Top of Palomar... phew!!!

This is a recap of a ride we did in July

Near the end of July we tackled the infamous Mt. Palomar. This is a 13 mile climb up to 5000' and is essentially a rite of passage for any bicyclist in San Diego -- it has even been compared to Mt. Ventoux (only 8 miles).



Leading up to the day, I was, in short, scared s**tless!! I had never climbed that much and I could hardly get my big butt up the smaller climbs we tackled earlier, like Black Mountain. It was more of a mental thing than anything -- I would not let myself believe that I could do it.

So I left around 5am that morning to go to the Harrah's Rincon casino. All of us gathered and away we went. I started with Group 3... which you will soon realize would not be the group I finished with. We exited the parking lot, hung a sharp left, and the climbing began. It was a slow climb for the first 7 miles, with some nice switchbacks around mile 5. Basically at mile 1.5, I had been left in the dust by Group 3, and the leaders of Group 4 had also flew by me. So I was left to myself, which was nice actually. It allowed me to actually enjoy the scenario, find a good pace, and well, not panic because finally the other riders had stopped passing me (there were only a few left behind me).

So I found a rhythm and eventually made it to the first SAG, and I was feeling pretty good. It was nice to see other human beings instead of crazy motorcyclists zipping by. I don't get it... did these guys think they would make it to the pros? Some were nice and some didn't care that we were on the road.

I left the first SAG and was ready to take the remaining 7 miles. Around mile 9, I ran out of water, but thankfully Kristine was sitting in the truck with water for us. This is where things went downhill. I kept climbing, but slower and slower and slower. The heat was increasing, the grade was approaching 7-9% in some areas, and I was tired!! I had to take a few breaks, but I would not let myself get beat by the 2.5 hour cutoff.

Enjoying the little bits of shade provided by the trees and mountain, my legs pedaled and struggled. I finally saw the 5000' foot sign and was happy, I thought that was it. But then I heard a big POP!! and then sirens and ambulances... can't be good. I later found out on the way down, this was fellow ride Alex who blew out his front tire and broke his collarbone. He's doing just fine now and is back on the bike training.


A mile later, I found the top and our last SAG. It was great!! Brownies, cookies, milk... yummmm.

This was the place where all those lovely motorocyclists gather at the top of Mt. Palomar (5000'). If only the motorcycle gangs just stayed up there and didn't bother the bicyclists on the way down.

The ride down was spectacular. Riding through the hairpins and trying to get that perfect line on the apex. It was incredible. Scary? hell yes!

I also learned one important thing. NEVER touch your wheel when you are flying down a mountain and braking. It gets really really HOT!!!

2.5 hours to get up to the top, and 23 minutes down... what a trip! I finally made it to the bottom and back to the casino to see the other riders who had already changed and packed up their bikes. I was just happy to finish!!! Chinny: 1 Palomar: 0.