At the Starting Line

Ok, we're here in Santa Monica, at a motel on Santa Monica Boulevard, where the journey begins. Santa Monica Boulevard is part of Route 66, although our motel is further west than the original Route 66 terminus. Technically, the original Route 66 did not end at the ocean, but ended at 7th and Broadway in downtown Los Angeles. The route was later changed to extend into Santa Monica, ending at the intersection of Lincoln Boulevard and Olympic Boulevard. I suppose a brief history lesson is in order...

Route 66 was born out of the Federal-Aid Road Act of 1916 and the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1921. In 1926, Route 66 received its official designation and became America's first federally designated interstate -- winding 2500 miles between Chicago and Santa Monica. Although born in 1926 (it's anniversary is celebrated on November 11, 1926 -- which is also Veteran's day) the path of Route 66 was modified many times. In fact, the first version of Route 66 was not entirely paved and probably not completely passable by automobile. The 1931 alignment was the first fully paved version.

The word 'alignment', as used above, is a term that historians use to refer to a specific portion of the route -- at a specific moment in time. I will probably use that term fairly often as I write about the trip, given that we will often have to choose between alignments as we traverse the route. Riding every inch of every alignment is not practical for a cross-country tour. To ride every alignment, one would have to do a substantial amount of backtracking. In addition, significant portions of some alignments are completely overgrown, on private property, or more importantly, lost from history. Historians and aficionados are still uncovering pieces of the road in their quest to restore the historical record of America's first federal interstate.

So, getting back to Santa Monica... It was a 1935 alignment of Route 66 that brought the highway into Santa Monica -- just 7 blocks from the ocean, and just a few blocks from this motel. Given its proximity to the ocean and the symbolism of the shoreline for westward travelers, the Santa Monica Pier is considered the defacto terminus of Route 66. I am considering the pier to be the starting point for my journey, both for the aforementioned reasons, and because I intend to continue beyond the eastern terminus of Route 66 in Chicago, to the Atlantic shore of New York -- thereby completing a transcontinental crossing.

When we arrived in Santa Monica today, it was still early afternoon so I took a quick spin around town to get my legs loosened up. This is not a very bicycle friendly town. True to the LA stereotype, the cars are not very courteous -- to anyone or anything. For lack of a more interesting destination, and for the purposes of my transcontinental goal, I rode down to the pier at the Pacific ocean. It was a short ride -- just enough to get my legs loosened up and my knees lubricated, without tempting my fate with the LA drivers.

Rain is forecast for tomorrow (Friday), so I will probably stick to the fluid trainer until we start the tour on Sunday morning.

Ride Summary

Route: Santa Monica Pier Ramble
Distance: 9 miles

Miles this Year: 1874