73.93 miles in 5:40..(287.05 miles in four days)..ascent....1306 ft....Somewhere over the ridge heading to Benson, the saguaro cactus disappeared, and after the ridge heading into Willcox, the predominant plant became the yucca tree, amongst the regular desert scrub and mesquite trees. And as I got closer to the godforsaken place that is Lordsburg, sand, or dirt was the predominant feature. This is the area that is famous for zero visibility dust storms. All 74 miles were on Interstate 10, with a general tail or side wind, except for two miles through the very sparse town of San Simon. The entire ride consisted of two very long gradual ascents, and two long gradual descents. It should have been an easier ride then it was, but today was the day that some fatigue set into my legs.
I passed another bicyclist today on one of the ascents. He was a big guy, maybe 250 lbs, and he was struggling. His name was Jeff, and he started in Quartzite, (Eastern Az) and was headed to Minnesota. He had all new panniers and the right equipment, but I hope he didn't bite off more than he can chew. He could barely talk, pumping up that hill at about 4 mph. And I thought I was feeling fatigued! The shoulder of the interstate varied between beautiful and terrible, but the ride, even though beautiful in its own way, was pretty boring. I had plenty of time to dodge steel belts and tire shrapnel on the bad areas without missing much. My 13 mph average for the trip was testament to the ease of the ride, but my legs just weren't feeling the ease! The temp got up into the 80's, which was nice. Highlights of the trip were the trains, two dead coyotes, a dead snake, a dead bobcat, and two dead legs. Just kidding.
The "beautiful " boredom. 
My kind of prices!
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