Ten fun gals showed up for Team Fun Encinitas Coastal Hills ride on Saturday even with all the last minutes start-time changes due to the heat advisory. Kim N led the A group ride for the first time, and it was only fair that veteran Heather K came down from the high Sierra to help. Lauren K rounded up the trio and they went speeding through the course at such a blazing pace that they were back to Carlsbad Village before lunch menu was served!

Heather K, Kim N & Lauren K lifting off from Carlsbad.

The more leisurely but no less spunky B group was the smiley trio of Julie D, Kim Z and Janice. Julie was leading the ride right through Kim Z’s old neighborhood, which apparently meant a homely rest stop with cold drinks and stuff (and probably lots of fun local tall tales and short cuts, too!).

Kim Z, Julie D & Janice H having fun on the Coast Hwy.

I’m afraid Michell (me) was averse to getting up earlier than 3 am for a bike ride and so C group didn’t leave the dock until 7:35 am or so (the other groups had already taken off at 7 am). With me were newcomers Laura and Jamie, and Team Fun’s resident delight Sian. I’m afraid we took turn making poor Sian talk all the way up the punchy climbs the route was blessed with just because we couldn’t get enough of her English accent. (I have an accent, too, but one that nobody could understand a word of much of the time, which saved me from having to talk while climbing. Bwahahaha!). It’s a testament to how far Sian has come as a cyclist in just a year that she tamed all the punchy climbs Jill (our route plotter) threw her way with so much breath left to spare!

Laura, Jamie & Sian on the Coast Hwy in Carlsbad.

All three group headed south on the Coast Hwy until La Costa Ave where we turned inland to Saxony Dr to start climbing up the curvy beautiful street that is Quail Hollow Dr. Midway up the grinding grade the name changes to Quail Gardens Dr and a nice false flat that follows allowed for a rest break before the fun (though cautious) descent past the famous Botanical Garden and San Dieguito Heritage Museum.

At the end of the road we took slight eastern detour to pick up Nardo Rd, earning us another fun downhiller over I-5 on MacKinnon Ave and onto a not-really-fun trafficky steep drop of Birmingham Dr. We turned north again on San Elijo Ave and were grateful of what little road shoulder we had until we could turn east away from traffic again at Cornish, up the pleasantly shaded gradual climb to East D St where we trooped into Glen Park for a nice little mid-ride break, perched on the bench under a nice tree, enjoyed our snacks and the cooling sea breeze and even chatted a bit!

More trafficky detour to northbound Vulcan Dr made shifting into a lower gear to climb out of the busy narrow road onto Sunset Dr and then the always relaxing roll north on hilltop Orpheus Ave a very pleasant thing to do. After a while we got back onto La Costa Ave and the Coast Hwy north into Carlsbad when an idea grew in my head that it might be quite pleasant to just roll straight back to the shop from there, but I couldn’t deny my faithful riding companions the joy of glycogen depletion that one tends to get on the rollers of Batiquitos Dr and Ambrosia Ln… After all, what is a Team Fun ride without a little suffering, ay? C group headed back to the shop on our second encounter with Poinsettia Ln, though, while the speedsters of A and B groups went inland for some well heated climbings.

From our last trip to Cabrillo.

Next week we are heading to Cabrillo National Park, one of San Diego’s favorite cycling destination, from Torrey Pines Gliderport (rather than the usual start/finish at Carbon Connection Cyclery). It will be a beautiful ride and in much cooler weather. Come out and join us!