The Stick and the Ace Bandage

Now the truth can be told. When I got back to the hotel after my accident I could not move my wrist and could not move my arm above my shoulder. I thought my trip had ended before it began. Peter gave me some ibuprofen to ease the swelling. He also brought back some ice and I iced my shoulder while I laying in the bathtub. I went out to dinner with Glenn and his boyfriend, Mark.

I have known Glenn since 1987 when we worked in internal audit. In Japan, there is a go-between person who introduces prospective person to each other. I always say that Glenn was that person. When I asked Yuko out, she spoke to Glenn in Japan. Both claim this story is totally made up in my mind and it probably is, but it is a nice story.

Glenn lives in Palm Springs now and he is doing well. A little hot this time of the year. He says hello to Yuko.

At dinner, Mark and I discussed how to make me heal better. He suggested icing for my shoulder every few hours and I asked him if we could get a good ace bandage that immobilized my wrist. After dinner we went to Kmart and he found a good ace bandage. I put it on and almost immediately I felt better. The next issue to solve was my shoulder. I iced at 9:00 and woke up a little before 12:00 and got some more ice for my shoulder. I slept until 3:30 and then I got the stick. I massaged my shoulder for 2 hours. By the time that breakfast started I was able to ride without pain.

Below are the hero's of the day, the stick and the ace bandage. I could ride !!!!

Today we started on an uphill climb of 11.3 miles. It was a relatively flat climb, but it was hot. At about the 20 mile mark I met up with the flat tire team (minus champ). Harry, Karen and Alex. Harry is from Liverpool and I can honestly say that I do not understand half of what he says. He is a very considerate rider. He always checks to make sure that all the riders are within range and will slow up to make sure we stick together. Karen is the navigator and makes sure that we are going in the right direction. Alex did hardly no training, but he is a very strong rider.

The desert is very hot and I drank allot of fluids and some of the fizz drink. It worked well. I kept very hydrated and Peter loaned me a water bottle that I used to pour water over my head.

The group of people are good riders and as you exit a SAG you see other riders entering all exit.

Barbie joined us at the SAG and I asked her if her ride on the back tire was a little bumpy. She said no and at mile 87 I heard Alex from behind say flat tire. We fixed (primarily Alex and Harry). However, when we put the new tube and put air in it I got another flat. We then put another tube in and my problem was fixed. Alec went back to his bike and his back tire was flat. We fixed that tire and Rick and Tracy from Crossroads came back and pumped Alec's tire with air. We continued on our way and at mile 95, Karen got a front flat tire. We fixed that and continued back to the hotel. Below is a picture of us at the hotel after completing our ride:

Indio to Blythe

Total miles 100.53

MPH 15.6

Actual ride time 6:26:22

Tomorrow we ride around 115 miles.