What a difference a day makes!  After a great night's sleep and much cooler temperatures (in the 50's when we started at 6:30 AM) I was ready to tackle the 80 miles that lay ahead.  The first 15 miles were fantastic, slight downhill and wide shoulder.  At mile 6 we entered the San Carlos Apache Reservation.  After much discussion, we decided to pass on the casino.  The reservation was so desolate and depressing.  After seeing a local high school in session, it is understandable why so many of these kids drop out of school.  For about 35 miles we had "rollers", fun little up and down hills that break up the flat land, but don't make you work too hard.  This is a scene from the road to Pima, see the snow on the mountains.  If you hover over the picture, you can see a description.

After 73 miles on a bicycle seat, there is just no way to sit on that tiny seat that is comfortable.  So we sought respite at the local "Taylor's Freeze" in Pima, AZ.  Like a step back in time, we enjoyed burgers, fries, and root beer floats in a place that has operated for 40 years under the same family ownership.   After the goodies, we were good to go on to Safford.  It was a very good ride.  I hardly felt tired at the end of the day.  But, we did spend time in the hot tub to soothe the aching muscles.  So far, we have ridden a total of 615 miles.

One of the outstanding experiences of this trip is to witness the support each woman gives to the other.  Early this day, two of us came upon Outrun, the 70-year-old German lady who now lives in the US.  She had left her backpack at the last SAG and was shaking with cold and crying.  As we waited for the SAG to arrive, Robin put her arms around her to share her warmth. Things turned out okay and Outrun was back on the road after sagging for about 25 miles.  As you can see from the picture, she was okay later in the day.

At the end of the day, the first riders to arrive unload the trailer.  Most of us brought too much stuff, especially when we have second floor room in the hotel.  I plan to send lots of my clothes home when Bill meets me in Navasota, TX.  It is amazing to find out what you REALLY need to survive.