Four of us (Peter Brueggemann on a 1950's Bates/Huret, Sterling Peters on his long-favorite Campy 2006 Chris Kvale, and Omar Firestone on a 1980's Bobbilicious Peugeot 'Course', Don Gillies on a 1970 Raleigh International) arrived at Balboa park by about 8:40 a.m. The rumor of free donuts and beer was exposed as a vicious lie to get people to show up.
After 2 months of having no ride, we plan to advertise next month's ride earlier and more often, and perhaps give away door prizes to increase attendance.
We began at 9:05 am with high temperatures and humidity (which peaked at a record-high of 93 for May 18th during the ride.) We rode up the coast and enjoyed refreshing breezes, especially coasting 2 miles down Torrey Pines road to the Del Mar shoreline.
We rode to Java depot and partook of the coffee drinks and berry smoothies and sandwiches. At least 25 bikes were parked at this popular bicycling spot in Solana Beach, 5 doors down from a bike shop. I was staring at an interesting BOT (barely on-topic) Fuji bike with no decals, and a splatter paint job when Oscar Ranz, a young UCSD student walked up and struck up a conversation. I told him about our group, and led him to the back of the cafe, where we showed him our rides.
Oscar presented his Fuji - a pro-team model with Shimano RX-100, purchased used from a Fuji team mechanic. While the components were modest, the frame was beautiful (in fact, with the most beautiful and delicate unicrown fork i have ever seen), and at $100, a total bargain which everyone was glad to see was on the road again ...
On the return trip, Omar attacked up the Torrey pines steep grade, and decided to attack all the way home to his house. Don broke away from the pack, pretending to chase Omar but secretly just wanting a head start up that brutal hill. At the halfway point Peter Brueggemann passed Don, and Sterling flew past him at the 2/3rds point. At the top, Don recollected that he had passed every Italian bike on the grade, but had fallen prey to two American super bikes - Litespeed and a TREK. In total, Don had passed $9,000 of bikes, but had been passed by $10,000 worth of bikes, vs. his $220 Raleigh. Don's greatest triumph was to vanquish a Klein that had led him by 30 feet for nearly all of the 2 miles, until Don summoned the strength to surge with less than 200 feet left on the grade ...
In Hillcrest, on the home stretch, we passed a Baptist church, just finishing services, where a 19-year old girl in a black and white polka dot dress walked across the street right in front of us, eliciting many riders to say, "sweet Jesus ..." which was probably our most serious worship for the day.
- Don Gillies
San Diego, CA