The ride left Palmdale, California, on the morning of May 29th. We headed west towards Elizabeth Lake. I knew today's ride would be a lot of climbing, so I just took it easy and went with the flow. I climbed several hills/mountains as I passed Elizabeth Lake and Lake Hughes, and eventually got out to where the I-5 was. I rode through the small town of Gorman, and then we rose over Tejon Pass and arrived at Rest Stop 2 in Lebec. And then, the real climbing started.
We climbed Frazier Mountain Park Rd., which took me through the villages of Frazier Park, Lake of the Woods, Pinon Pines Estates and Pine Mountain Club. It was a long climb from just under 4,000 ft to just over 6,000 ft. I hit a rest stop at the peak just after Pine Mountain Club. And then, the real fun started.
We had before us this long descent, technical at several places, from Pine Mountain Club down to State Route 166. 6,000 feet down to under 3,000 feet. I flew down that damn mountain! I hit a maximum speed of 45 mph. In fact, some of the tight turns came as a big surprise to me, and I had to hit my brakes pretty suddenly! But I made it down just fine, and kicked some ass doing it. The Freemason's song "Nothing But A Heartache" was going through my head as I descended. It was a blast.
I arrived at the lunch stop in the town of Ventucopa. (I never even knew such places existed!) After lunch, we rolled south along State Route 33 for a while. Some asshole in a truck decided to pass another car, COMING IN OUR DIRECTION. He ended up riding one of our riders right off the road. I pulled off the road as well as this truck almost hit me too. NOTE TO DRIVERS: Don't pass when there are oncoming cyclists. You might just hit us!!!
I then turned onto Lockwood Valley Road, heading towards the famous Heartbreak Hill. We rode through this freerange cattle farm, and this bull walked into the road and stood right in front of me . . . staring at me. I thought, "Oh shit! Is this bull going to charge at me?" I veered to the opposite side of the road, rode slowly by, and did not look at the bull. All the while, the bull turned its head as I passed by . . . watching me. But it let me go by unharmed. That was an experience . . .
I got to Heartbreak Hill. And I could see immediately why it was so named. A very steep grade. But it wasn't too bad. I made it to the top, and to the next rest stop.
After Heartbreak, it was pretty much up and down, up and down for several miles. I was starting to get tired, so I was starting to get grumpy. Fortunately, I did eventually get back to Frazier Mountain Park Road, and it was sweet-ass descent back to Lebec.
The rest of the ride wasn't too bad. Some of the hills started to get to me on the way back to Palmdale, but I managed. I eventually made it back to Palmdale, having finished yet another double century.
