Day Forty-one (63.1 miles, 1908.26 total): Can Winds Be Bipolar?

"Getting up anytime soon?" Bill is shaking my tent. Ugh, it's 5:45am. I knew we were going to get up early but I just wanted more sleep. Ella on the other hand was ready to get up and go! She jumps out of the tent and runs around Bill's feet as I pull myself out of the yellow cocoon. Bill and Bob were already up packing and Carol was already saying goodbye. I quickly breakdown my tent, roll up my sleeping pad and stuff my sleeping bag away. Ella is jumping on the back of my legs thinking it's time to play. I stop to entertain her for a few minutes then try to pack up a few more pieces of gear. Bill is ready to go and heads out by himself. By 6:30am I am all ready to go and waiting for Bob. At 6:45am Ella hops into the basket and we head off without Bob.

It's a beautiful morning out, a cool tailwind to my back, the sun peaking through a veil of grey and an open road ahead of me. Couldn't ask for much more than that! A few miles outside of Riverside, I spot two Bald Eagles sitting on a fence next to each other and stop for a few pictures. After a few minutes of watching them soar through the sky, they disappear over a hill and I head on down the road. With the tailwinds, I was averaging 16-30mph all the way to Saratoga. I couldn't ask for a better way to start my morning. When I enter the tiny town of Saratoga, Bill is just about to head out when I spot him. He pulls back in the parking lot and I run into the convenient store, grab a chocolate milk and an apple pie thing before hopping back on the bike and speeding off with Bill.

The sun drifts in and out of the growing sheet of clouds as we ride through the morning. We begin a few long climbs but the tailwind helps propel us over the peaks. The long climbs continue throughout the morning as we speed on. Before long, we arrive at Highway 80. The sun falls behind a curtain of storm clouds and the winds pick up like invisible battering rams.

Bill and I become extremely cautious as we pedal onto the packed highway. Trucks are flying by at 70mph and the shoulder is littered with only God knows what. The road becomes frigid and we have to put on our long sleeves and jackets. Bill takes the lead with me close behind as we work our way around the piles of debris. We are both in the granny gear and pedaling as hard as we possibly can. Main highways are no place for cyclists, especially with incoming weather. Bill gains a lead on me but I'm not too far behind him. I lean down over the handle bars and jam as hard as I possibly can. I'm not reaching any more than 6-8mph no matter how hard I try. With a wind like this, the uphills and the downhills felt the same. A constant barrage of semis and mid morning traffic flew by us, practically riding the shoulder. All we could do was pedal as hard as we could, avoid as much debris as possible and hope for the best.

Bill and I break at the top of a hill near a rest stop so we could pull away from traffic a bit. The storm clouds were creeping up ever closer on us and we needed to get off this highway. Bill asks if I saw the rattlesnake. I never saw a snake and he thought I was joking. I asked him if it was live or road kill and he said it was most definitely alive. He tells me that I almost ran over the damn snake! Bill was watching me, as I passed by the snake, in his mirror. I check my legs to make sure I'm all good. Just precaution, you never know what could happen!

We check the maps and find out we have seven more miles to Sinclair. Bill takes the lead again and we dive back into the fight. Mile after mile, we fought winds constantly with no relief. My muscles were getting rigid and my back was tightening up as I pedaled as fast as I possibly could. Drivers, paying no mind to us, rolled onto rumble strips and back into their lanes again. It was a constant struggle to stay alert to every one of our surroundings. After another hour or so of pedaling, we pull into Sinclair and hop off our bikes. There's no two ways about it, that ride was extremely challenging. Bill and I are pumped that we got as far as we did in those conditions. From Sinclair we could take another side road all the way into Rawlins.

We were both hurting so we walked around inside the Sinclair station for probably half an hour before even considering riding again. Bill and I have a snack and refuel our dwindling energy supply before we hop back on the road once more. As we are leaving, Bill comes to a screeching halt and I nearly crash into the back of him. A sun shade off the side of an RV was torn off in the wind and Bill stopped just in time to avoid us being hit! It was a pretty close call on that one! Quickly moving on, we ride the side road past the Sinclair refinery and into what was once a bustling town I presume. It is a quick roll through an old neighborhood before the side road deviates away from Sinclair.

There are practically no cars on this road and it drops the stress level way down. The winds are still in our face as we push on, but we don't have debris or traffic to worry about now. With our little break, the storm was getting even closer behind us. Bill and I hurried on until we finally reached the tiny metropolis of Rawlins, WY. We meet up with Carol and learn the nearest campground is two miles off route and the storm is quickly approaching. Bob isn't here yet so that makes deciding between a camp and hotel difficult. After much deliberation, we split the cost of a hotel room.

Before the storm hits, I quickly run over to Wal-Mart to pick up a few things I needed and a notebook to replace my missing one. Subway is right next door to the hotel we are in, so i make a quick stop and pick up dinner with one of my gift cards. Just as the storm hits and the stress start running, Bob makes it to the hotel completely exhausted. Bill joins Bob and I so we can plan for tomorrow. Bill and Bob order pizzas while we are all hanging out. After we figure out what our plan is for tomorrow, Bill leaves to go back to his hotel room. Bob says eat the pizza and falls asleep at 7:30PM. Naturally, I finished the pizza. You can never have enough food! The tv plays quietly in the background on whatever Bob was watching before he passed out. I work on my writing for awhile, before I give up and decide its time to sleep. It had been one heck of a day I can tell you that! Tomorrow I'm sleeping in and getting a good breakfast before I decide to ride anywhere! We hope you are enjoying our daily misadventure and continue to follow us as we pedal our way west!