CYCLING AT A HIGHER LEVEL

Satellite tracking link

(Editor’s note: On the Cycling at a Higher Level Facebook page, Doug explained that his route had to be changed due to some wildfires near Los Vegas. This resulted in a few unexpected rest days and changed schedules, but today’s entry (should) mark a return to some normal posting. Stay tuned!)

Today’s day on the bike can best be summed up in one word: “survival”.

Our day began by being shuttled around some forest fires raging near the town of Las Vegas, New Mexico (not to be confused with that other little Las Vegas town in Nevada). We unloaded at what would have been our first SAG stop and got geared up on the bikes, and began rolling down the road. A road that was, to put it generously, very rough. And, for much of the day we were slogging against a pretty healthy headwind and sidewind. I recall only about a 5 miles stretch where we traveled north and the wind actually helped our trip. Oh well, nobody said this was going to be easy.

The other major issue I had today was my bike computer, which I rely on for GPS directions, mileage tracking so I’d know where the upcoming SAG is or a left or right turn, decided to go on the fritz for much of the day. I was fortunate in that I either had a riding partner or was within eyesight of another rider so I could navigate by observing their actions. As a result, I was able to capture very little usable data to post in Strava, Relive, or the satellite tracking software (the info I usually post below this text).

This evening in the hotel I worked on the bike computer, did some resyncing, changed a few parameters, did some testing, and I *think* it’s good to go for tomorrow. But – I won’t know for sure until we get started. Finger’s crossed. 

Tomorrow we will be saying goodbye to New Mexico, as we travel from Tucumcari, New Mexico, to Dalhart, Texas, about 94 miles. We’ll be traveling in mainly a northeasterly direction, and the winds are forecasted to be coming from – you guessed it – the northeast. So not looking forward to a super fast ride, but we’ll get it done.

Have a great day everyone!