Periodic Progress Report Southern Tier Cross-Country Bicycle Tour

Date(s): Sept. 26, 1999
Day: Sunday
From: Quartzite, AZ
To: Aguila, AZ

Lodging: Fairhaven RV Park
Cumulative Mileage:
Actual Riding Time: 4:36
Average Speed: 14.5
Weather: Hot, sunny, wind from the west
Temp: mid 90's

Scorpion sighting! This morning after sitting down on the toilet at the RV campground in Quartzite, I looked up to see a rather large scorpion approaching under the stall door. The night before I felt I was being paranoid in recommending that we all check our shoes and gear for critters. I didn't expect them in the bathroom. I chased him with a stick, and he scurried away as if being pulled by a string. I sat down as he settled in at the base of the toilet. It was a quick visit. Later in the day Lynne spotted a big tarantula in the road, and we spotted a dead rattlesnake.

We were all up before sunrise to try to get much of the riding done before it got too hot. Some left in the full moonlight, with Bob leading the pack to try to get food supplies before the store in Aguila closed for the day, since it was Sunday. Oliver actually had his mega-tent down in record time, although he and I were once again the last ones to leave (excluding our fearless leader JimN who always rides sweep). We started on I-10, and rode for 11 miles till we got to US 60. Oliver and I had a paceline going for a while and caught the others at the store in Brenda. Just before Brenda we stopped to take some photos of the saguaro filled valley in the early morning light. The road was straight and nearly flat for the entire day. It was slightly uphill for much of the way, but the tailwind allowed us to cruise along at between 15 and 20 mph most of the time. The best stop of the day was at the Cactus Cafe in Salome where we downed the best old-fashioned milkshakes I've ever had. The rodeo was in town, so the place was filled with cowboys and their families for Sunday breakfast.

For the last stretch of the ride Oliver, Bruno, the American Todd and I rode together at a good clip until I stopped once again to examine some road debris (a very nice dog leash), and Oliver stopped to add some magnesium tablets to his water. As we started up again the others were far ahead, and we rode along for a while until Oliver looked over and said "I feel pretty good now; let's catch them." About then the wind picked up and we raced along at around 22-23 mph and gradually reeled them in, although we could tell they had picked up their pace. Just before catching up, Bruno took off. As we tried to pass Todd, he swerved out to block our way. Now this is 4 grown men with fully loaded bikes, racing down the highway in 95 degree heat, but we all felt good at the end of our ride and kept racing. After passing Todd we chased Bruno who kept just ahead of us, speeding up as we speeded up. At that point common sense prevailed and I told Oliver to try to catch him without me. He nearly did just as Bruno reached the campground.

This is one of the better camps with all the qualities we're looking for: green grass in shade for the tents, clean bathrooms with 2 good showers, and a gentle breeze. Mostly we're resting for tomorrow's 80 mile ride into Phoenix.