GMR Friday (with GRR/Baldy Loop)...

The Psycho-lists (Dean, Ralph, Keith, Robert, Francis, and myself) posted a 9:00 am start to the ride this morning, rather than the more typical 7:30, which meant I was able to group ride Glendora Mountain Road (GMR) rather than solo it. The plan was to leave Claremont, ride to GMR, up, continuing along Glendora Ridge Road (GRR), down to Baldy Village, and down canyon back home. If you are local, you probably know the loop; it makes for a good morning ride. Word was, though, that the winds were really gusting up there at Baldy, so once we arrived at the top of GMR we would play it by ear, wait to see what the conditions were like up high. Conditions heading up the Mountain Road could not have been better; I shed a windbreaker at the bottom, and rode comfortably the rest of the way up. Maybe a little too comfortably actually; it encouraged me to take off fast and not look back. 

That is until my energy level started to play out along GRR. Maybe it is time to invest in a compact crankset, or at least a 39 ring for these long climbs. A 42 is still fine up to a point, but pushing that bigger gear seems like it eventually wears me down now; and especially since I always feel compelled to be first to the KOM. Remember Jan Ulrich's battles with Lance during the Tour? I swear I had one rotation to everyone else's two. Anyway, I reached the first regroup, at the saddle, with no one in view behind me, patted myself on the back and waited about five minutes for the rest of the group to start showing. Made another push to the top of GMR, but was surprised by Ralph, who came around me (and carrying extra weight) just before the shack. I almost always seemed to have both Ralph and Dean ahead of me along GRR, where the compact would have come in handy. C'est la vie. Any day in the mountains is a good one.

Once we got well into the GRR section we expected to find that wind around each and every twist of the road, but it wasn't to be. That is until we approached Cow Saddle, and that is where we felt the fury of a gusting headwind. Luckily it was rather sporadic until we started the descent into Baldy Village - I was really being blown around my half of the road on that exposed stretch down the mountainside. Cautious riding continued down San Antonio Canyon, expecting my rear hub to blow up at any moment, it is making a hellish sound any time I freewheel with my speed approaching 30 mph or higher. Disconcerting, especially when I could hear it above the roar of the wind. Some deferred maintenance is long past due. Good day, fantastic loop, and a great group to ride with.

I forgot. I brought out something old today, beside myself that is, and it turns out that another rider in the group was also a Chevy/Sheriff back then. I guess it shouldn't surprise me, the green and yellow was a pretty common sight on the roads during the late '80s to mid '90s. You still see an old jersey, or as in this case windbreaker, every so often.

GMR Fridays...

I guess you could call this the GMR Friday, Pre-race Edition. I had company on my trudge up the mountain this time, as a little peloton of 7 riders from the Psycho-lists Meet-up group also had the morning free. The plan was to meet them as they rode along Baseline, not far from home, and ride out to GMR - my normal route. It was one of those arrangements where there is a window of time to meet, and it is just a guess as to whether you are early, late, or right on time. I waited around about 15 minutes before guessing that I missed them roll by, and set out in epic pursuit. About five miles later I glance back and notice a group coming up behind. Cool, I won't have to chase this morning, or at least not yet. Meet and greet with some of the riders I didn't know, and we're off again. 

 the group's 'young gun' says so long old-timer

Close-up is a little too close, and that mustache is looking a little scraggly. maybe it is time to get rid of it. Anyway, Chris and I - smile or grimace?

When we got to that first switchback, at the bottom of Monroe Truck Trail, it was time to go. Not an outright attack, the ride was too social for anything that blatant. Just a gradual acceleration. When the road turns up it just calls to me like a Siren, even after all these years and miles, and I have to answer. Like that, it came down to two of us away. Before we reached the "saddle" though, where GMR switches from one side of the ridge to the other, I could no longer match the pace of the young gun in the group, and drifted off his wheel. That is how it ended, at the top of GMR - having someone to chase most of the way up, probably gave me one of my best time splits for the climb. After regrouping we hit the high rollers of Glendora Ridge Road (GRR) as far as the upper gate of the Experimental Forest where three of us watched  the other four continue along GRR on their way to Baldy Road and back home. The three of us, meaning Brenda, Dick, and myself, turned around to retrace our route, which would tack a few extra miles onto our day.

back down in Glendora, Dick and Brenda lead through

For some of the group, this ride was a kind of scouting mission, looking for just the right spot from which to watch tomorrow's race. Though there wasn't anyone camped out, and GMR / GRR won't be nearly as  popular for viewing as Baldy Road, there was noticeably more traffic up there, others also looking for that perfect spot. Caltrans had sweepers and cleaners out, plows attached to the fronts of trucks, clearing rocks from the roadway. Getting everything as ready as it can be. Tomorrow should be an exciting day indeed.