PMC #2. https://www.relive.cc/view/1749498107 3:30am wakeup to make the 4am bus from the La Quinta to the Host Hotel launch site. Met Jim W. there and had breakfast. Got our bikes in the left chute to get the "earlier" start. Looking out over the sea of bikers and bikes at 5am is really awe-inspiring. Great to see all parent-child pairs and the large teams that inspire and support one another. The start was very efficient: quick announcement by Billy Starr, the national anthem sung by one of the riders, and then the send off. It's a slow walk to the start line and easy roll out. Amazingly, I saw the Acton-based Team Crank members on the first turn onto Rt 20: Peter, Mark B, and Karen C. It took me until Day 2 last year to meet them ;-) Riding out under the giant American flag draped between two cranes at the start is really moving. Rode with Jim safely and easily to start. Much to my amazement, my legs felt good once we got going and started spinning a good tempo on the early short climbs. We started passing people and just kept a decent tempo. I noticed that my HR was not going up anywhere near where it did on Day Zero, so either it was the effects of fatigue or that it was cooler and overcast than the previous day, only being in the low 70's to start. Climbs went fine and there is a lot of descending to the first rest stop. Tried to be careful, given the throngs of people you have to ride with. Speed picked up after the second rest stop. Jim and I managed to tag onto a few wheels to make the ride go quicker. Somewhere in the middle, the put the gallery of road signs with the pictures of the Pedal Partner kids, the kids with cancer who are paired with different cycling teams. It caught me up short like last year and made my hear jump into my throat and tears well up. There were other times that brought spontaneous waves of emotion, largely at the start and finish, but often when passing riders who had pictures of loved ones or ten's of ribbons each with the names of individuals. I carried my paper list of people of "Why I Ride"; those physical displays made it tangible all day long. After the Franklin rest stop, we managed to tag onto a well-matched group of about 8 and we were flying for maybe 15-20 miles on a paceline. It was exhilarating and required a fair bit of concentration, but it made the miles fly by fast. I did some strong pulls at the front to earn my keep. I was gratified to see I had it in me. Did another good stretch down to the final rest stop, where we found a well-matched rider from Stow, MA, John S, who we shared pulls with all the way to the end. We worked really well together, and they were two very steady wheels to follow. Again it made it quick work. We had only had a little rain in the middle 1/3 or so of the ride, and it felt nice. Only a few sketchy downhill turns on wet roads, all negotiated safely. We pulled into Mass Maritime Academy at Borne and collected our gear. I just stripped and changed into shorts and t shirt. It started to rain in earnest after I'd arrived. I gather that those finishing after us really got soaked. There were torrential rains in the late afternoon. I said goodbye to Jim and met up with Peter W to go back to Paul and Liney's place in Marion, for a shower, dinner, and bed. It was fantastic, like last year and gave me a decent night's sleep to recover and get ready for Day 2. An excellent day's ride: strong pulls, great motivation, decent weather.