By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) It was Friday and it was supposed to be the coolest day of the week. I had a simple but interesting rides planned and was looking forward to it. However I had done projects all day Thursday and I will admit I was tired when morning rolled around. Still I expected to work through it and headed for Burger King just after breakfast. I was disappointed when I didn’t see Bloodhound and concerned that MacGyver wasn’t there yet, because I was running late. Digger, Minotaur and Highlander were there however. Gambler and Bulldozer arrived shortly after I did followed by Huntress and Quicksilver. Surgeon showed up even if it was cool and overcast and finally MacGyver drove up so we could start the ride south.

It was a quick trip down Gilmore because we caught the light on Florida green. I started out feeling pretty tight and could only hope my arms and legs would warm up and loosen up before we got to Domenigoni. We had teased Quicksilver and said she would have to pull us all to the saddle but I was pretty sure that wasn’t going to happen. So I got up front with Highlander as we moved down Kirby and made the turn onto Cypress.

I wasn’t planning on pulling much today and so I was a bit surprised when I ended up towards the front as we headed through the housing tract on Cypress and headed for Johnston. Huntress and Quicksilver were close behind me as we came to Johnston and Sanderson only to catch the light red. Quicksilver pulled up next to me to let me know that a police car was parked behind us watching us. Or for our friends getting ready for the TDF next month, C'est une voiture de police derrière nous était garée à côté de la route. Needless enough to mention we had to wait till the light was green and traffic was clear before heading south towards Stetson and towards Mustang.

I need not have been so concerned about the run west on Domenigoni because everyone worked well together and the group held up at 22 or 23 MPH all the way past Warren and the dry wash. We were still together at Winchester with Gambler and Bulldozer setting the pace. MacGyver took over and slowly ramped it up slightly as we got close to Leon. The group started to fracture a bit as we got to the bottom of the saddle and I managed to slip by MacGyver after he did all the work getting me to the climb. We dropped off of the back side of the saddle and headed for Menifee and the little park for a nature break. The Bling team left first while surgeon changed a flat tire. The rest of us followed and by the time I got to the top of Revive Quicksilver was sitting by the side of the road with a picnic lunch complete with blanket, hot tea and sandwiches. Ok maybe it was only a Granola bar but she looked comfortable. The big dogs kept going and made their way to Scott. I took the rest of the group to Scott and headed west past Antelope and finally Haun. I spotted Minotaur in the distance and worked hard ton catch and pass him making it to Murrieta just ahead of the rest of my group.

Once we were all together I started a hard pull north heading for Holland. Highlander and Minotaur managed to get on my wheel and I kept the pace up all the way to Holland where Highlander and Surgeon headed for Newport and I waited for my group at the corner. Huntress and Quicksilver rolled by me after Minotaur and as soon as I saw Digger I gave chase. I got to Railroad canyon only slightly faster than Quicksilver, Minotaur and Huntress. My thought at the time was that the two women were more like hunting lionesses than I realized and they would always be looking to run me down. As we moved east I could just barely see the fading group of big dogs heading up the last climb. I almost lost sight of them when I got caught at the light by the shopping center and I gave chase all the way to Murrieta where they caught the light red and I pulled up next to them. I only waited for my group for about a minute while I watched the three big dogs pull away. We followed a few moments later.

We were moving along easily as we got back to Bradley and got ready to pull up to the light at Haun. As always we got ready to take the lane while going over the freeway and Quicksilver pulled us over to Antelope. As we pulled through the intersection Minotaur took the lead and we moved towards Menifee. We only made it to the first or next stop light before Huntress got a flat and we got a chance to watch a tire changing clinic from the Bling Team.

Once back on our way Digger took over pulling duty and got us to Menifee where we turned north and made our way to Simpson. We rounded the corner and headed east back towards Lindenburger separated by only a few yards. But the pace picked up quite a bit after we crossed Lindenburger and I had to soft pedal after leon till we were pretty much all back together headed for Winchester. I then started us north towards Stowe and wanted to check in to see if anyone stopped for coffee.

Once we noticed no other riders were at Winchester Farms we got back on Stowe and headed east towards California will Minotaur leading the way. I don’t know what happened to Digger but he didn’t call me so I can only assume he was following at his own pace. I took over the pull at California and pulled part way once we got on Stetson. Minotaur pulled to Warren and I took over again heading for the airport road. We were ready to part ways at the airport with Huntress and Quicksilver heading by the airport and onto Sanderson and Minotaur and I headed for Stetson and Sanderson.

Once we got to Sanderson Minotaur and I parted ways and I cut over to Johnston before heading east one last time. I rode back to Palm and then turned for home to enjoy lunch and a hot shower. Whatever fatigue I had didn’t set in till after lunch but I couldn’t kick back and check for pinholes in my eyelids till later in the day and running a few errands.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) The morning have turned out to be much milder than I expected and so I guess I didn’t need to be quite so conservative in planning our rides as I had been. Still today looked to be a good ride and was better attended than I expected. So I had breakfast and put on my Club kit and headed for the parking lot to get some coffee and wait for everyone to arrive. Digger, Dragon Slayer, Minotaur and Highlander were already there as I pulled up with Bloodhound in tow. Surgeon rode up followed by Bulldozer, MacGyver and Mantis. Quicksilver and Gambler were the last to arrive before we pulled out of the parking lot and headed south on Gilmore.

I knew today was a play day for me but to tell the truth I wasn’t feeling it at first. I was happy to follow Bloodhound at a reasonable distance to Kirby only to catch the light before being able to make the turn south towards the railroad tracks. I chatted lightly with Highlander as we crossed the railroad tracks and made our way to the right turn onto Cypress.

When we got to Johnston and turned right to Sanderson four of us made the light and turned south on Sanderson. Bloodhound, Surgeon, Highlander and I made the light at Stetson before the rest of the group even made the turn onto Sanderson. We started off as soon as the group did make it past Stetson and it was just our luck to make the light at Thornton as we separated from the main group heading for Mustang. Before I could reach the light at Mustang most of the A group past me hand headed flat out to attempt the Mustang Sprint. They rounded the corner onto Domenigoni and headed west. We started to spread out at that point and I picked up the dropped riders as I followed the turn. MacGyver and worked together to bring the trailing group up to the lead riders and were assisted by the light at Warren and then Winchester. I was well back on the pact as we rolled by Winchester and approached Leon. After making it through the light I decided to make a break for the saddle but I just may have gone out too hard too early and had the wind taken out of my sails when Gambler caught and passed me on the saddle climb. Seeing no reason to keep the effort going I simply shut down to save my legs for the revive climb after we went through the stop sign at Holland.

I was pacing Bloodhound at the beginning of the climb and was being paced by Surgeon. For a change I had picked the right gear and was able to spin all the way to the stop sign without being run down. I then planned on a run at the Garboni to Scott sprint but got caught by a car making a left in front of me at Garboni.

We quickly made it to Scott and headed for Antelope and the freeway overpass. The group broke into two pieces and I waited for the stragglers on Haun while the big dogs headed for Newport. Highlander had left us on Domenigoni and somehow Mantis missed the big dogs at the gas station. As soon as we had replenished out water we headed for Bradley and I made a run at Golf Cart Racing. For reasons only known to the Strava Gods my time never registered. I wonder just how well I did. Anyway I got to McCall and headed for Hospital hill only to catch all of the lights red. Unlike the two riders in front of me I couldn’t bring myself to run the red light at Sherman and had to wait till Surgeon and Quicksilver caught me. I then got stuck at Hillpoint and had to run the last part of the hill from a dead stop. From there it was over the hill and down the back side to Heritage and finally to make the turn onto Simpson. I caught the wheel of MacGyver to Leon and then hitched a ride on the wheel of Gambler and Bulldozer as they closed on Bloodhound. We caught him coming out of the trees and hit it hard heading into the last stand of trees where Bloodhound tried to out sprint Gambler only to get passed by Bulldozer before they could reach Winchester. Gambler and Bulldozer headed south to Domenigoni while the rest of us headed for Winchester Market and coffee at Stowe.

We didn’t stay long and both Highlander and Bloodhound had already left by the time Quicksilver was ready to head for home. I tossed what was left of my coffee and joined them as we headed back out onto Stowe and towards California. Mind you Dragon slayer had assured Quicksilver we wouldn’t drop her so I wasn’t expecting much of a run to California.

What I expected and what happened are two different things. Dragon slayer, MacGyver and I played tag all the way back to the airport before being joined by Quicksilver, Digger and Minotaur. Surgeon left at Warren so I didn’t see him after we pulled off of Stetson. We teased each other a bit as we made our way to Wentworth and made the turn onto Sanderson north and had to take the lane because of construction. As we headed for the corner at the back of Lowes Quicksilver broke into a sprint and made it to Acacia before I could catch her. That seemed to give her no end of joy and I followed her back to Kirby and then led her to Gilmore where she attacked again and made it to Florida before I could catch her. Chicked twice on one day is a great blow to me and a big accomplishment for her. I guess I will have to keep a closer eye on her in the future.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) Bloodhound Down It was supposed to be hot this week so I decided on a short easy ride to get the week off to a good start. Being the first part of the summer I thought we should get used to the head one day at a time. So I took out the Klein and headed for Burger King and what I thought would be a short fast ride. Little did I know it would turn into a short ride of survival? Digger, Bloodhound and Dragon Slayer were already there as I pulled up into the parking lot. Tax Man, Highlander and Harry arrived along with Surgeon. Barracuda dropped by but only to show off his classic old bike. Bulldozer arrived and we waited for Jackal to finish his breakfast before we got ready to head out to Latham and the north on Lyon.

As we moved north I noticed Highlander was down on power a bit and Bloodhound was off to the races as usual. For some reason Bulldozer and Dragon Slayer were well off the back as we past Menlo. By the time we got to Esplanade we were all back together and with the exception of Bloodhound stayed that way past Cottonwood and the blind intersection. True to form Bloodhound missed the jog at DeAnza and Savoy heading out onto Ramona and east.

I managed to get out front when we got to Ramona and stayed there all the way to State Street. We caught the light red and once again I found myself in the lead as we moved back north towards the Expressway. After we started past the College I fell back to third as Bloodhound and Jackal picked up the pace and headed for Soboba. I took the rest of us to Soboba and got us pointed in the right direction just as Bulldozer pulled out to start his run at the break away.

As Bulldozer went by he had Dragon Slayer on his wheel giving me just enough draft to catch a ride on the freight train as well. We started up the first roller and gained at least 50 yards on the fleeing twosome before picking up the pace and heading for the second roller. We pulled that roller in the same gear we were cruising in and caught Bloodhound and Jackal before they could reach the driving range. I pulled around to take a turn at pulling but only managed to ramp up my burn to the point I was running out of matches and had to back down as we started up the last rise before the end of the Golf Course. I stopped at the trees and pulled the group to Lake and Main where Surgeon pulled away and headed for the east side. Once again Bulldozer and Bloodhound reeled him in by Hemet road and I pulled Highlander, Tax Man and Digger to Cedar. Highlander and Tax Man decided to call it a day and headed for home. Digger and I caught Jackal with a flat tire and digger continued on while I waited for Jackal. Jackal and I made it to Florida and headed east to Cranston to regroup with everyone else. We didn’t stay at Cranston long but still Surgeon left first calling it a day as well and heading for home. When we headed back west towards Carl’s I got out first taking Harry and Digger with me. When I saw how much of a lead we had on the rest of the group I took off like a man possessed and headed for the trees dropping Digger and taking Harry with me.

My only goal was to make it to Fairview before Bulldozer and Bloodhound could reel me in and so I pulled for all I was worth. As we rolled up to the light at Fairview it turned red and just as we slowed down Bulldozer caught us. Still I considered it mission accomplished. Bulldozer waited and Fairview while Harry and I headed for Carl’s. It wasn’t till we were about to order coffee that we got a text saying Bloodhound was down at the Shell station and the EMTs were on the way. As we headed back east we say Jackal walking his bike with a flat and I only had time to toss him a tube before heading back to the Shell station to check on Bloodhound. He was sitting up and was being tended to by the EMTs and they were waiting on the ambulance in case they could talk him into going to the hospital.

Bloodhound was having none of it until his aunt and mother arrived and then all of them started working on him. It seems as if some older woman had rolled the stop sign even after seeing the group coming and while Dragon Slayer managed to avoid hitting the car Bloodhound grabbed too much break and went down like a sack of potatoes scraping his back and breaking his helmet. Once his relatives were on site we left and headed back to the west side.

We had to try and keep up with Dragon Slayer all the way back to Devonshire and the downhill to Yale. Somewhere about Buena Vista Jackal left us and Harry, Dragon Slayer and I made our way back to the parking lot before heading over to Starbucks for some coffee, tea and conversation. I then headed for home and a shower before doing some errands and having lunch. For a short ride losing three to fatigue and one to automotive assault is not my idea of a short simple ride.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) We were going to finish the week with a fairly flat ride around Lake Perris and out to Gilman before coming home. I had a new plan for my Friday rides and that was to just work on my own PRs and not try and run down the big dog breaks. I would have to see how that plan worked today. I headed for Burger King trying to make sure I was warmed up and ready to go. Digger, Bloodhound and Minotaur were already waiting and Highlander was unloading his van. Harry and Pirate arrived followed by Bulldozer, Surgeon and Barracuda. By 8:02 it was obvious no one else was going to show up so we headed out onto Latham and headed for Lyon.

We slowly picked up speed as we turned north on Lyon and rapidly moved towards Menlo with Bloodhound and Bulldozer leading the way. Soon they were joined by Surgeon and soon the rest of us had to chase them all the way to Esplanade before I got up front and pulled for Ramona.

By the time we rounded the corner onto Ramona Boulevard and headed for Sanderson Bloodhound and Bulldozer were long gone. I got us to the stop light at the Expressway and then pulled us to Warren before giving up the lead and following Pirate and Barracuda west towards Bridge. Barracuda took the pull at Bridge and pulled us all the way past Lakeview where Bloodhound and Bulldozer were waiting. We didn’t stop and they had to chase us to the beginning of the climb to Bernasconi where I slipped by and pulled over the first roller. Bulldozer past me as we crested the hill and took Bloodhound with him. But I managed to stay on their wheel till we crested the second roller. Finally I took the lead as we past the middle school and took us to Evans for a regroup. Highlander left us at Evans while the rest of us headed north towards Iris.

Once we made it to Iris we stopped at Mickey Ds for water and a restroom break and made sure we were all together before getting back on the road and heading east to go past the Park Gate and continue on towards Alessandro.

It is a slight uphill grade heading to the park gate and we spread out quite a bit till we crested the rise and started down the slight grade where the road turns into Moreno Beach and narrows down just before Alessandro east.

As we ramped it up on Alessandro the road got progressively worse till we were dodging pot holes like ships dodging mines. Minotaur lost attention for a second and almost ran into the rider in front of him breaking the group into two parts. I found myself in back with Harry and Minotaur Chasing Pirate, Bloodhound, Bulldozer, Surgeon and Barracuda. Harry and I managed to pull onto Gilman about 100 yards after the lead group and I still had enough steam to close on the ones that the lead group dropped. Harry assisted me when I started to fade and soon we ran down Pirate and then Surgeon and headed back past Bridge where I pulled again to Sanderson. Harry and I waited for Pirate and Minotaur at Sanderson but never saw Digger so we headed south towards the Expressway and continued south on Sanderson towards Cottonwood. Harry took over the pull as we came up to Esplanade and moved us towards Devonshire.

Pirate left us first and the rest of us finally made it to Devonshire just in time to catch the light and watch Highlander drive by. Harry pulled us to Kirby where Minotaur pulled around and sprinted for the parking lot. We stopped for a few minutes while Harry loaded his bike in his car and then headed for home ourselves. I got home with 49 miles on the clock and some hot and tired legs. But I had a great ride and picked up several PRs that pleased me to no end.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) I know Huntress requested the ride today and I also knew right after I posted it she wasn’t going to be there. Seems she had a white water trip she had to get ready for and was running out of time to get ready. It really didn’t matter much because it had been a while since we rode Bautista as a group. So I put on my club Jersey and headed for the parking lot eager to see if I could be any faster on the climb than I have been before. When I pulled up to the parking lot digger and Minotaur were already there and Dragon Slayer was unloading his truck. I noticed Bloodhound and Ron were there as well. Highlander and Quicksilver drove up and things seemed to get quiet. The last person to get there was Rabbit and he left first. I had a feeling this ride would be short and sweet and I wanted to hit Bautista a bit harder than normal. We caught Rabbit before we rounded onto Lyon and headed south.

I was a little impressed with the pace the whole group was setting and watched as Bloodhound faded into the distance in front of us. We moved by Acacia and headed for Whittier with Bloodhound still moving off in the distance. Things stayed the same till we crossed Johnston and pulled up to Stetson. After we crossed the street and headed for Thornton Bloodhound came back to ride with us and stayed there till we turned east and headed for State.

After we got to Santa Fe and headed to Stetson things started to spread out. Soon Bloodhound, Surgeon, Ron and Dragon Slayer had pulled away and I was back with the rest of the group till we got past Columbia Street. We rode by the High school together and closed in on speed bump. I attacked it but it looks like some had either motorpaced the hill or drove over it in a car. By Lake street we were spread out over a quarter of a mile and I tried to pull the last half of the group up to Fairview before Bloodhound and Dragon Slayer got out of sight. It didn’t work however so I regrouped a few and headed for Bautista. No one stopped at the Bautista and Fairview so I waited till everyone got by me before hitting the ride with some pace. I had the advantage of having several rabbits in front of me and by the time I got to the top of Bautista I knew I had one of my best ride going. I waited to we all regrouped before getting ready to start back down.

The ride back down to Fairview was pretty exciting as Highlander, Minotaur and Dragon Slayer started down first and I had to work hard to catch them. I got to Dragon Slayer just as Highlander fell off of the pace line. The remaining three of us tag teamed all the way down the hill and over the dam before making it to Fairview to wait for the rest of the group. Once everyone else had past us the three of us made a fast run to Florida before turning to and stopping at Carl’s for coffee before heading for home and a hot shower. I stopped for a few moments at Burger King before going home and having lunch. Yes my legs are tired but I sure feel good about the ride today.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) I felt pretty rested as I rolled out of bed this morning. I turned on the coffee and made breakfast before getting ready for an easy Monday ride. I decided on my old Peugeot Jersey and hat before heading to Burger King to meet with the club. Once again Digger and Dragon Slayer were already there and Bloodhound got there at the same time as I did. Highlander and Bulldozer arrived followed by Surgeon and Tax Man. Pony Express got there just before my friend Metric Man and Quicksilver. There was nothing left to do but head out onto Latham and over to Lyon to start out trip south.

At first I think I had Quicksliver confused because she was expecting a ride west and we were going first south and then east. After we crossed Acacia and headed for Whittier I noticed she was moving up on me and I could see questioning in her eyes. As we past Johnston she finally pulled up next to me and asked just where we were going. As we turned on Thornton I told her we were headed for State Street t get in a long run on Domenigoni.

She seemed satisfied with my answer and took the lead as we got ready to turn on Domenigoni and start west. Bloodhound got back in front and Highlander pulled up on my wheel as we headed for Searl. Once over the small hump at Searl Metric Man passed us and closed on Bloodhound only to have Bulldozer pull up and drag the rest of us up the both Metric Man and Bloodhound. Bloodhound pulled us almost all the way to Warren before Bulldozer took us again. By Winchester Bloodhound had the lead and he pulled us all the way to the saddle only to fall prey to a four man sprint to the top that even caught me off guard.

Once Digger had joined us we dropped off the saddle and towards Lindenburger. Quicksilver beat me down the hill but backed off at the light where Highlander, Digger and Tax Man were in the lead. We quickly moved on to the turn at Laguna Vista and headed for Newport to cut back east.

After turning south on Briggs Bloodhound, Tax Man and Highlander were up front and I had Bulldozer cruise by me heading for Bloodhound. I bummed a ride on Bulldozer’s back wheel and soon we had closed on Bloodhound and put a small gap on Tax Man. Still I could see Dragon Slayer moving up so I made a run for Garboni and Bulldozer let me so I got to the corner first and headed west. They didn’t let me get away with that twice however and Dragon Slayer jumped me just before Menifee. We split up a bit when Bulldozer had to head to Jack in the Box to refill his water bottle but we joined up again to ride to Lindenburger again. I tried to draft a SUV as it turned on Lindenburger and got to the housing tract before Bloodhound caught me. We almost got to Simpson when Bulldozer and Dragon Slayer caught us as we turned east on Simpson. We formed a rotating pace line and took it all the way to Winchester before heading to Winchester Farms for coffee and conversation. Bloodhound left first and the rest of us followed a few minutes later.

As we moved east on Stowe heading for California I was surprised how quickly everyone was moving considering how many of us were nursing sore legs. I had a thigh compression sleeve on, Dragon Slayer had sore legs from playing baseball and Metric Man had a pulled hamstring from running. Still my average speed was one of my better ones as we made our way back to Warren where Surgeon headed for home. I got us back to the airport road and over to Sanderson before heading north to Lowes.

We moved around the back side of Lowes and out onto Acacia before heading east to Kirby and then to Gilmore to go back to Burger King. Tax Man got back to the parking lot first where we all chatted for a few minutes before heading for home or to lunch. I was surprised at how fast this ride had been considering there were very few sprints and the group more or less stayed together most of the time. But what I wasn’t surprised about was how much fun we had as a group. As they say, “ a good day was had by all.”

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) We had made it to another free ride Friday and my hopes were simple, I was going to cruise to Lakeview and attack Bernasconi to see if I could get a PR and that would make my day. Some things simply don’t work to plan. My blue print for the day came apart early but I didn’t see it coming till we got ready to pull out of the parking lot. It was a surprising turn out with two of the young riders joining us, Zack and Noah. Gambler, MacGyver, Minotaur, Highlander and Surgeon were there as well. Quicksilver, Magic Man and Dragon Slayer were ready early and Digger decided to play Rabbit even though Rabbit joined us early as well. Sasquatch and Newsboy were with us as was Barracuda. They all followed me out onto Latham and then made the turn North on Lyon with the exception of Digger leaving early and Rabbit leaving late.

As some of our English friends might say things were going swimmingly as we passed Devonshire and Menlo and I started to bear down to start the run towards Ramona when Someone yelled Flat and we all stopped. Turns out Sasquatch had a broken spoke. Dragon Slayer was inspecting the rear wheel on Sasquatch’s bike when the offending spoke was discovered. That pretty much ended the day for Sasquatch. When he turned for home we started north again only to see Mantis changing a flat with Newsboy watching.

It wasn’t the fastest tire change we have ever seen but Mantis did a good job of replacing the tube and getting back on the road. We were soon back up to speed and I finally took the lead and pulled all the way to the corner of Lyon and Ramona to head west.

As we headed for Sanderson the second stage of my planned ride west started to take effect. I got to Sanderson and the Expressway with everyone else and started the pull west towards Warren. I didn’t get far before Gambler came by with his entourage following him. I started to follow them but by the time we got to Bridge the whole B team was falling back. I waited till MacGyver pulled them up to me and then we worked together to get them to Bernasconi and up the hill into the back gate at Lake Perris for a regroupat the check in booth. We never did catch Digger even if we did catch Rabbit. I did attack Bernasconi and felt like I did pretty well until MacGyver easily passed me and pulled away. We then all regrouped at the ticket booth before leaving for the bike trail. Highlander and Surgeon left first and I followed shortly after. As I made my way to the little hill I notice someone following me. Could have been a wild animal for all I knew but it turned out to be even more dangerous; it was Quicksilver with her race face on.

I waited for a few moments after Quicksilver past me and then gave chase after no one else came through the gate. It turned into quite a long chase as she closed in on Highlander while I closed in on her. But before I could catch her I saw the rest of the group closing on all of us rapidly. I did catch up to her first but the group was on us in a matter of seconds as we closed in on Highlander.

We rode at a more sedate pace to the Marina for coffee, conversation or hydration that lasted for about 20 minutes. Digger said he had been there about 11 minutes telling me he didn’t need a 15 minute head start. Still he wanted to leave first when we got ready to head for home. The difference this time was he would be going out of the back gate as we headed for the front gate. And just as he left and we started to head out News Boy discovered he had a flat. By the time he changed it digger was once again well on his way. We sped down the hill and headed for the front gate spread out like grass seeds on a new lawn.

I found myself about in the middle with some in front of me and some behind. I didn’t pick it up however till Quicksilver flew by me and questioned my manhood. SO I got up to the front as soon as I could.

As soon as we got out onto the Expressway Surgeon started the pull east and I plopped myself into the second slot. We past the Moto Park and MacGyver pulled around and once again I activated my tractor beam and fell onto his back wheel. He pushed my ability all the way to Rider and started up the roller with MacGyver punishing me every pedal stroke. I decided to toss caution to the wind and tried to pull around MacGyver and managed to get by and over the rolled first. I suspect he cut me some slack expecting me to explode from the effort to pass him and of course I had one of the young riders in my shadow all the way over the roller and down to Bernasconi where the big dogs ran me down. I held on to Lakeview where Dragon Slayer and Magic Man left for home. I ended up waiting for the rest of the group with Surgeon being the first to arrive. When Minotaur arrived he and Surgeon left and soon Highlander and Quicksilver rode by. Lastly Newsboy and Mantis pulled up and I went with them in pursuit of the fleeing B group. We caught them at Bridge and caught Surgeon and Noah at Warren where Surgeon left for home as well. Finally I caught Noah and pulled everyone to Sanderson.

We regrouped at Sanderson where Newsboy and Mantis left. We then headed straight down Sanderson rather than turning on Ramona Boulevard and heading for Lyon. Quicksilver started the pull and got us to the water district before giving the lead to me. About half of a mile into my pull the wind shifted and I had to drop a gear to save what legs I had left. I pulled a while longer and Highlander had to give me a break. At the next light Minotaur wanted to pull so we let him take the lead all the way to Devonshire.

We were more or less cruising this last part of the ride and soon came to the light at Devonshire and had to wait to make the turn. Minotaur pulled us all the way back to Girard and then to Burger King where we picked up Zack and Barracuda. We found them talking to Papillion. We all stood around talking for a few minutes before heading for home. I for one was looking forward to a hot shower and lunch. After than I had some errands to run before I could download my Garmin and copy my pictures for the day. On and I did PR Bernasconi even after feeling I blew it.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) When I looked outside this morning the sky had a slight overcast hue to it and a very light breeze. I had plotted a medium ride with a little climbing and I knew Quicksilver would be looking forward to it. In fact I expected both of the Bling Team to be there today. I left for the parking lot looking forward to the ride. When I pulled up to Burger King I noticed Digger, Dragon Slayer and Bloodhound waiting. They were followed by Highlander and Doug and Noah, the rider from last summer. Surgeon, Huntress and Quicksilver arrived just before Minotaur and Pirate and we had a full house to head out with.

We took the normal circuitous routed on Gilmore and Acacia to get to Kirby and head south towards the Railroad tracks and the turn on Cypress. At least this time we knew the sink hole had been fixed and we would have no sidewalk detours to get us to Johnston. What surprised me was I was well back in the pack and I hadn’t been loafing along as we got to Sanderson. I was three back as we turned towards Stetson and slowly moved forward in case Dragon Slayer and I made the light green at Mustang.

We started to ramp up for the Mustang to Domenigoni segment and at first it looked like we were going to make the light. The light turned red just before we got there so the segment was more or less a non issue after we started up again. Our next goal was to simply make the turn on Domenigoni and head for the saddle. My plan was to take it easy and save all my matches for Goetz and at first that is just what I did. But as we closed on Warren I got in a lead group with Bloodhound, Dragon Slayer and Pirate. We picked up the pace quite a bit and soon the rest of the group started falling off. By Winchester the lead group was moving quite a bit faster than the chase group and we were taking turns working our way to the saddle. It was my bad luck to have the lead at the foot of the saddle and somehow I managed to hold off the other leaders to the fence where Bloodhound finally got by me.

We decided to make a water stop at Carl’s on Murrieta s we dropped off of the saddle and headed for Lindenburger and Quicksilver was one of the first off of the hill. Some of the group got caught at Menifee but they were closing on the rest of us by the time we got to Antelope. Highlander caught the light perfect and was one of the first over the freeway and to the light at Haun. We were back in a big pack by Bradley and were lining up for a sprint to Carl’s by the next light. I followed on Bloodhounds wheel and came out about one hundred yards before the Carl’s driveway. What I didn’t know was Dragon Slayer was on my wheel and sling shot by me and beat me to the driveway. We rehydrated before heading west on Newport and Surgeon went north on Murrieta while we headed for Goetz. We did see D’Artagnon driving by just before reaching Goetz and heading north.

Highlander left us at Normandy and I decided to give chase to the fleeing Bloodhound and Doug. I started out a bit slower that I should have and soon Pirate and Noah past me only to get caught in the next two climbs. Pirate was pulled in just before the Mini mart Noah was out of spin by the Elks Club. The trouble was I was low on matches and simply couldn’t force myself into pushing to catch Doug or Bloodhound. I got to Ethanac about 10 seconds after Doug and Bloodhound.

Once we were back on the road we headed for Murrieta and south towards the memorial park to turn east. We stopped to look at the new walls they put up. One for Military Veterans.

There was another for police and fire heroes.

It is good to see some still honor service to others despite what the media would have us believe. As soon as I finished taking pictures like a tourist we were back on our way to head east towards Bradley so we could turn on McCall.

We were running a bit fast so we headed east on McCall to Hospital hill and picked up Highlander before dropping down to Heritage and heading over to Lindenburger. We turned onto Simpson and slowly started a pace line building speed heading to Leon. Bloodhound had left us and was halfway to Winchester when we reached Leon and Dragon Slayer took the lead. As the speed increased the line started to break and I told Dragon Slayer to take it down one. He thought I meant shift into a smaller gear and pulled away. Minotaur pulled around me and worked with Dragon Slayer all the way to Winchester where we joined them and headed for Stowe and a quick cold drink. Some left almost as soon as we got there but a few of us stayed and talked.

They waited till I finished my large cold drink and then we headed east on Stowe to make a run at California. While most wanted us to cruise home Dragon Slayer couldn’t help himself and by increasing speed like someone trying to boil a frog he had us back up to Speed on California and all the way down to Stetson.

We worked our way to warren and then the airport road before heading back to Sanderson and heading north. Because of the construction we took the lane and made our way to Lowes. It was a quick trip around the back side of Lowes to Acacia and then to Gilmore before we got back to Burger King and watched some of the riders load up their cars. I headed for home and even got there a bit early to fix lunch and then enjoy a hot shower before down loading the pictures and my Garmin.