Day 11 - Rangely to Glenwood Springs

Sitting here in Glenwood Springs and it finally feels like I'm on vacation. We rode the 125 miles to here by about 3:30pm. After, showering and laundering, that gave us time to go wander round town. Walked over to the fancy Hotel Colorado (that we aren't staying at) and then had a look at the hot springs swimming pool. Then there was time to do some shopping in the cool local bike shop. Not as cool as Cyclepath of course. Later on tonight, we are having an ice cream social. Oh yeah, life is good.

Today started off with another not so prevailing wind as we battled our way eastward and then south. I was promised tailwinds and they haven't been delivered yet. Oh well..

Highlights of the day included the 50 mile valley we rode along towards lunch. The downside was that Halliburton has some kind of plant in the valley so we had to deal with about 1 million trucks driving by. The upside was that the drivers were exceptionally courteous and every time a truck passed us, we got a slight draft that eased the headwinds..

We passed through a couple of interesting towns. Rifle and Silt for example. I took a picture of the Rifle Fire Department building.

Riding through Rifle we also saw a highly ingenious kid you had managed to strap some kind of engine to his mountain bike. He coasted along sounding like he was riding a lawnmower. Awesome.

More motorized innovation. We got to see a couple of cowboys round up their cows. The only difference to the good ole days was that they were riding ATV's. Seems kind of lazy if you ask me eh?

When I posted last night, I said we were crossing the continental divide today. I got it wrong. It's actually tomorrow. We head through Aspen where the rich and famous live and then head up the 12000 feet that is called Independence Pass. I'm bringing my crampons and climbing rope just in case.

Ok, signing off to go get my sundae.

Day 10 - Vernal to Rangely, CO

As last night felt like it wasn't a school night, I woke up with a bit of a hangover this morning. must be something to do with the Polygamy Porter and not drinking enough water...

Today it felt like we were on an Adventure Cycling tour rather than Pac Tour. Instead of the usual 120 miles, it was a measly 53. We started off with a leisurely breakfast at the local diner, As we were heading into Colorado today, I just had to have the Denver omelette.

The ride today was super easy and mellow. Lots of time putzing along at 14mph. The highlights were seeing a prairie dog stare at me from a sand mound and also seeing hundreds of spent ammunition shell cases by the side of the road. Apparently somebody doesn't like prairie dogs judging by the amount of 50mm calibre casings on display.

Apart from the obligatory "Welcome to " sign, the other highlight was passing through Dinosaur, Co. I missed the opportunity to take a picture of the Dinosaur Baptist Church. Who knew dinosaurs were religious?

The final run in to Rangely was pretty unexciting. A long gradual downhill past many oil wells. It didn't look like town would have much to offer. Turns out that this is the nicest hotel we have had all trip. After lunch, a few of us went for a short bike ride through town. We look a bit like a biker gang ready to cause trouble until we found the one cool coffee shop in town. Yay. We also found the pub for tonight's dinner...

Not much else to report today. It felt good to have a short day. Hopefully my legs start to feel a bit better for tomorrow as we cross the continental divide in our run in to Glenwood Springs.

Ok, I'm off to the pool to try and even out my farmer tan. Photos are here

Day 9 - Evanston to Vernal, UT

This might be short as I'm stealing wifi from the hotel across the road.

Today was the queen stage of our tour. While those pansies riding the Tour de France got a rest day, we had to be up at 5am to get ready for our 149 miles (+9000 feet) jaunt back into Utah. About a third of the riders decided that today would be a good day to do only part of the route. The shuttle vans were going to be busy. I woke up feeling like crap and my legs were like lead. Today was going to be a long day.

We started with a nice 30 mile section along I-80 which I found out is not flat. We'd climb at 10 mph for 3 or 4 miles to then drop down the other side at 40mph only to repeat... over and over.

Getting of the freeway at Fort Bridger the day perked up instantaneously. The climbing started on the other side of town. It felt like we were climbing on a moonscape seemed to be made of soft sand.

After the next checkpoint the scenery changed again. We were back into alpine pastures with pine trees and snow capped mountains in the distance.

Then it changed again. We crossed back into Utah and through the town of Manila. Mikey is this where you are really from? It's much smaller than I thought? We climbed up through red rock wall canyon to have lunch in Flaming Gorge National Recreational area. Amazing isn't a strong enough word. The 2000+ feet climb out of the canyon was beautiful. I might not be able to post my pictures until tomorrow as this hotel doesn't have wifi. All I can say is that, there were several steep switchbacks and the grade was about 8%. Couple this with the strong headwind and I was struggling to pedal at 6mph.. Bleurch.

Over the top and we found out that we weren't really over the top. The climbing continued for many more miles. At about mile 130, we actually started to go back down. Then we hit the sign warning truck drivers about the 8% descent with 10 switchbacks for the next 10 miles. You can only imagine the words I uttered when I saw this. The 50mph downhill descent was fantastic. I saw a beautiful canyon on my right as we dropped down but, not wanting to stop or even take my hands off othe handlebars, I just kept riding. It felt like we had dropped into hell at the bottom. The temperature rose by what felt like 40 degrees and then we found out we had to climb out the other side. Doh!

Up and over the last climb and it was a nice gentle run in to town. Before going to the hotel, I stopped off at 7-11 to get some beers for the group.

Everyone is feeling like a kid in the candy store tonight. It's the anticipation that tomorrow is our 'rest' day as we only have to ride 53 miles into Colorado. Instead of having to get up at 5am and eat breakfast in the hotel parking lot, we get the luxury of "sleeping in" until 7:30 and then eating in the local diner. Life is good.

I am so happy that tomorrow is an easy day as I've been getting really run down the last few days. It's been really tiring but, this has definitely been an exciting challenge and I've got to meet some cool people too.

I'm sitting outside the Best Western across the road and my pictures are now uploaded.

Day 8 - Brigham City to Evanston, WY

Day 8 was one of the prettiest days so far. We managed to get away from 10 mile long straight roads, sage brush and scrub and headed back into the hills and pine forests.

We started off by skirting the edge of the Great Salt Lake to go down towards Ogden and then headed east up one of the canyons. As soon as we took that turn, the wind slapped us in the face and I had visions of us having to ride 80+ miles into a force 10 gale. Lady luck shined on us as once into the canyon, the wind dissipated. Although the road was narrow, and the sign said bikers probably shouldn't be on the road, it was amazing beautiful. On one side, a river flowed past us, and on the other, we could see waterfalls. After climbing up through the canyon, we were in what looked like an Alpine meadow. Pine trees, poppies, wild flowers oh and... a big reservoir on the other side. The down side was that it felt like every car that passed us was an SUV towing a boat or ATV's. I guess not everyone in Utah goes to church on Sunday morning.

The next little climb was the 20 mile trip up over the Wasatch mountains where the pass was at 9000 feet. I was starting to feel all the efforts I've made over the last week and it felt like I was beginning to overheat. Lunch was at the top, home made mac n' cheese and sandwiches. The descent down the other side was both scenic and fast. The pine trees of the climb gave wave to red rocks. I wasn't brave enough to snap any photos at 45mph though.

After the super fast descent we only had 20 miles to go to get to Evanston. This is where my tiredness, lack of sleep and overheating caused me to poop out. I ended up sitting at the back of our merry little band; Ann, Jeanine, Brian and Dan and they dragged me home. The scenery was gorgeous and apparently some people saw some antelope. All I know is that I was ready to be done.

Photo taken at the state line - check.
In the hotel, showered and laundered - check.
Beer in hand - check.
Mexican food at the local hole in the wall joint - coming soon.

Photos are here.

Tomorrow is the mother lode stage of our little tour. Almost 150 miles with more climbing than I want to even think about as we head back into Utah. I just need to get through tomorrow and then we have the easy 50 mile day on Tuesday into Colorado. I'm hoping that a couple of coronas and super burrito combined with an early night to bed will help get me through tomorrow. Well, that and the diaper rash cream I'm about to apply too.

Day 7 - Burley to Brigham City, UT

Sorry but after 290 miles in the last two days, my creative juices aren't flowing well tonight.

After yesterday's tough day, I was a bit worried about today as it was 10 miles longer (148 miles) and more climbing (4500 feet) than yesterday. Instead of a full on headwind, we 'only' had a cross wind. I decided that today was the day to see what I had inside of me. I went into time trial mode and rode the course harder and with more focus than yesterday. In the end, the support car only passed Ann and I with 10 miles before the finish. This turned out to be a bit of a mistake as we had to wait 40 minutes to get our bags and room keys. Oh well.. It was worth it as I was showered, laundered and fed by the time some of the other riders finished.

Today's ride took us up and over the hills into Utah. There were many sections where the road was completely straight. I think that we went 25 miles in a straight line with only one slight bend to the left. Crossing into Utah, I could see the mountainous backdrop but they never seemed to get any closer. It took about an hour to actually get to them.

We suffered an attack from some of the locals. For a couple of miles, we were bombarded by grasshoppers that apparently had a death wish. I half expected to find dozens of them stuck inside my helmet when I took it off.

The only other excitement for today was the trip to dinner. The hotel is about 2 miles south of downtown. Before I started this trip, I thought I would be up for extra sight seeing and walking around after each ride. What has transpired is that as soon as I get off the bike, I just want to shower, clean up my bike, wash my bike clothes and eat somewhere close. So, tonight's dinner was at the local greasy diner. Spanish omelette and hash browns.. Yum.

Next time I have a mellow day, I'll write up what my typical day looks like. Believe me, apart from the cycling, it really isn't all that exciting :)

Tomorrow has some climbing as we head up out of the Salt Lake basin and move into Wyoming. Oh yeah, pictures are here.

Day 6 - Mountain Home to Burley

If yesterday was a mentally tiring day, today I physically took a beating.

140 miles into a headwind for 8 hours. Ugh. This was the day to try and find my inner strength. Apart from the headwinds, we also had to deal with a crappy chip seal road surface.

Towards the end, I was riding with Ann and the Hofstra's (father and son from Michigan). We were echeloning because of the wind. After I pulled off, I found myself hugging the gutter trying to get into the draft. It made me feel like I was racing the old 'Piece of Cake' road race down near Albany, albeit at a slower pace.

Just after that, as we are riding up one of the countless short climbs on chipseal, I looked over at one of the many portable irrigation systems watering a field on my left. At the end of the pipe, there was a big smiley face and the motto "Have a nice day". If I'd had the energy, I would have gotten off my bike and well.... you can guess what I wanted to do..

It wasn't all bad today. I started off about 10 minutes after the last other rider today and finished with the fast group. There were some poor b***ards who ended up riding for an hour longer than me. Ouch.

We also managed to get the whole group to stop off at the ice cream shop in Buhl (Trout Capital of the USA apparently) where they served potato ice cream. Only in Idaho. Actually, it's vanilla with potato flakes but it really was yummy.

The other high point was just before lunch when we rode through the Thousand Springs area. There were several waterfalls that appeared to flow out of cracks in the cliffs.

Pictures are here

At dinner tonight, everyone looked like a cross between a scene from Dawn of the Dead and The Charge of the Light Brigade. If anyone has any control over wind direction, can you please put in a good word for us. Today was the hardest ride so far and tomorrow is 10 miles longer. The good thing is that we cross into another new state, Wyoming

Signing off now. I just found that we can get the Tour de France on tv here...

Day 5 - Caldwell to Mountain Home

Today was a 'rest' day of only 99 miles. Ok, I did ride round the parking lot to get the full hundred...

While I am feeling physically strong at the moment, I had a bit of a mental mind fart on this section of the tour. We skirted round Nampa. You can see all the signs of urban growth. Many new housing developments next to old broken down barns. I couldn't get my camera out int time but I saw a horse in a pasture eating grass next to the sign saying the land was for sale and zoned residential.

Mental stress seems to be debilitating than physical stress. When I got my first flat tire on day 2 (I think) I ripped the sidewall. That evening, I coated it with duct tape and a dollar bill shim so I could get some more miles out of it as it was a brand new $50 tire. Since then, I've been worrying about the stupid thing exploding on me. Tonight, I'm putting on a new tire just to maintain my sanity.

Then, my left pedal started clicking loudly every revolution. It sounded like it might fall apart. Having calculated, that I have at least 750,000 more revs to go this tour, I called for the cavalry and my good friend Stephanie is going to mail me another pair just in case. Thank you so much Steph.

Mentally, today was tough. I could feel myself being a bit cranky and wasn't really in a good mood for a while. The scenery was expansive. You could see sage brush / high desert for miles but, while everybody else thought it was beautiful, it creeped me out as I'm a city boy and the countryside I'm used to is from Scotland and Western Oregon. I rode on my own for a bit and longed to have my ipod to hand.

After a yummy deli sandwich for lunch and a metaphorical self slap to the face, I snapped out of it. We only had 28 miles to go on our 'short' day. We passed Mountain Home AFB and Ann then spent the rest of the ride singing songs from Top Gun. Ugh..

We arrived in town a couple of hours earlier than usual so that gave us time to clean ourselves, bikes and laundry ahead of time. Off to the city park tonight to go see the Summer Concert. I hear it might be the final Spinal Tap reunion tour...

Oh yeah, pictures are here

Oh and, just for John Schader, you'll be glad to know that Rebecca (the daughter of the tour operators) plays accordian. She serenaded us for lunch today.