Dennis's story: Giro di San Diego

BaseCamp athlete Dennis Wojcik shared his experience at the 2026 Giro di San Diego bike race in California.

Got up at 0500 to eat some overnight oats. Important safety tip: Don’t mix up cumin with cinnamon. Took care of the dogs and left the house at 0600. At the venue, grabbed a cup of coffee and relaxed. Didn’t do much of a warmup for this one. I did ride up a hill and get things moving, though.

Things started fast and chaotic. Not an event like Unbound with better riders. I did get to a protected state and rode. I didn’t try to stay with the lead group for this; rather, I rode my own race.

Climbing Palomar was not as bad as I remembered. It was my second best 90-minute power of all time going up but I didn't feel like I pushed outside of Sweet Spot. I was channeling the BaseCamp Alpe challenge and the ride up Mt Fig with Nathan at Solvang camp.

The descent was fun and smooth. Definitely channeling Mallorca time. There were not a lot of people in front of me to pick off once on the flats and on Cole Grade, so just pushed on. Reeled in a couple people for fun.

Had to stop at a couple traffic lights in the end, but not bad. All in all a good ride. Would have been better with fellow BaseCampers, though.

Fuel was good. No cramping either. Skratch, chews, and Hammer gel. Now I need some serious rest.