Pueblo to Lamar

It was great having the rest day in Pueblo. It gave us time to recuperate physically, clean and service our bikes and, take care of personal needs.

It’s not surprising that Wal-Mart is putting other stores out of business. You can get almost anything there. There was a WM about a mile from our hotel so I made the trek. I needed a haircut, personal items like sunscreen toothpastes, etc., and I wanted to see about getting a larger piece of luggage to give me a bit more space than I had in my tightly packed duffel bag. I was able to address all these needs in about an hour.

We left Pueblo this morning about 6:00 AM after having breakfast at the Country Kitchen next to the hotel. This was a long day with 121 miles to cover and the ABB staff wanted to get us started early so most of the ride would be completed before the hottest part of the day.

About 18 miles into the ride Jeff my other roommate got a flat so Rick and I stopped and helped him put in a new tube. Once back under way I got a flat. This time it was a thorn that punctured the tire and tube, so another quick repair. Finally we arrived at the first SAG stop. While getting refueled and refreshed Jeff’s tire that we had repaired blew out with a loud bang. Rick’s rear tire also went flat at the SAG stop. Get the picture, this was not a good day for tires. There was so much glass and other debris on Rt 50.

We met a rescue squad vehicle going the opposite way with lights flashing. At the SAG stop we got word that Bob one of the riders had crashed and was taken to the hospital with a concussion. Details are still sketchy about the cause of the accident. Reportedly his wife is flying out to be with him. It’s very sad, Bob’s tour is over. We hope and pray that Bob will be okay.

The scenery today was uninspiring compared to the eye catching mountainous terrain that we had become used to. Flat prairie vistas that stretched for miles, a few prairie dogs scurried into holes nears the road as we approached. We passed some cultivated fields with corn and what looked like barely or wheat. Also alfalfha hay. It requires irrigation to grow crops here and there are canals visible from the road that provide water to these crops. We saw cattle feedlots, one of them must have been a mile long with hundreds of cattle. There was a massive mountain of manure. It was hot and because of the wind direction we could hardly breathe as we passed.

We found a Dairy Queen on our route as we passed through the town of Las Animas. We had done 87 miles and it was 12:00 noon. I got a strawberry shake and big cup of ice water. It was very refreshing! The last miles were difficult as we entered the hottest part of the day. My bike computer showed 109 degrees. Based on my GPS web site it said the max air temp during the ride was 95. It was a relief to check into our air conditioned room at the “Cow Palace Best Western” hotel in Lamar Colorado at 3:00 pm.

I didn’t take any photos today but I received this breaking news flash! click on this link:

http://rooster-productions.com/mk/kdEUmiUrfGUniU.Pat%20&%20Allison_b.mpg

Thanks to all those posting comments on my blog(read comments from previous post). Tonight special thanks goes to my friends at First Mennonite Church, specifically the small group that Pat and I are part of. I see your meeting tonight was productive. I especially like the suggestion of a certain nurse (I can't say who she is but her name is spelled Patti) on how to treat the effects on my rear resulting from sitting on a bike seat for 6 to 8 hours a days in soggy bike shorts. That takes the cake! The mental image just cracks me up. Thanks for your thoughts, prayers, and suggestions.