By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) Sometimes Fridays can be a gun fight and sometimes they are like a cruise on a multipurpose trail. I never know what they will be and it doesn’t seem to matter if it is a flat ride or one with climbing. The only consistency is everyone gets to ride how they feel that day and as it turned out today was just that kind of day. I got to the parking lot to find Digger, Bloodhound and Minotaur waiting. I knew we had some riders on vacation so I wasn’t expecting much but soon riders just started rolling in. Surgeon, Sasquatch and Closer arrived followed by Gambler, Bulldozer and MacGyver. To my Surprise Afterburner was able to join us followed by Pony Express and his friend Brian. Pirate and Barracuda parked under the shade tree and Huntress came driving in a few minutes later. It was just after 8am when we got the show on the road and headed south.

I had to work to catch up to Bloodhound and tell him to avoid Cypress because of the sink hole. We made our way to Johnston and Bloodhound led us west to Sanderson and the stop light. It turns out Digger decided to play Rabbit and head towards Domenigoni while we headed for Wentworth to start our west run towards Winchester. I decided to try and stay with Bloodhound as long as I could and ended up following him all the way to the airport and heading for Stetson.

I got out front on Stetson and managed to pull the group all the way to Warren in my small ring. I figured it was worth it to try and save my legs for what I expected to be a fast ride on Stowe. I fell in behind Bloodhound, Gambler, Bulldozer and McGyver as we headed south on California. We rounded the corner onto Stowe and just as expected settled into a rather brisk pace line. I was far enough back that is was unlikely I would be called to the front to pull before the parking lot so I figured I would make a run for it before the big metal barn. I started out pretty well but ended up taking Sasquatch with me. He is just getting too powerful to give a lead our draft to and he pulled by me just before the parking lot regroup on Winchester.

Red Rabbit pulled up on his mountain bike just as we got ready to take a picture but left for his own ride and we got back on Winchester with Afterburner in the lead. It took us a few seconds to catch up to him and then he pulled us to the dump road and past Chris’s. we managed to get to Simpson just as it turned green and I fell back to do a head count only to find the Closer had abandoned the ride because he didn’t feel well. I knew once we got to Domenigoni the A group would ramp it up and I was pretty determined to try and keep up. But to my surprise we stopped before Domenigoni because Gambler had a flat.

It was as Gambler was fixing his flat that we got our second group of Rabbits to chase. Huntress, Surgeon, Minotaur and Pirate took off to get a head start on the run to the Marina. I knew that was going to turn the Domenigoni run east into a drag race and once we were on our way that knowledge was confirmed. Bloodhound started us out and I was feeling real good about holding 23 MPH as we headed for the flag pole. Gambler took over and the pace increased to 24 or 25 and I still felt pretty good. However; just before the dry wash as we started up the rise I missed a shift and fell out of the pack. I ended up chasing all the way to Searl and turned for the seven dollar hill only to see Huntress and Surgeon heading back towards Domenigoni. I made one of my better climbs up Seven Dollar hill and not a bad one down before regrouping with everyone else to head back to Domenigoni.

We were down to eleven riders chasing three rabbits heading back to State Street. We lost Afterburner as he headed for home on Gibble when we turned north towards Chambers. I pulled us to Chambers and then to Buena Vista before Bloodhound once again got out front with Pirate. They let me lead them onto Stetson and all the way to Girard before heading towards Ramona Bowl. It was one of my better climbs as we all made it to the top and under the shed roof and regrouped before getting ready to drop off of the back side and head for Crest. Bloodhound was feeling a bit down on power today so he decided to go home. Pony Express was a bit off as well so he decided to pass on Bautista while the rest of us headed east on Crest and made our way to the old housing tract.

We made our way to Lake and back to Stetson before heading to Fairview and running hard towards Bautista. I managed to stay with the leaders as we made the turn on Bautista and was still with them as we made the first two turns and headed for the dam. I was just ahead of Pirate and Sasquatch and when I fell off of the A group freight train I thought they would simply roll by me. To my surprise they didn’t and after the dam I pulled away and made a solo run up the hill for a regroup where Digger, Huntress and Surgeon were waiting.

The only thing left was the ride back down Bautista and then Fairview before going to Carl’s for coffee. I dropped off of the first half of the hill pretty well till the wind shifted and Sasquatch had to come up and work with me to get back to the dam and out onto Fairview. The problem was a work crew had been on the side of the road and it seems they were causing the goat heads to scatter into the road way. We had several flats and Sasquatch flatted when we stopped to wait for everyone else to come out of the canyon. I flatted at Mayberry and but the time I got to Carl’s most of the other riders were gone. After coffee and conversation only Minotaur and Pirate were with me as we headed back to the west side and home. I ended up with 55 good hard miles on y legs and just a bit left in the tank to show I could have gone a bit harder or farther. Like I have said before, it is good to live where we do and have the friends to ride with that we do.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) I had no clue how many would show up for the ride today. After 80 miles on Monday I thought a few might give this half century a pass. But by the time I got to the parking lot Digger and Minotaur were already there. Bloodhound was there as well and soon Surgeon and Pony Express arrived as well. Highlander drove up about the time Pirate, (Ben) Arrived. It was a smaller group than Monday but we were eager to get started and pulled out of the parking lot and headed south.

I had already mentioned to the group that I wasn’t interested in a hammer fest today because I simply wanted to keep the group together for as long as possible. True to form Bloodhound started out a bit fast and true to my promise I didn’t give chase so we followed him all the way to Cypress and headed for Johnston passing the big sink hole. It looks like it will take a while to fill the hole so we rode by and made it to Johnston and Sanderson. Once the light changed we quickly made it past Sanderson and were on our way to Domenigoni.

The test would be once we turned onto Domenigoni and headed west. If Bloodhound took off and anyone chased him the group could split up rather quickly. Sure enough Bloodhound took off and Surgeon went after him but we didn’t chase. After about half of a mile Bloodhound backed off and we reconnected and followed him to Warren. He came off of the light a bit hot and we still didn’t chase but reconnected again after the bridge over the dry wash. He pulled all the way to Winchester and once again started hot. We reconnected by the first stand of trees and he pulled us all the way to the saddle to regroup.

Highlander seemed to be a bit more tired than normal as we dropped off of the saddle and headed for Lindenburger. As we rounded the corner I tried to draft a large moving truck but missed the draft by about ten feet and had to give up when the driver refused to miss a shift to I could fully close on him. Bloodhound and Pirate pulled up to and past me but we caught them at the light on Simpson and rode with them to McCall and then onto Menifee to head north. Highlander decided to call it a day at Turtle and returned home. The rest of us stopped at the AM/PM before heading back on Menifee to head north towards Nuevo.

As we crossed the light at Florida I took the lead and started us out slowly towards Mapes. By the time we got to Mapes we were all rolling along about 17 before heading for the crest of the rise right about where the road work is taking place. I picked up the pace and set the pace right on 22 as we started for the next stop sign.

I gave up the lead and fell back with Digger and Minotaur as Bloodhound took the rest to Nuevo. We were about 100 yards back on Central when Bloodhound and his group made the corner at Nuevo. They waited for us but left as soon as Digger pulled up behind me on Nuevo while we waited for Minotaur. We followed as soon as we could and found them waiting for us before we got to Evans. Once we had regrouped we moved to Evans and turned north once more heading for the Expressway.

Once we rounded the corner onto the Expressway we made a dash for the park entrance and headed towards the main gate. At least the gates are no longer closed on Wednesdays. We rolled by the main gate and headed up the hill to the Marina. It was time for a break while we hydrated and had a snack. We spent about 20 minutes talking and resting before heading back out onto the bike path to head for the east gate and home.

We moved around the east side of the park and headed south towards the hills and the back gate. Bloodhound was moving a bit faster than the rest of us and Surgeon wasn’t far behind him. Soon Pirate decided to reel them in and I followed them till the last little hill and the quick sprint over the top. We left the bike path and headed to Bernasconi for our last regroup before hitting the Expressway and heading back to Hemet. Bloodhound had not regrouped with us so he was long gone by the time we were on the Expressway. Surgeon and Pirate made it across the road while the rest of us got caught and they we close to the bridge at the bottom of the hill before we could give chase.

We worked together till first Digger then Minotaur dropped off and Pony express decided to try and run down Surgeon and Pirate. Surgeon turned on Warren before we caught him but we ran Pirate down right after the little bridge just east of Warren. When Pony Express decided to continue east at Sanderson Pirate went with him while I waited for Digger and Minotaur. Once the arrived we rode back to Lyon together and then down to Menlo where Digger left us and headed home. Minotaur and I parted ways at Florida and I headed home for a hot shower and another bottle of water. As of today I already have my weekly average mileage so everything we do Friday will be icing on the cake.

The Death March

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) The Death March I was suddenly awakened the other night by the demon of anti cycling ended up sitting in a chair next to my bed. “A challenge I have for you that will help settle the battle you have been waging against me for all these many years.” It seems as if I had slapped the demon in the face with my Mesa Metric and my Red Mountain Monster ride. The challenge was for me to put together a three quarter century on a warm memorial day and get at least three B riders and three A riders to finish the ride. There was a catch however. The Demon knew we had riders that could easily ride at least 75 miles so there would be four assistant demons that would follow and try to thwart us. Being sleepy I fell for it and posted a ride to Tom’s Farm and back through Railroad Canyon. I rode to Burger King to see who else would take up the challenge. I was surprised to see several riders show up to give the ride a try. Digger and Bloodhound were waiting for me and Dragon Slayer was unloading his truck. Highlander and Tax man arrived and my old friends Centaur and Phoenix were parked right next to them. Bulldozer and Closer pulled into the parking lot and told me Gambler was running late. I watched Jackal drive up followed by Newsboy. Finally Sasquatch rode up and I figured we were about ready to go just as MacGyver arrived. Not a bad group for such a challenge. We headed out to Latham and over to Lyon to start a ride north.

We started out slower than normal and were spread out over several blocks before we got to Devonshire. We started to close in on each other as we got to Esplanade and by Seventh Street we were in one big group heading north. It was at that point the first demon attacked and forced a small beetle into Bloodhound’s eye. It must have been a novice demon assistant because Dragon Slayer applied a magic healing spell on Bloodhounds eye and we were soon on our way.

Bloodhound was so recovered that he managed to lead us north towards Ramona and close to Nineteen MPH showing no signs of damage. It also seemed as if the assistant demon had a top speed of something less than nineteen because we had no more insect strikes as we made our way past De Anza Drive and turned west for the first time on Ramona.

We easily avoided the attacking demons as we headed west towards Sanderson and were soon waiting to make the turn at Sanderson and the Expressway. Once on the Expressway we devised a plan to confuse any following assistant demons, considering they might be more efficient than the first one. We broke into two groups with Bloodhound, Bulldozer, Gambler, MacGyver, Sasquatch, Jackal, Newsboy, Dragon Slayer and I in the first group and Highlander, Tax Man, Centaur, Phoenix, Closer and Digger in the second group. The first group was pulling away easily as we passed Warren and then Bridge and soon were out of sight and closing on Hansen. I had to work my tail off to get to the front to let them know I was going to fall back and wait for at least two riders. Highlander took a group south on Hansen and then Lakeview drawing some of the less experienced demons with his group while Digger rolled by me just as Closer pulled up. But we had one demon attack just as they turned on Lakeview and Closer got a small piece on metal stuck in his tire causing a flat. Once we were on the road again we were so far behind the lead group there was no chance of catching the lead group so we headed over the rollers and over the freeway alone before working our way to Lake Matthews.

We learned that the lead group had finished lunch and only two of them would be waiting for us when we got to Tom’s Farm. We still had La Sierra to get past and the drop down to Tamescal road so I knew it would take us at least 25 minutes to get to Tom’s Farm ourselves.

It did take us at least 20 minutes to get to the Farm because we had to stop so Digger could get so Gator Aid. I should have guessed a demon was closing in on us and was just waiting for a chance to attack. Even Closer started to complain, tongue in cheek, that his brakes must be dragging because he was feeling sluggish. I believe it was a spell by the anti cycling demons, because Closer was with me the last time I tried this very ride. But I was yet to be made aware of these attacks as we pulled into the Farm and decided to have lunch and listen to some music before heading for home.

I had a light lunch of mostly protein while Digger, Sasquatch, Jackal and Closer had a few more carbs. But we took our time before heading back out on the road going south towards Lake Elsinore. We were headed for Lake to make the turn towards Elsinore and I could see the bonk and pain demons had full hold on both Closer and Digger. What I didn’t know was that at the same time a kidney striking demon was attacking Bulldozer and had brought him to a stop. They had to call for a relief truck to remove him from the field of battle. A block or two later the flat demon had tied MacGyver to a tree and we had to watch to see if he was going to make a spare tube out of some cellophane while refilling his CO-2 cartridges with methane gas from grass clippings. It wasn’t working and he also had to be removed from the field of battle. We then had to schedule a pickup of Digger and Closer at Mickey Ds leaving only Jackal, Sasquatch and I to follow the remaining A group as they kept the hydration demon from stopping Bloodhound on their way home.

I managed to hit railroad canyon pretty hard and made it to Murrieta first before taking over pulling detail and heading for the saddle. Jackal decided to hit the Domenigoni climb pretty hard, a segment I didn’t even know existed, and we got to Leon well before Sasquatch who was running out of water.

I took turns with Jackal pulling back to Warren before putting my back into it and getting us back to Sanderson. As we turned north back towards Stetson I realized that as long as at least three of the A group and three of the B group finished the ride the Anti Cycling demon had lost the challenge. We crossed Sanderson together and in effect were heading for the home stretch. I heard the wail of pain and suffering the demon must have felt and we said our good- byes and headed for our homes. A hot shower and two more bottles of water and I was pretty much back to normal. My missing riders made I home as well and I would have to say we had a good ride.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) The Legend of “The Curse of Red Mountain”. I have had a ride on the books for a long time that I have just never posted because it goes to Red Mountain. Let me explain; It has been said and stories have been told about a strange smoke or mist monster than inhabits Red Mountain Road after it turned off of Sage at Sycamore Springs. Much like Big Foot there have been signs of this monster but no real description. So when I headed for the parking lot this morning I didn’t have high hopes that many would be joining me for the ride. Friday is normally a free for all day and I never know who will show up anyway. I got to the parking lot and sure enough Digger was just getting there. He was followed by Bloodhound and a surprise arrival of Bandit. I wasn’t surprised to see Nate come down from Idyllwild nor was I surprised that Huntress had returned from vacation. Highlander drove up followed by of all People Papillion. If climbing is required it seems that Papillion is attracted like moth to a flame. We waited till just after 8am before heading down to Acacia and over to Kirby.

I believe we all realized there was no need to hammer our way down to Cypress and turn west. After all we were about to do battle with one of our biggest climbs and face down an unknown force that may or may not engulf us as we tried t ride up the hill and into the clouds. Sure enough the mountain monster tossed the first attack at us on Cypress. Just before we got to Johnston we came upon a road block and a sink hole that ate part of our road. However like the intrepid knights of old was worked our way around the giant maw trying to eat us before we made it to Domenigoni. We made it to the light at Sanderson and headed towards Stetson and then Mustang to zero in on the attack of Sage.

As we turned onto Domenigoni and headed east towards State Street we started to spread out. It seemed as if a force was resisting us and clouding our mind with thoughts of defeat. I fell off of the pace to assist Digger and Highlander on their way to State Street but soon Highlander must have had such a feeling of foreboding that he broke off and headed for home. I caught digger as we turned onto State and the Huntress as she stopped to remove her jacket. I then pulled Huntress back to Digger as we turned onto Cactus Valley and joined Nate as we headed to Sage to regroup with Bandit and his group. It turns out he had picked up Gambler and we waiting to make plans for how we would attack Red Mountain. It was decided we would try the divide and conquer the monster by having the A group cross over the top of Sage and head down to Benton with a downhill so they would be hard to chase. Huntress, Nate, Digger and I would head up Red Mountain and see if we could get to the top without being immersed I an evil blue fog. It almost worked.

Gambler, Bandit, Bloodhound and Papillion quickly outpaced us and headed for the top of Sage. Nate, Huntress and I topped out a few minutes later and headed up Red Mountain road. Nate and I kept pace with each other till we hit the long 9 percent grade and started the first big climb on the road. My gears kept me with Nate as we topped the hill and headed for the next one. I don’t know if Nate noticed it but I felt a bit tense as we made the last big climb and headed for the smaller rollers before the end of the road. We got to the stop sign and waited for Huntress. Sure enough as she got to the place where I felt the tenseness a blue cloud seem to form over her. Much like speaking in tongues she must have uttered bad words connected with my name and the 9 percent climb. Whatever she was saying formed a blue smoke above her head and just managed to dissipate as she pulled up to us and stood looking me right in the eye.

By the time Digger arrived we had just about made up and applauded Diggers effort and riding all the way up Sage and then Red Mountain. They was no blue cloud by the time he got to the 9 percent climb so the smoke monster must have fallen on Huntress alone. I still love her anyway and all is forgiven even if she renamed the section of the road, “Bad Bob climb”. We got ready to head back down and I knew at the pace we would be going there would be no picture taking.

We dropped off of Red Mountain like a rock and turned onto Sage being careful to take it easy as we went into the trees and the hard part of the decent. Once we got back to Cactus Valley we regrouped and headed for State. We headed north to Chambers and decided we would cut the ride short and head back to the parking lot. Huntress, Digger and Nate all had things to do so when we got back we headed for our homes and a much needed shower and Lunch. Yes the Red Mountain monster exists because Huntress experienced it and some of us saw the smoke from it. Thanks to the A group for drawing it away long enough for some of us to climb the Mountain.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) Last week was hot and windy and we were sure summer had arrived early. So far this week it has been anything but summer like. We had a 50 mile ride to French Valley planned and overcast and cold or not I was eager to do the ride. After breakfast I changed into my kit and headed out to meet my friends for the ride. Like most days Digger was already there but so was Minotaur and Bloodhound. Highlander and Pony Express arrived as did two newer riders, Ben and Nate. Bulldozer and Gambler rode up and Red Rabbit stopped to visit with us. We only took a few minutes before we were headed down Gilmore and onto Acacia to start the ride.

As we turned onto Kirby Bloodhound started to pick up the pace a bit but for change no one really responded and it was my hope we would try and keep the group together at least till we got to the saddle. As we turned onto Cypress that seemed to be the way things were going. We moved smoothly to Johnston and turned right to the light on Sanderson. I managed to be rolling as the light turned green and we moved south towards Stetson and Wally World.

We caught just about all of the lights on Sanderson at least pink and had to slow for each of them before moving past Mustang and getting to Domenigoni. Bloodhound took the turn first and I managed to be right behind him as we moved west towards Warren. I could only see four riders behind me so I pulled out of line to see who we might have dropped only to watch Gambler, Bulldozer, Bloodhound, Pony Express and Highlander pull away from the rest of us. I ended up pulling Minotaur and some of the other riders till we finally caught the lead group at Winchester. We headed for the saddle but once again dropped a few riders so I decided to ride sweep and pick them up. After all it was a long ride and I had plenty of time to play later. We crossed over the saddle after picking up another rider and pulled up to the lead group watching Pony Express changing a tire.

Our next move was onto Menifee and down to Holland before cutting over to Antelope and heading south into the wind. That caused us to lose the rider that had joined Bloodhound at the college and then Highlander left us at Garboni. I ended up pulling Digger and Minotaur almost all the way to White Wood where we recovered Pony Express, Nate and Ben. Next we made a mad dash for Murrieta Hot Springs down White Wood before turning east towards Winchester. We lost Pony Express who decided to visit a friend and made our way north on Winchester to regroup with the A riders on east Benton.

It was as we got ready to leave that the groups decided to split up with Gambler, Bulldozer and Bloodhound heading to Washington before getting back to Winchester and heading home. Digger, Nate, Ben, Minotaur and I headed for Leon and back to Scott to work our way back to Menifee. I took us to Mac Gillis before moving over to Leon before turning north.

Everyone one stayed together pretty well as we moved past the old homes and the new ones and took the small rollers before getting to Scott. We did have to make a short regroup as we turned towards Menifee and Nate, Ben and I took a lead heading west. As we got to the light on Briggs Ben forgot to unclip and tried to take Nate and I down like dominos. But it was no harm no foul and we continued on to Menifee and north t regroup just pace Garboni before heading down the hill towards Dominigoni. There I noticed Ben had a proper cut that should have counted as a sacrifice to the cycling spirits and stopped the wind for us.

I gathered the group together and headed for Domenigoni and then to Lindenburger where we turned north towards Simpson and east. As we rounded the corner I started the pull but soon Ben rolled by me and pulled away. I kept pace with him about 100 yards back and gave to pull to Nate. At Leon I got back and tried to reel Ben in. I had to work hard t catch him before the last set of trees just before Winchester and got to the light about the same time. We then turned north again and headed to Winchester Farms. I was pulling most of the way till Ben decided to go around and I noticed we were all alone. I pulled into the parking lot a few minutes after Ben and we regrouped there for coffee and conversation. Minotaur left first because he had an appointment and Ben and I had to chase Digger and Nate most of the way to California. We made the turn onto Stetson together and headed for Warren and home.

It didn’t take long before we got to the Airport and worked our way past Hanger One and onto Wentworth before catching the light on Sanderson. Once again I got us to Lowes and around to Acacia and headed to Kirby. We made the light just as it turned green and managed to get to Gilmore together before stopping at the vehicles so some of the riders could drive home. I had got get home and take a quick shower before going back out again to do our grocery shopping. The cupboards were bare as they say. But all in all I had a great day. Hope the other riders did as well.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) It was Monday and I planned an easy ride on what was predicted to be a very nice day. It was also a day for an easy ride so I posted one going east and got ready to enjoy the day. I got to Burger King to see Digger, Bloodhound and Surgeon talking. By the time I got coffee Pony Express, Minotaur and Sasquatch had arrived. Highlander and Tax Man were about the last to pull up before we got ready to hit the road and head down Gilmore to Acacia and Kirby. For a change it was cool and hardly and any wind. We made our turn west on Cypress and headed for Sanderson and Johnston as part of the first leg.

We all pulled up to the light at Sanderson with Bloodhound taking the lead as the light turned green. To my surprise the only one that chased Bloodhound was Digger as the rest of us were very happy to just cruise along past Wally World and onto Mustang. As we headed to Domenigoni Bloodhound was still in the lead and Digger was still chasing him. We made the turn east and soon past Searl before heading towards State.

Most of us made the turn south on State and headed towards McSweeney. I pulled the main group for the mile or so to the Housing tract. We were well behind Bloodhound and what I didn’t notice was Tax Man heading north rather than joining us. Later I learned it was a good move because we picked up another rider. Finally we headed through the housing tract never really catching Bloodhound but making our way back to State Street and north towards Domenigoni.

We got caught at the light on Domenigoni but soon were on our way to Chambers, Only Bloodhound and Sasquatch made the light on the first try. We turned onto Chamber and then Buena Vista before working over on Thornton and out onto Santa Fe before making the run east on Stetson. We didn’t know for sure if Bloodhound and Sasquatch had turned on Columbia or not so we stayed on Stetson hoping meet up with them and Stetson and Lake. We past Lake just before Sasquatch and Bloodhound got there. We then found Tax Man and Jackal waiting at Fairview. Now we headed north to make our way back to Ramona and then to Soboba. We regrouped just before the golf course losing Highlander and Tax Man as we crossed the river bed.

We quickly cruised through Soboba and made it back to State before heading south back to the Expressway and headed back east towards Main Street where we had lost Highlander and Tax Man. Jackal made a hard run back to the Indian Clinic and waited till the rest of us got there before heading all the way back to Carl’s for coffee and conversation. Surgeon and Pony Express left first while some of us stayed to watch Sasquatch change a flat tire. Turns out he had a cut and we had to boot the tire before heading for home. Sasquatch headed for home on the east end while Jackal, Digger and I headed back for the west side of town.

By the time I got home I was ready for lunch and a hot shower. It was a good ride even if I really wasn’t up for pushing it much.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) Day tree after my MTB crash and I woke up to pain. Yes in this case the three day rule applies and I was sore in spots I wasn’t sore in on day one. So I more or less rolled out of bed and slowly, like the Frankenstein monster, stood up to head for the kitchen and start breakfast. The weather outside looked about perfect and I was looking forward to an easy Friday flat ride. I headed for Burger King and planned on a slow warm up heading to Florida and Palm. As I moved towards the light on Florida it turned yellow and I stood to try and sprint through. As soon as I got out of the saddle I knew it was a mistake and my ribs were far too sore for such a move. I thought it would still be ok and at least not everyone would want to hammer it on Stowe or Domenigoni. I would be proved wrong later. There were already four riders waiting for me as I pulled into the parking lot. By 8am we were headed down Gilmore to Acacia nine riders strong. I could also tell I wasn’t going to get any slack dealt me on the ride today. Pain or not I would have to man up and push through or I would get dropped. I knew that my day would be hard even better as we turned on Kirby and headed for Cypress.

As we got ready to turn onto Cypress Bloodhound started to pull away and Minotaur took off with him. I had neither reason nor inclination to chase them and at the early stage everyone seemed to be willing to ride at my pace. Behind me were Sasquatch, Digger, MacGyver, Surgeon, Dragon Slayer and Magic Man. The good part about the formation we had was I knew everyone behind me would help if the pace got too hard for me to hold. But still we watched as Bloodhound and Minotaur pulled away on Sanderson and then Wentworth and headed for the airport. We saw Bloodhound soft pedal as we came through the airport and we were almost on their wheel as we pulled onto Stetson. Minotaur was through the stop sign on Warren and we had to close on him by California. As we moved south towards Stowe Dragon slayer pulled by me taking Bloodhound and Sasquatch with him. I stayed on their wheel till just before the metal barn and made a run for the parking lot. Bloodhound caught me and got there first. We all regrouped while I tried to catch my breath and let the pain fade before heading back onto Winchester.

Thank goodness Dragon Slayer was feeling good because I didn’t have to pull even one foot down Winchester, past the dump road and Simpson. In fact I was safely in his draft all the way to Domenigoni. Out original fear was that we would run into a head wind heading east towards Sanderson. But we were in luck and we had a nice little pace line going as we headed east. We held a pace of between 22 and 24 MPH all the way to State Street where we once again stopped to regroup before heading towards Chambers.

We had Digger, Surgeon and Minotaur leave early to play rabbit while the rest of us gave chase as we headed to Stetson. We were closing on them as we got to Columbia and they decided to stay on Stetson while we headed to Thornton and then Crest. We slacked off from Chasing a bit as we headed for Lake Street but Dragon Slayer pushed us back up as we got to Lake and Stetson. We could see Minotaur and Digger as we scooted towards Fairview and another regroup.

Once on Fairview we stopped to regroup and once again Surgeon and Digger continued on towards Florida. We did see Dura Max out on a ride and talked to him for a few minutes before heading to Florida ourselves. We pretty much stayed as a group as we rounded the corner at Florida and made our way to Cranston to find our Rabbits waiting for us. We took a few minutes before heading back to Carl’s for coffee and a bit of a break up as a few didn’t have time to stop. There were only three of us heading back towards Burger King and we split up by the time we got to Columbia. I got home rather early and took a hot shower before fixing lunch. It was a great day to ride with great people and I feel lucky.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) It is Wednesday and it is supposed to be a good morning. We might have a little wind but who cares we have a ride to do. I had planned a ride west and I did expect some wind but still we have been in wind before and at least in one direction we should get some relief. There was only one little problem, I hurt. I was hurting from a fall Tuesday and there were places than decided to hurt more as I slept over night. By morning my ribs hurt, my neck hurt and my hand hurt. It was all I could do to roll out of bed and get up to have breakfast and get dressed in my Kit to head for Burger King. I hand full of Vitamin “I” and I was headed for a meeting with the group. Digger and Bloodhound were waiting and Highlander was already getting his bike out of his van. Sasquatch, Gambler and Rooster rounded out the group and we got ready to head out onto Latham and north on Lyon. At that moment there was very little wind. But I knew if it did get windy there would be few if any pictures being taken.

Sure enough as we got close to Esplanade the wind started to pick up. Gambler took over and led us almost all the way to Ramona Boulevard but I managed to take a turn and pull us west on Ramona and stopped us to let Digger catch up before sending him ahead to play rabbit and give us reason to chase someone on the Expressway. He made it through the light on Sanderson and the Expressway before we got there and was almost to Warren as we turned west and gave chase. I got a chance to lead us most of the way to Warren and gave the lead to Bloodhound till we caught Digger just after Bridge. We were really moving with the wind and Highlander fell out of the draft leaving just Bloodhound, Rooster, Sasquatch, Gambler and me to run for the light at Hansen. Gambler pulled around about a mile before Hansen and when I tried to cross the rumble strip I tossed my chain so I had to pull over. Digger caught me and before I could clear the chain Highlander flew by me like he was being chased by a vampire. We regrouped at Hansen and decided not to try Juniper Flats. There was a tree blown down on Hansen anyway so we headed to Lakeview and made our way to Nuevo.

We had a vicious side wind and it took us a while to get up to speed. Well all of us except Bloodhound and he was slowly pulling away from up. The problem we were having was blowing dirt. There were places where it made seeing down the road pretty hard and it was not much easier breathing. Even my nose felt like it was getting clogged with dirt. Soon we started to lose sight of Bloodhound.

We worked our way over to Menifee and started south. To tell the truth the wind wasn’t affecting us as much as I thought it would and there was less dirt blowing on Menifee than there had been on Lakeview. We got to Florida and waited for the group to get back together and then moved on to McCall and over the hill to Highpoint and then through the housing tract and onto Antelope to have coffee at Jack in the Box. Our next move was one we thought would be a lot of work. Going east on Newport and over the saddle all the way back to Sanderson. As we got close to the saddle we expected to get hit in the face with about the same force as we had at our back on Ramona. Imagine our surprise when the wind more or less died and stayed dead all the way to Sanderson. Gambler, Rooster and Bloodhound stayed on Domenigoni. Highlander had a big lead on sasquatch, Digger and I on Sanderson and we didn’t catch him till we got back to Gilmore and Florida. Sore or not it was a great day for a ride.

I had been gone for a week and had not been on my bike for more than an hour in all of that time. It looked like it might be a nice day Monday so I put together a simple run west with just a little climb to get my legs moving. I got dressed and had breakfast before heading to Burger King. Digger was already there and waiting as I pulled up and went inside to get coffee. Highlander and Dragon Slayer drove up and we discussed the blowing wind. We decided to ride anyway just as Minotaur arrived and Tax Man drove up. Once we had Sasquatch in the fold we were ready to pull out onto Gilmore and down to Acacia. As we turned towards Kirby we knew it was going to be a wild ride west and maybe a hard ride home. Still the ride south was every bit as easy.

As we headed for the railroad tracks the wind was pretty much off of the rear of our left shoulder. Dragon Slayer joked that the ride out was going to be a bit like eating our dessert before having dinner. Sometimes that can spoil your dinner and sometimes it is worth the risk. As we swooped around the corner onto Cypress and rolled the housing tract and out onto Johnston as if we were riding a crit race together and finally made it to Sanderson to head south again.

As we crossed Stetson Dragon Slayer and I considered making a run at the Mustang to Domenigoni segment and watched the light at Mustang closely but managed to catch it red so we aborted the attempt. The rest of the group caught us at the light and followed us onto Domenigoni and west towards Warren. At first it was Dragon Slayer and I setting the pace. However by Warren Tax Man and Digger were falling off and I went back to get them. We trailed the lead group all the way to the Saddle for a regroup and a snack.

The plan was to drop down the back side of the Saddle and ride all the way to the park on La Ladera. I know we normally stop at Carl’s but I figured we needed to make as good of time as we could with the wind at our back and hope for a lull when we made the turn north and east. I know that was a big wish but today I was an optimist and took off at a pretty good clip all the way to Menifee before catching the light and having to wait for the rest of the group. We then stayed together all the way to Antelope and over the freeway. We made good time crossing Murrieta but had to wait at the light where we turn towards Normandy. Finally we turned onto La Ladera and headed for the park. A quick break and we were back on our way towards Honeyrun.

I was informed that Tax Man had left us at Lindenburger so we were down one by the time we got back to McCall and headed east. Yes we were fighting the wind but it wasn’t as bad as we feared. We headed back to Bradley and over the freeway with Highlander in the lead. He stayed there till the group past the Valero station and Sasquatch made a run at Hospital hill. I caught up to Sasquatch by Hillpoint and took the lead myself. Dragon Slayer took over till the flat spot just before the top of the hill and we regrouped before heading down the back side and onto Heritage.

Once again the run east on Simpson was a bit hectic but the group stayed together as I pulled all the way to Leon. Sasquatch started pulling after that but we stopped for a mini regroup and Sasquatch led us towards Winchester. I got the last lead till we turned north towards Winchester Farms. Dragon Slayer made a great pull all the way to Stowe where we stopped for our coffee break. After a few minutes and a cup of coffee we were headed east again back towards California. We worked together fighting the wind from the east north east and finally turned right into is as we headed east on Stetson back towards Warren.

We stayed together past the airport and onto the road heading to Sanderson. Sasquatch and I got into a drag race heading back to Lowes and waited till everyone caught up to ride around the store to Acacia and back to Kirby and finally to Burger King. We talked for a while before heading for our separate homes. I got home with just over 38 miles on the computer and a feeling that I hadn’t suffered that bad for being off for a week. Not bad for an old guy.