MARCH 14, 2015
Day 8 – Casa Grande, AZ to Catalina, AZ – 68.45 miles – Elevation: + 1,503 / – 312 feet
While I wasn’t able to get new tires as planned, the good news is that I didn’t get a flat tire today. The bad news is instead my air mattress went flat in the middle of the night. Luckily there are a few mattresses set aside just in case that happens. Nevertheless, I didn’t get a great night’s sleep for what turned out to be a very hard day.
We gained elevation all day, starting with a gentle gain to the first rest stop at about 25 miles. From there we had strong headwinds the rest of the way. At the end of the day we had a rather steep elevation gain into camp. It was a hard push. The last rider made it in at the end of dinner and was welcomed by a standing ovation by the other riders.
It is always a challenge to find your clothes on laundry day. Since all the clothes are washed together, each rider must sort through all the clothes to find their stuff. After dinner you could hear a pin drop and a few snores in camp. Thank goodness tomorrow is a rest day.
Ken Whittaker