Day 15
Globe Arizona to Safford Arizona (The Salsa Trail)
The new tires are working great. Last night when I pulled into the spot where I planned to pitch my tent, I noticed I was picking up “goat heads” on my tires. Goat Heads are small, but very destructive little balls of thorns. I quickly altered course and found a different spot. You will recall that I had the tires mounted to the wheels without using tubes, I’m now running “tubeless.” The trick with tubeless is the sealant they put inside the tires. As I was pulling the Goat Heads out of my tires, I noticed some very small bubbles after a Goat Head was removed, that is the sealant at work filling the puncture left behind. Very impressive. My tires are still inflated this morning and ready to go on their 76 mile ride from Globe to Safford.
Today was the third day in a row of either high mileage or lots of climbing. It’s one thing to do this level of effort occasionally, but day-in, day-out becomes a challenge in itself. I finished today really in fine shape. I was the first one to the grocery stop at the end of the day, that was my goal because I was the cook tonight and responsible for shopping. When I finished shopping, five other riders were waiting outside the store to help me carry the groceries to the campground.
I knocked dinner out of the park tonight. I cooked the same meal I did last time, only with a slight variation. Instead of onion in the sauté, I used yellow and orange peppers, and I added a pound of Italian Sausage to the pot this time along with the pound of hamburger. So far, I’m the only person that has cooked a meal “from scratch” with the exception of Trail Boss. Last night she fixed “Thanksgiving Dinner.” We had mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, and sliced ham.
Tomorrow we will cross the Arizona, New Mexico state line and we will officially be in our third state. I am looking forward to a photo of myself standing on the continental divide. (That should be the day after tomorrow) I did get two photos today. The selfie camera on the phone is not broken, so I held it backwards to snap a landscape shot, and I also took my first official selfie of the trip
I’m very tired, having logged a long day, cooked dinner, and also done laundry. Tomorrow will be another 76 mile day crossing into New Mexico
Miles: 76
Vertical: 2,000
