Day Five of the Israel Ride

Today was the final leg of the Israel Ride in support of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies and Hazon. The crew biked from Ne’oot Smadar to Eilat.

Final Day Ride Report:

"Today's run took us along the Egyptian border. The terrain was some long steady climbs and similar descents and one several-mile pretty flat stretch where I wound up pulling a train* of several riders (minds out of the gutter, dear readers—this is a cycling expression. See below). 

The notable feature of the day was the 6-mile pretty steep descent into Eilat. Plenty of switchbacks meant that speed didn't get above about 35. On the straight downhill just before that, I set my high speed for the week at 42.1 mph.

Another pic. This, (at left), is the long hill leading up to the lunch stop (there has been no lack of food on this ride). See that castle-like thing on the hill in the back? (click on the image to embiggen it—yur welcome) That's an Egyptian security outpost. We were right on the border.

The curvy hill into Eilat was truly exhilarating. There was a moment when I came around a curve and saw the Red Sea in the distance. That's when it hit me that I had just ridden 258 miles over 5 days through some of the most breathtaking land I've ever seen. Thank you for coming with me."

Congratulations to Hillel and his 178 (approximately 178) fellow bike fiends!

* Glossary!

Pull
This means riding on the front of a paceline or peloton. To “take a pull” means you’re the person working the hardest since you’re not getting any benefits from drafting. In a rotating paceline, take a short pull, drift to the side, and then roll to the back of the line and let the next person pull. 

Draft until it’s your turn to be on the front again. This is a tactic used by groups for maximum efficiency on long rides or when there’s a strong headwind. (source)

Drafting
This involves cycling behind another rider so they block the wind for you. Cyclists like to take advantage of this because it requires about 30 percent less energy. (source)

Paceline (AKA train)
A formation in which riders (especially cycle racers) travel in a line one close behind the other in order to conserve energy by riding in the draft of the riders in front thus enabling the group to travel at a faster rate than any of the riders in the group could do alone. (source)