Sherry is finally going to write our blog!!  Well, dictate it to me as I write, so if the person changes just go with it.  The “I” in this refers to Sherry, not me.

Wednesday, July 12

Phew!  What a day today was!!  We (Larry and Sherry) started riding at 6:30 am and right off the bat had to climb for 20 miles…  Sherry used her lowest gear and averaged 4.4 mph.  Eric, John and Joel averaged about 12.  It took Larry and me until 11:00 am to get to the top of the Cumbres Toltec Pass at 10,022 ft elevation!  The scenery was beautiful as we crossed from New Mexico into Colorado.  As we (Sherry and Larry) started the descent it began to rain and soon it really poured.  We were afraid to descend without hugging our brakes every few seconds.  We were splashed by passing cars and it was difficult to see the bumps in the road due to the wind, rain, and even hail!  By the time we got to the bottom Sherry was shivering from the cold and unable to shift adequately.  We stopped at a gift shop for hot cocoa and apricot pie (but don’t tell the boys).  The rest of the ride passed fairly uneventfully except for the occasional rain and a crosswind for the last 14 miles.  Also, we missed out on the fresh chocolate chip cookies back at camp because we came in too late (4:45 pm)…  I am definitely working harder than I ever have before while Larry has been learning to be very patient.

Great view over a mountain valley during the climb! 

Yes, we did bike all the way up here, 10,230 ft!  Now to go down!

Thursday, July 11 - Alamosa Rec Center -> Chaffee County Fairgrounds (Poncha Springs)

Today’s ride was ~80 miles with most of it very flat along US 285 N.  The scenery really didn’t change much at all…  We were in a wide valley between the nearby mountains.  The excitement was reading the extra terrestrial signs for the UFO watchtower, seeing the alien settlements, and passing a HUGE field of solar panels.  Near the end of the ride we pedaled over Poncha Springs Pass with a long, fast (over 35 mph) descent.  It was a spectacular end to the ride!  We spent the evening in a 4-H animal barn (empty of animals for the time being).

Alien settlement!  Even with a giant X in the sky to mark the spot!

An example of a sight at the Alamosa Rec Center...

Friday, July 12 – CC Fairgrounds -> The Abbey (Canon City)

Joel, Larry, and Sherry rode together today into the nearby town of Salida where we saw the river some cyclists (including Joel) had floated down yesterday.  We saw a pink, black spotted beetle car (VW Bug) and a few other interesting vehicles.  Today’s ride was on US 50 East, a curvy road between rocky hills following the Arkansas River.  This was my (Sherry’s) favorite ride so far even though we were unable to make a detour to see the Royal Gorge Bridge due to a recent wildfire (disasters have started to occur before we visit places now…  Dave Naberhuis).  Tonight’s stay is on the grounds of a historic monastery.  We ended up sleeping on the floor of the gymnasium because of wind and threatening rain (not wanting to further endanger our already hurting tents…)

Saturday, July 13 – The Abbey -> Colorado Springs Christian School

A new experience for us this morning, scrambled eggs!  Finally the “tilt skillet” in the kitchen truck is fixed (which is the device our meals were initially planned around…).  Thankfully today’s ride was short (a mere 50 miles!).  I very much enjoyed the downs, but not so much the ups because we continually went over large hills.  Joel had his first flat today but I forgot to take his picture as he was fixing it.  All of us have had one or more flats now, with John having as many as the rest of us combined!  We are sleeping inside again, in the hallways of the high school because it is “Monsoon Season” so it tends to be very windy overnight and often rains.  Sherry (along with many others of us) is definitely looking forward to the day off tomorrow!

Dad and Adam on the swings at the Winery (July 8)