And how did we celebrate Memorial Day....?

Tracy, our fearless leader, warned us that today would be the 2nd toughest of the tour (I'm not sure what gets #1-I have about 3 candidates) and she was right on. !08 miles, 7 hours and 40 minutes on the bike (9 hours on the road total) and I was never so happy to see a motel as I was tonight. We started in a very cool Las Vegas and were quickly out into the high desert ranch country. We looked behind and could see snow on the higher peaks of the mountains behind us. The cue sheet (our directions for the day's ride)said "no rest rooms or services for 75.9 miles" and that was true. No towns, no stores - just wide open spaces and open range with infrequent sightings of cattle or horses and the occasional loading pens and ranch buildings. On the other hand the country was incredibly scenic. One of our group, interestingly enough from Ann Arbor Mich, said at dinner tonight that New Mexico now rated in his top 2 or 3 beautiful states. We rode for about 30 miles with the open range areas all around and the mountains on our left and right. And then we entered a couple of descents and sharp curves and all of sudden were viewing one of the outstanding scenes of the trip (top photo above). It was simply breathtaking. We then descended down into that valley on a road that would have made Lance Armstrong nervous. It is a fairly steep descent - 25 mph for cars - and one long series of S curves for maybe four miles to the valley below. And add to that a bit of a head/cross wind and you can bet I was feathering brakes all the way down - when I wasn't stopping to take other pictures of course. The next 50/60 miles was a long ride through this high desert valley with dramatic views of the mountains all around us. This was enhanced by the fact that there was virtually no traffic on this road (folks tend to miss the back country because they opt for the interstates) and the big puffy clouds and deep blue sky - just a gorgeous, gorgeous day. I've tried to capture a bit of this in the photos but they are only a partial reflection of the reality.

Another highlight of the day was our passing of the 1,000 mile mark for the trip - and so Tom and I posing at the 'line in the desert".

The last 20 or so miles was a series of rollers: nice little downhills with follow climbs punctuated by one stiff climb that is referred to as "the wall" - only .7 of a mile but the grade was easily the toughest of the day and came at a time when the legs were starting to feel a bit rubbery. That's what I bought my granny gear for and you just roll into it and grind it out.

So: a glorious day but I am truly ready for bed and that is next on my agenda...tomorrow is another long day 90 something miles into Texas. And it is truly time for me to check out the bed.