A few facts about the coast of Oregon ... it is not all down hill,
it is breath taking, and it has lot of great beach towns. A few facts
about our ride down the west coast ... it will take 23 days including 2
rest days, we will cycle over 1,400 miles and climb over 75,000 feet,
the ride has 12 ABB 2010 North alumni, 2 ABB 2010 North spouses, 20 full
time riders, and 12 part time riders. Unlike our cross country trip, the mornings are longer with 8AM departures. That did not stop some of our early risers from their 6AM breakfast. Leo and I took a somewhat different approach and ate in street clothes before heading back to the room to change. The weather was a bit nippy at the start (around 50 degrees) so I donned arm and leg warmers, a light base layer, and my vest. I would shed much of that as the day went on ... glorious riding weather warming to the low 70's.
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| 2010 North Alumni (Top Row - Toronto Mark, Me, Jeff, Rick, Shirley, Howard, Joe, Gary, Don; Bottom Row - Margo, John, Leo) |
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| The Entire Group |
I spent the majority of the day with my Blue Ridge riding mates Jeff and Joe. The roads were pretty nice with shoulders for the most part. As you can see on the ride data (click the link below), there was some climbing to do, but nothing approaching my cross country to Blue Ridge rides. All in all there were four good climbs and almost 3,500 feet of climbing.
Today's Data and Map -
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/218213022
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| The Start of Another Great Trip |
A lot of the group was together when we went through the charming town of Seaside. We got a hint of the great scenery that was to come and also a chanced to see the Lewis & Clark monument. I snapped a great shot of Mark and Susan (aka The Duchess). Susan is blogging at
http://duchessweisbarth.blogspot.ca. Speaking of Mark, a big shout out to him for helping John Douglas from Seattle (he has done 6 ABB rides change a flat. Considering Mark's mechanical abilities on our cross country trip, this was quite an evolutionary event. Jeff taught him well.
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| The Duchess Gets a Proper Gelding Welcome in Seaside |
Joe, Jeff, and I definitely took a leisurely approach to our ride today. The day included lots of stops for pictures, conversations with locals and other riders, helping other riders, an ice cream, and a cheese factory. Joe had an issue with his front wheel that slowed him quite a bit (he still pushed up the hills faster than me). Our mechanic Jim was able to fix it at the first rest stop ... turns out he had a spacer that was on backwards. We ended up off the bike for over 2 hours. My wife Karen says that is the only way to ride. It was a lot fun.
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| Haystack Rock |
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| This Pretty Much Sums Up What We Saw Today! |
The ride took us through Seaside, Cannon Beach, Manzanita, Nehalem,
Wheeler, Rockaway Beach, Garabaldi, and finally Tillamook. If there was any negative today it was the traffic on US 101 ... a bit heavy on the road and at the overlooks. A small worry ... the day was filled with so many amazing views and so many wonderful friends. We also rode a lot with Leo and Don at several points. Finishing almost last was an accomplishment we hope to repeat, especially if it means we get to enjoy more great weather, more great sites, and more great friends.
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| Close to the Top of Our Highest Climb |
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| Great Views at Every Turn ... This One Was Looking West |
Looks like the weather is going to be glorious again tomorrow as we ride another 61 miles and climb almost 4,000 feet to Lincoln City, Oregon. Enjoy the pictures. You can see more of the riders at
Mark's Trek - Meet My Riding Mates & Crew. Pig would have liked the downhills.
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| My Biggest Fan |
Good Night Moon ... Good Night Girls ... Good Night Mike ... Good Night Geldings ... Good Night Climbs ... Good Night Coast
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