SEPTEMBER 11, DAY 10

 EVANSTON, WY to VERNAL, UT : 150 MILES

Wow!  150 miles, 8 hours, 58 minutes  in the saddle with  8,775 feet climbing, reaching altitude of 8,428 feet with a 12 mile climb at 8-10% grade, DONE!

THE LONG ROAD AHEAD 

WE'RE TOUGHER THAN THESE ROCKS! 

The day was nothing less then epic albeit the toughtest day of cycling I've had on this trip.  I'm getting stronger as the ride continues even though I won't deny I am  very tired. My bunions are starting to really act up,  cycling  shoes are very un-comfortable especially when worn for 8 or more hours at a time. Injuries within the group are starting to pop up as well; some  are only able to ride part of the day because of injuries. Achilles tendon issues the  most common,  followed by knee problems. It's sad to see this happen, as we are all properly  trained through months of dedicaition  and this is a huge,  lifetime dream and goal for many.  Nonetheless this is an extreme challenge;  it's a long way to go and the journey and its toll should not be underestimated.  Unfortunately  no amount of training can predict the outcome of back-to-back days of riding miles in the triple digits.  So all in all,  I feel very fortunate that my feet and a saddle sores are my only problem so far. 

Our day started at 6:45 am; a breakfast of cereal, oatmeal, yogurt and coffee which took place in the laundry room of our hotel. I'm adjusting to eating early in the morning which is paying off for me. 

The first 25 miles of todays route was treacherous  mostly on the shoulder of interstate 80 heavily traveled by big rig trucks plus half of the road  under repair leaving only one lane each direction and a very narrow shoulder. Not a place we wanted to linger. We were glad to get off the freeway and back onto peaceful country roads and to our  first sag stop  at the 32 mile mark.

NOT A BAD STOP FOR A BITE! 

From there we had a steady,  strong tail wind reaching speeds of  35 miles on the flats, so the  next 60 miles were fast. 70 miles into the ride we were back into Utah and had  climbed 4,000 feet . The scenery was spectacular,  Flaming gorge and Alpine lake two of the more glorious sightings! 

PRETTY NICE BIKE ROUTE, YA THINK?

Mile 93 started   a 12 mile climb;  the longest climb so far on our tour with grades of 9 to 11% . At our maximum  elevation of 8428 feet our days work was done. 

The final 40+ miles were downhill… our sweet reward! 

TOUGH TIMES DONT LAST TOUGH PEOPLE DO!! 

Tomorrow on to Rangely Colorado .
Today's miles 150
Total miles    1149
Today's climb 9000 feet
Total climb     43500 feet