6/19/09-

We dined last night at the Hickory House. Scott McCurdy and family were there too. Scott shipped in a ton of groceries to Aspen. The town is jammed this week-end. We also had a beer at Littlt Annie's, Peter Rauen's old stomping grounds. When we approached the door the paramedics were taking a woman out on a stretcher. Needless to say our group was hesitant about going in. It rained all night but we woke up to beautiful blue skies and cool weather.

We left Aspen around 7:00 A.M. this morning headed for Glenwood 40 miles down the road. We were rolling along at about 22 MPH when Mike from Sacramento pulled up. We chatted briefly and then he pulled away. Victor jumped on his wheel and we all followed them down the highway. We each took turns pulling at the front as the group sustained 32 MPH.. It took us two hours to reach Glenwood. Victor and I crossed the finish line together.

I am waiting on some pictures from some of the people we met; when I get them posted I will notify everyone. Next year we need to have a bigger team so start training today. Thanks for reading!

6/18/09-

Turns out that Leadville was not prepared for the onslaught of 2000 hungry cyclists. We waited at Quincy's for one hour and forty five minutes before leaving and finding a small Mexican restaurant that took over an hour to get served. Victor tried to sweet talk the server in espanol but the food didn't come any sooner. Every restaurant was in the weeds except for the chinese restaurant that advertised szechuan teste. We left at our standard 6:30 A.M. headed for Aspen via Independence Pass @ 12,043 feet. The first 18 miles clicked off easily as we all worked together to get to the base of the climb. From there it was uphill for the next 17 miles. I did not have any legs today, we were riding into a stiff headwind and if it weren't for Victor pacing me up the slope, I would have really suffered. At one point I told him to go but he stayed with me and we finished together. The climb was beautiful and the weather was nice and cool. We completed the climb in 2:45.00. We covered the final 5 miles in 36 minutes. We finally met Mike from Sacremento. Mike is a 53 year old, 5 feet 10 inches tall, 120 pounds climbing machine. He would pass us on every major climb, just hammering up the slopes.He made it to the summit today  in 2:10.00. The descent was fast and cold down a narrow, winding, potholed road into Aspen. Several sections you literally had to bunny hop your bike over the bad spots at 40 MPH. We set up camp at Aspen H.S., showered and grabbed a bite to eat. The town is ready for everyone and the food is actually quite good. Scott McCurdy has obviously sold them a bunch of groceries as we see our stickers on a lot of the boxes. We are going to try and hit Hickory House BBQ tonight.

6/17/09-

We left Salida this morning for Leadville. 59 miles uphill with an elevation gain of 3000 feet. We left with the usual suspects; Mary, Kate and we picked up Bill. We all road together up the valley and on the way picked up Melissa. Melissa is a powerhouse with an unbelievable set of muscular legs. Our group was making great time into a slight headwind when a group of four cheeseheads raced by us. We jumped on the train and made great time up to the final aid station nine miles from Leadville.  From there we all road together to Lake County High School. I sent some pictures to Tony to post as I am having trouble uploading images. Hopefully you will see the tent cities, the lines at the port a potties and shower truck and the technology center. Tomorrow is the day we have been wating for; Independence Pass. The pass is the highest point in the ride cresting at 12,043 feet. Hopefully we will have enough left in our legs to take on the 35 mile climb to the top.

6/16/09-

Gunnison to Salida today. 66 mile day. We left at 6:30 again.We left with Kate and Mary our Canadian counterparts.We rolled down  highway 50 for 34 miles, each of us taking turns at the front and pulling the others along.The road gradually climbed to the base of Monarch Pass.We hit the bottom of the pass and were greeted with a nine mile stretch of road that rose 3000 feet to 11,300 feet. The climb was fantastic. I hooked up with another rider and he paced us up the pass while Victor and Kate rode together right behind me.It took us a little over an hour to the reach the summit. We hung out for a few minutes enjoying the great weather and view. Larry and Peter showed up and we all took off down the other side. The descent was a ton of fun! We picked up another two riders and all of us were racing down the pass at 50 MPH. We rocketed down to the bottom covering 23 miles in about 40 minutes. We were cruising across the flats at about 30-32 miles an hour. Our group was loaded with strong riders and we were motoring.This was by far the best day. We ate at Benson's. Nice friendly place that served up a Salad and Pasta bar for the riders. The food was really tasty. They have a nice patio out back too. We broke down and had a cold beer.

6/15/09-

We set out at 6:30 A.M. headed for Gunnison. The long and winding road was uphill and into the wind for 25 miles. This section was brutal! We were averaging about 10-11 miles an hour when we reached the second aid station. This station was situated at the base of the major climb of the day. The next section climbed for 10 miles at about a 7% grade.This section of road was beautiful; it climbed through thick Aspen forests with a huge resevior off to our right about 2000 feet down. We crested this climb and descended about  8 miles to Blue Mesa Resevior. From here we hooked up with a couple of riders and paced ourselves into Gunnison in no time. Overall we were on the road for five hours and twenty seven minutes. This day was long and tough. We had dinner at Mario's. Not a bad little joint. A huge salad and pasta and we were off to bed. One side note, my tent broke. The poles snapped and I couldn't duct tape them back together. ( I brought an entire role of duct tape for emergencies)I bought a new one at Gene Taylor's sporting goods store. Great store!

6/14/09-

We started out at 7:00 A.M. this morning headed for Hotchkiss 80 miles away. It was 46 degrees, a little cool but it warmed up nicely by 8:00. The highlight of the day was going over McClure Pass. The real climbing went on for three miles at an 8-10% grade. Not too long but pretty steep. After we topped out, we screamed down the other side at about 50 MPH. We passed Chuck and Sarah! They left at 5:40. We hooked up with Peter and Larry and a few other cyclists and formed a pace line. We were making really good time. Unfortunately every time Peter took a turn at the front, he rode everyone off of his wheel. He was extremely strong. We all regrouped at the next aid station and he agreed to dial it down a bit. Good thing because he was putting a serious hurt on us. We arrived in Hotchkiss about 4 hours and fifty four minutes after we started. We averaged 16.5 MPH. We are going to eat at Zack's BBQ tonight. If you are ever in Hotchkiss, stop by and eat there. He is a great customer of ours and his food is fantastic. On a side note I am having trouble with uploading pictures, so hopefully Tony can straighten things out on Monday

6/13/09-

We checked in this morning and took in the scenery. Glenwood H.S. looked like a tent city with a small shopping area filled with everthing cycling. Each day they pack up everything and move to the next town. We had dinner at Spagnolo's and met an incredible couple; Chuck and Sarah. Sarah started riding a bike in 2000 in her mid 50's. The following year she rode from Oregon to New Hampshire in 52 days averaging 88 miles a day. She is using the Ride the Rockies as a warm up for the Bicycle Tour of Colorado. Chuck met Sarah at the cross country ride. He is 75 and has completed the cross country trek three times.

6/12/09-

Victor and I are ready to take on the Rocky Mountains next week in the Ride The Rockies bike tour. Please check in each day as we will update our site with news and pictures.