Fun with Interstates

Today was the first serious day in the heat. The ride staff were really meticulous in yeserday's "route rap" talk they give each night. We had hard cut-off times that had to be met. If we missed them then it was into the van. After yesterday's friendly introduction to the desert I was feeling a little anxious.

I ended up riding with Lisa again, and her roommate Joanne decided to join us as well. Two cute single gals. Sweet! They joked at one point about starting some rumors... Trust me, that ain't going to happen. Even if I wasn't married, "Gettin Jiggy" is the LAST thing on my mind after 100 miles riding through the desert.

Anyway, we formed a nice tandem. Lisa acts like a Mother Hen, pointing out every obstacle on the course and checking on us all to time. Joanne is a super strong rider. We had to throttle her back from time to time. As the day wore on we added two more riders to the group, which made for a nice paceline on the interstate.

Speaking of Interstates, we spent about 80 of today's 100 miles riding on the shoulder of I-10.
Truckers would toot their horns at us as they went by. Other than the garbage on thhe road it was actually a pretty nice way to travel.

We had another scorcher of a day. The high was 101
. Combine that with another 2800 feet of climbing and headwinds for the last 50 miles, and today was a tough go.

Even though the riding conditions were difficult, I made a point of looking around. Most people think "hot, dry, and boring" when they think about the desert. But there is real beauty and majesty out here. Life clings tenaciously. Helping change a flat tire in 100 degree weather gives me a great appreciation for the challenges of surviving in the desert. I feel a certain sense of awe being here.

Uncle Crampy kept knocking on the door, but I never let my least-favorite relative in. I whipped out all my tricks: Water on the legs, salt tablets, Tylenol, tons of fluids. In the end my legs held out, although tomorrow's 115 miler is feeling a little daunting at the moment.

Given my expectations of how I would feel, at the end I actually felt pretty good. I had a mild headache. My stomach was a little sour. And I had the leg cramp issue. But that was much better than I was expecting. When I got finished I stunk like crazy. I smelled kind of like a combination of garlic and sheep. Here's hoping for similar results tomorrow.