4/30/2012 By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) After the hard fast ride we had Friday I wanted to back it down a bit for Monday I also wanted to shorten it a bit so I picked a 30 mile west ride. I slept well Sunday night and got up without the alarm this morning. It was a little overcast so I decided on Leg and arm warmers and hit the door right after breakfast to head for Burger King. I pulled into the parking lot to see Coyote with the fit kits we were trying for out new club uniforms. It looks like they are true to size so I ordered a Jersey, bibs and wind jacket as Highlander, Dura Max, Tax Man, and Surgeon were trying on jerseys. Before they were done Rocket rode up followed by Snow Goose. We talked until 8:30 and headed out to start the ride. However Snow Goose must have decided to ride somewhere else because she didn’t come down Gilmore with the rest of us. We headed over to Kirby and then turned north towards Cypress.

We were in no great hurry as we moved down Kirby and didn’t rush the ride west on Cypress to Johnston and then back out onto Sanderson. Coyote and Surgeon led us onto Sanderson and back north to Wentworth and towards the Airport. It was good to see Rocket with us again and I felt pretty relaxed as we made the jog onto the airport road and towards Stetson.

It was my turn to take the lead so I tried to spin it up a bit as we headed towards Warren Road. No one seemed to have a problem with 20 mph and we made it to Warren in pretty short order. After stopping at the street and crossing over I fell back to ride with Dura Max and stayed there till we made it to California and turned south towards Stowe. We watch the rest of the group line up and pace line it down Stowe with Rocket and Coyote pushing the pace. We regrouped at Winchester and got ready to head for the dump road.

Once we caught our breath Highlander started to get antsy so we got back on the road and headed south towards the dump road. We had to wait a while for traffic but once it was clear Highlander took the lead followed by Surgeon and we were moving along at about 20 MPH once again. I took the opportunity to close on Surgeon and grab all of the draft I could. I felt pretty good about my energy level but still a bit nervous having someone close enough to be a trailer on my back wheel. Whenever I even think about dropping the hammer on one of these rides I get a cold chill when I see this picture in my Mirror.

Still I stayed on Surgeon till Highlander turned us onto the dump road and Rocket continued on to Domenigoni and home. Highlander gave the lead to Surgeon and we started towards Leon. By the time we got to the cowboy bar Tax Man was leading and backed off to confirm that we would be turning onto Leon and heading down to Simpson. I ended up getting the lead back at the rise and pulled the group to Leon and down to Simpson.

I put the camera away and took the lead to Briggs and then turned it over to Highlander and Surgeon. As we made our way to Heritage and headed towards McCall Coyote took the lead and pulled us to McCall. As we made it through the light I got just a bit of a jump on the group and managed to catch the light just right while everyone got stuck at a red. I made it to the second Stop Light before they got started again and climbed over the hill and down to the light where we made a left to head towards Antelope. I ended up waiting for Dura Max ad Highlander. We crested the hill on Antelope and set a very fast pace down to Jack in the Box where the rest of the group. Coffee and conversation only took about 15 minutes and we were back on the road. The ride home turned into a fast one. As we pulled out onto Domenigoni Coyote set a good pace heading back to Menifee. Those of us on Strava knew a TT section was coming and as we crossed the light at Menifee the pace moved up considerable. I got back to the front and started the run at the back side of the saddle. Surgeon was right on my back wheel as we past Lindenburger and I left it in the big ring and pushed for all I was worth. I got up to speed about halfway up the hill and then jumped on the pedals and crested the hill in first. I thought Surgeon was on my back wheel as I crested and dropped down the front side and kept the RPMs up on my way to Leon. I looked back to see I was alone. I wanted to tag up with Surgeon to make the TT run to Winchester but it looked like I was going to have to do it all by myself. I moved my time up and jumped three positions on the list but I had to work so hard my teeth and gums hurt. I waited at Winchester and when the group came by I was simply too spent to catch a draft. I managed to tag up with dura Max and we rode to Sanderson together. I didn’t catch the rest of the group till we got back to Burger King. We talked for a few minutes and I headed for home. I got there with a fast 34 miles on the computer and a great need for a hot shower. But I felt good.