Wednesday, February 11, 2009

MS Bay to Bay Tour 2008

The riders of the 2008 Bike to Bay MS tour (BiketoFinishMS) raised over $2 million! There's always a sense of energy at the start of a bike ride-excitement energy, physical energy, nervous energy, and pent up energy from all the training you've done. This is when you know all the weeks of training rides will pay off. Ryan, rider #1125, ready to attack from the start. He's planning a break away. This is his first multi-day ride and he worked hard to prepare for it. The route for day 1 snakes us out of Irvine, dodging cars in Corona del Mar and Laguna Beach, through the hilly neighborhood of San Clemente, playing "Frogger" with the surfers near San Onofre, and the uphill grind in Camp Pendleton. 59 miles in all. Speeding into Dana Point Harbor means the rollers of PCH are over and we've gone 25 miles. Ryan checking out the shrink-wrapped Range Rover SAG Wagon before we chowed down some Wahoo's tacos. San Onofre Bluff overlooking surf beaches with names like Trestles, Church, The Point, Old Man's, and Dogpatch. The Oceanside Pier means we're in Carlsbad and only a few more miles to the finish. Tonight we stuffed ourselves at Olive Garden and passed out at the Marriott. Day 2 was 43 miles mostly along the coast with a tailwind. Cruising into Torrey Pines State Beach-downhill and downwind. Lurking in the background is the hill climb dreaded by all the MS riders, except Ryan. He's a mountain goat. The Torrey Pines profile-short but steep. Down the cobbles of La Jolla. Last coastal view as we head inland for the finishing line. Happy finishers at Mission Bay. 102 miles in two days, 3940 feet of climbing, 5380 Calories, and raising money to help fight MS. Great job, Ryan!

No comments: