Day Fourteen
This morning I rose before dawn and after a cup of coffee (Via) packed as quickly as possible (it's getting faster) and started my ride computer at 7:21 am.
It's truly Mountain Daylight Time here in New Mexico so the sun rises later by the clock. Breakfast was at Mickey D's, chosen by a criteria I've never used: What are the highest calorie items on the $3 menu? Two of those and a large coffee.
I pulled out of Lordsburg into Sunday morning traffic, which is to say, no traffic. Today's ride would be almost entirely on Interstate 10, a new experience for me. I expected a breeze over the back of my right shoulder through the morning, which would build and veer to behind me as the day progressed. The morning was cool but I resisted the urge to layer up, knowing that I began to pedal in earnest, I'd warm from the inside out, and the day's heat would catch up and overtake me soon enough.
Freeway cycling is almost always to be avoided, but in this case, it is unavoidable. Interstate 10 is also US 70, the highway I have been on. In New Mexico, cycling on freeways is not only permitted in non-urban areas (which is to say, practically all of New Mexico), where there is a freeway, there is usually no other road. I 10 is the only route to Las Cruses.
Sandstorms…
Not today.
And guess what? This freeway turned out to be practically as bike friendly as a dedicated riding path, because the shoulders are full lane wide, and generally excellent pavement. There is very little trash along New Mexico roads. But on the freeway, because of the high volume of heavy truck traffic, and the high head, there is lots, and lots, of destroyed truck tire debris.
When retreaded tires disintegrate, they leave a mess.
Some pieces are nearly the full size of the tire retread, but there are lots of scraps of rubber and small bits of this and that. Fortunately, most I call "macro trash", big enough to see and avoid.
The unavoidable, and unseeable, part of a disintegrated steel belted radial tire is the tiny broken stainless steel wire fragments that invisibly litter the road.
This are picked up by a bike tire and with each rotation, are slowly pounding through the tread and into the inner tube, causing a flat. Whereas the burrs of the Mojave flattened my front tire repeatedly, these steel wire fragments always seem to get the back tire.
As I've mentioned, repairing a rear tire flat is a major production. Off come the panniers, and off comes the wheel, with all the complexity of dealing with the derailleur and chain. As you recall from my rear flat near Bylas, Arizona, it's easy to make a complete mess of a rear tire flat repair. Thanks to training from Sebastian at Tucson Bicycle Service, this time I was ready, having even added nitrile gloves to my repair kit. I got two rear flats today. From getting the bags off to getting them back on, I did the first repair in 45 minutes, and the second one in 30. This includes getting some water and food in me. I'm getting better, and the next time will be shorter still.
Today, the wind was strong and perfectly pointed. I was seeing 17, 20, even 25 miles per hour, for long stretches. I realized I could get all the way to Las Cruses with this wind, so I kept riding and kept pumping the water and calories. I crossed the Great Continental Divide 33 miles east of Lordsburg, at 4,585 feet elevation. So now I would have mostly flat and downhill to add to the tailwind. If I could keep air in the tires, Las Cruses was a sure thing.
Also favoring a high mileage day is the fact that there is practically nothing to photograph in this stretch of terrain that is worth neglecting a good tailwind to record. So except for taking a few landmark shots, the camera stayed away.
I rolled into the Las Cruses KOA campground a little after 7 pm, having covered 118.54 miles as I rolled into my campsite.
This was by far my farther distance in a day. The wind gets some credit, but also, my approach to managing endurance, and the feeling that I have turned the corner fitness-wise, are paying off.
More big days ahead.
I’d love to hear from you. Donate to the ride and send along your words of encouragement and tell me why getting kids outside matters to you.
