Swami's Cycling Club: Guru News

June 2026

President's Corner

It was great to see so many Swamis (and Thugsters!) participating in the Poker Ride last month. We were trying something new and didn't know how it would go over, but you all were game! You did the Macarena, played hopscotch, and rode rollers on a beater just as hard as you attacked the road segments. Make sure you check out the Poker Ride gallery and view the Macarena Instagram post to see how awesome you all looked.

As the summer heats up and we want to maximize our riding time, we're thinking of starting a Swami's "Mellow Monday" ride, an easy coastal cruise for people who want to get out there and get some miles in while still thinking of Monday as a recovery day. If you're interested and available, let us know here.

See you on the road!

Michael Reich

6/7 Social Ride

On Sunday, June 7, we're hosting our monthly Swami's Social Ride. It’s a conversationally-paced ride where you can meet long-time as well as new Swami’s members. Check out all of the details here. We start and finish the Social Rides at Bird Rock Coffee Roasters in Bressi Ranch (map). Wear a Swami's kit from any year to get a coffee and baked good on Swami’s! Have a classic bike you like to show off? This is the ride.

Route: 33.5 mi/1539’ https://ridewithgps.com/routes/48626897

6/27 Kitchen Creek

On Saturday, June 27, we’re heading to Pine Valley to do the beautiful and challenging Kitchen Creek ride! We’ll begin with a 10-mile warmup before tackling the main attraction: a climb of 11 miles with no automobile traffic. After that, you have three road options. There will be routes for all interests: a starter 34-mile loop of Kitchen Creek only, a 59-mile excursion that adds Lake Cuyamaca, and the whole enchilada 75 mile route with 7000+ feet of climbing. See our website for all the details.

Routes:

Kitchen Creek only: 34.1 mi/3,797' https://ridewithgps.com/routes/55427673
KC + Lake Cuyamaca: 58.7 mi/5,378' https://ridewithgps.com/routes/55427681
KC + Engineers Rd: 75.6 mi7,346' https://ridewithgps.com/routes/55427685

For a complete schedule of our rides, see the Swami's ride calendar.

Pedal to the medal

The Swami's racing team had a great showing at the two big races that constitute the La Copa San Diego Omnium. On May 16, the team took on the fast figure-eight course of the Barrio Logan Grand Prix, a race that draws an intensely competitive field. Jorge Franco and Vargha Dameshghi finished 7th and 8th in the Cat 5 category, placing them well in the points. See action pics in Vargha's race recap. and see all results here.

The second day, May 17, brought the JKC Memorial Hunte Parkway Road Race, with Memo Rodriguez, Vargha, Elijah Auer, Jason Stahl, and James Jaconette pulling together to help put Jorge on the podium for 4th place in the Cat 5 General category. Read Memo's writeup for all the twists and turns and see all the results here. And Warren Wicks, all on his own, took the top podium spot in the Masters 70/75 category!

Congratulations to the Swami's racing team and we wish them all good luck as they enter the races in June!

Columbia Employee Store Summer Discount

Our partners at Columbia are offering their summer discount, valid June 5 - 28, at the Columbia employee store in Carlsbad. Here are the details:

Store Pricing: all products are current season merchandise and are discounted 40% off regular retail pricing on the Columbia family of brands - Columbia | SOREL | Mountain Hardwear | prAna
Guests must show their valid offer (link here) plus a photo ID for access and can bring up to 4 additional people with them.
The offer is valid at the Carlsbad location, 3209 Lionshead Ave, Carlsbad, 92010.
Kiosks are available in-store to order items online at Employee Store pricing.

See the web site for the Columbia employee store in Carlsbad.