By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) So today was leap day 2016 and we had an easy ride planned just to get the week started. It was a little ride to Sage and up to Mento Way before heading back down to Domenigoni and the saddle. The weather was perfect and I was pretty eager for the ride. I only wanted a nice group to ride with. In got to the bike shop and met up with Dragon Slayer and Digger for coffee. Tax man and Anaconda arrived followed by Cutter and Highlander. Not a big group but a nice sized one for the ride. We headed out right at 9am and went south on Lyon. I managed to lead us south past Acacia and talked easily with Highlander as I discovered he was back on schedule for making it to our rides. The group followed me down to Johnston and then east past Palm to get ready for our turn south again towards Thornton.

After we turned south I continued to lead the group down to Stetson and caught the light red. After it changed I took us to Thornton and rode with Dragon Slayer east towards State Street for our next turn. I knew Digger would leave us about Domenigoni and I discovered that Highlander and Tax Man wanted to do Cactus Valley rather than Sage so the group would be splitting up soon. Dragon Slayer had a nature stop planned for the trees after we crossed Domenigoni so I stayed with Cutter, Highlander and Tax Man as we headed towards Cactus Valley road and Sage. Cutter and I teamed up at Sage when Highlander and Tax Man crossed the road and we turned south. Once we started up sage I dropped into the small ring and started a spin heading for Domenigoni Market. Cutter was in front of me about thirty yards as we came upon an touring rider reading for Saint John’s grade. We passed him at the Market and moved on to Mento Way to wait for Dragon Slayer and Anaconda. It took a bit longer for them to reach us because Anaconda had a flat but as soon as they did we headed back north towards Sage and Cactus Valley. The good part is the ride back to Domenigoni is almost all downhill. Dragon Slayer led us to the stop sign and west towards State Street.

Once we were all together Dragon Slayer took us to State and north back to McSweeney where we found Tax Man and Highlander waiting. They joined us as we rode to Domenigoni and headed west behind Dragon Slayer and then Cutter heading for Sanderson. As we crossed Sanderson it was time for us all to work together and head for Warren. Tax Man took over before Warren and pulled us over the dry wash and part way down the back before I got a turn. I didn’t get to pull far before Highlander took over and took is to Winchester and beyond. We rotated once or twice more before Dragon Slayer made to final pull to the saddle. I was determined to hold his wheel and I managed to stay in it all the way over the saddle and down to Lindenburger. We regrouped briefly before heading for Simpson and the turn east. Highlander and Tax Man wanted to take Briggs to the dump road so we made that turn as well and did the short crossing in the dirt before heading east once more and falling in line for the run to Leon. As we crossed Leon I got in position for the DVV flag sprint with Dragon Slayer, Tax Man and Highlander and I all in a row. As we crested I made a move and started to see how much juice I had for a sprint and moved to the front. Dragon Slayer came back by me and I grabbed another gear and held his wheel. We didn’t set any new records but I felt stronger than I have since October so it was a good feeling. We ended up waiting for Tax Man and Highlander and rode to Winchester and then Stowe for a regroup and a break. Once we had a break under our belt we got back on Stowe and headed for California to start for home.

I fell back and started having a conversation with Cutter while the rest of the group headed for Stetson and the back towards Warren. Cutter and I were in cruise mode and watched as they pulled away and faded from view at the Airport. We made our way to Cawston and found them waiting at Industrial so we all rode together back to Sanderson and then to Acacia. Once we crossed over Kirby it was a short push to the Bike shop where some of us loaded up and headed for the Healthy Pub and lunch. A cold smoothie made the ride perfect.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) Fridays haven’t been good to me for quite a few weeks. I feel pretty good on Monday and my legs co-operate. By Wednesday I am still doing ok but by Friday I am pretty worn out. Today was a bit different as I headed for the Bike shop I was looking forward to the ride. I got to the shop to find Minotaur waiting and talking to Digger. Earth Dog wasn’t far behind me and we stood around talking till Anaconda and ME-109 arrived. We were waiting for Bulldozer and Cutter and we didn’t have long to wait. Ferret and Tax Man rode up so I knew we had a pretty good A group and I had a text telling me that Ben would be driving to join us at State and Soboba. Barracuda pulled up last making it a strong A team and a B team. As we got ready to leave Earth Dog took off and pulled us to State and Lyon till everyone joined us at the light. We let Earth Dog pull us past Devonshire and all the way to Esplanade while the rest of us caught up on socializing in the pack.

As we pulled away from Esplanade the pace picked up a bit and a long pace line started to form and the conversation started to die down. We had Earth Dog still leading until we got close to Ramona Boulevard where he let me make the turn before Tax Man took over and pointed us at Sanderson.

It was time for me to take a back seat on the bus because I could just feel that my planned easy ride was going to turn into a power drive once we got to Sanderson and the Expressway. Even Tax Man seemed over energetic to me as we rolled along towards Sanderson and he led us to the light on the Expressway. Once the light changed Cutter took off a bit too fast as he headed west towards Warren and that simply tweaked the interest of the A riders and soon the caught and came around us in a pace line. Cutter, Tax Man and I were left to ourselves as everyone else took off and left us. They did start to splinter before they got to Warren and soon we saw two riders falling off as we started to close on them. We ended up catching Earth Dog and Anaconda before Bridge street where we regrouped with the well rested A group.

Once we got started again Ferret and Minotaur quickly pulled away and soon Bulldozer and ME-109 took off after them. I thought I would have to just watch them fade into the distance till Barracuda pulled by me and I dropped onto his back wheel. We pulled away from the rest of our group and I followed Barracuda all the way to Gilman where the As has stopped to wait for us. We collected everyone and I mentioned that we were supposed to meet Ben on Soboba and State as we took off east back towards Sanderson on Gilman. I pulled till we crested the rise on Gilman and Earth Dog took over from there till we got to the last downhill before Sanderson where Tax Man and I took off of the underpass before soft pedaling till everyone was back in tow.

My group got to Soboba to find most of the A riders waiting with Ben before we started back east towards the Golf course and the rollers. Earth Dog, Tax Man and I followed Ben to the driving range. After the last little climb I stopped to collect the stragglers before heading towards the River Bridge and Ramona Expressway.

Once we were back on our way I led us around the corner and towards the Expressway only to find the As waiting for us at the light. Ferret had gone home so we were joined by the rest of them and we headed east on the Expressway. We were coming up about an hour and forty-five minutes and that is where I normally start to tire out but today I still felt fine. My goal is to push a bit longer and develop a bit more stamina each week. Maybe this week I could get 2 hours in before going into survival mode, you never know. We headed for Cedar Street expecting to lose Tax Man at Hemet Street. Sure enough he turned on Hemet and we continued on towards Cedar.

We finally turned on Cedar and headed towards Fairview and Florida. I fell back with Cutter and we followed the rest of the group to the fire station where Bulldozer left us. Cutter and I just about caught the rest of the group at Florida and the light where we turned east and headed towards Cranston Station. Up in front I could see Ben heading for the trees in front of the fruit stand but I didn’t see where Minotaur and ME-109 were. We did see Anaconda and Earth Dog pull into Cranston and we followed a few moments later.

I was thinking the ride back down to Carl’s Junior would be an easy one but that wasn’t in the cards either as Earth Dog took off for the trees and Minotaur took off after him. That drew ME-109 after the both of them and left me to chase after Cutter and Earth Dog. Ben had stayed with Anaconda and Barracuda once again came up to save my bacon as we closed in on Earth Dog and pulled away from Cutter. We caught Earth Dog and headed for Fairview where I noticed Minotaur waiting. I guessed ME-109 had left for home on Fairview but I didn’t know Minotaur was waiting for Ben. Finally we slowed down as we past Casino and headed to Carl’s for coffee. Minotaur, Anaconda and Ben joined us and we had a good visit before having to leave for the west side of town. Anaconda left us to go back to Fairview and home while we headed for Lincoln and west to Park. Barracuda left us next and Cutter and I rode behind Earth Dog and Minotaur until San Jacinto where Earth Dog took off after the light and we didn’t catch them again at State because we hit the red. Cutter left us at the bike shop and we all headed for home after a good ride in great weather.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) Another great looking morning and I was feeling pretty good after a hard ride on Monday. I put up a reasonable ride with lots of long flats and one set of rollers for about 42 miles. I wasn’t sure who would be there but I eagerly headed for the bike shop to get the ride on the road. Digger was waiting as I pulled up to the shop and we were soon joined by Dragon Slayer. Cutter was well and rejoined us after his bout with a cold and Earth Dog was early. In watched as Huntress pulled into the parking lot and ME-109 rode up. We also had Karl, (Bruin) join us followed by Highlander and Tax Man. Lastly we had MacGyver and we were ready to go.

As we pulled out onto Lyon and headed north I felt like pulling so I did and we quickly moved past Latham and Devonshire into a very slight breeze. To me that was a good thing because the weather wizards had said we would have a morning breeze from the north by north east making the ride on Ramona and Menifee a slight tail wind. The only drawback was the weather wizards had lied to me for the last two weeks and I wasn’t sure today would be any different. At least we were starting out with it coming from the right direction. The breeze was light enough that I was able to pull the group almost all the way to Esplanade to catch the light red. Once we left that light Dragon Slayer moved up to help me and he pulled us most of the way past Cottonwood and then to Ramona Boulevard.

At this point I was content to fall in line and let someone else lead us west towards Sanderson and then to the Expressway. By the time we were all lined up at the light on Sanderson and the Expressway I was pretty sure it was going to be a good day and a good ride. I was pretty content to stay towards the front of the pack as we headed for Warren but fell back to see who was still with us and discovered Cutter and Digger were well off of the pace. Tax Man and I decided to set it on cruise and fill the gap between the lead group and the trailing two and did so till we came up on Dragon Slayer and a flat tire. While it looked like Dragon Slayer had everything under control we decided to send Digger and Cutter on towards Bridge and Tax Man and I gave chase along with Highlander. By Bridge Street Digger dropped off and headed for home and we waited for Cutter to catch us. Once he caught up he ended up pulling us all the way to Hansen and the Lakeview Market for a regroup where we waited for the rest of the pack.

As we got ready to head west again MacGyver said he was planning on leaving us because he had an appointment. Highlander and Tax Man had decided to cut the ride short and head south on Lakeview so MacGyver went with them as we headed for the rollers and Rider. We went back out to the Expressway and headed for Burnesconi while the other three headed for Nuevo. I pulled to the bottom of the first roller and let Dragon Slayer chase Earth Dog as they started the assent. Soon ME-109 picked up the pace and rode to the front. At first Dragon Slayer and Huntress past Earth Dog but Huntress started to bog down a bit so I hit is hard and caught and passed her feeling I had enough for the climb and enough to finish the ride as well. At the top I slowed to make sure Cutter made the turn onto Rider and the two of us caught the group once again when Dragon Slayer had his second flat. Once the second flat was fixed we headed for Evans and made the light for a turn south towards Nuevo. Once onto Nuevo we headed back east and directly into a head wind. That wind stayed in our face all the way to Menifee where we regrouped one more before heading towards Central and then to the rise at the Nursery. I was sitting at the back of the pack till Dragon Slayer picked me up and pulled me up to some of the stragglers. We drafted Earth Dog and Huntress up the rise and then pulled around to chase ME-109. I stayed with Dragon Slayer till we got by ME-109 but looked down and noticed I was deep into zone five. I backed down for a minute to recover and then had to chase Huntress and Bruin by myself. I held the spin till I got past Bruin and pulled up behind Dragon Slayer and ME-109. We split up a bit at the light but Earth Dog and I pulled Cutter all the way to Simpson and then Lindenburger where we regrouped once more.

Earth Dog, Cutter and Bruin rolled on when I joined Huntress, Dragon Slayer and ME-109 so we chased them all the way to Leon before taking over the pull. I finally attempted a short sprint just before Winchester where ME-109 left us and headed for Domenigoni. Dragon Slayer pulled the rest of us to Stowe where most of us stopped for a break while Huntress and Dragon Slayer headed for home. After a short break we headed east on Stowe where we broke into two groups with Bruin and I slowing the pace down and talking while Earth Dog and Cutter headed on and pulled away from us. Bruin and I talked all the way back to Sanderson before heading to Lowes and onto Acacia before heading east once more. We got back to the bike shop and said our good byes before heading for home and a hot lunch. It was a great day for a ride.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) It was another good looking Monday as I headed for the bike shop and the group for our ride. I was feeling pretty good but I knew right from the start I would have to conserve my energy to finish the ride. I had tossed in a bit of distance and just a smidgen of climbing to test my recovery. It would remain to be seen if I could control my effort. I got to the shop to find Digger waiting for a short ride. We were joined by two new riders for the day, Ben, from Yucaipa and his friend Dafida from Pennsylvania. She was only out for one more day but she wanted to get in some saddle time. We were joined by Ranger, Anaconda and even Siren. I haven’t seen Siren for months so it was good to see her. Of course Siren got there at the last minute but it was only just after 9am. We headed down to Acacia and headed to Kirby to head south again.

Digger was staying with us pretty well as we got to Cypress and was still there as we turned west and cruised through the housing tract and got to know the new riders. It turns out Ben is an active Tri athlete and will make a good addition to our little group when he is able to join us. Dafida is only out to see him and has to go back to the frozen east tomorrow. They were up for a 40 mile ride however even after doing a long climbing ride yesterday. They were right with us as we rounded the corner on Johnston and crossed the street at Sanderson to ride down Industrial to Cawston.

I decided to take a turn at the front as we turned onto Stetson and got us moving at just under 20 as we passed the airport. It seemed easy enough to get us to Warren and shortly after crossing over that street Ranger came up and gave me a break. By the time we got to California Ben and Siren had the lead and I started to fall back with Dafida as we had lost Digger well before Stowe. Siren pulled me all the way to Winchester where we regrouped before heading south towards the dump road. Digger was done for the day and headed for home. I decided to change the route a bit and go all the way to the end of Grand just past Briggs and take the dirt road to Malaga and connect with McCall. Once headed west on McCall we rode close together as we got close to Menifee and the back side of Hospital hill. As we got close to the climb Ben and Ranger took off for the climb with Siren and Anaconda following after them. I still felt good and thought I had enough energy to get out of the Saddle and chase after Ranger passing Anaconda and Siren along the way to the top of the climb. I was maxed out however and slowed to pick up Anaconda just as Siren rolled by to Chase Ranger and Ben down the front side of the hill. Anaconda followed me to the stop light and we were joined by Dafida as we continued over the freeway and regrouped at the gas station on Benton. Our next move was west on McCall and heading all the way to the end of the road to turn south to Honeyrun and then west to LaLadera and finally to Normandy. I started us towards Goetz but once again Ranger had to take over for me. However once we turned south on Goetz the whole group turned early in front of me and I got to Newport first to start the run at the first hill on Railroad Canyon. This time Ben and Siren took off on us and we had to follow them all the way to Canyon Hills before turned back south east to get to Holland and work our way back to Murrieta and then Haun before riding over to Newport and taking a break at Jack In the Box before heading for home. We traveled together back to the saddle where Dafida started to fade a bit in the wind. We closed into a double pace line and worked as a team to get the group back to Sanderson against the wind. Once on Sanderson it was a quick trip north to Lowes for the cut over to Acacia.

I started to run out of steam as we got back to Acacia and was falling behind as we got close to State Street but I still managed to pull Dafida on the short cut to the bike shop before heading for home with 44 miles on the computer. I really was looking forward to lunch and a hot shower. My dog was looking forward to a walk so lunch and a hot shower had to wait. But it felt good when I had both.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) It looked like another great day for ride as I headed for the Bike shop this morning, a little cooler than Wednesday but not cold enough to bother me much. I had planned the ride for Huntress and Tax Man and to be honest I regretted not making it a bit shorter for me. Today seemed like a bit of a setback physically because I started out tired and a bit sore and it wasn’t working out as I headed for Lyon. I got to the shop to see Digger sitting at the counter and coffee brewing. I went over to get a cup about the same time as Anaconda arrived. She was followed by Earth Dog and ME-109. I then discovered Huntress wasn’t going to join us so I could have made the ride even flatter. Minotaur and Bulldozer joined us and it was 9am so we got ready to leave. Tax Man wasn’t with us either so I really regretted not making the ride shorter. I mentioned to Bulldozer that I might modify the route once we got to Nuevo and he agreed it might be a good idea. We pulled out of the parking lot and headed down to Acacia and over to Kirby before heading south.

As soon as we got to Cypress I knew I was in trouble because I fell behind Bulldozer, Minotaur, ME-109 and Anaconda. Earth Dog dropped back to pull me up to them and casually said we would have our work cut out catching them and he proceeded to pull us up to Johnston and Sanderson. The problem intensified when we got caught at the light and they didn’t. Once we got a chance to turn onto Sanderson we were at least a block behind the other four and they were pulling away. As we rounded the corner onto Domenigoni we could just see the other four heading over the rise heading for Warren. I was impressed that Earth Dog chased as hard as he did and it looked like we might close at Warren but we fell back again at the dry wash and there was no closing after that. I tried to take a turn at the front and pull to give Earth Dog a break but I didn’t last that long and shortly after Winchester Earth Dog got back in front. I had just enough to pull at the saddle and take us to the gas station on Menifee for a regroup.

We took a short break before heading back out onto Menifee and headed north. We all crossed over Simpson together and dropped down towards McCall. This time ME-109, Bulldozer and Minotaur took off for Florida and we watched them pull away. We crossed Florida about 3 minutes behind them and Earth Dog pulled us past Mapes and over the rise to the downhill heading towards Central. As we got to Nuevo I told Earth Dog to turn right and head for Lakeview. Bulldozer had remember that I had said I might shorten the ride so he soft pedaled his group to Lakeview and headed north. We finally got on their back wheel and followed them past 11th street and I ran up against the rev limiter and simply couldn’t hold on after 9th street. We turned onto the frontage road and regrouped at the little store on Hansen. As we got ready to leave Bulldozer’s group said they had to get back for an appointment so they headed east on Ramona and we followed. We had been running into the wind all the way down Lakeview and to my surprise we hit the wind again as we headed east. Earth Dog did the lion’s share of the pulling back to Bridge and then took us to Warren where we turned south. To my surprise we still had a head wind as it seemed the wind had turned around just for us. Anaconda pulled us to Cottonwood and we headed east again to get to Sanderson. Earth Dog ran us south on Sanderson all the way back to Devonshire before we headed east again to work our way back towards Lyon.

I did take another turn and pulled us from Kirby to Lyon before turning south and getting us back to the parking lot and the Bike shop. The three of us took a short break before heading for our respective homes and in my case a well needed rest. To me it felt like the whole ride was done with a dead spark plug in one cylinder on a car. I hope t do better next week and guess my recovery will take a lot longer than I had thought.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) I wasn’t quite sure about today’s ride. Some had requested a ride to Idyllwild and I knew full well I wasn’t up to that much of a climb. But I could post a ride to Mountain Center and that would give people the option of doing the whole ride or any part of it they wanted. So I posted the ride and headed for the Bike Shop not knowing if anyone would be joining me. To my surprise we had a pretty good sized group and even Digger was there to do a short ride of his own. We were soon joined by Earth Dog and much to my surprise Ranger came down to join us. Anaconda arrived and informed us that Chance and his brother would be with us as would a friend of hers. Hacker was with us as was Tax Man and Huntress was on her way. Karl decided to join us as well. Not a bad group for a Wednesday and a climbing ride. I also thought that Papillion would join us before we got to Cranston Station. As close to 9 am as I could I led us out of the parking lot and north on Lyon.

I decided to lead us north with the intention of keeping the pace easy so I could sae as much energy as I could. This was going to be the biggest climbing ride I had tried since last October when I had surgery. My stamina has suffered the most I think and my longest ride to date was Monday. So I wasn’t sure how much legs I was going to have for this ride. I knew I would have to ask someone else to take everyone to Idyllwild because I also knew it was going to be all I could do to make it to Strawberry Creek. I did manage to lead everyone to Ramona and headed east.

Huntress pulled up to take over for me by the time we got back to State Street and I decided that we should skip Soboba and just stay on Ramona all the way to Cedar before heading up the hill. As we got close to Cedar I asked Chance to regroup everyone at Cranston and I fell back in the group and geared down to save as much energy as I could. My goal was just to gear down and make a steady pull up the hill. Pushing was out of the question because I simply didn’t have the stamina for a long push. I rounded the turn onto Florida with Ranger and he pulled me up to Tax Man before heading off towards Cranston. By the time we regrouped at Cranston I saw Papillion had indeed joined us and felt better about sending the group off to Idyllwild without me. So I had a strong leadership leading the climb and I knew I would be joined by Tax Man and Earth Dog on my climb so I felt good. I followed Chance to the Truck Trail where I dropped into the small ring and watched the other roll by me. Huntress rolled by and gave me a little look telling me she was overjoyed and being able to pull away from me with ease. I knew this day would come I just didn’t know how it would get here. Still I had nothing by admiration as I watched he pull away.

Now it came down to a grind for me. Tax Man was still with me and I could see earth Dog and Ranger in front of me. I thought Tax Man was going to turn around at the Truck Trail but he held on for another mile or two. About two miles from Strawberry we pulled up next to Earth Dog and took a short break were Tax Man decided to head for home. I thought Earth Dog was going home as well but he decided to stay with me and head to Strawberry with me. We headed up the hill and soon crossed over Strawberry and I knew we were close. In fact we were too close to give up now and we pushed through for another mile before I could point out where the turnout was. Earth Dog pulled around me and got to the turnout first and I joined him a few bikes behind. I felt I had reached the turnout just in time because I don’t think I had another half of a mile worth of climbing in my legs.

I was sort of looking forward to the downhill run and as soon as we caught our breath we headed back down towards Val Vista. I managed to get in the drops for a while and managed to pull away from Earth Dog because the wind was right in our face as we descended. I never got much over 36 even in a full tuck but I was lower than Earth Dog so I did get away. It stayed that way till we got back to the Truck Trail where I was joined by earth dog and we rode together past Cranston towards Fairview. Earth Dog did most of the pulling to Fairview and I attempted to pull as we headed towards New Chicago. But the wind just hammered me and Earth Dog pulled me to the Carl’s driveway. I stopped and got a cup of coffee and texted some of the group to see where they were. Once I was sure they made it I finished my coffee and headed for home, lunch and a hot shower. I made my goal of climbing to Strawberry and hope to get better or maybe close to as fit as I was last year. Only God knows.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) It was looking like another nice day and it would be the last day of the week that I could ride. I have an appointment on Friday and the group will have to get by without me till next Monday. I got dressed and headed for the Bike Shop to try and get in a good 40 mile workout with the group. As I got to the parking lot riders started to arrive and it looked like it might be a good group. Earth Dog and Dragon Slayer showed up as did Highlander and Tax Man. ME-109 showed up with his fixed gear with Minotaur and Bulldozer pulling up right after. The last ride to join us was Huntress and as soon as she was ready we headed out to Lyon and down to Acacia. I took as to Kirby and waited at the light till we could turn south towards the railroad tracks.

I wasn’t all that interested in leading this early in the ride so I was more than happy when Highlander and Tax Man pulled us onto Cypress and west towards Johnston. I fell back to talk with Huntress and we chatted till we turned onto Johnston and stopped at Sanderson. Minotaur and Highlander were the first to get to Stetson but they got the light red and I caught them on a roll and led us to the light just past Wally world where we were stopped once again. I was sitting back in the pack as we approached Mustang but I had enough gas in the tank to get out front and see the group behind me.

Highlander, Tax Man and Minotaur took us onto Domenigoni and headed us west. ME-109 was the first A rider to zip by followed By Bulldozer, Minotaur and Dragon Slayer. Earth Dog started pulling the B group and we were soon rolling along about 20 or 21 MPH. Once Highlander got the lead we were closing in on Warren and he had us up to closer to 23 or 24. Earth Dog got another chance as we dropped off of the Dry wash and even I took a short pull till Huntress came by and did a great job of keeping us going as we got close to Winchester. After Winchester Huntress dug deep and pulled us all hard all the way to the saddle and then held her pace as Earth Dog and I drafted her to the top and over. We ended up following her all the way to the gas station on Menifee where the rest of the group was waiting for us to regroup. We took a break and then headed south towards Holland and Revival hill. Highlander and Tax Man led most of the way to Holland before Minotaur started his run at the hill. I was packing Huntress and Dragon Slayer and Minotaur passed. I stayed with Huntress and Earth Dog till I felt I could attack the hill a bit and jumped right after ME-109 jumped past me to try and run down Minotaur. I did get by Dragon Slayer but didn’t catch Minotaur or ME-109. I waited at the top of the climb as Highlander and Tax Man rolled by and ended up having Huntress pull me all the way to Scott and then to Antelope before we caught up the Highlander, Earth Dog and Tax Man. We had to chase them once again as we crossed over the freeway and headed to Hawn. Huntress pulled me to their back wheel and we stayed with them till we got back to Holland where Dragon Slayer was waiting for us. We turned while Highlander and Tax Man went towards Newport. Dragon Slayer pulled us towards the Holland Hill and I noticed Minotaur and Bulldozer coming up from behind us. They had to back track after going straight at Holland themselves. I decided to attack this hill as well and did pretty well till just before the top where I burned my last match. We turned onto Murrieta and headed back for Newport to regroup once again at a gas station. We took a break as Highlander and Tax Man joined us and I was still eating when Highlander and Tax Man left. The rest of the group started to follow them and I was the last one out of the parking lot. I simply didn’t have any legs to catch them. As luck would have it Bulldozer, Earth Dog and Dragon Slayer were waiting for me at Cherry Hill and they stayed with me as we headed to McCall to start east.

We could just see Huntress as we got back to Bradley before crossing over the freeway. Minotaur was waiting at the Valero Station and joined us. Huntress was already on Hospital Hill as we past the last light before the climb. Earth Dog pulled away and went after her. Now my legs were fighting me and I simply didn’t have any energy to push. I geared down and expected the few riding with me to leave me but they didn’t and for one of the few times in my life I was giving a push to help me up the hill. I wondered if that was what and electric motor would feel like climbing the hill.

We made it over the hill and caught Huntress at Menifee before heading straight for Briggs. Dragon Slayer left us at Menifee. We had also added ME-109 just after Menifee. We turned back to Simpson and then made one last turn east towards Leon. I drafted one or the other of our little group all the way back to Winchester where Bulldozer, Minotaur and ME-109 left for Domenigoni. Huntress pulled me to Winchester Farms before heading for home when I stopped to join Earth Dog, Highlander and Tax Man. I had a banana and started to regain some of my energy as we finished off our water and energy drinks. It was then time to head for home and we all rode together till we got back to the Bike shop. I stopped in for a minute or two before heading for home and lunch. I was tired but I still felt good. It may take me longer than I thought to get back in form but I think I am getting there.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) I like Mondays and I like warm days and this was a warm Monday. I put together an east ride because they weather wizards had predicted a North East wind and I figured we would at least have the wind to our back on the way home. I got dressed a bit lighter than over the last few days and headed for the Bike Shop to meet whoever was going to ride with me. The great thing about meeting at a bike shop is if you forget anything you have a last chance to pick it up before the ride. I met up with Dragon Slayer as I pulled u to the shop and Papillion was talking with him Papillion wasn’t going to ride but it was good to see him anyway. Highlander, Cutter and Earth Dog arrived next followed by Tax Man. It was a small group but it was a great morning for a ride. The only drawback was that Cutter had caught a bit of a cold over the weekend and he was having some trouble breathing. Still he was game as we headed out to Lyon and rode down to Acacia to head for Kirby. We were moving along pretty well as we turned onto Kirby and headed for Cypress.

Highlander took over pulling early and took us west on Cypress and headed for Johnston. Once we turned on Johnston was got caught at the light on Sanderson while Highlander and Dragon Slayer made the light. We caught them at Stetson and once again Highlander and Dragon Slayer did the pulling on the way to Mustang where I pulled up next to Dragon Slayer and rode with him to Domenigoni and got caught at that light. We had to wait for two cycles to make the left turn and head for Searl. As we made the ride past Searl I looked back and noticed we had dropped Cutter so I went back for him and the group waited for us and pulled us to State street and headed south towards McSweeney. We turned into the housing tract and made the loop towards State again.

Once we were headed north it didn’t take long before we got back to Domenigoni but I was the only one that stopped at the red light so I had to hustle to catch the group as the headed for Chambers. Earth Dog was well out front and I was feeling pretty good so I started a lead out and pulled Dragon Slayer up to him and Dragon Slayer pulled us up the grade and to Chambers before heading right to Buena Vista so we could stop at the Golf Course on Thornton. After we were back on the road Dragon Slayer and I followed Highlander onto Stetson and headed east. When we got to Columbia Highlander and Tax Man stayed on Stetson while the rest of us headed for Thornton. We pushed it pretty good all the way to Lake and turned towards Stetson again shortly after Highlander and Tax man rode by. Dragon Slayer gave chase but didn’t quite catch them before Fairview. We regrouped in Fairview and then headed for Florida. Cutter and I got caught at the light while the rest of the group made it through. I watched as Earth Dog rode by a parked Dragon Slayer sitting in front of the fire station. I stopped to talk to him and Cutter followed after Earth Dog. Highlander and Tax Man had stopped to use the bathroom so the four of us had a long chase trying to reel in Cutter and Earth Dog. We finally found them after crossing the river bed and making the light on Soboba. Dragon Slayer made a great pull west on Soboba down the hill and past the driving range. I was feeling frisky so I took a turn at pulling and gave it back to Dragon Slayer. As we got to the hump in the road I jumped out again to see how had I could hit the rise and managed to gap the group over the hill and half way to State Street before the beta blockers shut me down. But I felt good about the effort. Once we took a break at State Street Highlander led us back to Ramona and got us started east. Once again we spread out and this time Highlander fell back to pull Cutter. Dragon Slayer was up with Earth Dog and I was leading Tax Man till we got to Main street where I slowed down and Earth Dog pulled away with Tax Man. Dragon Slayer decided to make a run to Carl’s after Hemet Street and Tax Man seemed to slow to wait for Highlander and Cutter. By the time they got to Carl’s three of us were inside and having coffee. Cutter had a broken spoke and we were going to take him to Casino to get it fixed while Tax Man and Highlander had to leave for home and an appointment. After the spoke was fixed Earth Dog, Dragon Slayer, Cutter and I headed for home. I led us back to Lincoln and headed towards Park.

We stayed together till we got to Devonshire and Earth Dog headed for the barn. Dragon Slayer pulled Cutter and I all the way back to Lyon and then over to the bike shop before we all headed for home. I got home feeling tired but good than I had pushed myself and still felt good. I didn’t even get to take a nap.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) Another Friday arrived and it was time to decide how easy or hard to make the ride. It was supposed to be windy so I put together a ride with the wind at our back as much as I could plan and headed to a new meeting place because Burger King is closed for at least two weeks. We decided to meet at the Hemet Bike shop and they were kind enough to open early and let us park our bikes inside while everyone got ready to ride. We had a nice little group arrive and one extra ride that I hadn’t seen in about a year. Cutter was down from Oregon and he got to the shop right after Highlander, Dragon Slayer and I. Next Barracuda joined us along with Ferret and ME-109. Earth Dog and Bugler rounded out the group as we got ready and headed for Lyon to start the day.

I felt energetic enough to lead the group over Florida and towards Devonshire before Dragon Slayer took over for me. He then led us past Fruitvale and all the way to Esplanade where we caught the light. What I didn’t notice was that ME-109 had to go back to the shop and replace his cleats. I also didn’t realize he would have to make an epic chase to catch us as we headed for the Light at Hansen and the little store on the corner. After we left Esplanade I took the pull again and got us headed for Ramona Boulevard. I may not be at 100 percent yet but for the first hour of a ride I seem to be able to run at about 80 percent and steady. That is just what I was doing as I pulled the group around the corner on Ramona and got us pointed west.

Once we got to Sanderson I took us around the corner and to the light at the Expressway. Once we were pointed west I knew my pulling time was over and watched as Ferret took off followed by Dragon Slayer, Bugler and Barracuda. Earth Dog, Highlander, Cutter and I followed about half a mile back as we worked our way past Warren then Bridge with everyone but me taking a turn at the front. That was the way things continued till we got to Hansen and took a break at the corner store. Highlander, Cutter and I were going to head for Lakeview while Ferret and Dragon Slayer took the rest of the group to Juniper Flats. The plan was for us to regroup at Winchester Farms and have some coffee. I took us to Lakeview as the rest of the group headed for Contour. The wind was coming from the east so I was pretty sure we had a better chance of getting to Winchester first. They would be fighting the wind all the way easy and then the 4 mile climb with no tail wind till they got to Florida. I didn’t realize ME-109 was chasing them and would catch them before we met up. I got us to 9th street and Highlander got us to the Nueview school before Cutter took over and got us to Nuevo. I think we got to Nuevo about the same time as the other group got to Contour. In theory we were ahead of them. We were cruising along pretty good as we got close to Mapes and made our first turn east and into whatever wind there was. Before we got to Briggs Highlander broke a spoke and had to call for a ride. Cutter and I continued on to Briggs and turned south towards the High School and down to the dump road. I kept expecting to see the A group racing up behind us but it turns out they had a flat and were too far back. Cutter and I rode through a small swarm of bees on the dump road just past Leon but avoided getting stung. We made our way to Winchester and headed north to the Winchester store and waited for the A group. Once the A group arrived everyone stopped except Ferret and we took a short break. In effect the ride is over at the last stop so we just more or less cruise home once we get started. Picture 31

It was still less than a two hour ride at that point so I was pretty sure I could hang with the group as we headed for California. I didn’t know how many miles Cutter was up to because he has been rained out most of the time while we have been getting in some miles. I was looking forwards for the ride home.

Things went pretty good as we made our way to California except Cutter looked like he was ready to slow down to a leg cleansing spin and ME-109 was pulling pretty hard for Stetson and then for Warren. I fell back with Cutter and Dragon Slayer collected us all right after Warren. We were then pulled to Cawston and worked our way back over to Sanderson before turning north and heading for Lowes. We dropped Cutter off at the RV park and the rest of us rode back to the Bike Shop and the cars. I thanked Robert and told him we would be meeting at the shop at least for the near future as long as he was willing to open early enough for us to meet. He agreed and I said we will see him Monday before I headed for home and lunch.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) It was another cold day and another chance for me to see how my fitness is coming along. I am getting up to 40 miles pretty easily but I can’t always stay with the group for the whole ride. Today was one of those rides where I could push a little and see how much I had in the tank by the end of the day. I headed for Burger king with all of that in my mind. Once again I was dressed like someone getting ready for the Iditarod sled race and met up with a small grouped dressed much the same way. Dragon Slayer and ME-109 arrived right after me and we talked till Highlander and Earth Dog arrived. We discussed the fact that Burger King would be closed for at least two weeks and we would have to meet at the Hemet Bike shop if we wanted coffee and a place to use the bathroom. We talked over the route we were planning and headed out to start our day. I followed Dragon Slayer to Acacia and we made our way to Kirby and turned south. I did pull a bit down to Cypress and turned west with Highlander headed towards Johnston. A truck tried to run us down by blowing the stop sign on Johnston but we fell in behind him and stopped at the light on Sanderson. Once across the street we moved onto Industrial and then Cawston before jumping onto Stetson where I managed to pull us to Warren before giving the lead to Dragon Slayer and watching ME-109 take off on us. Dragon Slayer made a monster pull to California and then to Stowe for the speed run to Winchester Farms. It was a great pace line and I still had some energy left over as we made it to the parking lot and regrouped.

Once it was time to get back on the road I once again managed to pull us all the way to the dump road and at least started west towards Leon. As we got close to the Rodeo Arena Me-109 and Dragon Slayer kicked it up a bit. We got to the rise and we were all together till ME-109 made a wrong turn at Leon and we sort of soft pedaled till he caught us and took us to Briggs and headed north. We stayed in a tight bunch all the way to the High School and Florida where we were lucky to catch a line of cars sitting at the light. The cars tripped the light and we scooted over Florida and headed for the elementary school and the stop sign. Highlander and Earth Dog fell off a bit at the light but Highlander was back in line as we turned west on Mapes and headed towards Menifee. We all stopped at the sign on Menifee and got a quick jump between cars as we headed south on Menifee. Once again ME-109 jumped on it and Dragon Slayer started to pull Highlander and I after him. Earth Dog seemed out of gas heading towards Florida and the AM/PM. ME-109 and Dragon Slayer waited for us after the light and we all headed towards McCall after the regroup. Once again we lost Earth Dog and Highlander went back to pick him up while we waited for him at McCall right after the light. Once we were all back together again everyone made a run at Hospital Hill and I started out last. I started to push the hill a bit but decided to spin it out and crested with rested legs before dropping down the front side with Highlander and to regroup at the gas station on Bradley. When we were back on the road we quickly made our way to Murrieta and caught the light red. We all took off for the top of the grade and I crested with Dragon Slayer and ME-109 followed by Highlander and Earth Dog. We hurried to Cherry Hill and headed back to Bradley to start the run to Newport. ME-109 took us left on Newport and towards Haun where we caught a massive line of traffic heading for the construction at the freeway overpass. We crossed over the hill and dropped down to Jack in the Box for a coffee break.

At least it was warm inside but it didn’t cause me to head for home without my jacket on. We got back on the road and headed east over Antelope and towards Menifee. We must have caught every light red all the way to Laguna Vista. We broke up a bit heading over the saddle and I waited for Highlander at the top of the hill by the ghost bike. We joined Dragon Slayer and ME-109 on the downhill side only to see Earth Dog was almost all the way to Leon. WE hooked up in a pace line and chased Earth Dog about halfway to Winchester where ME-109 took off for the dry wash. We had Earth dog with us as we headed for the dry wash ourselves and soon past Warren and headed for Sanderson in one long pull by Dragon Slayer. We made the turn north on Sanderson and made it to Lowes before cutting over to Acacia and heading back to Kirby. It was a short run to Gilmore where I got ready to leave and head for the bike shop to make arrangements for the stop on Friday. After a short discussion I headed for home and lunch. It was all in all a good ride.

By: C. Kent, aka (Superman) I was not expecting such a cold morning as I rode to Burger King Monday morning. As I got to the parking lot I am sure I looked like I was heading to the North Pole. I got there to see Digger and his dog walking in the parking lot and we talked till Anaconda drove up. The only other rider to brave the cold was Highlander and he was dressed much like I was. We had a short ride planned and were ready to bail out if it got as windy as they had predicted. At 9am we wished Digger a good day and headed down Gilmore towards Acacia. As we stopped at the light on Acacia and Kirby I was able to pull easily to Cypress but that was one of the last times Highlander and Anaconda let me lead. Anaconda and I did ride together to Johnston and Sanderson to once again catch the light and wait to head south towards Stetson. It was here that Highlander took over and pulled us all the way to Domenigoni and headed west towards Warren. We did give him a slight break after the dry wash but he got back in front as we got to Winchester and pulled us all the way to the saddle. We decided to modify the ride a bit after the saddle and headed for the gas station on Menifee for a nature break.

We pulled out of the gas station and onto Menifee to head south once more. Highlander and Anaconda led us all the way to Holland and got us started up revive to get in a climb that we would have missed on Briggs. I was just a bit faster than last week up the climb but still well below normal for what I used to do on the hill. We all made it to the top only yards apart and managed to get back together before Garbani and the turn west. After the first stop sign Highlander got back in front and pulled us all the way to Antelope and north back towards Newport. We passed the college and soon made it back to Newport and headed east. We started north o Menifee and were planning on going up to Simpson but decided to ride through the neighborhood and over to Lindenburger before cutting over to Simpson and east again. We managed to stay together all the way to Winchester and then Highlander took us up to Winchester farm for a short break. After I downed a banana and a cold drink we were back out onto Stowe and headed east towards California. It may have warmed a bit on the ride but it was back down to under 47 degrees as we made our way east.

By the time we got to California and headed north towards Stetson the breeze started to come up and we were worried that it would pick up in our face on the way home. But we were lucky because it never got bad as we made our way to Warren and then cut over from Cawston to Sanderson and back towards Acacia. We made our way to Kirby again and were all stopped by the light at Kirby. I stayed with them till we got to Gilmore and Florida where I left them and headed for home. The hot shower felt so good I was worried I would use all of the hot water. But all in all it was a great ride even if it was colder than I like.