Cycling and other musings
113 miles, 3051 feet climbed
The first 30 miles or so of today’s ride were again on I-10, with plenty wide shoulders and the usual truck tire shrapnel to dodge. Then we veered northeast on Hwy 60 towards Wickenburg. Hwy 60 has the occasional turn but is mostly dead straight, with much less traffic than the Interstate.
Continue reading “Day 5: Blythe, CA to Wickenburg, AZ”69 miles, 2457 feet climbed, weather: comfortable to start, warm but not blazing hot, at the end
Today would have been a 99 mile day but for road construction, which made a 30 mile stretch of I-10 impassable (well, seriously unsafe) for us. Staff had to shuttle us between the second an third SAG stops. There we no complaints about the reduced mileage, especially when we saw the work zone (photo below). And I had no flats to fix.
Continue reading “Day 4: Indio to Blythe, CA”90 Miles, 1998 Feet Climbed, Weather-overcast/cool to begin, sunny and warm, but comfortable at the end
It looks like we’re going to have unseasonably moderate weather for a while. Today started cool, which made the major climb on highway 79 into Banning easier. We grouped up on the western border of the Morongo Tribal Reservation. Going through the reservation avoided a nasty alternative route. The tribe insisted that we go through as a group, not individually.
Continue reading “Day 3: Moreno Valley to Indio, CA”84.5 Miles, 2493 Feet Climbed, Weather: Low 60’s, overcast to start, sunny after Anaheim, low 70’s at finish.
Today’s ride took us through old haunts and areas I still visit yearly; tomorrow’s will be a little more of the same. First off, some stats from yesterday’s orientation. We have about 25 riders and 7 staffers. They include folks from the Brighton, UK, Israel, and Vancouver, Canada. Two of the riders are apprenticing part time as staffers. There were a few scratches before the ride, whose places were given to a few riders who were registered for this year’s cancelled America by Bicycle tours.
Continue reading “Day 2: El Segundo to Moreno Valley, CA”0 miles, 0 feet climbed
After 3 years, here’s the Epilogue I promised back in 2019 at the end of the America By Bicycle America North tour:
If I had profound thoughts to share, I’ve forgotten them. I do believe that the small changes to the route were good–getting off the highway between Astoria and St. Helens on day 1 and the diversion through the Badlands in South Dakota. On the other hand, the narrow stretch of Highway 26 north of the Warm Springs casino, avoided in 2004, was nasty, with narrow or no shoulders and kamikaze logging trucks. The routing the next day between Madras and Prineville wasn’t much better for truck traffic on narrow roads. I hope that some money is freed to maintain the Elroy-Sparta bike trail, a highlight from 2004 and a muddy slog this time.
Continue reading “2019 Epilogue . . . 2022 LA to Boston Day 1: El Segundo, CA”61 miles, 2690 feet climbed
We made it to the end. And finally, ten days later, I’m posting this report. Excuses below.
It was another day of good weather. Some climbing for the first half and mostly flat for the remainder.
Continue reading “Day 50 – Manchester to Portsmouth, New Hampshire”79 miles, 4885 feet climbed
Today’s climbing, while less in absolute terms than yesterday’s, felt like more. That was likely due to the slopes being steeper. The route is modified from 2004, skipping two steep climbs according to staff. I remember one of them–Joe English Road–which my friend Andrew and I raced up the 10% grade for nearly a mile only to find a little more 10% after a false flat near the top. The downhill into Manchester was more rewarding than today’s approach. But change is good, right?
Continue reading “Day 49 – Brattleboro, Vermont to Manchester, New Hampshire”79 miles, 5696 feet climbed
Today was perhaps our biggest day of climbing, comparable to Teton pass in total, but spread out over more, smaller climbs at lower elevations. While we haven’t climbed this much for weeks, we were still stronger for all the miles we’ve ridden and this did not feel as difficult.
There was no rain in the forecast but dark clouds were hovering over Hogback, our last climb before the descent into Brattleboro. A light rain started at the second SAG, and abated before I topped Hogback.
Continue reading “Day 48 – Latham, New York to Brattleboro, Vermont”75 miles, 2457 feet climbed
Today we dispensed with the rain of the last few days, though I left my jacket in my seat bag just in case. The day was spent near and sometimes along the Erie Canal, as well as the railroad line that made it obsolete, affecting the small towns along the canal in not so good ways. I could also hear the trains running fairly frequently last night; out hotel was just across the highway and my room faced in that direction.
Continue reading “Day 47 – Little Falls to Latham, New York”79 miles, 1726 feet climbed
Another cool day to start, warming to comfortable levels. Humid but tolerably so. Either rain or at least we roads, depending on where you were in the pack. Near Little Falls, I hit something metallic and hard with my front tire and noticed it going flat right as I rolled up to a group fixing another flat. Though I was expecting a pinch flat–two holes opposite each other as if a snake had bitten it– there was only one hole on the tire seam. Perhaps the hard hit had popped open a weak spot. With several hands to help pull the slippery wet tire back onto the rim, I was back on the road quickly.
Continue reading “Day 46 – Syracuse to Little Falls, New York”