the volunteers. Train Heavy, Race Light! Red Eyed Vireo |

ADDITIONAL TANDEM BREVET REPORTS ADDITIONAL SOLO BREVET REPORTS |
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