3-16-13: The Inaugural Joshua Tree Double Century
This ride really sparked my interest as I have never even driven in many of the areas on this ride. What a great way to explore the area. By Bike. I had heard for a few years that my friend Anny was trying to get this ride on the Triple Crown Event Roster and boy am I glad she did. I drove out on Friday afternoon and helped with the rider check-in duties until about 9pm then hit the sack. As usual, I was not able to sleep much. The temperature was around 55 degrees so I thought we might be in trouble as the sun came up being so close to Palm Springs and knowing what the temps can be like in the area in the summer. I think it is kind of unusual to have such warm mornings in the late winter but not unheard of. I rode from the hotel to the start for about 3/4 of a mile for the 4:30 am start. We rolled out of 29 Palms about 4:31 am. 29 Palms in well known for the very large Marine Corp Base located there. Heading out of town, west bound, toward Joshua Tree and Yucca Va