Liberal to Dodge City Kansas

Sitting on my bed watching the weather channel and the tornadoes in Oklahoma. I feel so badly for those people. And I am so glad we are behind the tornadoes.

The winds were nowhere near so favorable today. There was a crosswind for the first 60 miles with some quartering headwinds. Then at mile 60 we turned directly north into a direct headwind. Fortunately the long tall Texan Rik, the mechanic, pulled me through the next 22 miles. I would have been out there at least another hour if I had been riding on my own. So he well deserved the milkshake at the Dairy Queen when we got to the hotel. Even with the wind it was a good ride.

The countryside is changing. I have not seen any cornfields yet. But we are now seeing grain elevators on the small towns that we pass through. You can see the elevators many miles away and wonder when you will ever get to them.

Today we had a SAG stop at the Dalton Gang Hideout. So we are passing through Wild West history.

Guyman OK to Liberal KS

Today was the shortest ride of the entire trip. It was only 39 miles. I felt like I had hardly been riding. But it was nice to leave late and only have a half day of riding.

It was not as easy riding today as there was a quartering headwind. But it wasn't that strong. The countryside is starting to change. The grain elevators are starting to appear. And we even encountered a pen of goats. Yes today we crossed into Kansas.

The picture of the sign-in sheet shows that Jeanne and I beat everyone to the SAG. I do have to admit we left early and it was at mile 18.

Sailing in the Wind - Dalhart TX to Guyman OK

What an amazing ride today. The tailwinds literally blew us down the road to Guyman. My power meter showed me exerting no effort while going down the road at 20 mph. Now that was fun. I averaged 19 mph for 72 miles.

The road was almost perfectly straight the entire way. And there was a good burn to ride on. Well most of the time that is. There was a section of road work where they were repairing the shoulder. It was chip seal that had not been sealed. So it wants a bit rough. But I preferred that to have an 18 wheeler come within inches of me going 70 mph.

The scenery was quite boring today. There were a few small feedlots, a couple of oil rigs, some wind turbines and very small towns.

We crossed into Oklahoma today. This afternoon they posted a tornado watch until 10 pm tonight. So we were all glad we got in early.

I took a picture of the Texas waffle just to remind Chris Hall of the delightful morning treat.

Tucumcari NM to Dalhart TX

Another state crossing occurred today - Texas. It was a good day of riding. For the first time there were no climbs. It was a day filled with rolling hills. But I was able to get a lot of speed going down and this make it part way up the other side. So I felt like I was making pretty good speed down the road. Four miles out of town my riding partner got another flat. So I am honing my tire changing skills.

This was the day we passed the huge feedlots. I decided that once in a lifetime is enough for me. So I took a bump in the last 15 miles. I am glad I did that. It still gave me 78 miles.

Las Vegas to Tucumcari

Today was a 108 mile ride through some beautiful and yet very desolate countryside. I managed to ride 71 of the miles. Today was not my strongest day of riding for sure. I think the body is still getting used to the demands put on it day after day.

Today marked the 1000 mile mark. It is hard to believe we have gone that far. 

One of the best sights of the day was a sign showing a downhill 9% grade.  That sign really looked good after spending many hours of climbing.  Once we started down the Canadian escarpment the countryside opened up in front of us.  And the view as we went down was amazing.  Of course I couldn't just look at the countryside because I was making sure I didn't get too much speed as I was descending.

Around mid-day the wind started blowing.  At first it was a tailwind which resulted in some high speeds going down the rolling hills.  However later it became a crosswind.  Then unfortunately about twenty miles from town, the speed of the wind increased and it became a headwind.  That was not fun and resulted in my taking a bump into town the last 10 miles. 

Tomorrow we descend into the Texas panhandle.  For those readers who have done this trip you know that means the XIT feedlots.  I sure hope the wind is blowing in the right direction - whatever that is.

Santa Fe to Las Vegas NM

Wow, it is amazing what a rest day will do for you!  I was actually awakened by my alarm this morning at 5 am.  I think that is a first on the trip.  Usually I am lying there waiting for it to go off. 

As we got ready to leave this morning, my riding partner's tube stem blew and so there was a slight delay while I changed the tube.  Fortunately it was the front wheel.  I am getting rather good at getting the tube out and the new one in.  But I would still have problems putting the back wheel on.  We were only delayed 5 minutes past our early starting time.  The riders are staged based on their proven speed performance.  This helps the staff provide support and gives those of us who are slower an opportunity to see other riders on the road and at SAG stops.  It was extremely pretty scenery today which was good.  Because we rode 72 miles and climbed around 5K feet.  We reached our highest point so far at over 7,000 feet.  Las Vegas is about the same elevation as Santa Fe so it was up and down all day.  The first 40 miles were mostly climbing then a very fun descent to the SAG.  Then the 30 miles to town were some mighty hard rollers.  Most of the grades were 6-8% on the climb.  I didn't look at the descent.  I was holding on and watching the road in front of me.  I didn't want to lose any speed because it would help with the next climb.  My computer said my max speed was 40 mph.  This was not a particularly smooth road so it was a little dicey at times.  Oh yes, I forgot to mention the wonderful tail wind.  What a help that was!  We were parallel to the interstate during the last 30 miles.  Because they smooth out the peaks and valleys when they build interstates, it was easy to see the effect.  Made me kind of want to be on the interstate when I was struggling up some of the grades.

Coming in to Las Vegas was kind of interesting.  As you will see from the pictures, they advertise the number of hotels, etc.  I had never seen that before.

Tomorrow will be a tough ride to Tucumcari.  We have 108 miles to pedal and a "wall" to climb.  The prediction is for winds out of the west so I hope that is true.  My plan is to pedal as far as I can make it and see what happens.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Grants to Albuquerque to Santa Fe

For those hardy souls who look for the blog daily, you noticed there was no blog yesterday.  The bottom line is that I was way too exhausted to think, let alone write anything.  Old age is not for sissies and I think old age has caught up with me the last two days.  Either that or the altitude, maybe I will blame it on the altitude.

The ride from Grants to Albuquerque was doable.  There was some headwind and quite a crosswind.  We had some more miles on I40 but they were not as treacherous as the day before.  There was quite a nice shoulder for riding.  The bad part was at about mile 50, just after a great SAG stop (with a Dairy Queen) there was a 5 mile climb.  It was unrelenting and I was glad to get to the top.  However, then there was a long downhill run into town.  I think some of the riders, the brave or stupid ones, got up to speeds nearing 50 mph.  Not me.  I was tired and not very sure of my balance by that time of the day, so once again gave the brakes a workout.  It seemed like a long slog to get through town to the hotel.  I was exhausted and barely made it through dinner.  I went to bed without organizing everything for the next day, which is not like me.

Today's ride to Santa Fe did not go well.  My continuing altitude headache and my lack of ability to get enough oxygen made it very difficult.  I decided I was not having fun and I did not need to prove anything so got in the van.  I spent 2 hours in Madrid, an old mining town which is not artsy crafty and full of hippies.  Carol and Robin, the SAG ladies, and Jeanne, my riding partner and I roamed through the stores and had one of the best hamburgers I have ever had.

Tomorrow is a rest day and I think everyone is ready for that.  We need to rest up for a couple more days of climbing.  I will spend the day doing laundry, resting, and picking up any sundry items I need.  But mostly resting.  This body definitely needs it.

Gallup to Grant NM

Today was a 68 mile ride with 10 miles on I40 and the rest on Route 66.  Of the 10 miles on I40 there was a 6 mile section that can only be described as horrible.  The breakdown lane was horrible with gravel, potholes, etc.  So you could risk crashing in the potholes, or hug the white line and risk getting hit by a truck speeding by.  Neither one of these options was a pretty site.

Today we crossed the Continental Divide.  Jeanne and I have been riding together (we are 6 months apart in age) so this is the two of us standing there.

The ride down from the Continental Divide was marvelous.  It was about a 1% downhill grade for 20 miles or so.  Added to that was a wonderful tailwind.  So I basically wore myself out for the final ride into town by trying to go as fast as I could.  I think I was going about 25 mph for awhile.  However, Chris on his recumbent was going about 35 mph.  Anyway it was fun

Today was my first stop at a Dairy Queen which was located about 5 miles from the hotel.  Wow, was that delicious.  Fortunately the last five miles after that were easy as it pretty much all downhill. 

Two of the riders are riding their last day tomorrow, Karen and Janel.  I will miss them, as I rode with them quite a bit.

More Slogging than Zooming - Holbrook to Gallup

I guess my body payed for the effort it put out yesterday.  Today it was not responding in such fine fashion.  Instead of sailing down the road, it would be classified more as slogging.  I decided I was not having enough fun to complete the 94 miles so took a bump between SAGs and completed 60 miles.  Since we rode on the interstate all day long and this was a particularly uninteresting section, taking a bump was not a bad idea at all.  It also gave me more time to wander around in the Navajo owned trading post.

As I said, we rode on the interstate all day.  This means there are lots of little wires that embed themselves in your tires, and lots of big tire pieces to slalom through.  The burms are wide so that is helpful.  However, during the first half of the day, the surface was rough.  And you sure don't want to challenge the big trucks for a lane on the freeway.  That would not be very smart.  There were lots and lots of flats.  Flats are actually the great equalizer.  They tend to keep us slower riders (Jeanne and I) passing some of the faster riders who are fixing their flats.  If a group riding together is unlucky and has more than their share of flats, we see them a few times during the day.  We did not make it through the mine field uninjured however.  Two miles from the hotel, Jeanne got a flat (in the rear).  I changed the flat for her and luckily Rik, the mechanic, came along just as I was attempting to put the back wheel back on the bike.  Her bike is particularly hard to get the wheel on, so I was very happy.  As you can see from Tracy's attire, there were lots of flats today.

We crossed into New Mexico today and the country side started to change.  There was some very pretty scenery along the way.  This truly is Indian country as you see Native Americans in the stores and restaurants.  Tomorrow we ride to Grants NM and will cross the Continental Divide.  And only 10 miles on the Interstate and then we will be on Route 66.  Yeah.

 

 

Again apologies for having lie on your side to view the pictures.  I have no idea why they do that nor how to fix it.  And I am too tired at night to experiment very much.  Oh yeah, being a low country resident is causing problems in this altitude.  We have been at 6000 ft for a couple of days.  Walking down the street can be a chore, let alone riding a bike.  And a low-grain headache continually haunts me.  But we have several more days, so I am going to try to drink even more water.

 

 

Flagstaff to Holbrook Az - Flying Down the Road

After spending a very pleasant rest day in Flagstaff, we took off early this morning all bundled up for the cold.  It was about 40 degrees but warmed up rather quickly.  I rode today with Janel, Karen, and Jeanne.  We were given permission to leave 10 minutes ahead of everyone else (with the rest of the riders staggered according to speed) because we are somewhat slower.  That helps to keep the riders together and makes it easier for the SAG support.

What a day.  The 92 miles pretty much flew by.  First there was more downhill than uphill.  Even more important the wind was basically a tailwind.  So I was up to speeds of 21 mph.  Unheard of for me.  We were on I40 all day.  Fortunately there was a wide breakdown lane for us to ride on.  For the most part it was pretty smooth.  However, interstate riding means lots of flat tires.  I had one.  Our young rider from Northern Ireland had 5 of them.  Those nasty little wires from the radial tires seem to have no trouble imbedding themselves in a tire, and thus puncturing the tube.  It is important to check the tire for wires every time you stop.

Today was my birthday and yesterday was Marianne's.  So the staff had fun decorating our helmets and bikes.  It was a wonderful way to celebrate my birthday.

Cottonwood to Flagstaff - Amazing Scenery with Lots of Climbing

Today was a 47 mile ride with 7000 ft of climbing.  Yes indeedy, I was tired when I got in.  However, I did the entire ride and feel super about the accomplishment.

The morning started out in a pace line with Rik, Tracy, and Jim once again.  They slowed way down to help me climb a ways out of town.  Then there was a screaming (literally and figuratively) run down some hills.  It is frightening how much faster a pace line can go downhill than individual riders.  But it was fun.  I would only descend in a pace line with very experienced riders like these guys.  That was the 10 easy miles of the ride.

Then there was a relatively easy climb into Sedona.  The red rocks of Arizona are an amazing view.  This is a big tourist town and have a wonderful coffee shop where we stopped for an iced coffee and an apple turnover.  What a treat.  Once we left Sedona it was a narrow road with no shoulder all the way to Flagstaff.  So you had to be calm in traffic to really enjoy the day.  Most of the drivers were very good and patient with the slow cyclists climbing slowly up the hill.  The countryside was amazing, so even though the riding was hard, it was well worth it to be out there on the road.  I rode by myself the rest of the day, but encountered other riders along the way.  The 2.5 mile climb out of the canyon was a challenge after climbing for miles to just get to that point.  My Garmin showed 10% grade at times.  I admit to stopping a couple of times on the way up just to catch my breath.  Jim O. and Rik went up in 17 min.  It took me 45.  Oh well, I made it!  And that is an accomplishment.

Today is a well-earned rest day.  I know I will enjoy it a lot.  What do we do on rest days?  Well: laundry, clean our bike, replenish supplies of sunscreen and drugs, have a leisurely breakfast, and sleep.

I am very excited about one thing.  I am consistently 1 mph average faster each day than in 2010.  Not bad for an old lady who is now 3 years older.  I have to thank my Carmichael Training Systems coach, Tracey Drews, for that.  I sometimes questioned the schedule but it has worked. 

 

Prescott to Cottonwood - A Fabulous Day

Today was an amazing biking day.  True to my promise, I set no goal except to enjoy the day.  As my daughter reminded me tonight, in 2010 I achieved the goal of riding across America.  This time it is all about fun.

The leader of Crossroads, Tracy, rode her bike today for the first 14 miles.  So the staff who were riding left town with her.  There was a little bit of climbing out of town and then there was a wonderful descent.  The light started to sparkle in the eyes of Tracy, Rik, and Jim.  I knew they were going for it down the hill and that was the end of my riding with them for the day.  Those three love to descend and I am quite cautious.  So off they went.

At the 14 mile point I waited for Janel and Jeanne and rode with them the rest of the day.  Janel has the greatest attitude and really enjoys life.  So she taught me to reframe the false flats today, in my mind.  And it truly did make it easier to go up them.  We spun up Mingus Mountain (3 miles) and it didn't seem hard at all.  My legs were not screaming at me and I quite enjoyed the climb.  Then came the terrify descent down the other side.  Quite steep and lots of curves.  Some of them were very hairpin turns.  Continually pumping the brakes and pulling off to let the rim cool down, I made it down safely.  Halfway down the mountain we stopped in the little town of Jerome and had a hamburger at the Haunted Hamburger.  The views were fantastic, that is when I could take my eyes off the road long enough to look at them.

Now I am really frustrated.  I thought I had this picture rotated but it still is coming in wrong.  So once again lay on your side to look at Janel and I at a food stop.

Mike looking out at the view and the road he has to ride down.  A bit intimidating but very beautiful.

Tomorrow will be another climbing day with amazing scenery.  We will end up in Flagstaff where we will have a much needed day of rest.

Wickenburg to Prescottl - Let the Climbing Begin

Today was the official beginning of the "real climbing".  If anyone thought the climbs up to this point were "real climbing", they got an eye opening today.  Getting to Prescott involves around 7000 ft of total assent.  Added to that cruelty was the JOY of false flats and false summits.

We started out the day at the Golden Nugget for breakfast.  Now the meal the night before at this establishment was, to put it bluntly, awful.  I had never before walked away from a plate of spaghetti, for which our table waited 1/2 hour.  The noodles could be better described as "mush" and the meatballs required only one small taste to realize that they were better left untouched.  So still being hungry, I went to the Circle K and bought a sandwich to take back to my room.  I was only able to consume about a third of this before I could tolerate no more.  So before going to bed I consumed a Cliff Bar.  Those taste pretty good on the road but awful at bedtime.  Waking up at two in the morning, I remembered I had half a bag of trail mix in my bags.  Well I thought I did.  I emptied both duffel bags, never to find the trail mix, which must have been left in one of the hotel rooms along the way.  The lack of good nutrition became a factor in ride performance later in the day.  But back to breakfast.  Arriving before opening time I had an opportunity to enjoy the company of Tommy T and Rik, two of the staff members.
 

 I know, I know, you have to lay on your side to see this picture correctly.  I am sorry.  I spent 5 minutes trying to get it rotated and cannot succeed.  So today's blog has some serious technical errors.

False Flats and false summits.  If you have never been on one, they are a demoralizing optical illusion.  You look out on the distance and swear you will go screaming down the hill.

 So this is a view looking at the road ahead of you.  Laying on your side, note the point at which you can no longer see the road.  I stopped there and took a picture look back to this spot.

As you can see there was no downhill, it was a 3% slugfest up a hill.  Thank goodness for the Garmin.  I had to constantly look down at the grade to give myself a reason to be slow.  This section continued to climb for 7 miles.  The grade turned into 6% in many spots.  I made it up this section fairly well and still had some life in me at the top.

Then there were a few miles with some nice downhill runs.  These were pretty much straight roads and the surface was very smooth.  I achieved my all time speed record of 41 mph.  Now, I do not like speed and normally will not let the bike run like that.  But it was handling well and no curves and I wanted to enjoy the run. 

Then another 5 miles of false flats.  I did not do so well on these.  I really think the lack of good nutrition the night before started to take it's toll.  Gels and other "biking" food only go so far.  And if you don't have a good base, they just don't seem to be able to keep you going.  Or maybe I am not in good enough shape and the years are adding up on my body.  Anyway, at the bump spot at 42 miles (with 15 more to go), I called it a day.  I helped Robin load bikes (for those riders gone by the wayside) and water down and water up the remaining bikers on the road.  Back to part-time staff, which is also a very rewarding function.

My goal today had been to ride this whole section, which I was unable to complete in 2010.  Third time a goal has been missed.  I am done setting goals.  From now on it is just ride, or not ride, whatever the case may be.

Blythe to Wickenburg - Back to Riding

Wow, it feels good to be back riding again.  I actually was very tired yesterday from being a staff member.  They really work hard.  And I found some muscles that I didn't know I had from climbing in and out of the truck and schlepping duffel bags out of the truck.

The ride today was 116 miles.  I decided that trying to complete that amount of miles in the heat would be too much.  So I took a bump to mile 40 and started from there.  That still gave me 76 miles for the day.  I rode with Janel, Karen, and Jeanne and we had a blast.  Our goal was to have fun.  Janel and I rode the 76 miles and the other two hopped on and off the train.  As you can see we passed into Arizona today.  Now the country is changing and becoming far more interesting.  I promise that tomorrow I will start to take pictures of the scenery so you can see what we are riding through.  The heat dropped about 10 degrees today.  The max I saw on my Garmin was 104.  That was tolerable. 

We had some great sightings today.  Quite a few lizard-like creatures running down the road.  And we actually saw a road runner run across the road in front of us.  That was cool.  And oh yes, for Chris from XC10, a smooched snake sighting.

Today Janel and I got to demonstrate our tire changing skills.  I took the tube out and she put the new one back in.  We did not time ourselves, but we did pretty well.  Later on down the road we saw two of the male members of our group having their tire changed by a staff member!  They luckily got a flat right where the van was parked.  We told them we would ride behind them the rest of the way into town to provide assistance should they get another flat. 

Tomorrow starts the big climbing.  We ride to Prescott and have 7K feet of climbing.  This will also be the day of the false flats and the false summits.  Those freaked me out in 2010.  So I really hope that I do better on them this year.  Wish me luck.

Indio to Blythe - Life as a Staff Member

Today was day 1 of the desert crossing.  It seems like yesterday was a desert crossing but it was not.  As I said in last night's blog, I decided that riding the desert was not for me today.  So I "signed up" to be a staff member for the day.  It really did give me more of an appreciation for the work it takes to make the tour a success.  Tracy and her team work really, really hard to make the ride safe and fun for the riders.  A lot of thought and effort went in to keeping the riders on the road hydrated and cooled down whenever possible.  A lot of the riders chose to ride only a portion of the day.  So they were bumped to the first SAG and sent on their way.  Others made the smart choice to call it a day before they got in serious trouble.  And some of the riders made it the entire way.  It was not easy in that heat and in the wind.

I remember the desert as being pretty when I came across in 2010.  I must be remembering the sights further on down the road.  Because there was not much about today that was pretty. 

There is a father and daughter from England on the trip.  (Actually there are two of them.)  The photo above is of Becky and Roger.  She is really a lot of fun.  She gets excited about everything and it is interesting to see our country from her eyes.  We have one recumbent rider on the trip, Chris.  He has the sleekest looking recumbent I have ever seen.  It almost looks like a high performance motorcycle.  He is super fast on it and seems to have no problem climbing either.  The final photo is of Robin and I in our stylish hats waiting for the riders on the side of the road. 

Tomorrow I will be back on the road for about 2/3 of the day.  I don't think I can ride 116 miles in this heat so will take a bump to the first sag.  Everyone is looking forward to cooler temps as we head to Prescott in two days.  The high there is predicted to be 77 degrees.  It will feel like it is freezing.

Wow - The Day To Indio - Not What I Expected

OK, I know, I know.  This does not look like a picture you would expect for someone riding their bike across America.  But I will explain.

Today was the ride from Riverside to Indio.  The route was 90 miles and I rode 57.  My goal when I came on tour was to ride every mile.  This morning that goal was changed to ride every hill.  I decided that being from the South Carolina low country I should take advantage of improving my hill climbing ability.  Well part-way up the second hill, in 111 degree heat, that goal went out the window.  I flagged the van down and took a 10 mile bump and got back on the road.  I rode many a mile and was doing OK until we hit headwinds going into Palm Springs.  For those of you who have ridden the tour, this is a section that normally has very nice tail winds.  In fact, Rik the mechanic said in 17 years there have only been head winds two times.  Well four miles from the SAG, the three of us riding together stopped at a service station, bought 3 gallons of cold water and poured over our heads.  After finally cooling down, we rode into the SAG and called it a day. 

While heading back to the hotel in a SAG van completely full of riders, we came across a rider on the side of the road under a palm tree.  He clearly needed to get in the van and get cooled down.  I volunteered to get out (I am kind of a pseudo staff elf) and wait with his bike for the next van.  There was no room for bikes on the first van.  By the time the day was over the second van was completely full of bikes and riders also.  And then the first van had to go back out on the road to finish up the day.  My hat is off to the riders who completed the ride today.  It was a monumental effort.

So we have officially NOT hit the desert yet.  That is tomorrow and the next day.  These are 100 mile rides and the weather will be just as hot with winds from the wrong direction.  Sooooo....  my goal changed again.  It is to stay healthy now.  In 2010 I rode the full rides in the desert and have been there and done that.  I decided that I was not riding at all tomorrow.  So I will be helping the staff with the SAGS.  But believe me that does not mean I will be cool and comfortable.  We will be out there all day and the heat will affect us as well.  We do get to cool down in the vans at certain times and don't have to pedal.  I will evaluate the second day of the desert tomorrow night.

So the reason for the picture is that Tom Gray was going to the store tonight and I brought nothing to put on my head except a helmet.  So he picked me out quite the attractive UV protective hat.  I think he did rather a good job.

So this tour is turning out different than I expected.  I will try to take some pictures tomorrow.  And I will be back on the bike.

Los Angeles to Riverside - What a Start

Today was the start of the ride and what a day it was.  You can see the group assembled at Manhattan Beach ready to begin.  We had ridden to the beach as a group and had the ceremonious dipping of the rear wheel in the water.  And then we were off across the country.  Today's ride was stop and go as we had what seemed like hundreds of stop lights along the way.  There is only one way to get out of LA and that is to ride through a portion of LA.  While it was not the most scenic of rides, the flowers and trees that were in bloom were beautiful. 

The ride was going well until it started to get hot at about mile 45.  Unfortunately that is where we also started climbing.  These were not big climbs but a small climb becomes big when the temperature starts rising.  My Garmin showed a high of 111 degrees when I downloaded the data.  That was the heat coming off of the pavement and the heat we felt as riders.  Everyone struggled today and several of us ended up getting a bump in the van.  That several included me.  At mile 60 of 78 I became really heated and could not get cooled down, even with water poured on me.  So I decided that completing every mile of the ride was no longer important.  Living to ride another day was very important.

There are quite a variety of riders in this group.  And there are a lot of women which is nice.  The group includes two sets of fathers and daughters.  What a great experience for them.

I am quite tired tonight so this is not the best blog ever.  But I think you will understand.  Tomorrow we have 90 miles to Indio and then we come to the desert.  This is going to be a really tough week.

Let The Journey Begin

So the journey is about to begin.  I arrived in LA on Thursday afternoon.  I wanted to have time to adjust to the time change and just get prepared for the big ride.  Of course the "map" was in the hotel lobby.  It is indeed daunting to see the route, even though I knew what it would look like.  Even more daunting was watching the screen on the Delta flight coming here.  They show a topographical map of where the plane is flying.  And when I saw the mountains in New Mexico, Arizona, and California, I remembered that we have to cross them on the bike!  This map will be in the hotel lobbies every night on the trip.  Each day it will be updated with a red line to show how far we have gone.  Right not it looks insurmountable but it is amazing how fast that line goes across the US.

My bike arrived safe and sound.  I am really impressed with the AirCaddy boxes.  They are so easy to pack and unpack and extremely sturdy. 

Today I helped with some of the "chores" the Crossroads staff have to perform in order to get ready for the ride.  It is great to see the behind the scenes work that goes on.  Now I know more about why the experience is so great for the riders.  I took the bike out for a little spin to make sure everything was working right.  But no major rides for me until the tour starts.  Tomorrow is the orientation and then a team dinner.  I met several of the riders today and remember how nervous I was three years ago.  This is a big undertaking and everyone has a right to be a bit anxious about the whole thing.

I am looking forward to starting the ride on Sunday. 

Off Again - XC13 - Biking Across America

Yes, I am going to do the Crossroads trip across the US once again. I am excited about the prospect and ready to go. I have been asked several times "Why?" I think the real answer is: "because I can." Since completing the first trip, I contemplated doing it again several times. But while in Belgium last fall, with some urging from Norm, I decided that I really did want to go again. And time was a'wasting as they say. I had been training and I was healthy, so what could stop me. I am not getting any younger and at my age the feeling of being vulnerable starts to set in. 

As I contemplate the trip, I realize it will be a different trip than the last one, even though the route is the same. I now know I can complete the ride and I believe my conditioning is as good as before, if not better. I think the mental aspect was really the hardest in 2010. Maybe I will have conquered some of that. If I am still the slowest rider (which I may be), I will just enjoy the solitude and the scenery. I know I have learned a lot about climbing, so the mountains do not seem as formidable. However, I know there will be challenges and this will take all of the determination I can muster to ride every day and every mile. 80 miles a day average, thousands of feet of climbing, hair-raising descents off of Mingus Mountain, desert heat, Kansas wind, 45 days of riding; the challenges go on and on. All of this is off-set by: amazing scenery, great support staff, new friends, old friends, the joy of just riding every day with no other responsibilities, the ability to eat 5000 calories a day and not gain a pound, and the great feeling of accomplishment.

The bike has been shipped so I am anxious to go. I will fly to LA on Thursday, the orientation is Saturday, and we start pedaling on Sunday. For those of you from XC10 and ES11 I will reconnect with Tracy, Rik, Jim Olsson, Tom Dunn, Robin, Carol, Hank, Mike Taylor, Darrell Thomas, Bob Fuller, and Tom Gray at various points along the way.