Wow, making our way down the front range of the Rocky Mountains from Coaldale to Pueblo, we soon realized our major climbing was complete. We left out at 7:30 am from the banks of the Arkansas and quickly descended down the infamous Highway 50 to our turn onto a mountain plateau backroad. Beautiful cattle ranches lined both side of the road.
Our breakfast stop was in Westcliffe, a small quaint town with a growing Amish community. After breakfast, we had a few short climbs which provided us with the best decent of the trip. Switchback turns thru the canyon for miles of smiles. It took incredible skill and power to catch Todd! He learned from the best.
After the “amazing” overtake of the XC26 leader, I couldn’t hold back. Tummy and legs felt good.
I made them chase me for a bit until we rendezvoused with Dave (a cycling friend who recently moved from Chapel Hill to Colorado Springs) for our guide into Pueblo. The joy of seeing a brother cyclist has been a huge lift in positive vibes. I then payed for the solo attack by quickly getting dropped on the rolling “flat” 15 mile headwind into town. Chercher l’erreur! Allez comprendre!
As our night and second rest day begins, we plan to relax and watch team USA kick butt. We would also like thank all of the people supporting our journey. The new people we meet daily, Jeanne-Marie and Dave, Strava followers, blog followers, donators, and our families. As we approach the heat and wind of the Midwest, we will need those positive well wishes! See y’all tomorrow…..
