Lucky Old Sun: PAC Tour El Centro to Blythe (Day 2)

Today 105 miles   1,800 feet   9:56 elapsed time   108 degrees
So far   231           10,600        21:19

Extra breakfast today. If you want to appeal to a cyclist, feed him. Next to drinking water, eating is the most common activity for riders. Okay, maybe pedaling is first, but hydrating and eating are right behind. Today was hot. When we ate breakfast at 6:00 the temperature was still 75 degrees and headed higher. The heat takes a toll as any athlete can tell you. Being outside and riding and climbing requires fluid and salt management. Today's ride took at toll on several riders. One tandem couple stayed behind because of health issues, one crash required 18 stitches to close and a few riders shortened their days because of cramping or the beginnings of heat stroke.

But there are ways to manage these issues. Sunday we were given a tube sock and a rubber band. Once the temperature reaches 85 degrees, there is ice available to fill the sock which is then closed off with the rubber band.   So what does one do with a sock full of ice, you ask? Roll it under the collar of your cycling jersey. It feels strange and cold at first. The melting ice drips down and soaks the front of your jersey, and maybe the top of your shorts too. After a half hour of riding, the freezing feeling our your neck diminishes and you simply feel comfortable, as if was 70 degrees out. I think this simple technique has helped me ride the last two days. Its a fad. Everyone is doing it. At least those on our ride.

When I started out this morning, my legs felt dead. I just couldn't generate any speed. I kept consuming Gatorade, electrolytes, water, anything I could think of to send some energy to those legs muscles. Then, sixty-five miles into the days ride my legs were back. I had just left a rest stop and suddenly felt great, had energy in my legs and cruised on down the road, being careful not to ride so fast that I drained myself, but it was great to finish the last 40 miles strong on a day that was so hot.

Our scenery today was the Chocolate Mountains, or the foothills thereof. Its easy to see why they were given that name. Then we rode through the Algodones Dunes. I've never seen finer sand in my life. The texture makes powdered sugar seem course. I wanted to bring it home, but there are limits to how much one can carry on a bike. The Imperial Valley is the breadbasket of California. We saw dairy farms and lots and lots of hay. As in Oregon, Hay is a major cash crop. All the crops require irrigation (from the Colorado). There are crops I saw that I haven't a clue what they yield. This land is a dry, dry place, almost to the point of being surreal.