Day 7 - Salome, AZ to Avondale

Today was an 85.6 mile day with two different kinds of days weather-wise. We began the ride at 7:00 am because we were anticipating a 100 degree day. The first 45 miles were great with little wind and much cooler temps. However, from about 10:30 am on moderate headwinds blew in and the temp soared to about 102. I had my first flat tire, thanks to a small piece of wire that litters the shoulders we ride on. It delayed me about 45 minutes because I needed to wait for the support vehicle to bring a pump. My bike pump was only good to about 60 lbs. (these tires require 100-120 lbs of pressure). Didn't take many pictures today because the landscape has not changed much. I took the opportunity to get 100 miles in so I rode an extra 15 miles to make it. Pretty tough on a 102 degree day. We had a few guys succumb to dehydration but they seem to be recovering. Tomorrow's ride is about 51 miles to Apache Junction where I will connect with our former youth pastor and his wife, Lee and Melissa.

I am grateful that I have been able to ride strong throughout the trip and add extra miles from time to time. I have also not had to struggle with a lot of soreness, chafing or sunburn. We're averaging 9-10 hours of sleep each evening and we are being fed well and often. Wandering Wheels has thought of everything that contributes to a good trip. I hope over the weekend to talk more about some of our riders and the kinds of bikes they are riding. There are many bikes that are in the $4000-$10,000 dollar cost range (mine excluded).

Devotional Thought:


I've had the opportunity to talk to several members of our team about faith issues. Many are evangelical believers, others are somewhat evasive on what they believe. One was raised Catholic, married a Christian Scientist and talks about the universal power but doesn't call him God. I decided a while back when I talk about my faith that I wanted to avoid words that I'm familiar with but may not communicate clearly what one truly believes; words like Christian, believer, saved, evangelical, etc. I strongly prefer to describe myself as a follower of Christ. This avoids the inevitable, vague God talk that some enter into and lets people know that I view Jesus as my Savior and Lord. If it's still unclear to someone I'm talking to, it gives me an opening to share more about why I use that terminology.