1st Day of BTC

Dad: "Around every corner there was another spectacular scene awaiting us."
Mom: "So when do we start the climbing?"
Kyle: "The best day of cycling ever!"

80 miles and 4600 feet of climbing 17.5mph average. I think that our training was pretty sufficient so far. Even though we all climbed at diferent speeds, all three of us were able to pass a lot of cyclists. The best part was that we didn't seem to suffer any ill effects from the altitude up here. This was not the hardest or highest day, so we won't start gloating quite yet.
The only wrench in the works was that when I reached the top of the climb, I waited for my parents. They didn't see me and rode on ahead. I spent a long time at the top and made several new friends. The main downside was that I had to ride the second half of the day by myself. On the plus side, I was able to get in some good riding and even with a stiff head wind averaged 20 mph for the last 40 miles.
As alluded to already, the ride was simply spectacular. It really is difficult to describe or even to capture fully in a photograph. We were riding along rushing rivers, past waterfalls, beneath towering peaks and shear cliffs. I will try to post some photos on flickr, but be patient as the internet is spotty at best here.