The Ride to Vegas: Day 5

It's all about the altitude. I'm a sea level flatlander, so Day 5 put many doubts into my already less-than-confident self. It was a 118 mile ride day with a serious climb not too far from the start. The group is strong and can climb at a pace I just can't sustain, and the altitude at the 5800' start was causing me to panic. My friend, Glen, was the voice of reason, once again, and settled me down. Reminding me of all the techniques to take in more oxygen, he really got me back to sanity. With a helpful hand on my back, he kept me moving until I was back with the big boys. My new friends, Dan and Shane, were very encouraging along the way and my buddy Doug from Boulder was more than willing to drop off the back of the group at around 50 miles so we could pedal at a sustainable pace. The scenery is more enjoyable when you can look up!

Nic Sims, from Specialized, dropped back to ride with us and we rolled right along- quickly ticking off the miles. Along the way, we picked up another rider, Patrick, who had been shuttled out to start a bit into the ride. In a few more miles, we latched onto Noah from Western Spirit- our guides for the week. This day we had a beautiful, long descent near the end. It was easy to get up to 45mph but I ran outta gears at that point.

There were quite a few challenging "bumps" (climbs) in the road over the 118 miles but we hung together really well and made the full 118. After such a rough start, it really turned into one of the better rides of the week. It was the perfect decision for Doug and I to drop off. I still felt like I could have done ten more if needed.

We ended up in Mesquite Nevada that night. It was the plushest resort/hotel this week. We had some time to get our massages and relax by the pool before dinner and we stayed up a while after talking about the day's events and realizing that our trip was almost over. It always seems like a long ride but it passes very quickly.

Day 6 will take us into Las Vegas. Actually, Boulder City where the Interbike Dirt Demo is being held. Sounds like we will shuttle out a ways then ride 40 miles. The Big Boys will ride the full 120.

Five days down, one to go.