Friday, April 2, 2010
We woke up this morning to frost on the outside of our tents. This is never the best way to wake up in the morning. It was freezing (both inside the tents, and out…). We tried to de-thaw, but my fingers and toes were still numb when we started riding (but the sun was shining, so this was a very promising sign). I started out with a group of riders. 
It was great to finally get out and really get going. About 5 miles in, we all had to stop on the side of the road to strip off the majority of the excess clothing we had been wearing when we started out. It’s amazing how quickly one can heat up while riding a bicycle! 
We passed some gorgeous views along the way. We also passed very close to “the fence” separating the United States and Mexico. At one point going up a hill, the fence actually stopped. It was an interesting site to see. But the area below was surrounded by Border Patrol with guns and dogs, so I guess they keep this area pretty secure.
The highlight of the day was the 10-mile, 6% descent. My maximum speed got up to 39mph. It was awesome. We were on interstate-8 for all of it, because this is really the only road that passes over the ridge. It was a bit intimidating at times, but absolutely amazing. The views were breathtaking. Unfortunately, I did not take any pictures, as I was going to fast and thought my bike might fly out from underneath me if I let go to take a picture. Mental images. The experience will stay with me for a long time to come.
We got a bit spread out after the descent (larger body mass = faster descent, smaller body mass = slower descent; therefore, I do not descend nearly as quickly as some of the guys…). We still had a pretty big group left when we got down. Unfortunately, Justin blew not only 1, but 2 tubes within the course of a few miles, but we had a nice break while he fixed them on the side of the road. The first change took about 20 minutes (there were chain issues, too). The second one took about 5 minutes. I would say that’s a pretty good improvement. There wasn’t much to see on the roads after our descent into the valley. Adam started a new game. Each time we say a Border Patrol, we had to yell “beep!” (for B.P.). Beeps were everywhere. It kept us entertained.
I waited at the lunch stop and rode the rest of the afternoon with Maggie, Lauren, and Lenore. The roads got pretty bad after lunch, but our spirits remained high. We sang songs from Grease and Reading Rainbow, just to name a few. Good times.
We stayed at the First United Methodist Church (“Meth Church”) in El Centro. It was great to sleep indoors again, after freezing the previous night (literally). Friendly church people allowed us to shower at their houses and we had a tasty spaghetti dinner. We all went to bed tired, but with full bellies. End of the second day. And it was amazing.
It was great to finally get out and really get going. About 5 miles in, we all had to stop on the side of the road to strip off the majority of the excess clothing we had been wearing when we started out. It’s amazing how quickly one can heat up while riding a bicycle! We passed some gorgeous views along the way. We also passed very close to “the fence” separating the United States and Mexico. At one point going up a hill, the fence actually stopped. It was an interesting site to see. But the area below was surrounded by Border Patrol with guns and dogs, so I guess they keep this area pretty secure.
The highlight of the day was the 10-mile, 6% descent. My maximum speed got up to 39mph. It was awesome. We were on interstate-8 for all of it, because this is really the only road that passes over the ridge. It was a bit intimidating at times, but absolutely amazing. The views were breathtaking. Unfortunately, I did not take any pictures, as I was going to fast and thought my bike might fly out from underneath me if I let go to take a picture. Mental images. The experience will stay with me for a long time to come.
We got a bit spread out after the descent (larger body mass = faster descent, smaller body mass = slower descent; therefore, I do not descend nearly as quickly as some of the guys…). We still had a pretty big group left when we got down. Unfortunately, Justin blew not only 1, but 2 tubes within the course of a few miles, but we had a nice break while he fixed them on the side of the road. The first change took about 20 minutes (there were chain issues, too). The second one took about 5 minutes. I would say that’s a pretty good improvement. There wasn’t much to see on the roads after our descent into the valley. Adam started a new game. Each time we say a Border Patrol, we had to yell “beep!” (for B.P.). Beeps were everywhere. It kept us entertained.
I waited at the lunch stop and rode the rest of the afternoon with Maggie, Lauren, and Lenore. The roads got pretty bad after lunch, but our spirits remained high. We sang songs from Grease and Reading Rainbow, just to name a few. Good times.
We stayed at the First United Methodist Church (“Meth Church”) in El Centro. It was great to sleep indoors again, after freezing the previous night (literally). Friendly church people allowed us to shower at their houses and we had a tasty spaghetti dinner. We all went to bed tired, but with full bellies. End of the second day. And it was amazing.
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