I am naming the Salt Lake to Denver section of this ride 'Chasing Abby'. Our new rider is a machine, and both John's have made the sane choice of letting me try to keep up by myself. They are going to catch up with me in Denver where I am spending a few days conducting interviews. Abby and my mileage totals have been 70-90miles per day, which is becoming normal for me. The tough part is that over the last 1,400 miles, whilst I averaged 11.7 mph (and for the last five days averaged 14), I've still arrived an hour after her at most stops.
And now the Rocky Mountains are here... and I am scared. Tomorrow morning we climb Rabbit Ears Pass, one of the two passes that will constitute our crossing of the largest mountain range in North America. It is steep and long, and did I mention steep? A 7-8% grade for 20+ miles is going to hurt like hell. And then there's an even bigger one the next day as we traverse Rocky Mountain National Park. If I can survive this, the rest of the trip is all downhill from here... literally and figuratively.
We spent the day today in a beautiful ski town; Steamboat Springs, CO. Steamboat, like many other local communities derives most of its income from tourism, largely from the skiing industry. And with oneof the predictions of climate models being decreased snowpack and shorter winters, ski areas are getting the message. They are starting to take the lead in reducing CO2 emissions in their operations.
If nothing is done to curb emissions, greenhouse gas emissions could raise Sierra temperatures another 5 or 6 degrees by the end of the 21st century, according to some projections. The snowpack could be reduced by 89 percent.It is great to see industries getting the message, but I just hope it's not too little too late.The same is true for Aspen, CO where global warming could give the Colorado town the climate of Los Alamos, N.M., by 2100.
Climate change has become Topic A in the industry. And many resort owners are trying to do something about it. About 46 U.S. resorts are spending to help expand the market for renewable energy sources, particularly wind. Nineteen are offsetting 100 percent of their energy use by purchasing wind-power credits. The list includes many of the nation's major ski resorts. - SFGate
Note: Interview/itinerary suggestions for the trip can be emailed to me.
| Ride To Sustain will pass through the following cities: San Francisco, CA – Sacramento, CA – Reno, NV – Salt Lake City, UT – Denver, CO – Omaha, NB – Des Moines, IA – Chicago, IL – Detroit, MI – Cleveland, OH – Pittsburgh, PA – Washington, DC – Philadelphia, PA – New York City, NY – Hartford, CT – Boston, MA |
