Larry's log:
It seemed colder this morning than the Weather Channel reported. They said 58 degrees, but when we started riding at 6 am, I was cold in only my shorts and jersey. I got over that in about ten miles, though. The oil industry was evident for about the first 20 miles after we left. We saw both drilling rigs and refineries. The town of Glenrock, 20 miles out, had a large Conoco plant at its outskirts. I didn't stop for the marker in Glenrock that applied to Rock of the Glen. I would guess it has something to do with how the town was named!
About 20 miles later we came to the larger town of Douglas. It was a neat place, with lots of buildings in an old western theme. They also had a nice horse mural on the side of one of the buildings. Today's terrain was mostly flat with more mounds. There were some mountains to the south and west; in fact, we passed 10,000 foot Laramie Peak. However, I didn't see any snow on it. However, a good climb (probably less than 500 feet) at around Mile 50 offered a good view of the surroundings.
I did see some wildlife today. I was riding with Judith and Daniel's tandem for most of the day. The good thing about being on the back of a tandem, like Judith is, is you can look around even more than on a single bike. She noticed some deer in a field and pointed them out.
We continued following the North Platte River, which we also saw a good deal of yesterday. Lunch was in a city park in the small town of Glendo. Up to lunch, there had not been any wind to speak of. Except for one or two small climbs, like the one I mentioned earlier, it was pretty flat riding. So, we got to lunch at 76 miles in about 4 1/2 hours, which included time spent at two rest stops earlier.
After lunch, there was a little more rolling climbing for about 10 or 15 miles. This was tough. After lunch is usually slow going for me, because you're using energy to digest your food as well as pedal. The first couple of days I had actually been feeling sleepy after lunch. However, I altered my lunch plans to include more carbohydrates and less fat, and that seemed to eliminate that problem. But, it's still a bit of a grind pedaling after lunch.
At about 100 miles, we entered I-25 for about three miles. We had to exit it from the left. Fortunately, traffic was very light, so it was not a problem getting across the 75 mph road.
The wind had picked up by now, and was out of the southeast. Our exit sent us east, so the last 50 miles were into the wind. There was a good rest area at about Mile 120. Out back, they had poles with holes cut in them. You could look through the holes and see the exact areas that the information signs were referring to. For example, they had information on Laramie Peak and Register Cliff. Register Cliff was a spot on the Oregon Trail where a lot of the emigrants carved their names.
The last 20 miles were a grind for me. It was getting hot (about 100 degrees) and I felt as if my left hamstring could cramp. I backed my pace down to about 13 or 14 mph to make sure I could finish the day without a problem. About this same time, I noticed the landscape changing from the rolling grasslands to more farm-based. We were only about 30 miles west of Nebraska and the corn growing was starting!
Ten miles from the end, in the small town on Lingle, was an inviting looking public pool. I had thoughts about stopping there, but didn't. Apparently, two riders did, though.
The rest of the way into Torrington was cloudy with some rain off to the right, but none on me. The town is obviously an agricultural center, as evidenced by silos and co-ops. They also boast Wyoming's largest cattle auction market, which we passed on the way in. We were evidently the talk of the town. At Pizza Hut, where they thankfully were having a buffet tonight, we overheard another table talking to the waitstaff about a bike ride that's in town tonight. We provided them a few details.
Tomorrow we enter Nebraska after about 16 miles.
-- Larry Schwartz
Cool, clear morning to begin and it was a very fast ride to the first rest stop. We had mostly a light tailwind so we spent the morning enjoying the scenery and conversation.
Early lunch at the Glenco State Park. By this time the temperature had warmed up considerably and we knew we were in for a hot afternoon.
Once we crossed I-25, to Highway 26, our light tailwind had changed to a strong headwind that was getting stronger and stronger. There were storm clouds forming around us and we were hoping that we could make it into Torrington before the severe weather happened.
The rest stop at mile 118 was a welcome site with a large treed area for us to take shelter under. The temperature was close to 100 degrees and we were all looking forward to the spa and pool in Torrington. But first another 31 miles of biking.
Daniel and I pushed very hard for the last stretch and we ended up drafting 3 other cyclists in to the motel. Tandems are great to draft behind, especially in headwind on long flat stretches of road. It was so wonderful to arrive at the Kings Inn. Especially since we could see the rain showers close by. We quickly hauled the luggage to the room and got the laundry started. Then came the hot tub and hot shower for our aching muscles.
Dinner at Pizza Hut was good and dessert of ice cream was a real treat.
Tomorrow will be the last of the long, tough days for a little while. 2500 feet of climbing and 162 miles. And it looks like a headwind. But we will survive!
Judith Jolly (and Daniel Schaaf)