We woke up after a scant few
hours' sleep to discover the Cassie was still working her way in.
The struggles through the
desert had taken their toll and left Cassie tired and vulnerable. The route took Cassie on a mountain road
complete with bodacious climbs and descents with sharp hairpin turns and
"S" curves.
She had broken down several
times along the way and there were instances of her walking her bike along the
road, unable to pedal anymore.
By the time she arrived at
the rendezvous point for crew change, she was in a funk and wanted to
rest. We let her rest but as she approached
the maximum limit, she still wasn't ready to go and we had to call race HQ to
advise them of the situation.
She finally pulled herself
together and we began to move forward at a good pace. That lasted until the next mountain. Lots of switchbacks and steep grades.
During one of Cassie's stops,
we met two men who were cycling from the opposite direction. They were from the Tampa area and were
cycling to Alaska! We topped off their
water and bade them a safe farewell.
After the descent, we were
back into oppressive heat. The route to
Sedona was a sheer struggle with Cassie needing cooling multiple times. As we approached, however, she perked up and
we pushed on to Flagstaff and then Tuba City.
She needs to get to Durango in time to keep on the journey.
If she doesn't, we go home.
Next up: The Push To Durango
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