The route took on a different character after the first rest stop. We used the shoulder on I-10 for the first time. Many may recognize that I-10 is the major highway crossing the southern US from Santa Monica, CA to Jacksonville, FL. We left the very rough surface of the shoulder after only 2.5 miles and traversed the adjoining frontage roads for most of the day. The remainder of the morning was occupied with climbing while being buffeted by cross/ headwinds. (Or were those cross headwinds?) The lunch stop at yet another cute Mexican cafe, Micheals in Sierra Blanca, was a relief. The hardest part of the day came upon us then. An easterly wind blew right at us as we rode the next 22 miles. We did organize ourselves into 4-6 person pace lines to shelter us a bit against the tormenting wind. We finished the ride by returning to the I-10 shoulder for 8.5 miles of climb and downhill into Van Horn. Cute KOA campground overnight and early to bed. Exhausted!
My daughter, Emily, and I talked about training for something like this ride. It's true that you cannot really prepare adequately for 7 weeks of daily bike rides. Nevertheless I have heard that most riders have riden frequently on many week long events and extended daily rides. One rider logged 5000 miles since last Sept. Of course, he lives in Florida. I tried to ride daily and occasionally undertake longer rides to build my confidence as much as any physical capabilities.
One of our speakers in Gila Bend was a 70 year old ultra-marathon runner and psychiatrist. He noted that he was not getting any faster as he aged but his endurance was increasing. He said what were undertaking was of 'epic' and success was almost entirely mental rather than physical. Interesting, eh?
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