For those who think that they are into extreme cycling they may wish to reconsider their bragging rights. Many people transverse mountain ranges on bikes and consider themselves extreme cyclists, yet may I ask how anyone can call themselves an extreme cyclist until they have ridden across the California Desert. It is one of the most grueling rides there is and a couple hundred miles of that ought to tell you how tough you really are compared to how tough you might think you are. May I suggest the ride from Laughlin NV on a hot summer day of 115 and then ride up the grade for a warm-up on Highway 163 then turn South on Highway 95 to the little cutoff road to Goffs and then down to off-ramp 115 on I40 across to Essex, CA where it will be even hotter and then trek to Amboy and go South into Twenty-Nine Palms. How far is this ride thru hell? Well this trek will be approximately; 120 miles. But mind you if you are really an extreme cyclist why are you stopping there? Lets leave the high-desert and ride into Desert Hot Springs then into Thousand Palms and then into Palm Desert at sea level, but also desert. Now you are at 170 miles. And just because you braved the desert lets go up 5000 feet where it is cooler by taking Highway 74, which goes nearly straight up it is only 15 more miles. Now you can coast into Hemet CA to rest. Once you do that, then and only then can you have bragging rights to the Extreme Cycling Elite; Consider this in 2006. |
