A very interesting day. At McDonalds I talked to two older gentlemen and inquired about the road ahead. They confirmed what I already knew, once you leave the Las Crusis area there are no services until Alamogordo about 60 miles. I also stopped at a Subway and picked up a sandwich for lunch.
The morning started with a 2000 foot 12 mile climb then it got easier. At the St. Augustin Pass the winds were a mixture of strong, gusty, swirling, and crosswinded. I put on my jacket and gloves and got ready for the 12 mile white knuckle downhill. At first I rode on the shoulder, but that got too dangerous as the winds wanted to push me into the guard rail so I moved to the outside lane, I didn't think anyone would mind sine I was doing 40 mph the whole way down. I would rate the ride down as somewhere between an 8 to 9 out of 10 on the Pucker Scale. At the bottom of the hill signs said that I was now in the White Sands Missile Range which lasted for about 25 miles.
I got my third flat about midway to Alamogordo, another steel belt wire in the tire which I probably picked up on Int. 10. I stopped at the third border patrol checkpoint since I left San Diego and ate my lunch there. I was asked if I was a US citizen. What self respecting illegal would be caught in spandex biking in the desert? For about 90 minutes I had a quartering tail wind and finally saw my speed in the low 20's.
At Holloman AFB I got a real surprise, the Thunderbirds were practicing for an upcoming airshow, the came right over my head before I saw them. I had to watch for about an hour before going into Alamogordo.
It amazed me how much of nothing was out there during my cross country ride last spring. I had a lot of support with Woman Tours and followed the Adventure Cycling Southern Tier route. Will find your pictures and descriptions interesting.Hats off to you for doing this on your own.
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