Swami's Cycling Club: Guru News

April 2023

President's Corner

An unexpected benefit of having become president of Swami’s is getting to work with so many unique individuals. It's been fantastic working with Steve Yeager and his team at Cadence, our new partnered bike shop, on weekly Saturday rides and the upcoming Club Night.

Furthermore, Rouleur has become a home for us cycling beer lovers, and watching all that Rawley and his team have

achieved has been awesome. Yet, it’s not always easy sailing, as Rawley eloquently explains in an introspection recently posted here. Cycling is truly a community of individuals from all walks of life and I’m thankful for all the friendships, interactions and advice I’ve received over the years, and look forward to what’s ahead.

Mark Steele

4/1 Hill Climb Challenge: Kitchen Creek Substitute

Looking at the weather reports and the Mt. Laguna webcam, we are unfortunately forced to postpone the Kitchen Creek ride scheduled for Saturday, April 1. Stay tuned for more information about the new date. If you think this means you get off easy from the monthly Hill Challenge, have a look at this Double Peak extravaganza we’ll be doing instead. Sorry, but this is not an April Fool’s joke! As a reminder, the ride leaves from Cadence Cyclery (map) at 8:00 am.

4/2 Social Ride

On Sunday, April 2, 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 Swamis. You can check out all of the details here. A reminder: we now 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 free pastry and coffee or drink of your choice. Because of the Carlsbad 5k race being held this day, we may need to reroute some of the ride. More information will be available at the start of the ride.

4/16 Donut Ride

On Sunday, April 16, we’ll join the famous Donut Ride, leaving from Cadence Cyclery at 8:15 am. This will take the place of the LSD ride. It is the same route as the Swami’s San Clemente LSD, but at a non-LSD pace. The ride is usually moderate on the way out and picks up on the way home, once the donuts kick in. The stop is at Surfin’ Donuts (map), and if you’re wondering whether you should join the ride, try the blueberry fritters there and wonder no more.

You’ve got to be kitting me

We’ve been busy adding our new sponsors to the Swami’s 2023 kit and are in the final stages of production before sending it off to print. Look for the Eliel Swami’s store invitation in April, and in the meantime, get your order together: long sleeve jersey? Summer kit? Arm warmers? If you’ve been on recent rides, you probably want to add a Swami's poncho or pair of galoshes to your order, but we’re optimistic that we’ll have our old weather back soon!

Swami's Spotlight: Denise Mueller

On a recent Sunday ride returning from San Clemente, Swami’s riders noticed something unusual up the road: a torpedo on wheels. Approaching, we saw that inside were five women, each with only a small LCD screen to show what was in front of her. At the head of the torpedo was its pilot and guidance system - Swami Denise Mueller. The craft is the Sprocket Rocket, which the team will ride in this year’s World Human Powered Speed Challenge in Battle Mountain, Nevada in September, where Denise and the other Sprocket Rockettes will attempt to exceed 50 mph.

The effort, if achieved, would not be Denise’s first world record. She is the fastest female cyclist on Earth, having attained 183.9 mph during her 2018 attempt at the Bonneville salt flats. She was paced by a modified dragster on a bicycle whose double reduction gearing allowed it to travel 128 feet with every turn of the pedals!

These are just a sample of Denise’s adrenaline-fueled activities. She also won 13 national championships at the junior level and podiumed at 2 world championships - and those are just her cycling achievements. In Denise’s words: “There is a fine line between living as if this is your last day on earth, and planning for your future. I choose to dance, sing and play on that fine line and live without regrets."

You might think you would never cross paths with a cyclist this intimate with extreme velocity, but Denise can be seen frequently on Swami’s rides, pedaling and chatting in the peloton at a pace more accessible to mere mortals. We salute Denise’s achievements and look forward to being amazed at what she comes up with next!

News from our sponsored teams

UCSD cycling is off and running

The UCSD Cycling team had a strong start to their season, racing at the UCLA criterium (Ontario Crit #1), the USC circuit race (Rosena Ranch Circuit race #2), the USC criterium (Majestic Crit #3), and the UCSB road race. Isaac Ye took second place as a collegiate Men’s C rider in both the UCLA Crit and the USC circuit race.

Another one of UCSD’s strongest riders, Dennis Liang, took first place in the men’s Category 4 open race at the UCLA Crit. Between races, the team has been training hard with many lung-burning intervals during the week and practicing safe riding and race strategies at criterium practice.

Coming in June is UCSD’s famous Tour de Doughnuts, a hill climb competition and social group ride with a twist: for every donut each rider eats at the various donut stops along the route, they earn a head start on the climb. All are invited to participate in this traditional end of season ride, especially those with iron stomachs!

Carlsbad Youth Mountain Bike Club

The Carlsbad Youth Mountain Bike Club is a member of The SoCal High School Cycling League for middle and high school students, with 28 riders from middle and high schools in Carlsbad. Their coaches include a former BMX world champion, a former downhill national champion, and a former professional downhill racer.

The team had their first race of the season at Beach to Boulders Race on February 12. With multi-digit grade climbs, technical singletrack descents, and brutal headwinds, the race tested the skills of all the young riders. The team put in a strong top 15 finish in a competitive field of experienced varsity cyclists. A great start to the season for the team!

Save the Dates!

5/9 Swami’s Club Night at Cadence
5/18 Bike Anywhere Day (formerly Bike to Work Day)
5/20 Great Western Loop
6/24 Poker Ride!

Do you know a cyclist who would make a good Guru?

Please share this newsletter with them and invite them to join Swami’s Cycling Club!

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Guru News: Swami's Newsletter, April 2023