Tuesday, March 29
Five Palm Springs to Palo Verde
54 miles

I left my off road campsite just after the sun came up, rode most of the way down the sandy wash (where I’d walked the bike in yesterday), and was on the road by 7am. I made pretty good time to the Glamis store, where I met the leader of a supported cross-country ride, the Wandering Wheelers. (Supported means a truck is carrying their gear, unlike me.) He was riding a scooter ahead of the bikers, though he himself had ridden across the country 43 times! As his lead rider cruised in, I headed out, with an invitation to lunch with their group. Almost immediately, the wind kicked up and I slowed down. Dan, the lead rider, caught up with me pretty quickly, and we chatted for a bit, even though he had to practically pedal backwards to go at my pace.

We stopped when two self-supported (carrying gear) riders crossed the road to talk to us. Turns out they were also heading East, but had turned back because the headwind was so strong around the corner. They were heading back to the Glamis store to try to get a ride. When Ben and I rode from Boston to Seattle, we had a lot of headwinds. You just go really slow for a long time. It’s not the most fun, but it’s doable. Still, I asked those guys to stop and check on me if they came by with a ride. I didn’t see them again. I struggled for probably 15 miles against the wind, stopping occasionally to take pictures of the dramatic scenery. Well, stopping a lot for almost any reason, really, just to have a quick rest.

Glamis Dunes

Wandering Wheelers passed me throughout the day. I was thrilled to see their yellow truck at a corner and pulled off to have lunch with them. Their group was mostly in their 60′s or older. This was not the first time across the country for most of them. I look forward to that kind of activity at that age! Still, a rider like me carrying gear caused quite a stir among them. At lunch, I learned that one of them, Dean Welch, is from Jacksonville, Illinois, where my dad spends his summers. Then I found out that Mr. Welch and his wife Judy were on the Odyssey 2000 around the world ride with Ben! Such a small world!

Dean Welch and I at lunch

Parked at the welcoming support truck

After lunch, the headwind had mostly died down, but the damage was already done. It was another long 20 miles to the campground in Palo Verde, with a series of up and down hills. I had to walk to the top of two of them, but most were easy enough to get over. Most of the Wheelers were already ahead of me, but a few passed by. I enjoyed meeting Terry, who was from Arlington Heights, Illinois.

When I arrived in Palo Verde, the convenient store was closed, but I could see the Wheeler’s yellow support truck right off the road. I was glad they had invited me to camp with them, because it was at more of a mobile home park than a campground, so I didn’t have to worry about the organizing. Once again at dinner, I enjoyed being part of a group where we were all interested in the same crazy thing. We also had a good laugh over the pair that had turned back in the face of the headwinds earlier in the day. One of them had commented, “I’m 50 years old! I don’t want to have a heart attack!” This vibrant group, several in their 80′s, thought that was pretty rich.

Turns out, this is also the last coast to coast ride for this group, as Coach and his wife Marilyn, leaders of the Wheelers, are sort of retiring. They’ll still be running some shorter trips, but it was an honor to be a part of their last southern crossing!

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