Ready to ride at the CA/NV line. L to R: Jim Kern, Vicki Pelton, Tim Woudenberg, Anthony Gilbert. photo by Lee Mitchell

Vicki Pelton begins the narrative:
While I have crewed for many long-distance cycling events, I figured I wasn't strong enough to actually ride in one. I knew there were cross-state records, but California is a big state and out of my reach. Then I realized they allowed two-person teams. Hey, that's doable. I was extremely fortunate to have Tim Woudenberg join me as my riding partner. He has done many long-distance events but had never done a cross-state record, so he was eager to try something new.

Another wonderful thing to happen was to have Lee Mitchell join the team as the Official. While he would not be able to physically help as Official, with his vast experience, it was a great peace of mind to have him watching over us. Continuing on the same trend, Jim Kern and Anthony Gilbert joined as crew, each with years of experience crewing and riding. The combined experience of the team was longer than my years on this planet.

This would be a day of many firsts for me: nighttime riding, 24-hour ride, hour on/hour off and supported ride. I was wondering how I'd do with all these challenges. Since I was the newbie, I got to start. After all of the effort to organize this ride, I was finally on my bike, riding. This was a big, complicated event for me, but once I got riding, it seemed so simple.

The ride started in the high (i.e., cold) desert, then went over Yuba Pass (i.e., colder), through pine covered mountains, down steep walled canyons and into the Central Valley grasslands. We were now halfway through and encountered our first (and only) traffic and stoplights.

I found myself pushing harder than I normally do. I knew Tim was pushing hard, as he always does. I wanted to make sure I pushed just as hard. It seemed only fair. I also wanted to make good time for the team. They were donating their time to my ride and I wanted to do all I could to make it a success. I found since I was only biking an hour at a time, I could concentrate on keeping my speed up.

Tim Woudenberg continues the narrative:
Though Vicki is new to the endurance scene, she is undaunted by it and is quite enthusiastic about taking her pulls. It had rained most of the day, but we were keeping a good pace (above 17 mph overall average). We were ahead of schedule, which entirely offsets the fact that both Vicki and I were soaked to the skin and there was no sign of the rain letting up. The funny part is that when you're out on the bike, you're warmed up and feeling good. The uncomfortable part is when you're in the van cooling down. The toughest part was standing in the rain waiting for the swap.

Timothy Woudenberg and Vicki Pelton nearing the finish. photo by Jim Kern

As we approached the coast, there were some hills to climb. I figured, "it will be a long, hilly, wet night, but I am used to this. The surprising thing is that although Vicki is not used to this, she is still up for the challenge."

There at the top of the hill, out of nowhere, it came. That unexpected ride-ending event. We hadn't planned for this one. In all the combined experience of the crew and riders, none of us have ever faced this. The California Highway Patrol officer stood next to his patrol car.

I said, "Good evening officer," as I rolled to a stop there. He didn't want to talk with me; he wanted to speak with the follow vehicle. I stood there quietly out of earshot, expecting to restart as soon as the cop had satisfied his curiosity. It was taking a while. I was starting to cool down and was anticipating a long, chilly downhill ride. Finally, Anthony walked over and gave me the news. The cop would not let us continue. He said the bike was fine but the follow vehicle was impeding traffic. It was not safe.

I was quite upset over this but was doing my best to control myself. The crew was civil and negotiating in fine form but not getting anywhere. Lee Mitchell knew that if the cop says you can't go, that means you can't go. UMCA rules require you to obey the cop.

The next part of the story is all about how an experienced crew deals with new situations. I was most impressed. Lee marked the time and the spot. We found the nearest hotel and got some rooms. Lee called the UMCA Records Chair, explained the situation, and got him to approve that Lee be in service for more than 24 hours, given that he gets an 8-hour sleep break. The plan was to restart the attempt 12 hours later at sunrise. At that point, the bike can roll without a follow vehicle. The cop would have no case. Unfortunately, there was no way to erase the 12 hours from the clock. In effect, we would set a very easy record to break.

The next morning we started fresh. The rain had stopped. It was going to be a good day.

Vicki Pelton finishes the narrative:

Timothy Woudenberg and Vicki Pelton at the finish. photo by Jim Kern

It was a delight biking through the quaint little towns around Clear Lake. There was very little traffic, all was quiet, my wheels were crunching the fall leaves and the bright sun made everything look beautiful. I was so jazzed going up Hopland Grade. I was full of energy and around every turn I got a different view. I could look down and see the long twisty road I had just ascended. I did that?!

At about mile 290 we got to the final hills, with lots of 12% grades, on up to 16%. But I loved it. We were near the end and I powered up the hills. At each swap, Tim jumped on his bike and did the same. We passed through dense redwood forests and then descended to the Pacific Ocean. The last few miles Tim and I rode together. We were biking on a spit of land, surrounded on three sides by the pounding Pacific waves, headed toward Point Arena Lighthouse. The sun lit up the lighthouse and the ocean as we crossed the finish line. All was well with the world.

This route has little traffic, good roads and shows off the spectacular and varied scenery that California has to offer. As a California native, I'm thrilled to be given this opportunity to offer this route to the cycling community. My hope is that many others will be drawn to the beauty of this route and come out to establish many more records.