ALC TEN.... Thoughts and Pictures Day One 6/5/11

The demands of the ride just did not leave me with the time or energy to post the daily blog that I had hoped to provide to those of you who were interested. But better late than never is the attitude I am adopting. So here goes. I am typing this on Sunday evening and will post at least Day One. More will come tomorrow.

Mostly I am posting some of the pictures I've taken that convey some of my impressions of the ride. Day One, June 5, coincidentally marked the 30th anniversary when the Center for Disease Control officially recognized what came to be called the AIDS virus. Since that time over 1.7 million people in the United States have been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS and more than 600,000 individuals with hopes and dreams for a full and productive life have died.

The Inspiring Opening Ceremony

In the Cow Palace at 6 AM, 2361 riders and more than 500 "roadies"(people who helped with everything from serving meals, to traffic control) carting all the riders' luggage, picking up garbage, all the stuff needed to make a temporary city of close to 3000 people move to a new location daily) gathered to remember why we ride....to fund the effort end AIDS and help those who are living with AIDS, and provide information and assistance to the general population to prevent new infections.

My ailing bik

Being among the first 600 riders out the door I was feeling great about what a wonderful start I was making then 2 miles from the Cow Palace, I got a flat tire!  Not being too adept at tire changing, I just put on my "needy face" and three riders stopped to help me.  One of the wonderful things about ALC riders and the community they create is that people go out of their way to be helpful and kind.  It is a bit like life in a small rural town of a century ago.

 While it had rained heavily the day before and rain was threatening all of Sunday, mercifully it held off.  Our route took us from San Francisco (well really Daly City) down to Santa Cruz.  By the way, if you would like to see more pictures taken by others on the ride over the course of the week, CLICK HERE and then click on the city mentioned for pictures from that particular day on the ride.

Riding into the ALC camp site in Santa Cruz

Bikes checked into "bike parking" for the night