Yeah, I am in so cal too, and it makes it a little harder, but I've switched to trainer only during the week. Given my commute and sunlight hours though, not sure that's any different than what I would be doing anyway (and honestly my trainer work took me from a fair to middling cyclist to a knocking on AG FOP cyclist). Weekends I ride outside. I don't ride in big groups (although I broke that rule for a little while with a group in PV, but it was a little sketchy relying on other folks' bike skills), I don't ride certain roads (PCH between Temescal and Cross Creek), but other than that ride pretty normally. road, tri and mountain bike.

I did take a hit from the lung infarction, the docs took 6 weeks to diagnose the PEs and I was training (or trying to) so some damage was done. That said, mine were July 4, and I did a mile OW swim race in August and even got 3rd AG (not a huge field LOL), so fitness was there, but it really took a full year to feel "normal." I actually had another round in March of the next year, which is why I am a lifer. That was caught much earlier and no fitness issues resulted.

Since then I've done two IMs and 5 or 7 half irons, I forget. And a shitload of other races.