Nevada---"What have you ever done to change the world?"

MapMyRide had our elevation gain for the day at over 3200', and with the heat and wind, I wanted an early start. The plan was a 5:30 a.m. start, but when I went to the garage to get my bike it had a rear flat. I had changed it last night because of a thorn I had picked up and for some reason, that Gatorskins tire was a bear to get off. I thought I was going to break my tire irons. It was as much work as riding the hundred miles. :) I would say that's the beauty of having two bikes along, but remember...my Rodriguez has the star nut/headset issue. So...I did the next best thing...I stole Laura's front tire. (She sent her bike with us, but won't hook up with us until Savannah, GA) I have heard it's better to ask for forgiveness than for permission.




The ride through Las Vegas was wonderful at 6:00 a.m. There was very little traffic, but I wouldn't have wanted to do it at 10 a.m. We got on Lake Mead Blvd. and started to climb. All of us loved the spectacular scenery...red rock outcroppings, hoodoos, towering rocks. So many pictures to take...so little time. Karen saw a coyote looking for some lunch, and Patty and I saw a couple of wild horses. You get glimpses of Lake Mead along this route, but the road does not hover above the lake like I thought it might. The temperature was in the mid 90's when I finished riding...7.5 hours, 3696' of elevation gain. My average speed was 13.4.
















I knew the mileage from North Las Vegas to I-15 at Overton wasn't quite 100 miles, but I thought maybe I could finish up the day by riding north on 1-15. Tom, who we stayed with last night, volunteers for a huge MS ride, and part of that ride is on I-15. He said they have taken numerous cyclists to the hospital because semi trucks zoom past them and draw the cyclist into their slipstream, where they lose control of their bike. Great. I decided to be smart...and safe...and retrace my route to Overton for those last 10 miles or so.

Karen had a great idea for riding in all of this hot weather. She thought we needed a water thermos to supply us with cold water all day long. Badda boom, badda bing...I think it's going to save the day.

But my hero for the day was Dave of Red Rock Bicycles in St. George. He fixed my tire and my headset when I walked through the door at 5 p.m. He is an avid cyclist himself, training for the Great Divide Ride which is a 2700 mile ride along the Continental Divide. He hopes to finish the ride in 25 days...on a fixed gear mountain bike. And you thought I was crazy.


I put a lei around my Garmin when I rode my first century in Hawai'i and Janet from Las Vegas thought it fitting to put a boa around it for the data from Nevada. Done. I like it.



Our Warm Showers host for the night was Lucy Ormond in Hurricane, Utah. The town is pronounced Her-ikun. She was a doll and the reason I love Warm Showers so much. Here is a retired woman who has a passion for cycling. She will go self-contained, she will camp, she will do some of her own bike repair. And she is full of resources. She is a volunteer at Zion and when she heard our plans for tomorrow, where I had scrubbed the idea of riding inside the park because of the holiday weekend and the traffic, she put in her two cents. We listened and changed our plans.




maybe you can't...because you won't...