View from our hotel room.
Rider Information Meeting - Friday morning
Only sexy men who love glitter can wear socks like these...
Right, Ted?
The 2007 West Michigan Death Valley Team
The place to start and hopefully end!
Getting ready for tuneup ride on Friday - what they don't tell you is, it's 5 miles uphill to Zabriskie Point.
The entrance to Furnace Creek Ranch
There it is. I made it - Zabriskie Point
What a Spartan nerd. He had on MSU cycling socks too, which matched his MSU Spartan water bottles. I knew it when I married him.
5 miles up, means 5 miles down! (and pictures actually being taken)
Beautiful
My inspiration at 23.6 miles an hour (also at 3.2 mph on Sat)
More beautiful
The nice part about going down is you don't have to pedal once in the 5 miles
Being stalked by a Spartan
my shadow
You'd have thought he could have gotten green glasses, wouldn't you?
ah... two shadows
almost going the speed limit. I think I hit 30 mph tops on the way down.
note between this picture and the next, Steve & Nicole disappear and I must change my own blown tube
But, they did ride the 1 mile back up to get me
Taken at the Hotel California (Furnace Creek Inn)
back on the road
(mental note please - clear sky/view, no wind... this is important later)
the only wildlife I saw in Death Valley - a red ant (right in the middle)
Stovepipe Wells Sand Dunes - after our convenience store lunch
Sand dunes in the middle of no where
An adventurer
I never liked sand in the first place and this stuff was HOT
Carmen getting ready for Friday night dinner.
Dinner on Friday night - carb up
In a date grove
The moon in the date grove.
Our team Mascot this year! Sophie.
Getting ready on Saturday morning.
The stars make us go fast, and make it easy to recognize your teammates on the road.
Steve
I'm feeling a wee bit of dread... why am I doing this again!?!
The Ellie's Elephants riders
Nicole
Before sunrise on the way to Badwater
Steve riding behind me (this doesn't last long)
See the sea level sign (we are 282 feet below sea level)
It's a ways up there
Badwater. The first break point (17.7 miles)
still riding in the shade
it's getting closer
Cool picture of sun almost up
Coming to Mormon Point break area (33.5 miles)
Going up Jubilee Pass with coach Mike (I personally felt a little hate in my heart for the people flying down the hill)
a quick stop about half way up Jubilee Pass
getting there
I made it!!!!
we started at -178 elevation, went down to -282, up to 1293.
The two coaches who helped me up the mountain (Coach Tim from S. Carolina and my own Coach Mike)
The Jubilee Pass view
see the sign?
coming down
hahahahha. A LONG @$$ time later... after being SAGged to the Hotel California so I could ride the last 1 mile (downhill)
Me, Lynn, Molly and Mark & Terrie Herren (rode last year, helped us out this year!)
It's a Schmeider... not sure which one! (there were four Schmeider brothers and two sisters, ha!)
Pete showing his salt issues
NICE!
The most enthusiastic West Michigan rider - Carmen
Melanie & Tom finishing
Nicole finishing
Carmen taking over as most emotional...?
Nope, Sarah was crying too!
Kevin finishing
Steve and Coach Mike finishing (note sand speckles)
Steve & Nicole
Paul & Kathi McBride finished (the spots are sand blowing around)
last view of the mountains
