Day 6 Sparks to Lovelock, Nevada 93 miles 3250 feet of climbing

from everything we were told last night, i truly expected not to be taking pictures today.  we knew it was going to be long.  we knew we had to be careful as we'd be spending a great deal of time on interstate 80, and we knew it was going to be a record-breaking heat wave of a day.  so all i was concentrating on was being safe on the highway and hydrating like mad.  but as i began riding, it became clear i wanted you to see what i was seeing.

departing just at sunrise

the hair-raising begins

we rode most of the day on I-80.  it was hot as blazes, just as predicted.  although we left right at sunrise with cool temperatures in the 60's, by 11:30 in the morning, it was already 105 degrees.  at noontime, i looked again and it was 107 degrees.  after that, i just didn't bother to check anymore.  [by the way, at dinner tonight at 6:00, the temperature had dropped to 101 degrees.  guess i won't need that blanket tonight!

the truckee river, still flowing though from California

as the river ends, so does the vegetation

riding on route 80 was both scary as all get out and peaceful.  just not at the same time.  the sparks/reno metro area comes alive at six in the morning and so does the traffic on that major interstate.  the sun was just peeking over the tops of the mountains and, as we were heading due east, right in our eyes.  this collection of factors caused a number of trepidatious moments.  first, with the sun right in my eyes, i couldn't see debris on the shoulder.  then, when the sun rose just a bit, the shoulder was half in sunlight and half in shadows.  that meant riding in the narrow strip of sunlight to ensure not running over anything that could cause a punctured tire.

and the land losses it greenness, becoming more barren and brown

then there were the trucks.  the speed limit in the metro area was 70 miles per hour, but i doubt anyone was going that slowly.  the aerodynamics of an 18-wheeler passing a cyclist were explained to me later at one of the pit stops.  first, as the truck first comes up on your flank, the force of it cutting through the air pushes the rider towards the guardrail.  as the truck passes the rider, it's created a vacuum that pulls the rider back towards the right-hand lane.  if a series of trucks pass in quick succession, they all pull the bike with them, increasing the bike's speed.  so, all in all, it's kind of quick rocking motion that i went through.  after a while, i got used to it.  and, for the first twenty-five miles, i also noticed how fast i was going, with my average speed of over twenty miles per hour.  that didn't last.

i also said it was peaceful.  how could that be?  well, yeah, i did have to get over the freakishness of the truck traffic.  but once we got out of the metro area and the traffic calmed down, there was nothing but me and the highway.  by ten in the morning, i could go for miles before a passing truck or car drove by.    and miles before seeing another rider.  as the road would often be straight as an arrow for miles, i began to drift into a very mellow, tranquil state.  just the sounds of the passing vehicles now and then, and my own breathing and the sounds of my bike.  a very different calm from that of the ride through norton grade, and a helluva lot hotter!

this scene just went on for miles.  but it became a peaceful ride.  just no shade!

we rode through, basically, a bowl most of the day.  from all points around me, i could see mountains.  but where we were riding was, more or less, salt flats.  and, as you can see from the shots below, not a very auspicious place to be riding, at least from an historical standpoint.  at one point, four of us wound up meeting up with each other because, for over a fifty-mile stretch, there was only one traffic sign that hung over the highway.  that sign created a shadow.  and even though it was barely three feet wide and extending across the eight-foot  shoulder, we fit four of us within its cooling confines.  i swear the temperature under the sign must have been a good ten degrees cooler than a foot in either direction.

not a good place to traverse, by covered wagons or by bicycles

this is as barren as it gets.  and it just went on for mile after mile

of all the gin joints in all the world...

has someone ever asked where you're from and, when you tell them, they ask, oh, do you know such and such a person? the probabilities of actually knowing that person are minuscule.  it's not like we all live in such tiny places that it's ever likely we'll know that person in question.   however, the following story defies those odds.   it's the god's honest truth and told to the best of my recollection:

our second pit stop was at a rest area exit off of I-80.  no services, no town, no gas, no food, just a couple of picnic tables and bathrooms.  no reason to stop unless mother nature is calling or you're a nut bar who's riding across country on a bicycle and this just happens to be your pit stop.

as i headed down the exit ramp to the rest area, a old panel van, painted with bright pictures and looking like something out of the woodstock era, was also exiting the highway and turning alongside me to enter the rest area.  other than the paint job, i didn't take much notice.  i pulled my bike under a shaded picnic table and did my usual routine of taking my gloves and helmet off, signing in [so they can keep track of everyone's progress during the day's ride] and grabbing some fresh water, gatorade and granola bars or fruit or whatever i needed.  there were already about six riders plus the crew at the pit stop, all doing the same things as i was about to do.

as i was filling up my water bottles from our van, a charming young woman with a strong british accent came over to the support van.  she introduced herself and, bouncing with delight as she spoke, wanted to say how impressed she and her friends in the van were as they passed a bunch of us cycling down the highway.  she inquired as to where we were going and where we'd come from.  i asked where she was from.  she proceeded to tell me that she and her bandmates, yes, they were a traveling acoustic act, started out in miami, headed all the way to san diego and were now heading back east, with some gigs in the midwest before heading to new york and boston.

knowing that one of our riders, the young woman from england who had taken a gap year to ride across the states, was only minutes behind me, i actually was asking her where in england she was from.  since she was impressed with all of us riding this day, maybe , i thought, she'd be impressed with a fellow brit doing this as well.  she told me she was from surrey, england.  funny, i replied, that's where one of our riders is from.  a young woman who's taken a year off to do this ride, i added.  what's her name, the young english woman asked.  emma something, i replied.  can't remember her last name.  at that point, the young english woman froze.  emma mason?  yeah, that's her last name, i answered.

at that point, leticia [as i would later find out her name], began to cry.  oh my god, she exclaimed.  emma is my sister's best friend.  my sister just texted me yesterday to say that emma was doing this ride and, maybe, you'd pass her while you and the band are driving across country.  leticia never really expected that to happen, but it was a nice thought.  no more than five minutes after i told her about emma, sure enough, there on the ridge above the rest area, rode emma, coming down the exit ramp.

the scene that ensued was something for the ages.  emma pulls into the rest area, totally unaware of what's about to happen.  leticia comes running towards emma who doesn't at first get the context of the moment.  then, the light bulb goes off.  emma recognizes leticia and the two of them, with the dual choruses of riders and band members gathering around to witness this most unexpected reunion, break into screams and tears of joy.

during this entire scene, no one remembered that it was blazing hot.  no rider remembered how sore they were.  and no one could keep from grinning or tearing up from such a joyous experience.

as it turns out, lettuce and the whatever his name is [1. yes, that's her stage name and, 2.  i'm going to get the formal name of the rest of the band shortly] will be playing in new york city in a couple of weeks, possibly the weekend i return to new york.  halle, if you're listening...you and i are going to see these guys play.  after this afternoon, it's only fitting.

Day 5 Truckee, California to Sparks, Nevada 67 miles 4750 feet of climbing

today was a ride in four parts:  through the tahoe forest along the truckee river; around lake tahoe; climbing mt. rose; and riding through the high desert of nevada.

should have worn something warmer.  but the views along the road were grand.

i'll let the pictures let much of the story today.  i should note that when we left truckee, it was a brisk 48 degrees.  i could see my breath.  and i definitely needed fingertips on my bike gloves this morning.

 the truckee river basin at break of day.  the river runs right past both alpine meadows and squaw valley ski resorts

this alpine lake was too good a picture for me to just ride past

the second leg of today's ride was around lake tahoe.  the truckee river feeds into the lake and, early in the morning, the views were spectacular of both the lake and the surrounding mountains.  half way around the lake, we said goodbye to california and entered nevada.

from the water's edge just as we turned off the truckee river bike path

from the northwestern side of the lake, still in california

i figured it was either this shot, or the casinos across the street as we entered nevada

from the observation point above the lake

the third part of the ride started when we left the lakefront to climb up mt. rose.  while the ride yesterday up norton grade was steeper in parts, it was not even four miles of climbing.  today, we "enjoyed" an 8.2-mile, non-stop, take-no-prisoners climb to the summit at nearly 9000 feet [10,776 if you are hiking].  just to put this climb into perspective, during the morning through the forest, i was riding at about a 15-to 17-mile per hour pace, depending on the road conditions.  climbing up the mt. rose road, i was in my small ring [i was told by andy kaplan, our resident bike mechanic and someone far more knowledgeable about this stuff than i, that as i'm riding what's called a "compact cassette" -- two rings, not three as found on touring bikes, i don't actually HAVE a granny gear.  it's just called the small ring.] the entire way up the mountain and travelling at about 4 to 4.5 miles per hour.  that's seriously slow.  a fast walker on a flat surface can walk that fast.  but that's how steep the climb was.  i was told it averaged anywhere between a 7% to a 9% grade.  the incline wasn't the issue.  it was the nearly 8 miles of the 8.2 mile climb that was the killer.  the other two percent, by the way, were a beautiful alpine meadow [see below].

did i mention it was steep?  i hope this photo does justice to the incline.

i climbed above the snow line!!

hikers could go nearly another 2000 feet to the actual summit

the final section of the ride was both the 15-mile descent into reno as well as the ride through nevada.  the descent was down a series of hairpin turns that lasted nearly ten miles.  that's the longest and steepest downhill i've ever done.  and, while the climb was tough, at least we had very wide shoulders to as not to challenge cars and trucks.  on the way down, we used the actual road.  we were instructed to find our pace line and hold it even with cars behind us.  with no real shoulder to speak of, that was the safest approach.  when i could, i'd pull off to let cars and trucks go by.  but i also got lucky as those cars behind me, even with me going about 35 miles per hour at some points, were very patient.  my speed was another issue.  i like climbing.  i don't like descending.  yes, it's probably fear.  but hey, that's how i'm built.  i'm not crazy about blasting down a road at over 40 miles per hour.  just too many variables to take in.  today, one of the variables was the winds on the far side of mt. rose.  at times, with heavy cross winds, i even dialed it back to only 25 miles per hour until i either had a wider shoulder or the winds died down.

that's mt rose from the reno side.  cold at the top, numb down the descent, hot at the bottom

the only reason i separated the descent and the reno leg of the trip, apart from the speed of getting down in a matter of minutes what it took hours to get up, was the heat.  i said i started the day in truckee at 48 degrees.  my bike computer said the temperature in reno and sparks was 102 degrees.  and not a lot of shade to hide beneath.

tomorrow will be another scorcher.  temps at our destination projected to be over 100 degrees.  no real climbing tomorrow, just 92 miles of heat.  hence we'll be getting out before the sun's up.

Day 4 Auburn to Truckee, Ca 74 miles 9200 feet of climbing

awesome view from donner summit; challenging switchbacks through boulders and ponderosa pines; a descent for five miles; donner lake in the foreground and the mountains surrounding lake tahoe in the distance [yes, snow-capped]

while this was the most challenging ride day i've ever been on, it was possibly the most beautiful as well.  we were warned that today would be the most climbing we'd do in a single day on the entire ride across the states.  and the ride leaders were true to their words.  the day was basically broken down into two parts:  the first part being the 71 miles of ascents; the second being the final 11 miles of descent down into truckee.

the shot i wish i took was from the parking lot this morning at 5:00 am when we were loading our bags and getting ready to grab breakfast and ride out.  the sky was that kind of purple just before it starts to get lighter.  the bright crescent moon hung over the motel and, as it was much colder than we imagined it would be, we all grabbed an extra layer of clothing from our bags before loading them in the vans.  owing to the length and degree of today's climbs, as well as the forecasted 98 degree temperatures, we hit the road at exactly 5:39...sunrise in auburn, california.

i just climbed this!

from my first turn out of the motel parking lot, it was all uphill.  the first hour of the route involved no less than four climbs that warranted shifting into my granny gear.  i took the shot on the left just after getting to the top of that hill.  i stopped, turned around and took the shot as i wasn't about to stop mid-climb while going up at that percent grade.

we all knew the day would be long and the climbs frequent.  even though the summit at donner pass is only about 7200 feet, if we totaled all the ups and downs of our day, the total vertical distance covered was approximately 9200 feet.  more than i've ever climbed.  ever!

the view of tahoe forest at one of the few turnouts on the narrow, winding road up the hill

while today was the most challenging ride i've even done, two parts of it were the most beautiful.  the picture at the top from donner pass was breathtaking [as was the swift, steep descent down to the lake!].
the picture just above was during the climb up to tahoe forest.  like the first climbs of the day as well as the final attack on donner summit, many of these roads were just a steady, mile after mile, climb with grades ranging from 8% up two 14% in two sections.

one particular example of that was the middle section of today's ride. all during the morning, we were toying with interstate 80.  we'd ride around it, over it, under it and alongside it.  finally, from mile 32 until mile 49, we rode on it.  that's steve, my fellow mississippi veteran, riding past the "5000 ft elevation" sign on the eastbound shoulder of interstate 80.  scary as that all might sound, the shoulders are extremely wide.  all we had to contend with was the noise of the oncoming traffic and all the detritus on the roadside.  i've been told that much of our ride through nevada will be along interstate 80.  "there's only three roads that go across nevada and two of them are crap."  hence, we'll take the interstate.

but the best part of the day was the six miles descending, then climbing back up a road called norton grade.  i'm not even sure i can tell you the name of the town it's in.  there's a small lake on the bottom.  i was riding through a very rural section when i turned down onto norton grade road.  as the route warned, it was a steep, very curvy descent.  that went on for about a mile and a half.  and, while i'm not prone to flying downhill at speeds upwards of forty or fifty miles per hour, the chicanes i rode through going down norton grade were spectacular.  once i reached the bottom of the lake, the real fun began.  a quick turn to my right and i started up a three-mile climb, either in my granny gear or the next best thing.  normally, this would be exhausting and you could expect a lot of complaints on my part.  not today.  today, all there was on the road was me and the bike.  an occasional car would show up but, otherwise it was just me doing a slow, steady pacing as i rode through tall stands of pine forests.  zigging and zagging back and forth as the road ahead of me twisted and turned up the ascent, i was alone with my thoughts and, at the same time, grabbing a quick glimpse through the trees of the marvelous views the higher i climbed.  yeah, it was a hummer of a climb, but i almost wished it didn't end.  i thought it was just my quirky nature that appreciated that climb, but when i joined a bunch of our other riders at the first pit stop, they all agreed that norton grade road made their day.  the best ride ever.

what does that say when the elevation is greater than the population?  

rural california has its own uniqueness

and just think...three days ago, my ankles [and the back tire of my bike] were below sea level!!

there's lots more to write but, frankly, i'm spent.  

tomorrow is another long climb and another very hot day.  i'm going to try and catch up on sleep.

Day 3 Sacramento to Auburn, Ca. 52 miles 2400 feet of climbing

yesterday, we rode through american canyon; today we rode alongside the american river

we are getting out of sacramento at just the right time.  the forecast for today is 98 degrees.  the next two days are supposed to be 104 and 108 degrees, respectively.

today was a tale of two rides.  twenty-nine of our first thirty-two miles were along the beautiful bike paths of the american river.  the american river bike trail, formally known as the jedediah smith memorial trail stretches thirty-two miles from beal's point at folsom lake to just north of sacramento.  get this...it was originally mapped out as a transportation route by the capital city wheelmen back in the late 1800's [when they used to ride those big front-wheeled bicycles].  it was abandoned when cars came into vogue but was resurrected in the 1970's.  as i was riding along the trail, i could still see older, abandoned sections that paralleled the new pavement.  kind of like finding bits of the old route 66 alongside I-40.

no pace lines please!

this was a first.

as i entered the bike path, there were the usual markings on the road surface, instructing runners and rollerbladers as to which side of the road they should be on [and, absolutely NO skateboarding allowed!!].  but in all my years of riding on bike paths across america, i've never seen a speed limit sign before.

all creatives along the bike path, small...

should have shot this closer , but i love the warnings

as i mentioned, this was a ride in two parts.  the first section was all along the american river.  a beautiful ride through the rolling pathway along the water.  all the way up river, we passed all manner of animals.  deer and rabbits ran across the bike lanes.  ducks and other water birds were in abundance.  even the squirrels got into the act.  on two occasions, they played chicken with us, just staring us down and remaining in the middle of the path, only to bolt to one side at the very last minute.  totally unnerving for a cyclist as the last thing you want is to run over a critter.

we also rode up to folsom lake.  rode on auburn-folsom road.  never once did i see a sign for folsom prison, but i know it was around there somewhere.  johnny cash, wherever you are:  my hat's off to you.

speaking of hats:  loved that cowboy warning!

the american river, flowing southwest towards sacramento

and large

the second part of the ride today was a teaser for things to come.  the last 19 miles were mostly uphill.  not killer hills, just a slow, steady LONG climb through horse country up into the town of auburn.  auburn is called "the gateway to the sierras."  we are now in the foothills of the sierra nevadas.  tomorrow we will in it for real, with a scheduled 75-mile ride that climbs nearly 9,000 feet, ending up in truckee as we go over the donner pass.

kids say the darnedest things.

there's a father and son team [tom and tommy] from winter park, colorado doing this ride.  during the photo session just before our initial ride out on day 1, someone mentioned that, with so many gray-haired types in the crowd, they should all this the retiree ride.  at that point, tommy, tom's 15-year old son, turned to his dad and said, "geez, they are already retired?  i haven't even gotten my FIRST job yet!"

today, as we were riding up a three-mile section of the end-of-day climb, tom and tommy stopped midway up to rest a spell.  as tom looked down the hill and saw a couple of riders coming into view, he asked his son tommy if they were "part of our group?"  "no," tommy replied, "it's just a couple of old guys."  those old guys were steve [my fellow mississippi rider] and me!"

with about four miles to go before hitting our motel for the end of the ride, and having been forewarned that there weren't any great places to eat around the motel, a bunch of us took a slight detour off course and headed into old town auburn.  it was a cute town center with a number of tourist-designed shops and restaurants.  seven of us stopped at a really great breakfast/lunch place that had and veranda, suitable for eating while watching our bikes all at the same time.  as they couldn't accommodate a table for seven, we split up into two groups.  at my table were steve, meaghan [25-year old school teacher from brooklyn] and emma [22-year old from surrey, england].  as it was smack in the middle of the lunch rush, we had to wait awhile to get served.  while waiting, meaghan grabbed a stack of trivial pursuit cards in a small jar on the table and started rattling off questions to emma, steve and me.  at one point, she asked "which character from dallas has his hat in the permanent collection at the smithsonian museum?"  steve and i easily answered:  "jr ewing."  at which point, meaghan asked, "what's dallas?"  right then and there, steve and i realized that dallas was on tv before either of the two young ladies sitting across from us were born.

tommy was right.  "just a couple of old guys!"

i'm off to an early lights out tonight.  we load the vans at 5:00 am, grab a quick breakfast, and take off at first light.  they are warning us that tomorrow will be the hardest climbs of the entire trip, so we should expect it to be a very long, slow day.  wish me luck!

Day 2 Vallejo to Sacramento, California 74 miles 1100 feet of climbing

our day started out very cool and cloudy, with the same strong winds from the southwest that frustrated us at the end of yesterday's ride.  the ride quickly headed for the canyons just north of vallejo.  the road, and the town, share the same name:  american canyon.  odd name for a town.  beautiful countryside.  and a nice, long, slow, steady climb.  that first part of the ride was great, but the winds soon played havoc with my trip sheet holders.  i don't know if it

was from the moisture yesterday or the winds, but whatever the reason, the clips holding my trip sheet basically died.  if it wasn't for the headwind that blew my sheet back into my chest, i would have been lost for much of the day.  as it was, i was able to improvise, using a couple of clips from office depot and some velcro to jury rig something that held the rest of the day.

speaking of wind, i forgot to mention two things.  one that took place so often yesterday and reprised a couple of times today; the second, an observation from today's ride.

when the crosswinds are blowing as hard as they were, it whistles through my bike helmet, sounding like an oncoming freight train.  it's such a distinctive sound, i almost start looking around for the railroad tracks.

but when the wind is at my back, as it was during the middle of today's ride, i don't hear a thing.  as a headwind, it drowns out all other noises.  but from the back, all i hear is my bike.  it's actually a great diagnostic tool.  if the road is smoothly paved and if my bike is probably tuned, all i hear are my tires on the road surface.  any imperfections, any misalignments, or anything not probably tightened down, the quiet of the road calls those out immediately.  if the road surface is choppy, those same problems cry out with their respective rattling sounds.  but, as it was for the middle miles of today, all i heard was that perfection of a well-tuned bike on smooth roads.  it's so calming and so tranquil.

yes, that is the jelly belly mascot.  apparently, we rode through fairfield, california this morning, headquarters for jelly belly jelly beans.  and, yes, we rode down jelly belly lane as that was where we had our first pit stop.  it wasn't even 9:00 am and already there was a long line of children and their parents [as well as a fair number of non-children-attached couples] eagerly awaiting the morning's tour of the factory.  and, no, i wasn't on that line.  never was a big fan of jelly beans [or bertie's every flavor beans, for that matter].  okay, one thing i did learn while i was there [i only used their bathrooms, i swear i didn't go on the tour!]:  flawed jelly beans are called "belly flops" and are sold at a marked down price.  the lobby also had god-awful portraits of everyone from ronald reagan to dr. martin luther king, all done in jelly beans.  that just takes kitsch to a whole new level of weird.

the bulk of the day was spend riding through the farmlands between vallejo and sacramento in what they call military style [left, right, left right as we rode up the northeast diagonal between the two cities].  the soy and corn were all well irrigated.  the rye and alfalfa were ready for picking.  in fact, we saw a lot of cut grasses ready for baling for hay.  the pastures were filled with cattle and horses. the cows seemed particularly curious as we rode past.  i was amazed how many turned their heads for a better look at us.  riding through those pasturelands and crop fields was also so wonderfully peaceful.  when the roads were well-paved, the only sound other than my tires, or the mooing cattle, was the crackling noise from the overhead transmission lines.

once out of the farmland, we entered the city of
davis, home to uc davis, the finest school for
the study of the grape in the u.s.  what was once the
uc davis school of enology is now the robert

mondavi was a huge benefactor for this school

mondavi institute of wine -- the place where many of america's great winemakers have been trained.  it's also the place where two of the three clones of merlot that go into our t'jara wines were developed [the 3rd clone is bordelaise].

mecca for winemakers 

we ended the day riding into sacramento.  never got a chance to see the capitol building, only "old sacramento" which looks a bit like something out of an old wild west movie.  kitsch, part 2.

you've seen the tower bridge if you watch cbs' "the mentalist" which takes place here in sacramento

today ended with a quick cleaning of the bike and knocking back a couple of beers with andy kaplan, our bike mechanic.  we were trying to figure out how many calories are consumed and burned by tour de france riders.  and, as we are about to get into the heat of this ride, both past sacramento and on into nevada, this'll be the last time i rehydrate with beer post-ride.  but, the sierra nevada tasted pretty good at the end of today's ride in 90+ degree temperatures.

Day 1 San Francisco to Vallejo, California 74 miles 3300 ft of climbing

san francisco bay at daybreak

stowing our gear

i suffer from "too excited to sleep" syndrome.  always have since i was a little kid.  last night was no exception.  anxious to get started and excited about my first step towards heading across country.  so i got little sleep as i kept waking up at all hours of the morning.  when i finally got out of bed, i witnessed the beautiful start of the day out on san francisco bay.

the morning was an early start, not just because it was the first day, but also because there was one thing that we'd be doing today that is part of

the ritual of the cross country ride:  dipping the back tires of our bikes in the pacific.  as the ride ends, the front tire gets kissed by the atlantic ocean in portsmouth, new hampshire.

as is usually the case, we got a late start this first morning.  pictures to be taken, things we left in the rooms, loved ones to say goodbye to, and last-minute instructions for stowing gear, including what you can take and what vehicle will carry which of our equipment, etc.

as i mentioned yesterday, this group comes in all ages, shapes and sizes and years of experience on this kinds of rides.  it seems like a good group and, as will be born out on today's ride, the people i've met so far are just plain nice folks.

are you kidding me!!??

a little over two and a half miles into this first day's ride, we get "teased" with our first climb.  all of us have been talking about the rockies and the hills we'll have to face in colorado, so no one saw this coming.  for a little over one mile, virtually EVERYONE was climbing in his/her granny gear.  not even in the rockies.  in millbrae for god's sake!  in all my training rides up in vermont, i vowed not to use my granny gear and, here we are on day 1 and i'm already breaking out that gear!  this hill was brutal.  one of the guys with a garmin computer on his bike was calling out the percent grade increases.  it started out as an 8% but eventually grew to a 10% climb.  that's NOT the way to start the day.  [in the oh, by the way department:  today was 3300 feet of climbing in total.]

once at the top, we got smacked in the face with the fog coming in off the ocean.  while it looks great when you see it from the 101 heading into san francisco, riding through it is another matter altogether.  it's cold, it's very wet.  and, when the winds are blowing at over 20 mph [weatherman told us that this morning], it shakes the moisture off the trees which "rain" on you.  oh yeah, then there's the matter of visibility.  riding through the clouds basically means you've got about 25 feet of vision in front of you.  and when you're biking at over 30 mph on some of the downhill runs, that's not a lot of time to see something pop up in front of you.

ghosts of aids rides past.

this morning was not only the beginning of our cross country adventure.  it was the first day of the san francisco to los angeles aids ride.  as we were heading north towards san francisco, hundreds [maybe a thousand -- i didn't think that much but was challenged with that number tonight at dinner] of riders were heading south towards l.a.  at one point, i saw a guy on the opposite side of the pacific coast highway who was the spitting image of ken, "the chicken man" from aids rides past.  looked like him.  same build, same sunglasses.  same crazy costume.  i've talked about ken in the past [probably somewhere in last year's mississippi missives] and how he inspired me with his compassion and riding abilities.  hope it was him, if only to know he's still out there helping others, both on and off the road.

the foggy pacific, rough and cold

once i got off of skyline drive and crossed over a ridge, this is the sight of the pacific i witnessed.  worth the picture.  the fog was still coming in, the weather, in the low-to-mid 50's with a strong off-shore wind, was a challenge given that fact that we all dressed for an 80 degree day.

five miles down great highway, the ocean road, we pulled into the parking lot, took our bike shoes and socks off and carried our bikes the hundred yards out to the water

if i'd have thought about it, i would have left the water bottles back in the parking lot

from the beach, we headed up balboa, a mean, short, steep climb up into the city of san francisco.  being sunday morning, the streets were rather empty, so it was great to enjoy riding through the city.

much calmer an hour later.  and look!  it's sunny.

a left off of balboa and we were soon riding through the presidio, the military base right in the city [also a bad movie with sean connery, mark harmon and meg ryan].

the shot at the left is front the ride through the woods along the coastline.  gorgeous views and a beautiful ride.

once we got through the base, we rode up one last hill and there, in front of us, was the fantastic views of the golden gate bridge, the pacific and, looking back, the city of san francisco, alcatraz and everything else to the east.

san francisco from the other side of the golden gate bridge

the rest of the day was a bit of a blur.  we rode through sausalito and larkspur and san rafael.  as it's customary for us all the where the same bike jersey the first day of the ride, along the way people would either ask us if we were a bike club or where were we all heading.  the looks on peoples' faces when we told them:  "portsmouth, new hampshire" was priceless.  a couple of times, people asked if we would pose with them, just to tell their friends of the whack jobs they met on the road this afternoon.


the rest of the ride was almost uneventful.  HEAVY emphasis on the "almost."  the last leg of today's trip took us up into sonoma county and highway 37.  when local bike riders asked us where we were heading [apart from the new hampshire bit], the response we got when we answered, "highway 37" was a universal "oh geez!" people either told us we were nuts to ride along that road, or "bring extra inner tubes 'cause the road is crap and so are the shoulders." [sure enough, one of the guys i rode alongside got a flat on that stretch].

i've probably driven on highways 37 years ago when i went up into the sonoma and napa valleys from san francisco.  this is a single-lane, 55-mpg state highway that cuts right through the napa/sonoma wildlife marshlands.  the sides of the road are flanked by brackish water streams.  today, the winds were howling at over 30 mph.  at least that much.  how could i know?  once you've been hit with crosswinds that nearly knock you off your bike, as was the case today, you know. trust me, YOU KNOW!

while we were on highway 37 for seventeen of the last twenty miles, it was the last eleven miles through the marshlands that nearly did us all in.  the heavy crosswinds changed direction and came at us all in an oblique angle, fortunately not being full-fledged headwinds.  as it was, with the day wearing on, i notice fatigue setting in as my speed slowly and steadily dropped from nearly 20 mph while in a pace line with three other guys [including a local who tagged along as he'd never taken the highway 37 route to his house before] to barely 12 mph while trying my damnedest to fight through the hellacious winds.  finally, with a little over three miles to go we finally got through the marshlands and the winds as we entered vallejo.

one small, but significant piece of history from my past.  as we left the marshlands, mare island was on our right, just before exiting for vallejo.  mare island was where all the navy's war wounded from the pacific in WWII were treated.  my grandfather was a naval surgeon and was stationed there during the war.  nice to finally see where he practiced his craft.

a hot shower, a meal and a couple of bags of ice on my knees and i'm all set to get ready for tomorrow. we head in to sacremento in the morning.  fewer hills, just monday morning traffic to contend with.  and, the day after soreness.  but, as we're all experienced.  that will dissipate as we ride ourselves into better shape.

good night all.

Day 0

I've spent the past two days in Los Angeles with Samantha and Jesse, mostly with Sammy as she's out of school at the moment and Jesse doesn't get off from work until after six something each night.

welcome to la la land

We've toured Santa Monica, eaten our way through the bounty of California cooking [super healthy California cuisine at True Food Kitchen, chai lattes from a guy in a Seton Hall t-shirt on Main Street

Venice Beach, Mexican food at Border Grill in Santa Monica served up from the duo that made themselves famous on the Food Network years ago as "Two Hot Tamales;" knocked back designer pizzas at Pitfire and scarfed down some of the best pancakes -- and the most gi-normous ones at that! -- at Griddle over on Sunset in West Hollywood that I've ever tasted], seen a great

Kubrick exhibit and the "Levitating Mass" at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and climbed up into the canyons just beyond Griffith Observatory, just to get close to the "Hollywood" sign.

These past two days have been great, both to see two of my kids as well as to take my mind off of the anticipation of starting the ride.  This morning, in a kind of "changing of the guard" ceremony, Jesse drove me to LAX for my flight up here to San Francisco.  He then drove to Sammy's place where he took a short nap with Sam before heading back over to LAX to pick up Lori and Halle who flew in an hour after I took off for a few days of visiting.

Getting to the check in hotel here in Burlingame, just south of San Francisco, I got a nice surprise.  Steve, one of the guys I rode with up the Mississippi last year, is on this ride.  It'll be good to see a familiar face.  Well...two, that is.  Andy, the bike mechanic from last year's Mississippi ride is also on this Cross Country adventure, so it'll be doubly good to have him again in case of any mechanical emergencies.  Andy was not only incredibly proficient with anything I or any other rider needed last year, but he's just generally an all-around nice guy, so he's good fun to be with as well.

There are, I think, 18 riders heading out tomorrow morning.  Along the way, some riders like me will drop off and other will join the ride.  At one point, there will be upwards of 25 riders during a couple of segments.

The riders are from all around the country.  At orientation tonight, I heard Seattle, Charlotte, Buffalo, Boston, Austin, Columbus, Chicago, two Duluth's and two Brooklyn's, and one Flemington, NJ mentioned.  Yeah, that's not 18, but I didn't recall the rest.  There's also a young woman from Surry, England who's here on a gap year and wanted to see the States, so she's riding across them to do it.  Also a father and son duo from Winter Park, Colorado  Some veterans of past rides.  Many newbies.  Also a much wider range of ages than last year.  Folks in their teens on up to their 60's.  And four woman in addition to two on the crew.

We're heading over the Golden Gate bridge in the morning, after the ritual dipping our back tires into the Pacific Ocean.  Then around the Bay through Sausalito, Larkspur and San Rafael until we get to Vallejo where we'll spend the first night.  Seven-two miles.  Not a bad first day.  Plus some good climbs into San Francisco proper [including up Balboa].