exploring

So I rode this morning intending to take some streets I haven't taken before. I started with E Palomar (round trip between Heritage and Med Ctr) then took my usual route on Olympic Pky. However, when I reached La Media, I took it south toward Olympian High School. La Media ends at the street which leads up to Olympian. At the south end of La Media I saw the undeveloped grass/brush areas that were recently "mowed" (if that's the term). It was nice to see the open space.

I decided not to ride up to the HS, so I took La Media back to Birch. I took Birch to Eastlake Pky, then Eastlake Pky south until it ends and continues to Hunte Pky. I then took Hunte Pky to Olympic Pky. I passed the "High Tech High" school and saw more open areas that were undeveloped. I then returned home via my usual route on Olympic Pky. The ride this morning took me 1 hr 42 min and was just about 20 miles.

I was debating on whether I should try the 125 from Birch to 905. I think I'll drive it first to see if I'll be OK on it.

Back to the OTC

With the rear tire on the Raleigh flat, I decided to get the other bike tuned up. It's an older Bianchi that also has the gear swich on the frame. It's purple, so the girls across the street questioned, "Why are you riding a girl's bike?". The "tune-up" at PULSE was NOT free as was advertised in the South Bay YMCA emailed newsletter. Rather, the guys at PULSE would "inspect" your bike for free. BLAH!

I got a tune up and new tires for the other bike anyway. I forgot the name of the tires. They were the cheapest at about $25 each. I figure I should start cheap and move up to better tires only if necessary.

I was curious to see how this bike (which is a smaller frame than the Raleigh) would ride. I got the bike back yesterday afternoon and did a quick test up and down my street to get the saddle level adjusted. The smaller frame does make a difference. I don't have to reach out as far to the handlebar and brakes. The other thing I like about this bike is the rear derailers "click" into each gear. With the Raleigh I had to estimate where each gear was and hope I find it.

So this morning I took it out and did my ride to the OTC. It went pretty well. The new tires that take a higher PSI than the Raleigh tires were pretty comfortable. Gear shifting was good. I even tried to speed down the hill to the OTC. Mid 30's in the MPH. At the OTC, I watched some of the women practice field hockey. Interesting.

I made it back to Paseo Ranchero and rode up the hill without stopping. I did have to stand up a bit at near top, but it went pretty well. All in all, about 17 miles in about 90 min. Till next week...

Otay Reservoir and a flat tire

So last Thursday, I decided to ride to Otay Reservoir. Took Telegraph to Medical Ctr Dr to Olympic Pkwy. I took a nice easy pace. As I slowly made my way up the Chik-Fil-A hill, a group of four riders (all wearing the same uniform) casually passed me by and said "Good Morning". I caught up to them at the red light at Eastlake Pkwy, but once the light turned green, they left at a faster pace than what I could keep up with. No matter. At my own pace, I passed the OTC and took the next right to the reservoir. No bike lane there, but there wasn't any traffic anyway so it was still a relaxing ride. When I got to the Otay Reservoir office buildings (where you can't ride any further) I saw those four guys taking a breather. I turned around and started my way back still at my "easy" pace. On my way, I heard a bike coming up behind me so I figured those guys were also heading back. Apparently they were heading back one-by-one because only one bike zipped by on my left. Man they go FAST. A few seconds later, the next cyclist whizzed by. Needless to say, when I got back to Olympic Pkwy, those guys were nowhere in sight.

As I got closer to home, I was closing in on about 19 miles. I prepped myself for my ride up Paseo Ranchero. I set my bike so that I could put it into the easiest gear as I started the climb. Slow but steadily, I made it up the hill. However, at the top of the hill, I noticed my rear tire was deflating. With only half a mile to go (and not having anything to fix a flat) I rode the bike back home on the flat tire anyway. I'll have to check what kind of damage I did to the rim. Hopefully not much.

So now, I've either got to the the tire patched or invest in some new ones. We'll see.

OTC

Yesterday I did a ride to the Olympic Training Center (OTC). I biked to Olympic Pkwy and Brandywine first, then headed east. I was dreading the hill to Chik-fil-A, but that wasn't too bad. Once at Eastlake Pkwy, the ride to the OTC is easy. I biked around the OTC for a bit. If you've never been there, there is an "Olympic Path" that snakes from the visitor's center to the other end of the center. Visitors are supposed to stay on this path. I must've missed a sign or something because I took a narrow path down towards the soccer/fieldhockey/softball/bmx areas. Only when I got back on the Olympic Path did I notice some signs stating "Only Olympic Personnel Beyond This Point". Ooops. It was a slow morning so no one really said anything to me. No one was on the fields, but I saw a few archers and people running track (in the distance). Neat place. I'm glad to finally have had a chance to take a look. I headed back home and couldn't make it up Paseo Ranchero this time. All in all, I logged about 17 miles yesterday. I think I should really get some biking shorts.