By: C. Kent, aka (Superman)
Hemet, Ca
It sure wasn’t the prettiest looking day when I looked outside this morning. The sky was seriously overcast and it wasn’t supposed to get much better. It wasn’t the coldest day in the last few weeks but it wasn’t going to get very warm either. Still I was looking forward to getting out riding with my friends and tossed on a base layer and leg warmers and I was ready to go.
Duramax, Parky and Deacon were waiting for me as I pulled into the parking lot and they all looked as if they were ready for the cold. Rocket pulled up next and he was also dressed for cooler weather. Highlander and Bounty Hunter arrived with jackets on. Last to arrive was Raptor and we decided to head for Batista Canyon. We also decided to take the most direct route by going down Lyon to Thornton and then east on Stetson. Shortly after we turned onto Thornton I turned on my MP-3 Player and started thinking about this time last year. I didn’t even try to ride up Batista until January of 09 and here we were heading for it just like it was any other ride during the week. It felt good to be riding with these men who I have come to respect and enjoy their company.
Shortly after starting down Stetson I started feeling a bit of a burn in my legs and I was wondering if Batista was the best choice I could have made. Still I was willing to take my turn at the front and found myself in the lead after we left the light just passed the High School. As we started up the short grade on Stetson I could hear someone pulling up on my left and to tell the truth I expected to see Rocket and Bounty Hunter sail passed me but it was Highlander. Not only did he sail passed me he continued to pull away well passed Lake Street.
It wasn’t long before I found myself at the back of the pack and I noticed way out in front of us there was a lone rider that just might be Raptor. He had decided on a different route when we took Lyon to Thornton and had a lead of at least 500 yards on us. After we reached Fairview Highlander took the lead once again started closing with Raptor with the rest of us in tow. Highlander caught Raptor after we turned onto Batista as we all began the climb.
After about a mile up the road Rocket pulled in front and I started to follow. To tell the truth I didn’t plan on pushing up the canyon at all but once I got into a pace I just put my head down and tried to hold a steady spin to the top. For some reason Rocket let me get away and soon I found myself out front all by myself.
I kept looking over my shoulder expecting to see someone closing on me. At the six mile mark I could see someone gaining but I couldn’t tell who it was. I kept spinning and wondered if I was going to run out of steam on the last two grades but up to that point I was doing pretty well. My heart rate was below 160 and I was still running along about 90 RPM. At last I saw the little dip just before the end of the pavement and I knew I had made it sore legs and all. A minute or two later I saw Bounty Hunter cresting the top and realized he was the one gaining on me earlier. Duramax wasn’t far behind but he was still recovering from a bout of the flu and his lungs weren’t operating at 100 percent.
I ended up riding down the canyon with Bounty Hunter and I have to admit he was setting a pretty good pace. In fact it picked up my average by an additional 2 MPH. Bounty Hunter turned off when we got back to Stetson and Duramax and I continued on to meet Parky and Deacon. We enjoyed a few minutes of conversation and coffee and then we took off for home. I got a good shot of Parky and Deacon with their respective Recumbent bikes and then turned onto park and home.
Just as an aside I want to warn my fellow cyclists about traffic this time of year. Because I found myself riding by myself I decided to cut over to Florida and ride home like my good friend Highlander often does. I have only done this a few times and one other time I was following Highlander and Surgeon when a light colored Small SUV decided to cut us off by turning right in front of us. I was very impressed with Highlanders bike handling skill as he managed to lock up the back wheel and hold himself up without falling down while going sideways. Today I had a chance to duplicate that trick as I approached the light just before State. Traffic was stopped and I was passing a line of cars watching to see if any had their turn signal on. Because no one did I thought it was safe to glide up to the light.
Just as I pulled next to a light colored small SUV a sweet lady decide to turn right and attempt to park in an empty curb side space. She managed to just miss the car in front of her and I managed to slide to a stop without falling down. I wanted to shout Merry Christmas and Happy New year as I passed but I didn’t start breathing again till I was well passed her car. I shall make an effort to avoid that section of Florida and even more so during the holidays. I can only hope the rest of you are careful riding in Holiday traffic when people have their minds on anything but driving.
Clark