Week 1, Days 1-3

Here it is, day three, and I haven’t posted a blog entry since we started the ride!  There just hasn’t been time!  I’ll try to bring you up to date, but to be honest, some of the details of the first two days have already faded.  At the end of each day I pause to think of the different parts of the ride for that day, and I realize that the scenery from the morning seems like it happened a day (or more) ago. 

Day 1

We stood around the parking lot to eat a light breakfast, packed food for a lunch, filled our water bottles and hit the road at 7:45 a.m.  We road much of the day on the Santa Ana River Trail but some of the route took us on bike paths on city streets.  Biking with traffic isn’t so bad when there are bike lanes!  We’re getting the hang of riding with a group and I value the teamwork it takes to communicate road conditions, figure out the route, share resources and encourage one another. 

We were reminded of the strength and the fragility of the human body as most riders finished the 68-mile ride in fine shape, but one of our riders lost control of his bike on the edge of the paved trail and  fell and broke his leg.  Mark Deckinga and his wife, Susan were signed up to do the ride together.  They are also riding recumbent bikes and Rudy especially felt an affinity with them.  Mark had surgery yesterday and he needs to stay in the area for two weeks before flying home.  We’ll miss them on the ride. 

Day 2

Let’s see . . . yesterday . . . what happened yesterday?  We got up earlier and hit the road earlier because it would be a longer ride and hotter temperatures than the day before.  The route started with two long, steep hills in the first 20 miles.  Before we reached the first support and gear stop, we ran across two riders who were running very low on water.  We shared our extra water and ended up biking the rest of the day with Henry and Nancy De Jager from Chino, California.  Along the way, one of my water bottles “jumped” out of its cage on an extremely bumpy section of a “bike” trail.  We were thankful to make it through that section without a flat tire.

The most memorable event of the day came about ten miles from the end of the ride.  We were hot and needed a break so we stopped at a CVS Pharmacy.  Nancy explained about Sea to Sea to the store manager and asked if he would be willing to donate a bottle of water for each of us.  He paused a really long time, and I thought sure he was trying to figure out how to decline our request.  Then he opened the cooler door, maneuvered his way behind the racks of bottled drinks and came out with four huge bottles of cold water.  He walked over to the register, pulled out his wallet, and paid for the water out of his own pocket!  Grateful, does not begin to express our feelings for his generosity.  I knew after today’s ride that the challenge will not be the distance but the heat.

Day 3

Today didn’t go exactly how I hoped. 

We hit the road at 5:45 a.m., with the hope of beating the worst of the California desert heat.   The route started with 18 miles of flat roads, then 24 miles of uphill grades of 3-5 %, and finally 20 miles of slightly downhill grades.  Here is a picture of four riders starting up the climb in Box Canyon.

Things were going fine until about mile 42 or so.  It was extremely hot and we doused our bodies with water every 30 minutes or so.  I drank lots of water and electrolytes, but those things were not enough to ward off the jelly-like feeling creeping into my quads.  Not good.  I spotted a tree-bush ahead and biked to the small area of shade.  (The picture below is not the tree, but rather an "artsy" tree along the road. 

After sitting down for a rest, I realized I should stop riding for the day.  I had thought that if I could just get to the top of the climb, I would be fine.  Looking back, it’s probably good that I didn’t make it, because I would have kept riding, when I probably shouldn’t have.  The SAG (Support And Gear) vehicle picked me up along with another lady while Rudy continued riding with her husband.  (It might sound like there are numerous married couples riding Sea to Sea since I’ve noted three of them already in this blog; but that’s not true.) 

I’m disappointed that I couldn’t ride the whole route today.  I remember the summers when we lived in Visalia, California and how I never felt well in the heat.  I was hoping this wouldn’t be an issue on the ride, but it obviously was today.  I’m still processing my disappointment, but I’m not devastated by it.  I’m also not sure yet if I will ride tomorrow or not.  They are predicting record-breaking temperatures for the rest of the week along our route.  We're thankful for the air conditioned community room for us to sleep in tonight!

Please keep us in your prayers.  Some riders (including me) are considering not riding tomorrow.

 

God is with us just like he is with you.  It doesn’t take a crazy-long bike tour to rally up God’s work for his Kingdom!