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We’ve seen and heard many a story about the annual Parker Western Tube Float on the Colorado River just south of the Parker Dam. This year we thought we’d give it a go. Rather than just grabbing a tube from Costco, (which we thought about doing) we decided to build a float and enter the annual tube float contest.

This year’s theme was “Hawaii” so what better way to show our Hawaiian spirit than to build a floating tiki hut complete with tiki torches, bamboo walls, a palm tree leaf roof, blow up palm tree coolers and even a flowing waterfall off the back. We named her Lulu and man did she kick a$$!

She measured 8 feet wide by 12 feet long with a 6 foot tall roof/canopy. Underneath was 8 truck tire tubes filled to the max with air to maximize our floating potential. Building and decorating was a blast. Between us all, (Mostly Bob) we spent tons of money and many weeks planning and building our float.

Here was our day:

5:00 AM – Woke up, got the cafe going and then made our way down to Parker. (Weather was a bit overcast)

6:20 AM – Started assembly of our float down at Bob’s campsite at the Bluewater. 10 of us started the project. Had a few filling tubes up with air, had some tying palm tree leaves to the roof, had a few working on the base…what a morning and what a team!

8:00 AM – Made our way over to Patria Flats Day Use Park. Circled around and got stuck in a very crowded and unorganized parking lot. Ended up parking a few blocks away down towards the fire department.

8:30 AM – Worked hard getting the tubes tied to the base of the float and got our registration bags.

9:00 AM – Started decorations while we had some tasty Breakfast Burritos from Miriam! Float was looking good!

9:30 AM – Worked our way towards the launch ramp. STILL FULL of people trying to get in. Fortunately we had a truck and trailer to move the float!

10:00 AM – Started down the river. WELL, kind of. The wind was blowing up river and there was no current to help push us along. Some kicking manpower was important at this point. (Weather still a bit overcast but getting warm)

10:30 AM – Moved about 15 feet down river. Drank about 15 beers.

11:00 AM – At this point we had already seen about 20 “thumbs up” from people going by in boats and in other tubes. Our float was getting approval and we were feeling pretty good.

12:00 PM – 3:00 PM – Many a drink, a few water fights and some more floating. (and the occasional tow out from the shore)

3:00 PM – Finally had to get towed in from our buddy. Just weren’t making much ground. (Neither were 99% of the tubers)

3:30 PM – Arrived at Bluewater Resort and removed our float from the water. Stayed together great! And people loved coming up to our float for a look over. Even had some people come up and take pictures next to it. We dismantled it and got out of there. (after finding out we weren’t even judged or considered for the contest which was complete crap…yes we are whining!)

4:30 PM – ??? – I really don’t remember past that point.

A few tips the Parker Area Chamber of Commerce forgets to tell you about the “Great Western Tube Float” that you may want to know:

• Parking is out of control past 8:30 am – Nobody helps facilitate parking so everyone parks any place they feel like… so it gets to be fun trying to get in, park and get your float in the water. Get there early so you have a spot to park. (between 7 and 8 am)
• Bring an air compressor – The Buckskin Fire Dept. generously allows you to use theirs but hundreds of people are trying to do that. Bring a portable compressor for your tubes or blow them up ahead of time!
• Float judging – If you want your float judged apparently you have to be down BY THE WATER BEFORE 8:30 AM. If not, you will not be judged. This would have been great to know! Even if the people that gave us our registration bag would have told us this that would have helped. Even if the folks putting this on mentioned it over their loudspeaker we couldn’t hear it because we had to park 2 blocks away from the launch ramp.
• Why pay the $15 registration fee? – More than half the people we floated along with didn’t have wrist bands showing they registered for the event. No need! Many people just grabbed their tubes and jumped in. All you get for the $15 registration fee is a t-shirt. They said that there was a “registered only” place at the Bluewater but this was not the case…open to everyone! If you want the T-shirt though…pay the registration ahead of time. (and make your check out to the Parker Area Chamber of Commerce and mail it in the week before)
• Life jackets not needed – Sure it’s smart to wear a life jacket as you float and drink all day but to state it in the rules that if you don’t wear a life jacket you get disqualified…BS. The winning float this year didn’t have life jackets on nor did anyone else. Bring them but no need to wear, you’ll mess up your tan!
• Towing – If you have a boat or a friend with a boat or jet ski, bring it along. Most people had to get towed due to the lack of water movement.
• Finish line – The finish line party is a joke. Some old guy playing music on a ghetto blaster. You’re better off finding a camp spot or a beach and then partying with others. (if you have anything left)
• Don’t forget to drink water too!

Friends and family can check out our full tube float photo gallery here.
(dp can hook you up with password, etc.)

If you are going to travel from LA to San Diego on a weekend, make sure you leave super early in the morning or later Friday night. Traffic mid-morning on the 5 south of Irvine is just terrible. We left about 9ish from the South Bay and didn’t get to Coronado until about 1. Traffic was bad. It was great to finally get there and start enjoying the day.

Once we got over the spectacular Coronado bridge, we went to a little ferry landing area on the bay side of the island. (opposite of of where Hotel Coronado sits) We rented some beach cruisers and made our way around the island towards the hotel.

Because it was very crowded and there were signs all over stating no bicycles, we locked up our cruisers in a bike rack and decided to take in the sites by foot. We walked down towards the spectacular Hotel del Coronado. Old, large, right on the beach and FULL of tourists! Just like disneyland, we saw bus loads of tourists getting out to walk around the hotel. Not a place to get away from the crowds but pretty to see. We didn’t spend much time here. Walked around for a bit and then moved on again to the shopping and restaurant area of Coronado right down the street.

We stumbled on to a great little Mexican food restaurant for lunch. Costa Azul. They had a pretty good Mojito and the house Margarita was great. The food was really enjoyable. Had a nice combo platter along with some great salsa! Would highly recommend it!

So after a full lunch and a few drinks we jumped back on the beach cruisers and rolled back to the other side of the island. Along the way we found some beautiful homes along the golf course!

We turned in our bikes and went back over the bridge to our hotel. We stayed Northwest of downtown San Diego right on the water in the bay. We got a room on the 10th floor with an amazing view of Coronado, the bay and downtown. We relaxed a bit, enjoyed the view and then got ready for a Japanese dinner.

Dinner at Benihana’s is always fun. You just have to try it once if you’ve never been there. The chef’s come out and cook right in front of you. They twist, twirl and flip their knives while tossing food in the air and even turn onion rings into volcanoes. Anyway, it’s a good time. Dinner and a show for sure!

The next day we slept in! After getting ready we made our way towards downtown to Seaport Village. Walked around a bit and then had some lunch at a Chicago pizza joint. (pizza was ok but not TRUE Chicago deep dish) After lunch we walked up to the big Aircraft carrier and checked it out. (we were shocked it was $15/person to walk onto the boat….especially considering as tax payers, we paid for the damn thing)

We decided to drive along the coast through Pacific Beach, La Jolla and then up through Del Mar and Cardiff. Finally got on the freeway after hitting up the outlet stores in Carlsbad. A fun weekend minus the traffic!

Here are a few photos from our weekend in San Diego and Coronado

This was an EARLY morning for us! Woke up about 3:30 AM, drove an hour and a half out to Temecula just in time for a sunrise balloon launch out at Lake Skinner. (East of Temecula) Unfortunately, we arrived in a fog bank. They had cancelled the “official” launch from the park because of the weather. As we drove into the park, all the cars and balloon trucks were driving out. We were bummed! All that hard work getting up so early and making that drive was for nothing! Well…that’s what we thought.

Fortunately for us, the hot air balloon guys didn’t want to disappoint the crowds. They decided to fire up their balloons in a vacant field in the middle of wine country about 10 mins away from the Lake. We parked in the field right next to where they started laying them out. The balloons were huge. Tarps were spread out to protect the balloons from sharp rocks. Very large, industrial gas-powered fans started blowing them up. Several times I asked the crew of the Mayflower Hot Air Balloon if we should move our car. They insisted no and continued to blow up their balloon.

As it turned out, we were so glad we didn’t bring our new car. Not only did we do some “dirt road driving,” but as the balloon started to fill with air, it ended up smothering our car. Didn’t do any damage but I think we would have both cried if it were our new black Lexus underneath a large hot air balloon.

It was cool to see how they did all this. We walked right up to each of the balloons as they were filling them up and watched as they lifted off the ground. Off into the fields of grapes and orchards they went.

At this point we were tired and hungry. Met up with Laura’s dad and had some breakfast. Afterwards we decided to hit up a few wineries before heading over to the Balloon and Wine festival at Lake Skinner.

If you’re ever in the Temecula area and you’d like to taste some good wines, make sure you visit; Wilson Creek for their Almond Champagne and Maurice Car’rie Winery for their good wines and fantastic fresh-baked breads.
More recommended wineries in Temecula here.

After a few hours of tasting, we made our way over to The Balloon and Wine Festival over at Lake Skinner East of Temecula. There were thousands of people! Lots of vendors, food, drinks and entertainment. Most impressive, to me anyway, was the World’s Largest BBQ and of course the people watching was a blast.

A few hours were more than plenty for us. Was too warm to drink red wine all day and to be comfortable, you should bring your own chairs and shade!

Best part, and the only reason we’d probably ever go back, was for the Hot Air Balloon Light at sunset. Soon as it started getting dark, all the hot air balloons we saw earlier in the day came back and setup throughout the middle of the festival. Was so cool to see. Again, you could walk right up to them and watch as they filled with air and fire in order to make them vertical. In the main area of the festival next to the stage, they did a balloon light show to the music. They lit up with the music. Very cool!

Check out a few night photos of the hot air balloons here.

Yesterday Bob, Alicia and Andrew came down to join us for a beach cruise up to the Santa Monica pier and back. We started at home, which is on the border of Redondo Beach and Hermosa Beach about 11 in the morning. Unfortunately we had a bit of the “May Gray” weather but with long sleeves we were all comfortable.

It took about 10 mins to get down to the Hermosa Beach pier where they were having the pro volleyball (AVP) tournament. They had the big grandstands setup and people were everywhere. (Laura and I went for an hour on Saturday and watched…fun to see the pros play)

After walking through the crowds past the pier we were on our way to Manhattan Beach. Not too much action there. Most of the people we passed on the bike trail looked like they were headed for the volleyball finals in Hermosa.

We kept on cruising through to El Segundo and then up the only major hill you have to tackle along the trail. (it’s not that bad) We then passed the beach near LAX where they have the fire pits and beach campgrounds. (BTW – cool place to go have a beach bonfire… we go about once a month for a cookout) About an hour or so later we made it through Playa del Rey and then to Marina del Rey. After a few water breaks and lots of pedaling we made it to the crowds of Venice Beach.

Although not as crowded as we usually see it, Venice Beach was crawling with the street vendors, the graffiti painters and the famous guy on roller skates playing the electric guitar. If you make it to Los Angeles, Venice Beach is a great place for people watching! You get all kinds of people, cultures, food, music and entertainment! Anyway, we walked our bikes through some of the Venice craziness and then jumped back on for another half hour through Ocean Park and up to the Santa Monica pier. The sun finally started to burn off the clouds!

16 miles from Hermosa / Redondo and about 3 or so hours, we had finally made the cruise all the way up to Santa Monica. We stopped, walked around the pier a bit and had a corndog and a Lemonade from Hot Dog on a Stick. A little breather from the bike seat was much needed and enjoyed!

On the return home we stopped off in Marina del Rey for a late lunch and then over to the boat show to check out the multi-million dollar yachts.

Since it was getting late we decided to get moving. Back along the same trail, we peddled fast along the coast towards the South Bay. Stopping only a few times, we made it back to Redondo Beach about 6:30…Just in time for a cold Corona and some much needed relaxation!

A great day on the beach! 32 miles roundtrip from Redondo Beach to the Santa Monica pier and back. A must if you’re into a beach cruising challenge!

Check out a few snapshots of our beach bike cruise here.