Johnny rode with us today, thinking it would be the last day we would see one another. Johnny and Matty have been considering dropping all of their gear and credit card touring. If that happens we will surely lose them to high mileage days.
We had a 50 mile gradual climb for the first half of the day. Not so bad with Johnny and Chris chatting away. Johnny keeps us entertained with various English phrases I have come to love such as "pop into a shop" and something about a mickey.
The last twenty or so miles of this day. I realize that is not a complete sentence, but I am not equipped to finish it.
The last twenty miles...
It broke me, right in two. Well over a hundred degrees. The sun is the worst around 6:30 out here and I think we managed to time it such that we were climbing the steepest and longest pass at the peak of devilish heat.
Despite Chris repeating to me, "You can do it" over and over, the only sentence I could produce was, "I want to die". With the threat of our water supply running out, I gnawed on some gummy snacks my parents mailed me and continued on. I had no other option. We stopped at the top of the pass which was quite cool. A dynamite exploded pass allowed for tall cliffs on either side of the road. We took shelter for a brief bit.
Just when I thought we were almost through, when all calories had depleted, my water was gone and my body was at the point of total exhaustion, we climbed two more summits. I was seeing stars. My tongue felt like a foreign object in my mouth. I stopped sweating because of dehydration. I was sunburned through long sleeves.
Here is where I have adopted Chris' deep love for dinasours. Sinclair gas station has a green sign with a brontosaurus below the name. A crappy run down building at a junction just within sight. Praise be the dinasours.
Johnny was waiting next to the "petrol" pump. In a similar fashion, Johnny had run out of energy and water. He said he felt like he had been chewing salt. We were all terribly relieved and joyful to be three miles from our destination. I drank so much water at once I gained four pounds in the parking lot.
The last three miles of flat land leading into Blanding was a delicious victory lap. Johnny and Chris in heat stroke delirium sung, " If your happy and you know it, clap your hands", while farm sprinklers ticked away in an orange sunset.
Went to the grocery store for loads of meat and hard boiled eggs. We eat like construction workers.
Camped in a crappy little lot and watched folks shoot off fireworks across the street. Listened to dogs bark. Killed misquitos skillfully. Laid on top of sleeping bags because of summer heat.
America.
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