Today was scheduled as an ‘off’ day for us. There are always items that need fixing, foods to be prepared and generally, lots of catch-up items. After the hard push from Casper to the Cove we needed some time.
One of my greatest concerns has been for the bike tires. There are really nasty thorns out here in the west called ‘goat heads.’ We’ve mentioned them before, but just to review, they have two ‘horns’ that project at right angles from the woody core.
The thorns are very hard. They will punch all the way through a bike tire, puncture the tube and leave you high and dry in the middle of a terribly remote, dusty gravel road. Not a pleasant situation.
Denny and I consider it something of a small miracle that after over 400 miles of biking, we have not had a single flat this trip (knock on wood). By the second month of our 2008 trek, our cargo trailer had experienced three flats requiring us to replace two tires. We have been very concerned that the bikes would fare much worse. To our amazement, we are flat free so far. Despite being on many gravel roads with some sharp rock fragments and sections of Colorado with goat heads, it’s been smooth sailing. But in front of us, we expect much worse conditions.
Soooo … this morning Mark – being a practical skills guy – took on the challenge of putting in our tube protectors which we purchased way back in Greeley Colorado. Yep, we’ve had them for 250 miles but not the time to put them in – or the skills (on my part). But, now it’s time since we won’t really have an opportunity after we leave here. We are now just 5 weeks and 3 days from completing this trek.
After our morning work projects we all needed a nap, so we took one. Our entire group is aged in the high-60’s or above. It got so hot today (95 F) that for the first time we retreated into the air-conditioned RV. For those of you who are incensed by this revelation of whimpiness, I’ll just comment that if you think the pioneers would not have availed themselves of every technological advancement available to them in their day, then you are sadly mistaken. The LDS Church and its people have always embraced advancements. I subscribe to that approach to life. (grin).
And, being Saturday, it’s a special day. It’s the day we get ready for Sunday. We take turns using the RV shower so we won’t smell like trail rats in church tomorrow. AND … we’re invited to stay after church meetings for their weekly pot-luck dinner! Woo-hoo! What to contribute to the pot-luck has been a much discussed topic this evening. Return for tomorrow’s blog entry to see how we resolved this pressing matter.