Mission Accomplished!

Finally! After three months of cycling we have reached the Pacific Ocean! For the past two months, I have had the pleasure of cycling with a good friend and brother, Clive Rogers, and at 7:02 PM, October 13, 2008, we cycled our way to the beach at Marina Del Rey, CA.

We chose Marina Del Rey because we were supposed to meet a friend of a friend there, but that never happened. So after we arrived, we decided it was too dark to take photos, so we went to a local coffee shop (The Cow's End) and had a celebratory drink.

The day started off like most of the other days. We got a late start leaving Fontana. We knew that we were going to have a cross wind and sometimes even a tail wind. We had about 70 miles to go, so we decided to not drag our feet any longer. After a few hours, Clive had one flat tire and then another. He thinks it's because he's jinxed us the day before and said that we would not have any more flats. The second flat would turn out to be the last one of our journey.

We would have made great time, but we encountered way too many traffic lights. It seemed that every light on the way to LA was out to get us. We would sometimes get up to 20 mph between lights, but the lights were on just about every block.

Just as it was getting dark, we made it to downtown Los Angeles. We still had about 20 miles left to go and we were fighting LA Dodgers traffic. At this point, we knew would never make it before the sun was completely down so we stopped and turned on our inadequate lights for the remainder of the ride. We decided to take Venice Blvd because it went all the way to the beach, we made a left on Lincoln and then a right on Washington and before you knew it, we were there. Marina Del Rey, at the beach and our ride was over. We still had a little bit of an adventure in front of us, but that is another story.

I would like to thank each and every one of you who reads, or has read this blog, sent in donations, encouragement or thoughts and prayers. I never would have been able to do this without your support. And I would like to thank Clive, my cycling brother who made this adventure one that I will never forget!

ALMOST THERE!

Just a few miles left to go!

Getting Close!

After another late start - due to a huge breakfast (I had steak and eggs with pancakes and Clive forgot he was a vegetarian and had the BIG COUNTRY BREAKFAST with bacon and sausage), we finally hit the road. We got back on Interstate 15 and we made it for 6.5 miles before CHP told us to get off or we would get a ticket. That made things interesting because we had planned on taking I-15 all the way to Victorville. We had to find an alternate route and that took awhile. We finally got on Old Route 66, it was a little out of the way and by far the roughest road I have been on since I left PA. I had two flat tires due to the potholes, but we finally made it in to Victorville at 7:45. It was dark and it was cold, but we made it. According to Google Maps, we are only 94 miles from Los Angeles now. We just have to find another way down the mountain, I don't think we can cycle down the Cajon Pass. I guess that's what we'll work on in the morning. Goodnight!

Another Windy Day

Today's wind was just as bad as yesterday's. We were only able to average 6 or 7 miles per hour. Our goal was to make it to Barstow, only 38 miles away. Well, we made it. It took some effort, but eventually we stumbled into town. The first couple of miles weren't so bad, but after that the wind really picked up. We were still riding the shoulder of I - 15 and the gusts were up to 40 mph. It was slow going, but Clive and I are both ready to be finished with this trip so we kept going. We are so close we can almost smell the ocean. Julie called ahead and has us set up tonight at the Super 8 Motel. A shower and a bed... wow! We are just about 140 miles away from our destination, now. That means just a few days! Hallelujah!

Tomorrow, the wind is not supposed to be as strong. That's good news because we are trying to make it down the mountain tomorrow.

It's An Ill WInd...

Today was one of the hardest days of the entire ride. The wind was so strong that it was blowing us all over the road. That is not the situation you want when you are on one of the busiest interstates in the country. We struggled to get just 27 miles today. We were hoping to get to Barstow - 62 miles away from Baker, but we only made it as far as the Afton Road exit. There was a mini market there, so we went inside for a drink and the owner suggested that we just pitch our tents and stay for the night. The name of the "stop" was the Desert Star Ranch. It was an unexpected Oasis that was much needed. It was truly in the middle of nowhere, but they had wifi available for us and sometime in the middle of the night we were treated to live music. The only negative is, because the wind was so blowing so hard it snapped one of my tent poles even though we set up our tents behind a huge water tank to shield us from the wind. I tried duct tape, we will have to see if it works.

Leaving Las Vegas... 4 Real

Staying true to form, we got another late start today. After getting supplies and finding the route, it had to have been 2:45 by the time we hit the road. We got stopped by the Nevada Highway Patrol after about 10 miles on Interstate 15. The officer told us to get off at the next exit and travel the service road. We did that for about 12 miles and then got back on I-15 and traveled that for another 15 miles. We did about 42 miles total and stopped for the night at Whiskey Pete's Casino and Hotel in Primm, NV. Primm is right on the Nevada/ California border. We have 26 miles to the first rest area and then about 25 more miles until we get to Baker,the home of the world's largest thermometer. It is hot and this is the REAL desert, so I have to go before it gets too hot. Los Angeles here we come!

Leaving Las Vegas

First of all, I would like to give a big THANKS to the Palace Station Hotel for opening their doors and making my stay in Las Vegas a very comfortable one. The staff was accommodating and hospitable.

Tonight, I begin to focus on the last leg of my journey, Las Vegas to Los Angeles. I have been in Las Vegas for two days now, but I have to say I am ready to leave. I am not a gambler, a smoker, a drinker and I don't have anything that I want to do that I don't want anyone else to know about so that I can leave it here because it happened here. The interviews that I came here for didn't pan out, but Clive did meet up with some of his friends and participate in the Rock-a-billy Festival. I've met his friends and they are way cool.

Our journey will take us out into the desert for a couple of hundred miles, but they will be the last couple of hundred miles of our journey. We have gone over the maps and determined the best route for us to take. The weather has been good, not too hot or windy, I hope it holds up for us. Next stop, Primm, Nevada. Primm is right on the CA, NV border. After Primm, we have a long way to go to the next town. Every mile we do is one less that we have to do down the road.

Congratulations to "Two Babes on Bikes", I knew you could do it. Stephanie and Molly, we'll see you on the slopes.

Friends...

These are just a few of the people I've met who have my journey one of the most enjoyable of my life. I hope you enjoy.

Finishing Up in Los Angeles..

OK Folks. I have to decided to finish this U.S. Tour in Los Angeles! I will be in Las Vegas this weekend for some interviews and publicity... after that on to LA.

Hobbling In to St. George

After a brief stay in Cedar City, it was time to move on to St. George... and beyond. Another late start today and the bicycle route to St. George wasn't very clear. Of course you could travel the interstate (I-15) all the way there, but not on a bicycle. I called the highway patrol and got only an answering machine, I called some other numbers and tried to get some clarity about the laws regarding bicycles on the interstate. Since western Kansas, I have been hearing that you could indeed ride the interstate. So what did I do, I rode the interstate all the way to St. George. 53 miles, in total. I didn't see one highway patrol vehicle in all that time. What I did encounter though, was three flat tires. That is the worst thing about riding on the interstate. You have all the wire from the "blown" truck tires, just waiting to give you a flat. The first one wasn't so bad, the next two were very annoying as they came one right after the other. I was making good time, but after all the flats it started getting late and the sun was going down.

To make a long story short, finally made it St. George and Motel 6 where they kept the light on for me. Courtesy of Peg Wolff. Thanks, Peg.