Recap from Lititz, PA

Hello All!

Man! what a ride! I can't believe it, 4,194.9 miles from New York City to Los Angeles, no rest days, hot and cool, rain or shine, wind and hills, flats and thrills. What a ride. It still hasn't really set in, I guess I was so stoked at the beginning that I really made the 42 riders, it all seemed surreal and too good to be true. Well, it wasn't exactly a luxurious bike tour across America with all the bells and whistles, it was still hard work even though it was supported. You could think of a million excuses not to ride your bike every morning for 58 days straight. I'm tired. It's boring. Today's gonna be a hard one. I did it yesterday. Yada yada yada.

But I did it. Every morning I woke up and I told myself I could do it and I got on my bicycle. The first 2-3 weeks were probably the hardest. The first week was really hard but I was so excited and impressed with all the miles I was doing, it kept me occupied. By week 2 and 3 your bottom has never felt so wonderful and your knees and legs couldn't be more thrilled you signed up for this!

Riding from San Diego to San Clemente was really cool. We were along the coast a lot, and that was my first glimpse of the Pacific Ocean, which just solidified going Coast to Coast for me. I didn't get to dip my wheels in the Atlantic or the Pacific, but I don't really care, I've seen both via bicycle on this trip and that is enough for me. The last 2 days weren't easy days either. I was thinking they were gonna be pretty short, but they were both in the 70 mile range or so. The cue sheet on the last day was so messed up and confusing that everyone that didn't SAG added a good 10 miles. Yep. You think it's the last day? You think it's only 65 miles today? NOPE. Get lost at mile 65 and realize that you still have a good 10-15 left in an unfamiliar, busy, busy town, ugh. That was so frustrating and it completely broke my spirits. Being completely lost in the city limits of LA, my iPhone got pretty messed up from the heat and abuse of the tour so it was not dependable at all. Here I am at the Long Beach Airport, 20 miles from the end, and I still DO NOT understand this cue sheet. So I called Nick and Blaise (b/c at least the phone part of the iPhone works!) and between the two of them I remembered enough street names and verbal directions to get back on route. Oh Lordy. But it's over. I made my way to the Holiday Inn LAX, thinking that I'm dfl, and Mr. Roy is about a block in front of me! And he hits all the lights and I get all the reds, and Roy totally beats me to the finish line on the last day. Haha. But I wasn't the last one, several people came trickling in from the North and South route after I checked in and got settled.

The last day was very stressful for me. As soon as I arrived, I had to get all my bags and everything I've accumulated over the last 2 months out of the van and truck and get everything ready to go tonight, so I could leave first thing at 5:30 am in the morning :/ So I grabbed all my gear, I took a quick celebratory swig of whiskey from Chris's bottle (for him of course,) I got a bike box, and I started packing up my bike and minimizing all my stuff, trying to be as efficient as possible. It took my hours and hours to pack up my bike, people were constantly coming in and out of our room, drinking, celebrating, hootin' and hollering. I took a short break to eat some pizza. I final got Fedex worked out for my bike, after no help at all from my Tour Managers that rudely told me I was "on my own," apparently making it to LA wasn't just for us riders. And I took off for Mountain Bike Oregon the next morning. Which was awesome!

It's good to be back in Lititz. Not that I want to stay here forever, but there's nothing wrong with the fresh smell of chocolate in the air on a warm, sunny afternoon. I got in Monday around 11:15, after my final flight was delayed over an hour. The right engine wouldn't start. My little Campy missed me! and Isabel told me I've lost a lot of weight, which is always nice for a lady to hear! I'll have to tell my Pop that. I can't wait to go to Cafe Chocolate and see Selina, it's the best chocolate and coffee in the world, and I'm extremely confident in saying that. So if you're ever in Lititz, PA check out Cafe Chocolate and the Wilbur Chocolate factory. They're the only reason I still live here!

I got Belle in on Tuesday morning, not even a full 24 hours after I got in! FedEx mistakenly overnighted my bike across the country. I hope that doesn't cost me a fortune! I was glad to see my bike in so soon though, didn't give them enough time to beat it up at all. So I unpacked and built up my bike, gave her a full tune up, tightened and lubed, and she runs like a brand new DREAM machine! Love her!

So the moral of this story is basically this: RIDE YO BIKE! Yep. Ride your bicycle across the country, everyone in the world, every day for 2 months. Ok, maybe not that drastic. But really, ride a bike most preferably, or just do what you love. Life is short, don't put off things you've always wanted to do. I learned a lot from all of our various riders. We came in all shapes and sizes, we were all different ages, from a 21 year old female to Roy at age 73! From our hardcourt bicycle messengers to brand new cyclists that have only been cycling a year, to everything in between. I learned a lot about people, life, the road, bicycles, maintenance, fitness, food, and the humongousest state ever: Texas.

I really want to thank a couple people that made this tour possible..... First and foremost, I want to thank 42 Below and Javelin for coming up with this idea and sponsoring me to have a once in a lifetime opportunity. I can say first hand that 42 Below Vodka is delicious and you should try some. I was also thrilled to ride for such a good cause: The Alliance for Biking and Walking. I also want to thank Josh at Cycles Plus in Huntington, Long Island, he outfitted me with my wonderful bike, a Specialized Tricross (Belle,) he did a 3D Body Geometry fit, and totally hooked me up with all my spare parts, clothing, equipment, and everything we could wrangle our brains for that I might need, that I really never ended up using! I highly recommend Cycles Plus if you're in that area, they know their stuff, and they carry the best. A big thank you to all my friends and family that supported me: Gabe, Terry, Nora, Pam, Andrea, Megan, Josh, Selina, Thomas, Shelby, Christie and Brian, James and MaryRea, my little nieces Maci and Ana, and all others I might have missed, but were still there in spirit.

Most of all, I want to thank my wonderful Parents. Their endless love, support, and encouragement for all the crazy shit I do keeps me going. I love you guys so much, and I couldn't have done anything without you. You're the BEST parents I could've asked for.

And thank you Isabel, you've been a great supporter. Thank you for logging my miles, updating my blog every day, giving me motivational speeches on days I didn't feel like riding, and not subletting my room while I was gone for 2 months!

And a BIG thank you to my Trusty Tricross, Belle. She logged every mile of every day with me, good times and in bad, she took care of me and I took care of her. Great bike.

Thank you all for reading, as Nick would say "I like you all."

Ride on!

Francesca/Franimal/Chesca/Fran/Frantasia, etc etc

Stayed tuned though, I'll put up some of my favorite pictures from the trip when I get them all uploaded in the next couple o' days!

Day 58 - THE LAST DAY

San Clemente, CA to Los Angeles, CA

So, the day was a lot longer than expected! But no worries! Cause Chesca went NY to LA with ZERO rest days. The first pic is Belle ready to go, then the LA county line, followed by Huntington Beach!

The last 2 pics are of the non saggers. First the Southern Route Fab 5, then the non-saggers of the whole tour! Way to represent the ladies Fran! I'm so proud...and I'm sure everyone else is as well!

Have fun at Mtn Bike Oregon!

Day 57: Ridin' Along the Coast

San Diego to San Clemente, CA

A really hilly, cloudy day but hey, only 1 DAY left!

LA Tomorrow!!!

The Home Stretch......

Well hello everyone!

surprised I'm writing again so quick? You gotta love internet access at the Holiday Inn Express! Let's see, so I've climbed and descended about 4,200 feet since last time. That was quite the ride!

Brawley to Julian
The start of the ride was pretty slow and uneventful, I think I was still a little worked from the 90 mile day before, the legs just weren't in it to win it. We left town right after sunrise and worked our way out to a farming kind of area, it was a really pretty ride. I rode ok in the beginning and then after mile 20 or so I was kinda tired. Too early to be tired! We took a sharp left and headed towards mountains. Oh dear. They didn't get bad until the very end though. I remember sitting at the van at mile 50 or so, changing a slow leaking flat, and the hills didn't start to show yet. After I left the van my tire went flat again, right at the 1,000 ft elevation sign. Awesome. Failed patch. So I switched it one more time, my tires were getting pretty worn too. Switched out the tube, stopped at the dropped water spot and slowly I felt more tired and more tired because the incline was so unnoticeable. As the scenery got more beautiful, I noticed I was working my way not only through the mountains but along side of them. The road was kind of part of the side of one mountain, it was really cool. The landscape changed from desert and sand to a variety of cactus to TREES! yes TREES!! Oh my gosh, I never thought I'd be so happy to see a tree before! No more desert! There were also mountains of rocks and boulders that were real purty too. So like I said, as the scene gets nicer and nicer the hills get bigger and bigger. Then they come and don't stop, it's just switchback after switchback going up, up, up! I made excuses to stop along the way... as my legs get heavier and the air gets thinner. It was just pretty, I had to take pictures, right? :) You have no idea what a relief it was to see that 4,000 ft elevation sign! After that I got reacquainted with gears again! How fun! I rolled down into Julian and went to Julian Coffee House, ate a wonderful breakfast/lunch/dinner... and finished out the last 3 miles (all uphill!! Grrrr) to the campsite. Slept ok, it was actually chilly, so I got to use my sleeping bag right off the bat!

Julian to San Diego
Sooooo remember all those climbs/hills from yesterday? Yep, FUN TIME! I'd say about 70% or more of the day was spent descending. SO much fun! I rode down the first 10-20 miles and hit my 4,000 mile mark. 4,000 ft one day, 4,000 miles the next! How cool! The ride into San Diego was a lot of long, beautiful descents, even after we got out of Julian. There were at least 2 super bomb climbs that were completely unnecessary, but whatyougonnado? I was playing leap frog with Brian all morning and as we worked our way down closer to the coast and SD we stopped in to see his sister at her office. She took us out to eat, and it was cute to see the brother-sister interaction, makes me miss my big bro and sis :/ She was super nice and she and a couple friends came out to our event last night. We stayed at the International Hostel right in downtown, and that was probably the coolest place we've stayed at the entire trip! It was extremely unique with bright, vibrant, varied colored walls, tons of natural sunlight pouring in from windows and sky lights, and 3 floors! There were couches, sofas, and comfy chairs in every nook and corner. The kitchen on the third floor was massive as well. I'm beginning to become a fan of hostels......

San Diego to San Clemente
Today's ride wasn't all that great for me. It was actually really cool all morning and I was breaking into a cold sweat, so I had that lovely sickly feeling and I was cold for the first 40 miles. Ugh. But it was super gorgeous to see the COAST! The Pacific Ocean! I've never seen it before. Still haven't touched it yet. I'm saving it for tomorrow! It warmed up a little later, and I did see more bike riders today then ever before. There were bike lanes galore all day, and we rode through Camp Pendleton. The headwinds were not nice through Pendleton. I was going a good 10 mph, not feeling so hot. We cut onto a "bike path" immediately after Camp Pendleton, aka an old runway? It was about 3 lanes or so wide and not a soul in sight! Just the occasional rider. I saw a dude on a SL2 and rode with him for a little and chatted, he was asking about the ride and what have you. After we chatted for a while I told him not to let me hold him back, I was just cruising it out today, so he took off. The road took an S-curve and then he was out of sight. Must be nice riding that 15 (or less) pound bike! One day Francesca, one day. The rest of the ride was easy breezy after the bike path, and when I thought I had arrived at the Holiday Inn Express, I turned a curve to see a good 18% or more grade climb to the top by the hotel. Thanks for that! It was short though. But still, really? Really Holiday Inn? You couldn't have put it at the bottom of the hill? Today I packed up all my camping gear and some extra clothes and shipped them home. I'll beat them there though. I ate pizza at San Clemente Pizza Cafe: delicious. I'm gonna go finish it now that I think about it.... it's sitting in my fridge. Mmmm. Well folks, I do believe that's alls I gots for now. Tomorrow: LA, aka finish line! Whoop whoop!!! Got a full day ahead of me tomorrow though, I gotta pack up Belle and get her ready to ship out too :( I'll miss her! But I'll see her back in PA, I'm sure she'll like a rest day too.

Ride on!
Francesca

Day 56: San Diego here I come!

Julian, CA to San Diego, CA

The morning started off with breakfast at Julian Coffee House. Everything bagel with tomatos and red onions, and a hot apple cider, which is only fitting in CA orchard country!

In the first 20 miles or so Francesca hit 4,000miles! Wow! So incredible. She said the ride into San Diego had a couple EPIC climbs, but the decents were totally worth it.

Brian's sister cut his hair and beard...he looks so different! At the event, there was a serious gold sprints showdown! Oh, and the hostel they stayed in was pretty sweet!

Day 55: Hills for Thrills.... or maybe a Hills that Kill?

Brawley, CA to Julian, CA

So today was pretty long, 76 miles and over 4,000ft of climbing! It started off pretty desert like, and then if you notice the last pic... it's pretty beautiful! Orchard country in Julian.

Off to San Diego tomorrow and the end in sight! Great job Chesca! I know everyone is proud of you for riding every day! No rest and kicking butt!!!

Oh, and the new Armadillo tires look great on your Tricross!

Day 54: Blythe to Brawley

Pics! To supplement Fran's amazing commentary below!

Update from California!!!

Hello hello!

Sorry I haven't had any words lately. We went through a couple areas of no internet and I took naps a couple times we did have internet :) But no worries, I will bring you back up to date. I am currently in CALIFORNIA with the home stretch in front of me! I can't believe we end Friday, craziness! Tomorrow is suppose to be a tough day, most likely the hardest of the tour, a 4,500 ft climb the last 30 miles of a 70 mile day, one last hurrah of the tour that makes you want to go home to your mommy. But I'm sure I'll talk about that soon, I'll start with where I left off: Fort Hancock, TX and work my way up to today, just as before. I'm sure you're excited.....

Fort Hancock to El Paso, the last day in the Tour de Texas
Fred came out the winner of the TdT, he gets up about 2 hours before we're suppose to and gets a jump start on the day. It was a relatively short day so he beat all the sprinters to El Paso. The desert pups sagged to El Paso with Judy and Allison, and they were immediately adopted by the first couple that walked in, so not only do We Like Bike, but We Like Pups too! I rode in to EP with Katie and saw some pretty mountain views along the way, as well as old planes and border patrol! We checked out Crazy Cat Cyclery in town, and it was a pretty sweet shop. Bike candy everywhere! There were several SL2s and I saw a pink Epic and an S-works Stumpjumper. Niccccce. Brian decided to shave the chin out of his beard in EP, and our Motel 6 had an amazing view, but I'm always impressed with the mountain views.

El Paso to Las Cruces, NM
Welcome to New Mexico! Unfortunately we didn't get to see much of Las Cruces, but we did get to do a field trip to White Sands National Monument, which was AMAZING! We stayed at a KOA Campground on the very very southwest of town, so White Sands was about all we did that day. I highly recommend visiting if you're near the area, I saw THE most beautiful sunset of the tour there, settling down into the mountains beyond the layers of sand dunes.

Las Cruces to Deming
The only picture I have of Deming was a sweet Armadilla drinkin a Lone Star. It was a pretty uneventful ride, we had to ride on I-10 because there were no other roads. We got bumped up to the I-10 Motel instead of the KOA, Todd managed the motel, and he was quite the character. Probably the most interesting person I've met on the tour. He told me stories from Italy to Vegas, he also (The BBQ Shop and Young Ave Deli whoop whoop!)

Deming to Lordsburg
It was either the ride to Deming or Lordsburg that had horrific headwinds. I mean, slow you down to 10 mph kind of headwinds. That was no fun at all. Headwinds are about the worst element you can get. I'll take heat and rain over wind any day. I believe Lordsburg was a shorter day, and I rode by myself and got in pretty early. I had a Big Mac meal at McDonalds :D Haven't had a Big Mac in a looooong time. Delicious. And an ice cream cone.

Lordsburg to Willcox, AZ
Arizona's welcome sign was totally the coolest! I love the AZ flag, it's so cool. We took a tourist trip to Tombstone which was cool. Definitely a tourist town. Chad bought a sweet cowboy hat and shirts there, fit right in! Again, not too much going on that day... We did have a lot of fun at the Welcome sign, a lot of people came in around the same time there.

Willcox to Tucson
Our event in Tucson was really cool. The local bike shop was there and handing out info, there was tons of dancing on the dance floor, and 42 Below samples to be had by all! We stayed at a hostel in Tucson and they made us waffles and coffee in the morning! Sweeeet. I went to the local Specialized dealer and got some Armadillas for my Tricross, I'll switch them out before the end of the trip, my current tires are nearing the 4,000 mile mark so they have quite a bit of wear. I saw a really cool Vanagon on the walk home from the event.

Tucson to Florence
Florence treated us great! The Mayor had us all over to her house and there was everything from cold beer to cold water, chips and salsa to a full on dinner! They let some of us stay at her house, some at the Chamber of Commerce, and some at a neighbor's. They gave us a tour of the town and a police escort the next day! Thank you Lina and the Town of Florence for all your hospitality!

Florence to Phoenix
It was actually cloudy for the ride that day, so we dodged some Arizona heat once again. I made good time into Phoenix and grabbed some grub in town. Chad bought an old school Schwinn cruiser at a shop. The event was cool, it was Katie's birthday, she had a birthday cake, and there were Gold Sprints. One of Isabel's BFFs, Carla, met me at the event at Bar Smith and we did dinner at Old Spaghetti Factory. yum yum. Phoenix seemed like a pretty cool town to me, but of course there's never too much time to explore. I'll have to come back ;)

Phoenix to Aguila
Blaiser's fam was waiting for us in Aguila, it was a pretty long, hot ride into the small town. We stayed at Burro Jim's, the only Motel in town, his Pops reserved all 6 rooms for us. They also had cold beers, water, etc waiting for us! They made an amazing dinner for us, Blaise made the best hummus I've ever had in my life. Ohmagosh it was good. His grandparents had the coolest RV/Bus I've ever seen. They bought an old tour bus 20 years ago and stripped it down and pimped it into an RV inside. Queen size bed in the back, kitchen area, eating area, and a couch. They also mentioned that they restore Corvettes for a living. Sounds like my kind of family! Thank you guys so much! We really loved hanging out with all of you! They even made muffins for us in the morning. Wonderful!

Aguila to Quartzsite
The ride into Quartzsite flew by the first 40 miles or so, but the last 30 became pretty hot. Before we got onto the interstate again there was a super cool store in the middle of nowhere, right after the cool shot of me in the middle of the road with the mountains all around. She told Brian and me about the rattlesnakes she had in her garden across the street, but he still hasn't found one yet. The cue sheet was a little hairy getting to the Motel 8, off the interstate the last 5 miles. But I iPhoned it through Quartzsite, thankfully it's not too big a town. I went to the only pizza place in town: Silly Al's where I had a delicious meatball and tomato pizza :) mmmm. It was breakfast the next morning as well!

Quartzsite to Blythe, CA
So the ride yesterday to Blythe was only 23 miles, and we decided to make the most of it! The majority of us tried to dress as absurd as possible, and I do believe we suceeded. We rode together and took turns riding Chad's 10" Schwinn, haha! We had a banana eating contest right before the border at the halfway point and stopped at Del Taco for lunch with the Motel in sight. It was probably the best ride of the tour. California here we are!

TODAY! Blythe to Brawley
The ride today went well for me. It was kinda like a case of the Mondays. I don't think anyone looked forward to a 90 mile day in the heat after the 20 mile fun day yesterday! But it went ok though, we had an early 5:30am start today, it was still dark out, and we went through a huge sand dune area that was very cool. We hit rollers soon after mile 20 and it flattened out again at the end. I skipped the first van at mile 20, and got water at each stop after that. I got in before 1, I was shooting for noon, but I lingered a little at the last stop 14 miles out. Still a good day though, I've been in, showered, e-mailed, grocery shopped, and now here I am telling you all about the last two weeks. There's something so satisfying about doing 80 miles before people even take lunch! But then again, this is my job, so I guess I ride my bike for work. Don't be too jealous though, it ends this Friday! and riding my bike every single day for 2 months hasn't been easy. But it's the stuff dreams are made of, and memories as well. I look forward to the finish line. I'll let you know how tomorrow goes, I think I'll have a couple extra hairs on my chest after a 4,500 ft climb! Bye for now!

Viva la Tour!
Francesca

Day 53: Fun Day into CALI!

Quartzite, AZ to Blythe, CA

A day of fun!

So today was only like 23 miles... and everyone decided to have fun with it!

There were the great outfits and then the banana eating contest...can't take fruit into California! I like Fran's outfit the best! Way to pose! Those are Bayla's clothes by the way! love it!

Love that they ate at Del Taco! It's pretty much amazing! yum yum! then they went to the rebuilt London Bridge in Havasue, AZ. Here is the Wikipedia explanation: "In 1967, the Common Council of the City of London placed the bridge on the market and began to look for potential buyers. Council member Ivan Luckin had put forward the idea of selling the bridge, and recalled: "They all thought I was completely crazy when I suggested we should sell London Bridge when it needed replacing." On 18 April 1968, Rennie's bridge was sold to the Americanentrepreneur Robert P. McCulloch of McCulloch Oil for US$2,460,000. The claim that McCulloch believed mistakenly that he was buying the more impressive Tower Bridge was denied by Luckin in a newspaper interview.^[9] As the bridge was taken apart, each piece was numbered to aid re-assembly. The bridge was reconstructed at Lake Havasu City, Arizona, and re-dedicated on 10 October 1971. The reconstruction of Rennie's London Bridge spans the Bridgewater Channel canal that leads from Lake Havasu to Thomson Bay, and forms the centrepiece of a theme park in English style, complete with a Tudor period shopping mall. Rennie's London Bridge has become Arizona's second-biggest tourist attraction, after the Grand Canyon.^{[10] "}

Good experience... Only 5 days left!!!! Keep up the good work Francesca! Ride everyday!

Day 52: Holler AZ....

Augila, AZ to Quartzite, AZ

Last day in Arizona and then the home stretch of CA. I think the picture of Chesca in the road with the mountains behind is one of the best pictures of the trip. Gorgeous!

Bayla's tires are crazy. Fran said she's never seen them bubble like that! (Shoulda got Armadillas)

She treated herself to the only pizza place to eat in Quartzite and grubbed on a meatball/tomato pizza. It was better than her lunch of bugles and ice cream! or was it? both sound pretty good to me!

Day 51: Chillin with Blaise's Fam

Phoenix, AZ to Aguila, AZ

Leaving Phoenix they entered Surprise, AZ. There was no "surprise" that the ride was long and HOT and looked a lot like the TX desert that they rode through for two weeks.

Blaise's family followed them to Aguila (300+ miles from LA) where they rented out all 6 rooms of the local hotel for everyone. They grilled out, brought coolers of beer, and everyone had a great time. Thanks Chesca for drinking a Fat Tire for me! I know you don't like beer, but it's the best and everyone should drink at least one!