AIDS Lifecycle Day 7: 61 miles Ventura to Los Angeles

On the last day of the ride I got out early on the road to enjoy the last 60 miles into L.A.

Saturday:
All week when I spoke to you, I told you what happened that day at the San Francisco AIDS Foundation because you rode today. Today – this exultant, glorious day at the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, all of us – clients, volunteers, staff and Board – are grateful to you. Because you rode, because you roadied, because you stood on the side of a highway and cheered – because of you, we’re ready to return home and face the challenges of another year fighting HIV and AIDS.

This was my favorite stretch of the ride - biking along the Pacific with the Santa Monica Mountains towering overhead.

Strong salty breezes came off the ocean as we continued to get closer to our goal. Very few people were out on the road this Saturday morning.

As we got closer to Malibu, more and more surfers, climbers, runners, and triathletes could be seen along the route.

Once into Malibu, it was a survival test to avoid the traffic along the Pacific Coast Highway (PCH). The traffic and population density got worse as we made our way through Malibu and into L.A.

One last climb finished off the ride as we made our way to the VA Medical Center in L.A. I purposely started early on this last day so I could meet up with some fellow Peace Corps Volunteers in L.A. for lunch.

Dana, a fellow PCV, drove up from San Diego to see me finish and meet up with another PCV and myself for lunch. This AIDS Lifecycle / California trip turned into a West Coast Peace Corps Reunion Tour for me. After the ride, I spent another week in San Diego and Los Angeles visiting a couple of PCVs.

Jim and I standing near the finish as the last riders were coming in.

This was the scene as the last riders were finishing. Motorcycles usually escorted the last riders finishing each day. This last day was no exception. They roared their engines as they coasted in, but the roar of the crowd was a bit louder.

The closing ceremonies involved rolling our bikes into a parking lot as spectators, fans, family, and friends circled the area. Dance music was pumped into the party, riders raised bikes in celebration, videos of the ride were played up on a big screen - it was a jubilant scene!

There were a few speeches about the ride and what raising $11 million dollars as a group meant to the HIV+ and AIDS community, but overall it was kept short as everyone was spent from the week of riding. The final moments were engulfed in music and crowd cheering.

I've done a lot of enduance events, but none of them compared to this trip. Never have I experienced a place and time where such a large and diverse group of people came together, took care of each other, and worked toward such a large goal. It's the kind of environment I want to strive for and live in. So, one last time, Thank You again for supporting me to do this ride. I plan on doing this ride again next year, and I encourage anyone who is thinking about doing it to not think twice about it. You won't regret it!

Thanks for reading my AIDS Lifecycle journey. I hope you enjoyed the pictures!

Take care of yourself,

Nathan

AIDS Lifecycle Day 6: 84 miles Lompoc to Ventura

It was another amazing day as we returned to the Pacific for the final time.

Friday:

Today, because you rode, you made it possible for 1,000 men, women, and children to receive AIDS care and medications in rural villages in China, South Africa, and Rwanda through the work of the Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation.

Pangaea is part of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. Pangaea’s staff knows what it takes to prepare a country for HIV because they learned it in the US – by pioneering syringe exchange, by advocating for lower-priced drugs, by taking a firm stance about HIV prevention and education.

The first dozen or so miles took us out of Lompoc through rolling hills and smooth roads. We encountered no major hills as Jim, my tentmate (left in red and black), and I made our way to the first rest stop. I can't recall the theme of this stop, because it was early and I didn't spend much time here.

A view from the first rest stop of Day 6. A short climb after this rest stop, the route dived down into the Gaviota Pass where Hwy 1 and Hwy 101 meet and flow down toward the ocean. It was a steep decent all the way to sea level.

Jim and I at rest stop 2 on the Pacific after Gaviota Pass.

They held us up at rest stop 2 before opening up one of the highway lanes across a narrow bridge. Once the clock struck 9am, everyone rushed out of the rest stop as if it was a race. Competitive juices flowing, I gave chace.

After passing a bunch of people, and finding out who could hang and who couldn't, a pack of riders suddenly formed. But, only myself and four other guys were willing to ride at the front of a group of 25 riders. An hour later of the hardest, fastest riding of the week, we finally encountered a major hill that blew apart the group of riders into many fragments. I didn't look back as I charged up the hill to stay with the lead group of six riders. We worked together to finish the last 5 miles before heading into lunch. Exhausted, I ate my lunch in the shade and told myself to take it easy the rest of the day.

After lunch, I headed out alone and toward Santa Barbara. I wasn't alone for long as another group of about five riders formed and we pushed hard into town. So much for taking it easy! Santa Barbara was the first city that had local people out cheering on the riders, and I got a sense this was going to be a good time to take in the hospitalities of the people. How? I had no idea.

Rest stop 3 in Santa Barbara(left). With palm trees and white sandy beachs everywhere, I took my time taking in the So Cal sun biking along the beaches. The route turned off the beach and onto a bike trail that went inland a few blocks.

I was alone and gliding along the bike path when suddenly I heard screaming coming from ahead. I looked around wondering what was all the commotion. As I got closer, I realized it wasn't screaming but cheering. Cheering for me! The clouds parted and down came the heavens to deliver...

...Paradise Pit! I suddenly found myself surrounded by women spraying me down with cool mist, taking my bike and helmet, and leading me to the massage table. Organized by Paul Mitchell Salon and Spa to support the AIDS Lifecycle, this place was an oasis with massages, ice cream, music, and plenty of shade!

Where the loud cheers were coming from!

Reluctantly, I left the Paradise Pit and headed south out of Santa Barbara toward Ventura.

On the night of Day 6, there was a candlelight vigil to remember those that have died of AIDS and for hope for the future. It was a powerful scene as we all walked onto the beach and formed a gigantic rectangle in silence. After a few moments, each person walked to the water's edge and doused out their candle.

Although Day 7 was a celebration of completing the ride, Day 6 was the most complete day. It had amazing scenery but also addressed the meaning of the ride in a unique way.

AIDS Lifecycle Day 5: 45 miles Santa Maria to Lompoc

After four days of riding hard, I was looking forward to today's ride - a short 45 mile ride.

Thursday:
Because you rode, today in San Francisco – and all over the world, 40,000 people will receive BETA: The Bulletin of Experimental Treatments for AIDS. Published three times a year in English and in Spanish, BETA is widely regarded as one of the ways we learn about new treatments for HIV in the pipeline, and new biomedical interventions that prevent HIV transmission.

Day 5 was "Dress In Red Day" to create a trail of red along the route, as in the red ribbon signifying the fight against AIDS. The name, not surprisingly, was unofficially changed to "Red Dress Day."

I took a few pictures right from my tent...


This guy (notice he's smoking a cirgarette) had bolted clips on the bottom of his platform, high heel, leather boots to clip into his bike pedals. That's dedication!









I don't think this guy's shoes go with his outfit.














Morning yoga...






Since it was a short day of riding, I left camp at the latest time possible - 8:30am. The route looped out of and back into Santa Maria before the first rest stop. At the first stop, I sat and iced both achilles at the medical tent. While resting, I overheard the Physical Therapist talking about volunteering in Nicaragua last summer. Of course, I immediately struck up a conversation with her. Then, a guy who had just sat down next to me said he had volunteered north of Managua, Nicaragua for six months in 2005. To add another level of small worldness, another guy!!! sat down and overhead us talking about Nicaragua. He jumped into our conversation and said his parents were from Nandaime, a town about 10 miles from where I lived while in the Peace Corps in Nicaragua. Before anymore Nica connections appeared, I decided it was time to get going.

Heading out of Santa Maria, the route turned into a series of short, steep climbs in the California sun out of the Santa Maria River Valley. At the bottom of each climb, you could see a stream of riders all in red, and indeed, it did look like one long red ribbon. But with the climbs it was quickly turning into a tough day of riding.

I thought these were the most creative outfits of the day.


Rolling into Lompoc, I felt like I needed to sleep in a normal bed for just one night. So, I decided to walk into town and "princess it" for the night. I was asleep by 4pm.

AIDS Lifecycle Day 4: 94.7 miles Paso Robles to Santa Maria

At breakfast, I read this in the daily flyer.

Wednesday:
Today at the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, you helped our Black Brothers Esteem program serve more than 100 people. Because you rode, you made it possible for the Brothers of Black Brothers Esteem to become empowered to demand better healthcare for themselves and their partners, to speak up about HIV and AIDS, and to come together in fellowship to celebrate themselves and their sexuality. THANK YOU!

This was the best day so far in the AIDS Lifecycle! We climbed out of Paso Robles with two big climbs during the first 20 miles. Looking back at the top of the second climb (above), I felt excited about reaching the half way point of the ride and seeing the ocean again. The salty breezes were just ahead.

Once over the top, this was the view of the Pacific. We had about a seven mile decent to the ocean on smooth roads.

My Fuji Ma, retro Formaggio jersey, and I at the half way point. I bought arm guards after the first day due to the cool weather in the morning. Most days, I ended up wearing them the entire day to avoid additional sunburn. I should've worn ear guards too, because despite applying spf30 at every rest stop, by the end of the week I had second degree burns on them. Lovely!

Once at sea level, I joined up with fellow rider Annabel from San Francisco (actually she is British but living in SF) taking turns drafting as we went from coastal town to coastal town. I wanted to stop and jump in the ocean, but riding in wet, salty bike shorts was not something I wanted to experience.

After a quick rest stop, I decided to push on ahead to try and join a group of about 15 riders I saw fly by as I was filling my water bottles. Close to ten miles later, I caught up to them as the route turned inland and up about a mile climb over a ridge. Just as I caught them, the group blew up into a few fragments. Exhausted from trying to catch them, I stayed with the slower climbers until the top. Once over the ridge, I pushed on ahead dragging a couple riders with me. Three or four miles later, I caught the lead group. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to draft and rest a bit, because a mile or so later we were flying down a long hill into the Santa Maria River Valley. The strong winds on the valley floor were strong enough to flip you over, similar to Day 2. But some rest and humor were just ahead...

...the Spa Rest Stop! Enough said!

I spent some time in the shade icing my achilles tendon before heading out ahead of the other riders I came in with. There were just 10 miles to Santa Maria, and as luck would have it, there was a strong tailwind! Flying down this busy road with a wide shoulder felt great as cars weren't passing me as fast.

I collapsed at camp and took an afternoon nap for two hours before heading to the sports medicine tent. They taped my leg up a bit, and I remained on ice for a good part of the rest of the day. Of course, I had three full plates of food and seven or eight cartons of chocolate milk. Day 5 was going to be a short and easy day......or at least I thought.