And we're off! Manhattan Beach to Riverside, CA

Breakfast was at 5:30 AM in anticipation of a 7:00 AM departure.  CrossRoads makes a big deal of the first ride, lining up the riders two-by-two and escorting them to the beach.  It was a cold morning; rain had fallen overnight, and the wind was off shore.  Let me repeat that, the wind was off shore; it was in our faces all day, but we didn't get rained on much.  After wheel dipping in the ocean; no, I paid too much for mine to expose them to salt water; and group pictures, we headed up the steep hill from the pier and headed east.  The first part of the ride is on city streets with many, many stoplights.  We then started up the Santa Ana River canyon and joined a wonderful bike path that parallels the busy freeway.  The ride through Corona was not very nice, with traffic, and narrow roads.  After we reached Riverside, we were treated to the beautiful ride up Victoria - nine miles of palm lined street bordered by orange groves.  Short of the hotel by one-mile we stopped at McDs for large chocolate shakes - an appetizer before dinner.

79 miles; 6:00 hours; 2,321' of climb; and 3,544 Calories burned.