Folsom Lake Loop

The plan for the Folsom Lake Loop ride was stated this way in brief: "Both the Peloton and the Performance groups will be doing this ride together. The plan for the Performance group ride leaders is to keep this ride mellow and provide some pacing, encouragement, & coaching for Peloton riders should they want it. However, once on Auburn-Folsom Rd, I suspect the deck will get reshuffled and the real poker will begin." About 40 cyclists showed up for the ride!

I ended up sweeping the route and riding with the most important folks on the ride, my partner, Krysta, and a friend from work, Roxanne. After mile 9 on Salmon Falls Rd, we never saw the main group again, so I've asked the other ride leaders from the Performance & Peloton groups to give their two bits. My ride stats: 54 miles in a ride time of 3:26, for an average speed of 15 mph, and about 4100 ft of climbing, with an average heart rate of 139 bpm.

Performance ride leader Phil says:
After checking the CF site one last time at home I rolled to meet up at Karen's Bakery by 8am. Made the last turn into the parking lot and was greeted by a HUGE turnout of riders [something close to 40 cyclists, ed.]. After descending and crossing Salmon Falls Bridge the road turned up. I rode to the Rhino riding with Stan and a rider from out of town [Jim G.]. We reached the Rhino and caught up with Kevin who was taking on nutrition. Kevin you were climbing great today. The group briefly discussed waiting for the group behind us, but no one knew how far back they were. We took a few sips of water and decided to ride on to Pilot Hill.

The front group was still at Pilot Hill when we rolled in. We replenished our water, took in some nutrition, and rolled out in a large group towards Cool. I sat in around 5th-6th and waited patiently for the city limit sign to come into view. I decided at 300 meters or so to put in an all out sprint to the line. I surprised the group and no one took up a chase [the sprint wasn't announced, so Phil was sprinting against the wind (ed.)]. The group rolled right through Cool without stopping, to work our way to the descent into the Am. River confluence. I ramped up the downhill speed out front, but caught up to a pickup and two cars that took my advantage away. Big Ring Jeff caught up with me and the cars, & took the inside line. This was a great move by Jeff as the shoulder widened at the bottom, Jeff coasted in no contest for the county line points! [This sprint was announced.] I stopped and took some pictures of a few riders at the start of the climb up Old Forrest Hill Road. In the background you see the new bridge that we will cross shortly on the way into Auburn.

I was one of the last riders in this group to top the Old Forrest Hill climb. A group had just rolled out and I had to put in some effort to catch them. I caught up and decided to pass them and get out front for the descent down to cross Forrest Hill Bridge. Almost every rider passed me on this last climb up to Auburn. A few of us caught up with a group at the left turn light. We rolled on through Auburn to Auburn-Folsom Road. I took the front and upped the effort a few watts climbing the last roller to Maidu Market. We rolled in to catch the front group.

Rolling out of Maidu we were around 20-25 riders strong. The group split at the light and I was fortunate enough to be in the lead group for the run down Auburn-Folsom road. Tom M. did a quick descent and I caught up with him just as the road turned up with the rest of the group passing us on this short climb before the real run in to Folsom starts. Big Ring Jeff took to the front (I guess BR Jeff likes this stretch of the road) and upped the pace for a couple of miles, then Robert and friend went to the front and put in huge pulls with everyone hanging on. There was an effort to get a double pace line going a few times but some of the riders are not up to speed on this type of pace line and it disintegrated. (We need to have a ride clinic to educate riders on this technique). Some of the riders split off on the way through Granite Bay to head home. Arriving at Karen's around 11:30am, I had a ride time of 3:10 at an average speed of 17.1 mph.

Overall this was a great ride today. All of the riders participating kept the ride safe.

Oz will have to fill in the KOM riders. I was too far back on the climbs to comment.

Performance ride leader Oz says:
In all my years with CF, this was probably one of the largest turnouts we have ever had. Guesstimates are that we had about 27 riders. There was definitely a feeling of excitement in the air. We rolled easily out of Karen's Parking lot over to East Natoma towards Green Valley road. Everyone stayed together until the road started to tilt slightly upwards towards Salmon Falls road. As we crested Green Valley road approaching our left turn onto Salmon Falls Road, the group heard a loud pop. The group slowed/stopped to evaluate the situation and we had heard that one of the riders had a side tire blowout. It was decided to roll slowly as one of the other riders (Danny) was able to help patch the rider's tire. As we headed down Salmon Falls Road toward the bridge, there were a good set of small hills/valleys and heart rate started to rise. This is just enough for the anticipation of the fast decent onto the bridge where some of the riders were planning a TT run from the bridge to the Rhino [Safari Estates]. Jeff T. and a handful of riders took off the front and were not to be seen again until the Rhino. Jeff told me that his time was slightly over 18 minutes (18:08)! A small group waited at the Rhino as the ensuing group finally arrived a few minutes back. We then all rode together to Pilot Hill where everyone got water and replenished on their nutrition. Kevin, Stan, and the rest of the Peloton group were not far behind and joined us for a while.

Once we had our water, Jeff Minter, Tom, Phil, and I led the group out of Pilot Hill into Cool. There were a lot of cars on the small curvy road into the confluence of the river. Some of the faster descenders were actually held up due to the traffic. We had heard later on that one of the riders (the one with a flat) may have collided with a motorcycle [ed., we don't know what really happened]. Hopefully he was OK. We enjoyed our descent into the confluence in anticipation of what would be the "queen" climb of the day (Old Foresthill Road). This is not a particularly steep climb, but a steady 6-8 percent, 3 mile climb. It's a grind getting up it. It's very exposed to the sun and we were starting to feel the heat. Once again, Jeff T. led a small group to the top and waited for the remaining ensuing riders at the top of the climb. We regrouped on Foresthilll road and road 20 riders strong down towards the Foresthill bridge. Just as you cross the bridge the road kicks up for about 3/4 mile with grades of around 10-12 percent. A small group was able to make it through the stop light but others got caught. The groups came back together in Auburn and we worked our way at an easy pace to Maidu Market where we refilled knowing that we had an exciting downhill to come on Auburn-Folsom. Seeing as how I got unhitched on the last ride down AF, I was not going to let that happen again so I stayed very close to the front group up and over PowerHouse road. Jeff T, Robert Goss, and Vic did some hard individual pulls at the front. Phil was in front of me the majority of the time, so I knew I was in a good position (thanks Phil!). The group was finally able to all join and share the load in a paceline rotation all the way to Folsom. As we approached Karen's, I looked down at my cyclometer and couldn't believe it was a little past 11:00.

Another great and safe ride!

Oz's ride stats: 54.4 miles in a ride time of 3:08 with an average speed of 17.3 mph and a total elevation gain of 4,304 ft and an average heart rate of 167 [Wow! That seems high. I guess Brian was coasting].

Peloton ride leader Stan says:
When I counted 30 cyclists at the ride start I got a bit nervous. Fortunately everyone had the appearance of being comfortable on their bikes. As we started the ride, my brain was saying "dude, you're gonna have a great ride today." As we started the climb up Salmon Falls from the bridge to the Rhino, my body began to slowly protest against my brain's jovial spirit.

Phil was kind enough to hang back and pace me and Jim Garwood up a good portion of the hill. Support from experienced riders like Phil is especially helpful when you're riding a route for the first time. Phil gave us a sense of how long the hill was, and when we might get some relief along the road, etc. After a while, Carl Costas dropped back to relieve Phil. Carl, too, offered helpful tips as we made our way up Old Forest Hill Road after the bridge. The climbs always seem longer to me the first time I do them.

At the top of Old Forest Hill Road, we re-grouped with Jim, Carl, Brian, Krysta, and Roxanne. We made our way up to the gas station and re-filled with water, Gatorade, and ice and got on our way for the fun part of the ride. As we came up on the descent on Auburn-Folsom at Indian Hill, Brian asked us to stop and suggested a game plan for the pace and pulling. I'm learning to appreciate more and more Brian's desire to communicate his thoughts and get people on the same page during a ride. I'm learning as I go along and hope to emulate his approach on rides I lead. Problem is, lately I've been doing very little leading and a lot of following! I'll keep at it though!

Peloton ride leader Kevin says:
We had a huge turn out today, I counted over 27 riders [more showed up later, ed.] staged at Karen’s for what I like to call the “Meat Grinder” or officially known as the Folsom Lake Loop. Starting out from Karen’s both groups stayed together for the most part until the first slow climb up Green Valley Road. Just at the top before turning onto Salmon Falls, one of the newer riders had a tire blow out (sidewall) and Danny stopped to help out. We heard later that he used the ol’ dollar bill trick to “patch” the blow out and I heard later that the rider continued on with the route. As we started up the 1st set of climbs towards the “Rhino” (at Safari Estates), the gradual, slow slog up the hill naturally thinned out the group. Most of the Performance riders had already spilt off the front of the group and started their timed sprints from the bridge to the Rhino. Phil dropped back to check on those of us slower climbers and offered encouragement to those needing a bit of extra help up the climbs. I stopped for a quick break and along with Phil waited for Stan and a few others to catch up before heading out. I managed to follow Phil and Danny up to the Pilot Hill water stop to find the Performance riders filling up their water bottles before heading up to Cool.

Not long after reaching Pilot Hill, Stan and few others rolled in for water and a short rest before the entire group rolled out towards Cool and down to the Confluence. Once on Hwy 49, I was able to catch up to a fast group of Performance riders that included Danny, Bruce, Oz, Carl, and Phil among others. Once we reached the descent the group spilt up a bit with the fastest out front all the way down to the bottom. The descent is fast and a bit tricky at times with one or two hairpin turns with reverse concaves on the roadway. This is one of those descents that can put you right in between cars as you barrel down the road. Found my self having to slow a bit to avoid rear ending a car on the sharpest curves. Some of us heard later that the same rider who had that blow out back at the beginning had a run in with a motorcycle; hopefully he wasn’t hurt too badly [we're not really sure what happened, sort of hearsay, ed.]. Once reaching the bottom we turned right and headed up the 3 mile climb to the Forest Hill Bridge. By this time it started to really heat up and I felt myself having to work hard just to keep a steady pace. It wasn’t long before I fell off of Oz and Bruce’s wheels. At the top of the climb we regrouped and headed up and over the Forest Hill bridge. The breeze while riding across was a welcome reprieve from the heat and it helped me catch on to a group of about 5 heading up that nasty little climb after the bridge into Auburn. This group included Bruce, Danny and John (Jeff?, ed.) who races for BP and we traded off taking the front heading back towards Folsom out of Auburn. It wasn’t long after heading out from our second water break at Maidu Market, a group of “fast movers” rolled by us like we were out for a Sunday stroll. At this point, I, along with the others in our small group were really felling like we were out of gas, but soon rolled into Karen’s to find a large group including those fast movers talking up the ride.

All and all, I felt pretty good today. This has got to be one of the best routes around; it’s got climbs, but nothing too steep and you gotta love the fast and curvy descent down to the confluence. Great ride everyone and thanks for helping pull me up a few of those climbs when the gas was just about to run out!

Kevin's ride stats: 53.75 miles in a ride time of 3:17 for an average speed of 16.3 with a total elevation gain of 4,371 and an average heart rate of 152 bpm.

Coon Creek via Garden Bar Road

My ride stats: 68 miles in 3:46 ride time for an average speed of 18.0 mph and 4,300 ft of climbing.

We had a good group with 7 of us setting out on the ride to see where Coon Creek was at and to see what riding Garden Bar had to offer for cycling. The weather was very cool for this time of year (low to mid 60s) with a south wind of 10-15 mph. It was a good thing we were heading north first to have the tailwind help us up and over the rolling hills west of Auburn; but as always, heading down Auburn-Folsom Road into a headwind is no picnic.

The pace was moving along around 20 mph for about the first 10-15 miles. John (I think the guy's name wearing the gray jersey on the white Tarmac was John; could be wrong) decided to take over the pace setting for Jeremy and bumped it up to about 23 mph on the uphill rollers on Val Verde Rd. That did it for me; I've been riding too hard the past couple of weeks without the proper rest and I went right out the back and rode through Penryn and over English Colony solo. I bet the lead group was fast and punchy over English Colony and the little climb up to Sierra College was making its self known.

We all regrouped at the top of Sierra College (thanks guys!) and I ramped up the pace on the descent down to Hwy 193; going downhill is the easy part. We had a good double pace line heading toward Lincoln, but I was on the front; not the ideal place to be to sprint for the city limit. I waited till the sign was clearly visible for everyone and then made my successful jump. OK, I got to admit, I was the only one that remembered the sprint and caught everyone off guard.

After a short water stop at the park in Lincoln we headed north out of town to Virginiatown (12th St) to work our way through the country roads west of Auburn. Although there isn't any serious or signature climb, the whole area is generally rolling hills and starts to sap the strength in your legs. We headed north on Garden Bar for the out-n-back to Coon Creek (Garden Bar Rd turns to dirt for about 3 miles and has private gates). The road is small and generally quite (a couple of cars), and the surface is decent. It climbs gradually up and over an oak studded hill that changes in elevation about 400 ft and then descends down to Coon Creek. We regrouped at the bridge and took a very brief break and then climbed back out of the little valley.

Next up was Wise and Lozanos Roads. After some route finding issues, everyone was on track wandering the windy (and windy now) Wise Rd. We regrouped near the fire station at Crater Hill Rd, then dropped down through Ophir, only to be surprised by more climbing up to Ophir Road.

We made the regular stop at the gas station in Newcastle and then headed up the high point of the day, Indian Hill. The last big obstacle of the day was the ride down Auburn-Folsom. It's certainly not a hard ride, but after 50 miles, the high pace, wind, and rollers could easily unhitch you from the group. I got passed by John and the Webcor guy, but quickly jumped on their wheel for a nice draft. Carl caught on behind me making the group 4 strong. Mr. Webcor did a monster pull at 25+ into the headwind for the first few miles. I think everyone was happy to sit-in; I know I was. I was surprised when Jeremy came over the top and went to the front to pull. The Webcor guy swung off and wasn't see again; I think he may have returned home, since we picked him up earlier when we were heading north. Oz was unhitched and rode into the wind most of the way, and Patrick had a cramped or pulled calf that kept him from riding with the lead group. Carl eventually swung off at Cavitt-Stallman to head home. Upfront, it was me, Jeremy, John, & Tom trading pulls into the wind and keeping the pace as high as possible back into Folsom.

Georgetown

Preview
Counter clockwise; we'll be heading out Green Valley & return on Salmon Falls with Prospector's Grade thrown in for good measure. RSVP via Meetup.
Route map: RideWithGPS or MapMyRide
Meet location: Parking lot across from Karen's Bakery/Bicycles Plus
Leave time: 8:00 am
Distance: 70 miles
Climbing: Yup, its all climbing heading out. About 6,000-7,000 feet.

Ride Report
My ride stats: 71.5 miles in 4:20 ride time for an average speed of 16.5 mph and 6,200 ft of climbing.

The weather was great for cycling. The sky was little overcast in the morning keeping it cool enough for some to wear arm warmers, and comfortable descending the foothills later when it warmed up. Phil, Dave, Gary, and I left downtown Folsom, and then met up with Oz on Green Valley. The rolling climbs on Green Valley got everyone warmed up and ready for the climbs to come. I ended up getting a flat on Starbuck, but this allowed Bicycles Plus riders Jeff & Steve to join up with our group. We were all totally surprised to see that Deer Valley had fresh, smooth tarmac and some couldn't help from attacking on the big rollers to Rescue.

After our water stop at the Rescue Fire Dept, Gary headed out on his own through Cameron Park and the rest of us headed for Lotus. Oz set a fierce tempo up over the climb on Lotus Road, whereas Phil and I were more interested in bombing the downhill side. We all made our way over to Prospector's Grade; the wise climber knowing that this was only mile 28 of a 70 mile ride with another 6 miles of steady climbing to go, opted to settle into a an easy tempo and not race for the top. Of course, if you're turning around at the top to head home early, I guess you can push the pace. Steve took the KOM and then headed back home due to time constraints. The rest of us, Phil, Oz, Dave, Jeff, & I, forged on to Georgetown.

After knocking back some fuel in Georgetown (for me that was 2 snickers and a Coca-Cola), we tore out of Georgetown looking forward to some descending. I was able to get a gap off the front at first, but then Phil resorted to drafting off some cars to catch my wheel. Oz caught up to us when we starting hitting some of the rollers and the 3 of us worked together to keep the pace going. We were almost to Cool when Oz couldn't ride his flattening tire anymore. After pulling out a couple of thorns and slapping in a new tube, we were all gruppo compacto when we rolled into Cool. Phil did all the hard work on the slight descent (but into a head wind) from Cool to Pilot Hill; the rest of us were more than willing to free-wheel it in his draft.

After a little bit of climbing from Hwy 49 to the "rhino" on Salmon Falls, the downhill attacks started coming; first Jeff, then Phil. I was just happy to catch their wheels as they went blowing past. Me, I was waiting for the last two little climbs on Salmon Falls and then the roll-out to Green Valley. Phil, Jeff, & I crossed the South Fork bridge together and starting grinding up the first climb. The cumulative climbing for the day could be felt, and felt good; I was just on the edge of cramping. I made it over the top first and within sight of Phil. I tried to descend fast, but rest my legs a little for the next climb up to Falcon Crest. I made it up to Falcon Crest and couldn't see Phil or Jeff and was feeling good for the run-out to Green Valley. I had a good tempo going, but I was expecting Phil & Jeff to ride up on me at any moment. I was surprised to make it to Green Valley without them in sight.

I made it back to downtown Folsom and chatted with Dave when he rolled in little bit latter. Oz, Phil, & Jeff had all headed on home while rolling into Folsom. It was a great day of riding!

Eight 'Hoods

Preview
Route map: RideWithGPS or MapMyRide
Meet location: Parking lot across from Karen's Bakery/Bicycles Plus
Leave time: 8:00 am
Distance: 75 miles
Climbing: Relatively flat



Ride Report
Carl, Gary, Phil, and I set out from Folsom and hit the rollers through Orangevale and Fair Oaks. We met up with Patrick in Carmichael and kept the pace high along American River Rd, a great alternative to the Parkway. We made out down to Discovery Park and then onto Old Sacramento. The plan was to stay on the levee trail along the Sacramento River, however there were gates and gravel that prevented us from cruising along this route. Instead we opted for Riverside Blvd and Pocket Rd through Pocket that were great roads that let us keep the pace high and unencumbered. We wound our way along South Land Park and then shot through Mid Town Sac and jumped onto the Parkway trail for a short stint. Gary opted to continue on back to Folsom on the Parkway. The rest of us got back on American River Rd and rotated through at a pace around 20-23 mph. We made our way up toward Sunset where we said "hasta" to Patrick. Carl, Phil, and I hit all the rollers along Sunset; for me it was a little more challenging after 65 miles averaging nearly 20 mph! We rolled into Folsom just after noon.

My ride stats: we ended up riding 74.2 miles in 3:45 ride time with an overall average pace of 19.8 mph and about 1,790 ft total elevation gain.

Magnolia Road

Preview
Route: Magnolia Road (Nevada County) from Folsom
Meet location: Parking lot across the street from Karen's Bakery/Bicycles Plus
Leave time: Saturday, 24 July, 7:30 am (Sharp! You've been warned)
Distance: about 74 miles
Climbing: About 5,500 to 6,500 elevation gain; mostly rolling hills.
Pace: Variable, but we'll likely average about 17-19 mph. It really depends on who shows up and does the pulling.
Past Cycle Folsom ride report

Ride Report (By Phil)

The Performance Group had around 8-10 riders at the start. Gary, Dave, Frank B (Hammerin Wheels), Scott, CycleFolsom guru Steve, myself (Phil), and a few new riders (sorry guys for not remembering all your names). We started off on-time heading up Auburn-Folsom Road. I lead out for a mile or so taking it slightly slower than normal pace not knowing the fitness level of the new riders in the group. Steve and Scott came to the front and picked up the pace slowly over the next couple of miles... and then put the hammer down. The group stayed together with three of us trading pulls until the main climb up to Auburn. Steve made a move off the front and drew out one of the new riders who put in a good effort to break off the front. Shortly after, Steve started to chase. Scott, myself and another rider traded pulls up the climb into Auburn. Steve took the KOM on this climb. Scott dropped off to head home (some kind of excuse, like make breakfast for the kids). We rode our way through Auburn where Steve showed us a route with less traffic, including riding through a school. Steve was keeping the pace high on the climbs. A few riders commented on how beautiful this route was. We had good shade on most climbs and the descents were long enough to recover before the next climb. During one long descent, Steve and I made a breakaway and worked together to put time on a four man chase group. We held them off all the way to Hwy 49. The new riders were great climbers staying up at the front on most of the climbs (great job!). The run down Auburn-Folsom was at a decent pace. We pulled up to a few other groups of riders at Douglas. You know what happens next... it was on to pass them and get lined up for the last sprint. The pace was high and there were only four of us left for the sprint. I was pulling up the last slight incline and decided to drop off and rest for a few hundred yards. I knew Steve was marking everyone and waiting to see who would make the first move. One of the new riders asked me if there was a final sprint just as I decided to go at the 200 meter mark. I got in a good dig and held Steve off until the last 25 meters where Steve clicked down a gear and moved passed for the win! After the sprint we soft pedaled into Karen's.

Notes: Gary went down hard descending a hill at 45 mph on his bike about a month ago and is back improving every week. Steve had his bicycles stolen and was testing his fitness level with the performance group on a brand new Specialized Tarmac SL3. Steve won all the jerseys today!

Where's Wilton?

Preview
Route: Where in the world is Wilton?
Meet location: Parking lot across the street from Karen's Bakery/Bicycles Plus
Leave time: Saturday, 17 July, 8:00 am (Sharp! You've been warned)
Distance: about 55 miles
Climbing: None to speak of except a bump north of Rancho Murieta.
Pace: Variable, but we'll likely average about 18-19 mph. Note the CF Peloton Group will also be doing the same route, but at a little lower average pace.

Ride Report
We found Wilton! This was a great ride with a lot folks turning out. Both the Performance Group and the Peloton Group rolled out of Folsom together. I think this was one of the biggest Cycle Folsom groups I've seen for a while, about 20 of us! Once out on Scott Road, a natural selection began to take place and 10 of us were off the front: Oz, Gary, Jeff, Joel, Dave, Jim, Erik, Mr. CSC (sorry, didn't catch the name), Megan, and myself. We battled a moderate headwind all the way to Wilton, but everyone took their turn at the front keeping the group moving at an even tempo through the rolling open grasslands and oak woodlands. Once we turned onto Stonehouse Road just outside of Rancho Murieta, those of us that knew what was coming up, amassed toward the front. I think it was Gary that jumped first to fly up the short 130 foot rise at 10%. I passed him about half way up, but I heard someone coming up and getting ready to over take me. I thought it was going to be Jeff, but no! It was Oz that took the KOM points.

I'm not sure how everyone else fared behind us on the climb, but just down the road when we turned west onto Jackson Hwy we were gruppo compacto. Jackson Hwy's wide shoulder allowed us to double up the pace line and chat a little at 18-19 mph. We headed south again (into the wind) on Dillard and Green roads through hay fields and wine vineyards. It seemed like everyone that could, dug down deep and took a strong pull at the front. With the wind, you certainly didn't want to loose the wheel in front of you.

Once in Wilton at mile 30, we took a nice nutrition stop at the corner of Wilton and Grant Line roads. The hard work was behind us; we would be heading back northeast with, more or less, a friendly tailwind! Dave lead us out on Grant Line, taking a monster pull for 3 miles. Then we jumped on the South Canal. Some of us were certainly feeling like they had a little more gas in the tank than others. I'd have to say that Jeff owned the South Canal; probably from his Tuesday night South Canal rides. There were at least 3 little ascents where Jeff hammered off the front putting us all in a world of pain; or at least me. Then on the final stretch of the Canal, while I was sitting second wheel to Jeff, I looked down to see a big 27 mph registered on my computer. I was hurting (and likely everyone else), but there was no way I was going to let his wheel slip away! Once at Hazel and on the bike trail back to Karen's/Bicycles Plus, we cruised at what now seemed like a mellow 18 mph to the ride finish.

My ride stats ended up as 54.2 miles in 2:51 with an average pace of 19.0 mph and about 1,100 feet of total climbing. Great ride everyone!

Pilot Hill, out & back

With many Cycle Folsom riders out of town for either the Death Ride or the San Jose LiveStrong Challenge over the weekend, the Performance and Peloton ride leaders decided to consolidate the groups and do an out-and-back to Pilot Hill. This was a great opportunity for the Peloton and Performance riders to compare their fitness on a decent climbing ride over a mild distance. Peloton ride leader, Joel, and Performance ride leader, Brian (that be me), decked to the nines in their new Cycle Folsom kits, were joined by Roxanne, Erik, Danny, and Gary. Unfortunately, Gary departed early due to a mechanical issue left over from his from his spectacular spill on Prospector's Grade back in June. The good news is that Gary is getting back in form and will soon be pushing the pace on the Performance Group rides.

Danny was the strongest rider of the day, yo-yoing off the front, and coming back to offer words of encouragement and pace folks back into the group. The notable challenge of the day was the 3.5 mi climb from the South Fork American River up 900 feet to the rhino at Safari Estates. Everyone did a great job of riding at a steady pace within their means. All in all, it was a great training ride with my electronics recording 40 miles with 3,300 feet of climbing averaging about 15.5 mph for a ride time of 2:40 (3 hours including stops).

New threads

Check out the new Cycle Folsom kits!

Tuesday Climbing Ride

There was more challenges tonight than just the tarmac tilting upwards. The mercury was topped out around 95 and the flags were saluting a 10+ mph wind. Colleen and I were up for the challenge & opted for all the climbs with a short break at the park. My Garmin logged 29.6 miles in 1:50 with an average speed of 16.0 mph and 2,300 feet of climbing. Folsom Tuesday climbing ride, regular route.

Holiday Disco Dance

Since the 4th of July fell on a Sunday this year, some of us with Monday as a holiday decided to ride down to Discovery Park and back from Folsom. Kevin, Joel, John and myself were joined by Graham (Gram?), a rider new-to-Cycle Folsom. We did the trail dance with a few thousand other cyclists that had the same idea as us. The plan was to ride a mellow recovery pace. Everyone cooperated at the front and we completed the 57.5 mile ride in just about 3 hours, averaging about 18.5 mph (a little faster than I was expecting). Great ride guys!

Coffee Republic route ride

The Cycle Folsom Peloton group set out at 07:30 to ride the Lincoln-Chili Hill-Power House Loop. This set up a perfect "fox & hound" ride for the Performance group. Could the big dogs close down a 1/2 hour gap on the foxes up the road? Oz, Eric and I set out at 08:00 sharp opting for the very similar Coffee Republic ride route that snakes up to Penryn from Folsom, then hits the quick rollers on English Colony, winding through the country roads of Placer County, and climbing the stair-step Ridge Road. Our goal was to catch the Peloton group on the speedy run-in on Auburn-Folsom Road.

The three of us worked well together and kept our small group together, even over Ridge Road. We took a quick water stop at the gas station in Newcastle, then quickly got back to business of hunting some foxes. Once on Auburn-Folsom we got our rotations organized and all of us contributed to the pace. Next thing you know, there were a couple of cyclists up the road; perfect carrot. I could tell that all of us were thinking, "OK, just catch those guys and take it from there." We reeled them in. As we passed, we heard "alright, now we got a tow home." Turns out it was Stan and Chuck from the Peloton group! Foxes caught!

OK, I have to be honest with you. Back at the gas station we decided to drop Indian Hill and hit Powerhouse Road (the Peloton's route). This shortened-up our ride a little. Also, it sounds like the Peloton group had some bad luck with mechanicals and route finding. All in all, it was a great ride for the three of us finishing in about 2 1/2 hours and averaging 18 mph over 46.5 miles with about 2,800 ft of climbing.