Pony Express
Day 68: Ely, NV rest day
July 23, 2011
We didn’t NEED a day off, but we’re ahead of schedule and we enjoy ourselves a lot more without sores on our butts so we took a day in Ely, NV. The main attractions here are casinos and ghost train rides, neither of which were terribly appealing. What did we do all day? We have three words for you: James Bond Marathon.
Day 69: Ely, NV to Eureka, NV
July 24, 2011
Julia and Ari got married today!! Congratulations! We wish we could have been there instead of in the middle of the desert. We got a very early (and cold) start today because it would be another long day with 4 climbs. The climbs weren’t too bad, and the second one even had a tree at the top where we stood and ate lunch. Unfortunately, the wind reared it’s ugly head again and robbed us of any nice downhills or even flats. About 10 miles from Eureka a couple from Minnesota pulled over to cheer for us and talk for a few minutes. The guy was REALLY excited about our trip (almost a la Mr. Double rainbow but not quite). That helped us get through the last grueling climb. We were happy when we discovered a wind free summit and were all set to fly down the hill into Eureka. But then Hillary discovered a huge, tumor-like lump on her back tire (the tire delaminated and formed an air pocket), so we sloooowly made our way into town, shaking our fists at Nevada. Good thing we’ve been carrying 2 spare tires for the last 3,625 miles.
- Start: Ely, NV
- End: Eureka, NV
- Slept: motel
- Miles: 79
- Avg: 8.4
Day 70: Eureka, NV to Austin, NV
July 25, 2011
We will admit, we were a little burnt out on this trip upon leaving Utah, but Nevada is just adding insult to injury. There is no doubt that this trip has ceased being about the journey and is now all about the destination. How is each day in Nevada worse than the day before? We slept in a little because today was supposed to be flatter and a little shorter than yesterday. The first 25 miles were uneventful and very gradually uphill. Then the wind kicked up. We had a strong headwind or a gusting crosswind all afternoon. We didn’t have our anemometers with us, but to give you an idea, we were in the easiest gear, pushing really hard, doing 5 mph, downhill. We don’t even want to talk about the uphills. If you’ve never done it, riding into the wind is terrible. It makes you seriously consider giving up biking forever and it makes the day drag on forever. In addition to killing your legs, the extended time in the saddle makes you wonder if you’ll ever sit comfortably again and destroys your energy, physically and mentally. Today was hands down, the worst day of the trip. The only reason we didn’t give up and decide to live out the rest of our days on US 50 was the number of waves, thumbs ups, and an amazing synchronized fist pump from three motorcyclists. When we got to Austin we went straight to dinner in our biking clothes because the restaurant closes at 8. A motorcyclist from Iowa commiserated with us about the wind. Apparently he told his wife about us because a few minutes later a woman emerged from the bar next door, told us “more power to you,” and said she would stop complaining about the long days on her motorcycle.
- Start: Eureka, NV
- End: Austin, NV
- Slept: motel
- Miles: 66.2
- Avg: 7.6
Day 71: Austin, NV
July 26, 2011
We had hoped to blow through the rest of Nevada as fast as possible but yesterday just destroyed us. So, here we are in Austin. After a greasy breakfast at the other restaurant in town we walked out to look a Stokes Castle, a 3-story stone building built in 1896 in the style of an Italian castle. We also learned that the strong winds are atypical here. Lucky us. We’re planning to get up really early tomorrow to try to beat the wind.
Photos: typical Nevada, Hillary’s back tire’s tumor, Ol’ Gringo feels our pain, Austin courthouse, Stokes Castle