Heading out into the wilderness.
It was quite a ride, honestly.
However, it was one Tour I may never do
again, because there is just no reason to put oneself through that much pain
and suffering.
Riding is supposed to be
for fun and fitness, not foolishness.
I
have done Centuries before, and I don’t mind them, but the 2014 edition of the
Tour of Palm Springs, to me, was basically 103-miles of “What the heck am I
doing out here.”
Between the high winds,
bad roads, and a complete lack of scenery, it was really not what I would
classify as a “Memorable” ride.
However,
before this begins to read like a whine-fest, it was not all bad.
And, I still got to spend the day on my bike,
which last I checked, was definitely a good thing.
Like any large, organized event, overall there were the good
points, and there were the bad points. Some
were things within human control, and many were completely outside any human
contingency planning. The difference,
therefore, between a great event and a so-so event, are the management of the
tangible details. For the most part, the
organizers of the 2014 installment did very well with the tangibles. The things outside of their control, however,
were the things, for me, that made the ride kinda’ suck ass.
So, without any further delay, here are my thoughts about
the Tour of Palm Springs for 2014.
Things I liked about the ride: The event staff, including
local law enforcement and the California Highway Patrol, were top notch. Friendly, helpful, attentive, and the on-road
support crews went above and beyond the call of duty to assist the riders. They scored an A+++, here. The local community was also very
enthusiastic, and it was very nice to see local residents outside seated in their
lawn chairs cheering the riders on.
Community support is an extremely important asset if a ride
seeks to live to be a Legacy instead of a flash in the pan. Score a big one for the ride, here.
Catrina, Terry, and Blake taking a breather.
I also met some extremely wonderful riders during the event,
which was very uplifting, being cycling contains enough snobs, as it is. There was Lieutenant Commander Terry
(retired), Pastor Elena, Blake, astride a mint condition Trek U.S. Postal
Service bike, Elizabeth, silent, yet fast, my dear friend Catrina, and most of
the all, the beautiful blonde woman whom helped me get up after the wind caught
my 40mm front wheel and knocked me over.
I never did get her name, but I will always remember that angelic face. And, may I never forget the incredible
volunteers which staffed the SAG Stops.
They were non-stop cheerful, helpful, and still carried a sense of
humor, even after a whole day of dealing with an army of cyclists
The things I really did not care for about the ride consisted
of the following: The route, the wind, some of the participants, and a rider
killed by a truck. First, about that
crazy route.
Service road out in the sticks.
The allure of Palm
Springs has always been a mystery to me. It is an unforgiving desert, and nothing
more. Hot in the summer, windy and cold
in the winter, it really is not the place to hold a cycling event, let alone a
Century. On this year’s ride, it was the
wind which made the ride miserable. As
for the route itself, well, it was nothing remarkable from a scenery standpoint. In fact, what it lacked in aesthetics were
compounded by a lack of reliable course markings so riders could safely find
their way. Small, red arrows mounted on
construction barricades, which were easily blown over by the high winds, were
really not the way to go. There were
many time when riders had to stop and break out the route slips just to make
sure they had not missed a turn. I know
this for a fact, because my group had to do so on numerous occasions. The Century route took riders on service
roads and nasty, dangerous, 50-mile-an-hour-plus, narrow, two lane highways. Some of the pavement was so bad, I saw
numerous broken bottle cages, some complete with bottles still attached. I know the organizers had no control over the
road conditions, but come on, does not anyone evaluate the roads before
creating a route for the riders?
The wind completely broke apart the peleton. Check out Catrina's hair!
There's a very good reason these things are out there.
The wind. There is a
reason the Coachella
Valley is one of the wind
generator capitals of the world. The
riders left the start in a massive pack, but soon the wind broke everyone up, and
oddly, people starting pace lining, though there were 45 to 90-degree
cross-winds. I searched in vain for
people whom understood what an echelon was, but alas, no one wanted to form
one, thus we all suffered. We then hit
headwinds so bad, that even in 34-28 gear mode, we were basically going
nowhere. Toss in the dust, and it was
just not a place, nor time, to be riding a bicycle.
Amazing Observation of the Day; People like to look like
racers, ride actual race bikes, and think they are racers, but no one knew how
to RIDE like a racer in high winds to conserve energy. Odd things, human beings be.
Pedaling out in the middle of nowhere.
While the poorly marked course was an issue, one thing which
made following the route easier was the immense (yes, immense) amount of used gel
packets, and such, strewn along the way.
So, navigation via route slip and trash became the sure-fire, winning method
for staying on course. This was the ire
I alluded to about being displeased with some of the ride participants. I have participated in plenty of organized
events, but the 2014 Tour of Palm Springs took the cake for littering by ride
participants. We can do better than
that, folks.
Tragedy strikes.
If case anyone may not be aware, there was a fatality on the
Century course. News filters fast in any
recreational peleton, and it soon reached my group, which was two hours behind
the time of the accident. When we
reached the intersection of the incident, the scene had been cleaned up, and it
was clear to see why the accident happened just where it did. The riders had a stop sign, while the
high-speed cross traffic did not. Adding
to the problem was very poor visibility due to trees and foliage, and poor
pavement, which I am sure made riders take alternate lines on that particular
stretch of road. Right now, fault is
being batted back-and-forth in the matter, with some witness’s claiming the
rider “Blew the stop sign,” while others have claimed the truck “Went around a
car which had slowed to let the Cyclists pass.”
No matter what the outcome, a woman lost her life, and the
ride organizers have some “Splaining” to do.
The author at one of the friendly SAG stops. "How many more miles to go?"
So, all in all, would I do this ride again? Honestly, no.
And not because of the ride organizers, either. The combination of travel time to get there
(a two-hour drive each way), facing the elements (WIND!), rough roads, scenery
akin to the Moon, and dangerous motor vehicle drivers, all combined to make me
glad that I did it, but, I will not be doing this particular Century ride,
anymore.
Well, maybe...
