We are staying on an athletic field at the Payson Middle School.  We have access to one small bathroom and no shower.   The sea to sea people improvised a shower with a hose and that is what we have all been using.


Yesterday I joined a work crew of other Sea to Sea bikers and we painted a house as part of a Habitat for Humanity project.  My crew went out at 8:30 am.  We are over 5,000 ft elevation and the temperatures are still around 100 degrees by midday so it was good to get an early start.  We had about 20 people at the site on my crew and we accomplished a lot.  I was a painter, others did landscaping around the house and general clean-up.  Rudy Folkerts from Orange City, IA - brother-in-law of Shar Jelgerhuis was our project leader.  He did a great job of keeping us organized and productive.  We stopped at about 10:30 and  a second crew of Sea to Sea riders came out at 10:30 and worked until about 1:00 pm.

The rest of the morning I spent at the laundry mat washing my clothes from week one of the ride.  It was so hot in the afternoon that several of us decided to take in a movie in an air-conditioned theater. We saw Superman 3 in 3D.   I guess I now know the background of the Superman story.

Our bikes arrived around 3:30 and mine appears to have survived the journey well.  I took it out for a brief test ride.

After dinner, we walked over to a park where they had a country-western concert.  I didn't recognize  many of the songs - (Doug and Anne-I'm sure you would have loved it)  It was a beautiful night with no bugs or mosquitoes.

I want to congratulate Amber Fletcher, our fourth grade teacher at the Edina campus, who was married last night to Matt Busacker (sp?)!!!  I'm sorry I was not able to be there for the celebration.  

This morning I'm going to a Presbyterian Church with many others.  Church is at 10:00 am so I need to run.  (I'm uploading this from a MacDonalds which is about a mile away  from our camp.)

Week 1 Summary

I apologize for not posting for a few days.    We have not had much access to wifi since we left Vanguard University.   This has certainly been an adventure.  I’ll try to give you a brief recap of each day.

Monday:  We left Vanguard University on our bikes at around 8:00 am.  We road on city streets but  spent many miles on a bike path that went along the Santa Anna River Wash.  We went right past the baseball stadium of the Anaheim Angels.  A sobering moment of the day is when I rode past one of our riders, Mark Dekkinga.  He hit a fence with his handle bars and flipped his bike.  He broke his leg in the fall.  He was taken to a hospital and they did surgery on his leg the next morning.  The word is that he is recovering well but his ride is over.  I had dinner with him on Sunday evening and he and his wife were very excited about making this ride.  He was the pastor in Rock Rapids CRC before Cliff Hoekstra.   Mark is currently working as chaplain – I believe it is Indiana.  Please pray for his complete recovery.   I made it into Redlands (Arrowhead Christian Academy) at about 3:30.  The temperatures were very comfortable on this day.  It was actually cold in my sleeping bag on Monday evening.    Since I lived in Redlands for 10 years (1979 – 89), it was fun to visit with many people who I have not seen in many years.   Sid and Marlene Hekman gave a donation of apricots from their yard.  I also saw Walt and Joyce DeBlauw,   Denise Kouwe, Don and Sandi DeGood, Paul and Michael Collins, Jack and Henriett Nydam.   Many thanks to Beth (Van Essen) Kimm and her daughters who helped me retrieve my cell phone! This is the area that Michelle Brouwer and Heather Mellema  spent their childhood years.

Tuesday:  Our tents were  wet from the heavy due when we woke up in morning.   The ride started out with a rather grueling climb up Sand Canyon on our way to  Yucaipa.  I had driven this route by car many times when I lived in Redlands but it seemed to be much steeper on a bicycle.  Once we made it to Cherry Valley we had a nice long coast down toward Palm Springs.  I was going over 30 mph without pedaling.   I enjoyed seeing Mt San Gregonio on my left and Mt. San Jacinto on my right.  We rode through Palm Springs and stopped at Jordon Christian Out Reach Center in Coachella which is near Indio.   In Palm Springs we rode on or across streets named after Hollywood Stars such as Gene Autry, Dinah Shore, Frank Sinatra, and Bob Hope. The  Jordon Center had an outdoor swimming pool which we all enjoyed.  I slept in the gym.  There was no air conditioning but several large fans at least kept the air moving.  We thought Palm Springs was hot (100+) – but it was nothing like what we would experience the next two days.

Wednesday:

I woke up at 4:15.  They wanted us on the rode at the crack of dawn.  This was my first experience with the incredible heat.  We were biking through the barren desert.  We biked mostly on the side of Interstate-10.  (The California Highway Patrol did sweep the side of the interstate this morning to clear all of the tire debris  in anticipation of our ride.)   The cars and trucks whizzed past us with a white line separating us.  They estimate that the heat coming off the pavement was around to 150 – 160 degrees.  The SAG stops were planned for about 8 – 10 miles apart.  I was going through my two bottles of water between the Stops.  They provided us with ice towels which I wore on my neck and under my helmet.  It took only about 2 miles for the towels to completely dry out.  I did a lot of praying on this stretch.   I had four miles to go but had to sit in an air conditioned vehicle before I could continue.   They have been telling us to catch the signs that our body is telling us.  I started getting cold chills which is sign of heat exhaustion.   After I cooled down I was able to make it to Desert Center where we were able to sleep in an air conditioned club house.   It was wall to wall sleeping mats in this clubhouse. 

Some riders put their bikes against the outside side of the clubhouse and their bike tires started popping from the heat of the sun.  They used solar heat for the water in their showers.  You couldn’t go under the shower because the water was so hot. 

Thursday:

I woke up again at 4:30 am.  I was ready to go on my bike by 5:30 but discovered my front tire was flat.  I am very  grateful for the community of riders that I’m with.  They are all so helpful.  Several guys helped me get my tire changed and I was on the road by 5:45.   The heat again was incredible.   I think it was 100 degrees when I started and it kept climbing.   We were also bucking a wind and it felt like a blow dryer aimed in my face.   I was able to go about 30 miles and started feeling nauseous.    I decided I couldn’t push my body any further and I put my bike in the pick-up and road with Phil the rest of the way in.  A number of the riders either didn’t start out today or were picked up along the route.  I’m still amazed at the riders who went the entire 80 miles in the 113 degree temperatures.   We are staying in Quartzsite tonight at a community center – It is air conditioned.   There is not much around here.  Most everything closes up for the summer and then opens for the winter residents who come to live here.    We did find a restaurant and I went out to eat with several others. I had a steak which was a nice change from the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.    

This place looks very desolate and barren.  However, a pastor of a local church came to the community center and gave Sea to Sea a donation of $500.  His church had heard we were coming and took an offering for us.  We were all amazed because it is obvious that most of the people in this small community don't have much wealth.   When I was on the way to Palm Springs, a man in an older vehicle drove up along side me and asked what we were all doing.  I told him about our purpose.  He drove away but I saw him again at the next SAG stop.  He gave a donation of $20.  After he spoke to me, he went home and got $20 and came to the SAG stop.  Others have had similar experiences.  

I switched to a thinner tire tonight.  I was riding with a 33 and most of the riders here have 23 or 25.  Several people encouraged me to go with a thinner tire.   I now have a 23 on the front and a 25 on the back.  My thanks to Rod Ledeboer, a fellow native of Prinsburg, MN, who helped me change out these tires. 

At the group meeting tonight they announced that they were suspending the ride to Phoenix.  They are estimating that the temperatures were going to be near 120 degrees for the next couple of days.  There is an excessive heat warning and all local residents are encouraged to stay indoors for the next several days.  I’m grateful for the decision of our group leaders to try to bypass this stretch of record-breaking temperatures.  Our new plan is to take a coach bus from Quartzide  to  Payson, Arizona.  We will bypass Phoenix and this  intense  heat.  Payson is in the mountains where the temperatures are not suppose to be so extremely hot.  We are planning to resume our ride on Monday or Tuesday. 

Thank you to all those families in Phoenix that had arranged to take us in on Sat. and Sunday evenings.  I understand that my brother-in-law, Rick Jasper, had arranged with his relatives for me to stay at their home.  Thanks – Rick. However, with these change of plans, we won’t be staying in Phoenix.

Friday:

It seemed strange not to get on my bike today.  Most of the riders took a coach bus up to Payson.  I stayed back and helped load seventy five bikes in a semi-trailer.  Six men worked  four hours loading these bikes in the 115-120 degree temperatures.  The trailer was an oven but some of the women kept us supplied with water and ice towels.  It is not easy to  stack that many bikes in the trailer in a way that won’t damage them on the ride.  We finished loading the bikes at 2:30.  After a quick shower under the outside hose.  We started out on Interstate 10 toward Payson.  Our adventure wasn’t over.  I am riding in a 1979 van that was donated to Sea to Sea.   All went well until we got to Phoenix.  The van began stalling on the freeway and eventually died completely.   Pete Westra was driving the van.  After many futile attempts to get in going, I got out and walked to he nearest ramp and then walked another couple of blocks to a gas station.   Soon after I made it there, Pete drove up with the van. 

  Phoenix roadside assistance had stopped  the van and put in some gas, gave the battery a jump and got is started again.   Apparently this van has two gas tank and the switch from one tank to the other didn’t work. Another adventure in the record setting heat wave in Phoenix on June 28.     We did make it to Payson at 8:30. I got my tent set up in the dark and then went over to a MacDonalds to get this posted.   Thanks for all of your prayers.  Like I said - it has been an adventure!  

We had a wonderful worship service in the sun at Van Guard University this afternoon.   It was great to have my brother in-law and sister in-law, Rick and Arlys Jasper from Ontario, CA join me at this service.

 It was great to have my daughter, Laura, meet me at the beach for the "tire dipping"in the Pacific.  Laura recently graduated from Loyola Law School in L.A. and is now preparing to take the bar exam.

Prayer time at the beach as we officially begin the journey east from the Pacific Ocean.

My source of transportation for the next three weeks.

I made it to Southern California.  My flight arrived on time at 9:30 am.  We are staying in the dorms at Vanguard University in Costa Mesa.  It has been fun to meet the other riders.  There are people from around the United States and Canada on this ride.  There a total of 220 riders that will ride all or a portion of this Sea to Sea ride.  People of various ages are making the trip.  Many college age students all the way up to 70 years old.  There are about equal number of men and women. I met Christy Statema, she is Pastor Cody Statema's sister.  She is also doing the ride from L.A. to Colorado Springs.  I also spoke with Shirley Folkerts and her husband.  Shirley is a sister of Shar Jelgerhuis.  Shirley and are husband are planning to do the entire ride on their recumbent bikes.    Yesterday afternoon, about 10 of us rode over to Newport Beach and walked to the end of the pier.  It was very crowded at the beach which is typical for this time of year.    We had devotions last night and then a long meeting on bike safety.  It is good to cover all these items up front so we all on the same page with hand signals and communication.

This afternoon we have a worship service at 2:00 pm and then we will all go over to Newport Beach to put our back tires in the Pacific Ocean.  In nine weeks, those who are doing the entire ride will be putting their front tires in the Atlantic Ocean.  My daughter Laura, who lives in LA, is planning to meet me this afternoon and we'll have dinner together.   I believe my brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Rick and Arlys Jasper,  will be coming for the worship service this afternoon as well.

The weather is beautiful in Costa Mesa.  The daytime is warm but it cools down in the evening to the point where we needed sweatshirts last night to stay warm.

Tomorrow we start our ride - going out to Redlands.  This stretch will involve the most car traffic that we will likely encounter on this early part of the trip.  Thanks for your prayers!

I leave early tomorrow morning on my flight to Los Angeles.  I am both very excited and somewhat apprehensive about the next three weeks.  I look forward to meeting the many people that I will be riding with over the next weeks.  We will be staying at Vanguard University in Costa Mesa, CA on Saturday and Sunday nights.    Several of my relatives that live in southern California are planning to meet me at Newport Beach for a "tune-up ride."  Tomorrow we also get the gear truck organized.  On Sunday we will have a worship service and a mandatory safety meeting.  We plan to start our trip early on Monday morning.  Thank you to all who have contributed to this fund raising event.  The funds will be used to by such organizations as World Renewal to help those in need.  We hope to bring attention to the needs of those who live in poverty as we make our way across the U.S.  I also appreciate all of your prayers as I begin this journey.  

Tonight I biked around Lake Harriet and Lake Calhoun and then I took the trail over to Target Field.  I wasn't planning to watch the game but noise of the crowd lured me in.  I bought a $15 ticket and watched an exciting Twins win.  The ride home was rather dark but thankfully two bikers in front of me had lights.  It was a beautiful night for a bike ride (and a Twins win.)  I've been riding my wife's bike the past few days since my bike has been shipped to California.

On Thursday night I rode about 25 miles. My wife,  Karen rode her bike as well.  We went west past Glen Lakes Golf Course over to Townline Road and then up Vine Hill Road over to Minnetonka Blvd.  Karen kept up the whole way.

Last night we drove to Sioux Center, IA and I put my bike in van with 4 other bikes from the Sioux Center area.  The other bikes belong to Barb Mellema, Rudy and Shirley Folkerts, and Amanda Hulstein.   So my bike is on its way to California.  I'll need to train this week on my old bike.   One week from today I'll fly out to CA and have two days of orientation before we start out from Newport Beach on Monday, June 24.

I'm trying to ramp up my training as the big trip approaches.  Tonight I was able to ride 30 miles despite the rain.  I rode downtown and then west to Hopkins.  It is great that Minneapolis has so many paved bike paths around the city.

Welcome

Welcome to my blog about my Sea to Sea experience! I am excited to share my journey with you in upcoming posts. Please, check in with me along the way of my biking tour. We will begin riding on June 24. I will post pictures and summaries about this upcoming adventure. Thank you for taking this journey with me!