Across the desert on a horse with No Name:

Well it sounds good but he really does have a name it's "Old Spoke". But he can't stand up because he is two tired. Old Spoke did pretty good today in getting me across the desert today. It was 102 F in one of the rest stops, were it was cooler. I don't want to know what the temperature was out on the Interstate. It was a long hot 100.5 miles today, and tomorrow is 115 miles. I am not looking forward to them. The only thing is that it is suppose to be a little cooler at a high of 96 F. The tour organizer has been pushing people to get in and out of the rest stops as fast as possible. And not to stop for food just life on the gels and Power Bars. I think I am going to stop for a good meal tomorrow. The 30-45 minutes getting a good meal isn't going to change the final temperature. It's not like you can finish by 10:00 Am or something and avoid the heat.

I am total amazed at how much rubber there is on the interstate. The highway and the ditches are just loaded with chunks of rubber. Plus every 4-5 miles there is a huge place where has been some sort of fire. My guess that some truck had a tire fire in one of the trailer. The number of trucks on the interstate #10 is truly unbelievable. At times there would be 5 or more pass in a big train. (I was going to say 10-15, but Jim says only 5). What ever the number I have never seen so many trucks.

I suppose that there is some beauty in the desert. The hills are these big bare rock piles that are quite jagged and surround the plains. However when it is 102F and you are dodging tire debris it is just a little hard to see. I think that the talk of desert beauty is a little over romanticized. Today's picture is of one of those miles.

Jim had a second blow out this morning. He had pumped his tires and had walked away from his bike to return the pump when it let go. I scared half the people who were getting ready to go.

Thanks for visiting my blog. Please leave me a comment telling me how nice a cool it is in Calgary

Terry