Moving the ride forward three weeks from last year's date was a good move and I'm planning to keep it as close to the beginning of April as I can. Despite dire predictions of gale force winds there was just the normal amount of wind and it behaved as expected so riders had much more tailwind than headwind. Unlike last year, the temps barely reached 80F and didn't drop below 50F. If you recall, last year the temp range was 38F-85F.
Reversing the first loop made it even faster than last year and all the riders completed the first 100 miles in less than eight hours. Jim Harris crashed on the San Gabriel trail somehow but managed to keep going strong.Sherry and I even managed to get in a quick 30 mile ride to Kokomo's and back. It was her first time there and we'll be going back.
Riders set off on the second loop with a strong tailwind but ran afoul of the Redlands Classic being run in downtown Redlands. Fortunately there was only a short detour and no-one was seriously inconvenienced. The climb from Redlands to Beaumont was hard as usual but at least it wasn't too hot this year. The route change that substituted Brookside for Cherry Valley was popular - it's a much quieter road and in good condition too. Returning on San Timoteo is always fun especially if you time it so you get a tailwind. The 200 mile control was at Ruth Cabre's house and was the highlight of the ride. Many riders commented on Ruth and Kevin's hospitality and on Ruth's cooking skills. Pete and Charlie took a power nap before continuing at 12:30am.
Back at the end of the second loop all the 400k riders arrived in good shape and in good time. Pete and Charlie decided they could not safely continue on the 600k which is a shame but nothing to be ashamed of. I hope I can ride a 400k when I'm in my 70's. Mike Sturgill also stopped at the 400k mark because he had to drive back to AZ to meet Sunday commitments.
Many people rode right through, which is not something I've seen too often before. The AZ group was super strong and actually covered over 300 miles in 24 hours. That's not easy to do on a brevet. The mortals slept, most of them leaving around 7am. Some of them got only three hours sleep, others got as much as six. The third loop is a bit lumpy and tends to have a headwind on the return section which makes it a tough 200k.
Several riders found a 'weakness' in the routesheet. It turns out that Main St crosses MacArthur twice. I did not realize this. That means there are two opportunities to make a left on MacArthur. Some riders took the first opportunity and others took the second opportunity. Those that took the first turn ended up calling me as they realized things didn't look right. It took some effort to get them back on track because none of us had had much sleep lately. Because this was my mistake, I gave everyone who went astray some bonus time to ensure they got credit.
I will alter the end of the ride to use Sunflower (like last year).
I want to congratulate everyone who finished and even those who started. Many riders completed their first 400k or 600k. I want to especially congratulate Lisa Nicholson and Debbie Protho who both set personal best distances.
Until next year.....
Here is the list of riders in alphabetical order
Sanford Aniya, 600k, First 600k!
Mel Cutler, 400k
Pete Eade, 600k, DNF
Jim Harris, 400k
Kerin Huber, 600k, Fastest 600k!
Jeff Karotkin, 400k, First 400k!
Charles Lotte, 600k, DNF
Brian McGuire, 600k, Fastest 600k!
Peg Miller, 600k
Lisa Nicholson, 400k, First 400k!
Elaine Perry, 400k,
Debbie Protho, 600k, First 600k!
Bruce Shank, 600k, First 600k!
Mike Shaw, 600k, First 600k!
Mike Sturgill, 600k, DNF
Tim Sullivan, 600k, Fastest 600k!
Alan Tolkoff, 600k, First 600k
Jack Twitchell, 600k,
Kathy Twitchell, 600k
Carlton van Leuven, 400k
Dick Wiss, 600k
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