The early morning oven just outside our hotel room
greeted us with open arms. We intended to get an early start, but getting ready
took longer than we expected. We left Blythe just before 6:00am. I had my
handmade copy of the daily map, as usual, but I did not refer to it once. The
route was easy: I-10 west for 31 miles, exit onto US60 East, continue for 25
miles. In case anyone is adding up the
miles today, include the 5 miles we rode from the hotel traveling east down
Business I-10 until we reached the Colorado River.
We had 2500 feet of climbing ahead of us, all in AZ, and virtually all of it on the Interstate. That was good because the alignment on most Interstates is gradual. We traveled 17 miles to Quartzite and the Love’s Service Center where Susan awaited. We refilled our water bottles and ate a bite before re-entering I-10 for what turned out to be 13 more grueling miles. We dealt with lane repair, debris on the road, a flat, and lots of truck traffic. It was the only road connecting Quartzite with Salome.
US 60 east off I-10 was as pleasant and scenic a road
as there is in the USA. It was hot, however. We had a tailwind and I wanted to
make the most of it, so I showed Sara that there is a big chainring on the bike
making the bike go faster! We began clipping along at a modest pace of 17 mph
on flat ground. She liked it. Meanwhile, I needed a restroom break and told
Sara to ride on. It was a quick stop and
I was back on the bike. Then it happened. I had a flat. She was gone. I had no
tube. Remember, I had a flat on the Interstate. I … was … dead. Yelling to her
at the top of my lungs proved futile. I stood in the middle of the highway and
waved frantically. Nothing. She must not
have seen me in her rearview mirror. I then waved down a pickup truck. To my
surprise, Mike stopped. I asked him to catch up with the rider down the road and
tell her that her dad has a flat tire and he needed her spare tube. He
suggested that I toss the bike in the back of the pickup and we would catch her.
I jumped in and we caught up in no time. Mike was off and there was yet a flat
to fix. We found some shade and I began the chore of changing the tube. While I
was busily working, a man stopped, got out of the car and asked if we needed help.
I assured him that all was well. In a few minutes we were back on the road.
After that second flat repair, the heat and the
headwind took its toll on us. We were feeling badly and had 7 more miles to go
until we met up with Susan. We limped along battling the wind and the heat
until finally, we saw the van on the left side of the road at a service
station. We got into the cool van for a cold drink and some food. Unfortunately,
Sara had a flat. So, while they were cooling off, I worked on my third flat of
the day. After the repair, I sat in the van to get some rest. We left Susan
with 7 miles yet to go. We were not looking forward to it, but a funny thing
happened. The wind shifted for the second time today and we now had a tailwind.
We rolled into town feeling quite good.
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| Welcome to Arizona! |
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