Saturday, June 15th, 2013 @ 5:55PM

Total Time: 3:17.20 (About 4 hours total)
Miles: 41.57
Avg Speed: 13.6 (12.6 with arrivals) mph
Max Speed: 37.8mph
Status: Completed

Today really made me feel like a little kid. This was mainly due to the friendship visits that the JOH team was going to encounter today. But I will get to that later because this was a ride that I do not want to forget.

First and foremost, I want to say again that the country is truly beautiful and you get a whole different insight about it when you are on a bike and have the natural sounds surround you. Today???s ride marked the first time the JOH team broke the statins and entered another one. California was great and hopefully I will be able to visit the state on another occasion. The riders entered Nevada about 2 miles into the ride and it was a relieving feeling that we worked hard and accomplished a task of entering another state.

For my pace line, as we entered Nevada, we had to climb up another hill. These hills were not as long as the 3 mountain passes on the previous ride but it was steeper and we had to encounter them early in the ride. My muscles were not as awake going up these hills so I was struggling. Plus, climbing up to 7000 feet of elevation at 8:00 AM the temperature was really cold. If anything that ride was torture.

Luckily the incline lasted about a half an hour and we were rewarded an 8 mile descent to 4000 feet. That drop was amazing and this also gave me an opportunity to check out the Nevada. Going downhill and seeing the city, as well as the winding roads downward truly had me in awe. Finally reaching the bottom the rest of the terrain was flat and I could see the road from miles away. In addition, the entire area of Nevada is covered with a big mountain surrounding it so it feels like the city is under a big dome. There were also times where I seemed to see houses and buildings and they were placed in some of the most barren areas.

For the most part this has been one of the easier rides. Later we did another arrival at a Boys and Girls club in Nevada. This was definitely a change if pace to the friendship visits that I have been getting accustomed to. While interacting with the little kids, I had a nostalgic feeling back when I had to go to the Boys and Girls club when I was their age. What a great time to have some flashbacks.

After mingling with the children some of the JOH riders did a puppet show to spread awareness to people with disabilities. The show was a hit and the kids were entertained. Then we all had an opportunity to introduce ourselves to the kids. They treated us like superheroes (must be the spandex). It was a fun time hanging out with the kids.

The next stop of the day was going to a children???s museum. That was a great time to show off my inner child. There was a rock climbing machine, jungle gym, as well as other things that kept the children an the cyclists occupied. We later did the puppet show segment again and the reception was similar to the last one.

The last today was a sponsored dinner to a Rotary Club and they had a barbecue. The food looked fantastic, but since I knew that Eating bad would make my cycling experience poor as well as normally to eating healthy, I kept my meals at a minimum.

Tomorrow marks a 5 day trip through the desert and things will be interesting. I will have no service most likely but I will continue to write updates. One of the days will be my first century ride and it will be tougher than the Lake Tahoe ride due to the heat. Cannot wait for this challenge.

Posted by Reggie Quaye
Categories: Journey of Hope, Philanthropy