Day 1: Sunday, April 17 - Costa Mesa, CA to Palm Springs, CA, 3843' up, 3487' down

5,4,3,2,1 ...Getting ready for blast off from our motel

The Team

The plan was 116 miles for the day,  3843' up, 3487' down.

After a short ride from our hotel to the ocean and the traditional wheel dip, our first few miles were out the Santa Anna River Trail to get us out of the main part of town.  

At the beach for the wheel dipping

Very quickly, we ran into stiff head winds, 20+ mph and gusty. Our pace slowed greatly, We were on bike trails a lot, which was nice being away from the cars. When off the trails, we rode mostly in urban traffic with bike lanes till we were able to intercept a couple more paths before lunch at about 62 miles.  

Pam along the trail

After lunch, we rode a steady 25 mile climb to Beaumont - or that was the plan - before descending into Palm Springs.

Garrin was riding with me, and as the day wore on, I began to get worried that I would not be able to finish by 6:00, the time Mike, our ride leader, wanted everyone off the roads. So, I told Garrin to take off, so if I got pulled off the roads, he would escape the same fate, contrary to his desires. [He later told me he appreciated my attitude of being willing to ride my ride, but not wanting that to adversely affect others reaching their goals. He had been anticipating a more casual approach to this trip than the fast pace many of the riders clipped along at. It was simply clear that "Different strokes for different folks" as we all had slightly different things or ways of doing this ride that would allow us to enjoy it the most.]

At mile 83, 10 hours after leaving the motel, the SAG (support and gear) van driver asked me if I was going to be able to finish, I said, "Yes, but, should I?" it would have been after 6:30 before I arrived at the motel, factoring in a slight downhill the last 35 miles or so with a tail wind that most often appears but appears missing in action today. I decided that it would be prudent to ride the SAG van to the motel, as that timing would not give me any time to recover for the next day, another very hot day with over 134 miles to ride.it was really hot, about 90 and very dry. We were drinking like crazy and still getting dehydrated. One guy had heat stroke. I felt I was close to heat exhaustion.

It was a good decision, as the tail wind did not appear and there was very little downhill. So, it was a bit disappointing, but the nearly 60 miles of headwind was the worst on this stretch our ride leader has seen in 27 trips on this leg. So, we will see what tomorrow brings, If I need to SAG it to be able to enjoy the next day, so be it.

If I told you this was a piece of cake, I would surely be lying.

Until tomorrow, when we are supposed to leave immediately after 5:30 breakfast.

Next page

For our ride leader's (Mike Monk) version of today's ride, go here.