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magidThe day before there had been time to put together bikes (for those who'd brought their own) or get fitted (for those who'd rented; also putting on things like pedals and saddle) and do a short 5 km ride through Gan Sacher. After dinner we'd had our first briefing, going over safety things as well as the route. We would be getting up early, so after packing and making sure I had water already in the Camelbak, I went to bed. To bed, but not to sleep; I don't know why, but it was incredibly difficult to sleep (and I was far from the only one; lots of people said the same thing).
So. Wednesday morning we all got up early. I joined the minyan in front of the hotel; so strange to daven with so many people wearing the same clothes (we'd been requested to wear the official ride jerseys they gave us). It was lovely looking out over the city, and I'd forgotten that in Israel, there's birkat kohanim every day.
There was a special early breakfast, then we got our bikes, did some quick stretching, and went up to the front parking lot. There was an opening ceremony with a few speeches; tefillat haderech said in English, Hebrew, and Arabic; and a shofar blown. Then we were off, riding through Jerusalem.
Luckily, we had a police escort, which was enormously helpful in the cities when they blocked traffic so we could make it through as a group (many cars honked their horns, apparently in support, though the sounds came across as more annoyed to me; outside the city, it seemed that the honking was more obviously supportive (no clue why the difference)). We went by the Knesset and Hebrew University, and meandered down out of the city by Ein Karem/Hadassah. I was amused that a single pot hole was something to point out to riders behind, so different from home (and when I got back, I realized I'd already started to get used to the reasonably smooth roads; it's impressive what winter freeze-thaw cycles manage to do).
The first day was the longest cue sheet, since we had cities at both ends. For those who are familiar with the area, we:
Of note: Israel seems addicted to constructing traffic circles where there isn't an obvious 90 degree sort of intersection. In many places, the surface is different, of brick rather than regular pavement, to make it more clear. I find it ironic, when so many places in the States are taking out or avoiding traffic circles.
When we got to the hotel, we were directed to the far side, where there was a parking lot. We carried our bikes upstairs to what looked like a fenced basketball court, putting them in roughly alphabetical order (all the A-C last names here, then the D-F, etc; this is how the luggage was distributed as well, and it worked nicely), then upstairs again to walk through the pool area to the hotel lobby where we picked up room keys and found our bags.
Many people went for a swim; I stretched, showered, washed out my bike clothes (forgetting that Ashkelon, being on the coast, is significantly more humid than Jerusalem, so they wouldn't dry overnight), and had some time to write before dinner. There was to have been some kind of presentation by Arava students, but that got canceled, so there was just the regular briefing, with a postcard offer: they had ride postcards printed up, and if we wanted to send any, they'd put the postage on and send them to the States for us (until Shabbat or so, when it changed to having to buy the stamps). So I took advantage of the talk-that-wasn't to start on my postcards :-).
It also gave me something to do while waiting for the medic. I was just starting the sore throat part of the cold I developed, and wanted to see if he had anything that would help. He gave me two lozenges, but in the end, they didn't do anything. Ah, well.
Back up to the room, to repack, refill water containers, and make everything ready for the next morning.
So. Wednesday morning we all got up early. I joined the minyan in front of the hotel; so strange to daven with so many people wearing the same clothes (we'd been requested to wear the official ride jerseys they gave us). It was lovely looking out over the city, and I'd forgotten that in Israel, there's birkat kohanim every day.
There was a special early breakfast, then we got our bikes, did some quick stretching, and went up to the front parking lot. There was an opening ceremony with a few speeches; tefillat haderech said in English, Hebrew, and Arabic; and a shofar blown. Then we were off, riding through Jerusalem.
Luckily, we had a police escort, which was enormously helpful in the cities when they blocked traffic so we could make it through as a group (many cars honked their horns, apparently in support, though the sounds came across as more annoyed to me; outside the city, it seemed that the honking was more obviously supportive (no clue why the difference)). We went by the Knesset and Hebrew University, and meandered down out of the city by Ein Karem/Hadassah. I was amused that a single pot hole was something to point out to riders behind, so different from home (and when I got back, I realized I'd already started to get used to the reasonably smooth roads; it's impressive what winter freeze-thaw cycles manage to do).
The first day was the longest cue sheet, since we had cities at both ends. For those who are familiar with the area, we:
- left the Crowne Plaza Jerusalem, making a right onto The 6th President Blvd.
- continued onto Yigal Zusman St.
- merged onto Kaplan St., passing the Knesset.
- right onto Ruppin St., passing the Israel Museum and Shrine of the Book.
- straight on Wolfson, passing Hebrew University.
- left onto Herzl Blvd.
- near Yad vaShem, right then left into Ein Karem.
- onto Rte. 386.
- had a rest stop at Sataf Reserve.
- went up the hill of doom (3-4 km up, with something like an average 6% grade, twisting and turning).
- stopped near Nes Harim, then continued onto Rte 375 at Beit Shemesh.
- passed the emek Ha'Elah satellite station, then turned left onto Rte. 38.
- straight through Nechushta Junction, then right towards Kiryat Gat.
- lunch in Beit Guvrin.
After lunch Alon gave a talk about the history of black goats in Israel: they were seen as a major reason for desertification in the Negev, because they eat everything down to the ground. So there was a law passed against them. Which meant that a bunch of agressive species started making comebacks, and people realized that there was a balance that had been disturbed. So now some black goats are allowed, in limited quantities.
And after that, we walked (in bike shoes... not trivial) over to some of the Bell Caves, which had been quarried centuries ago. It was strange to have caves with such powdery, chalky walls, but the acoustics were great, and the lighting interesting, given the holes in the tops. The Shomrim got a more extensive tour as the rest of us got back on our bikes. - back to the main road heading towards Beit Nir.
- left onto Rte. 353 at Beit Nir, heading towards Qiryat Gat and Qiryat Malakhi. careful crossing the train tracks.
- right onto Hwy. 40, then immediate left onto Rte. 3533 towards Qomemiyyut (we had to wait until everyone gathered for this, as the police stopped the traffic on this major highway as we crossed).
- left towards Aluma and Ravah, where there was a rest stop in a playground.
- right onto Hwy. 35, towards Ashkelon.
- left onto Rte. 4.
- right at the traffic signal into Ashkelon.
- right at the T-junction onto Hatayasim St., then straight through the traffic circles until the parking lot by the Mediterranean. Group photo, drumming, celebration, then finding our way to the half-egg-shaped hotel we could see just north of us.
Of note: Israel seems addicted to constructing traffic circles where there isn't an obvious 90 degree sort of intersection. In many places, the surface is different, of brick rather than regular pavement, to make it more clear. I find it ironic, when so many places in the States are taking out or avoiding traffic circles.
When we got to the hotel, we were directed to the far side, where there was a parking lot. We carried our bikes upstairs to what looked like a fenced basketball court, putting them in roughly alphabetical order (all the A-C last names here, then the D-F, etc; this is how the luggage was distributed as well, and it worked nicely), then upstairs again to walk through the pool area to the hotel lobby where we picked up room keys and found our bags.
Many people went for a swim; I stretched, showered, washed out my bike clothes (forgetting that Ashkelon, being on the coast, is significantly more humid than Jerusalem, so they wouldn't dry overnight), and had some time to write before dinner. There was to have been some kind of presentation by Arava students, but that got canceled, so there was just the regular briefing, with a postcard offer: they had ride postcards printed up, and if we wanted to send any, they'd put the postage on and send them to the States for us (until Shabbat or so, when it changed to having to buy the stamps). So I took advantage of the talk-that-wasn't to start on my postcards :-).
It also gave me something to do while waiting for the medic. I was just starting the sore throat part of the cold I developed, and wanted to see if he had anything that would help. He gave me two lozenges, but in the end, they didn't do anything. Ah, well.
Back up to the room, to repack, refill water containers, and make everything ready for the next morning.