Tuesday Ride Report - Jesmond Dene Jaunt

Once again we managed to tie the all-time VVV ridership record at seven,  when are we going to get eight?  Today we saw the return of Liz and Jeanette,  who had traveled to Hawaii and Helsinki respectively. Also, a new rider, Beth,  joined us for the trip out to Jesmond Dene.  A few of the regulars rounded out  the field: Mary Ann, Jerry, Rick, and me.  A nice group for sure and we managed  to stick together pretty well. At least until it was time for a coffee stop at Peterson's Donut Corner. Unfortunately, Liz, Jeanette, and Beth had to scoot on  back to Poway... Hmmm, got something against donuts?  Just so you all know: Peterson's Donut Corner has lots of other choices (even non-donut, like their ham and cheese, or fruit-filled croissants.)

Rick and I did some extra-credit riding, going south on Pomerado Road to Stonebridge Parkway where we scouted out that road, and Beeler Canyon Road, as potential sites for a fast, weekly, Thursday ride. Stonebridge Parkway was alright, although hilly, but it was not well-connected to the lower section of the loop in Beeler Canyon (unless gate-dodging and a 24% descent are what you are looking for.) The Beeler Canyon Road section was really good - no traffic or  cross streets. So, that's brewing now... look for a future announcement.

On Saturday, the 23rd of April, there's going to be a VVV special event,  the Borrego Five-O.  Hopefully we can get this one in before the weather gets too hot. It will feature an 11 mile climb up the Montezuma Grade...

Start/Finish: Borrego Springs (Christmas Circle)
Route: http://ridewithgps.com/routes/334086
Clip-in Time:8:30AM
Distance: 50 miles
Elev. Gain: 4,600'

When I first scheduled today's ride I expected to have dead legs from having ridden the San Diego Randonneurs Temecula 600km brevet over the prior weekend, and so I selected a relatively gentle route.  As it turned out, I did not start the 600, which went tragically wrong when one of the riders, Jim Swarzman, was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver.  There is a search going on for the driver and you can get news of it here: http://www.fox5sandiego.com/news/kswb-suspect-search-narrows-in-fatal-hit-and-run-20110411,0,5715371.story. The Sheriff's investigators have said that the vehicle was a  dark-colored, 2007-8 Dodge Ram 1500, or a 2007-9 Dodge Ram 2500 or 3500. The  pickup will have damage to the passenger-side headlight area.

Next week's ride is the classic...

Highland Valley Loop
Date: Tuesday April 19,  2011
Time: 8:00am
Scenic riding and plenty of hills...
http://ridewithgps.com/routes/339243
 
Cheers,
Steve