• Miles today 112.9
• Miles total 1772.9
• Elevation today 3445 ft
• Elevation total 84298 ft
• Weather – Warm to hot 68 to mid 90’s. Wind from the side at about 10 mph (manageable )

This was a come back ride. So much energy expended to survive the badlands. The day is a blur. We are rolling across the prairie.

Everything hurt – hands, arms, neck and off course the butt was on fire! Every group I got in, they dropped me! Finally the guide sweeper rode up and then he dropped me. This was all in the first 25 miles!!! I could only think of everything negative – I wanted to stop and get in the van. Ya, after the day before and complements. It was me and the prairie and I thought I was going to be a snack for something wild! Man that was a dark place!

I made it to 40 mile stop! Hanging on to dear life. Scott one of the guides just said ride it out-you got it! Somehow, I kept going… fueled by 3 cokes, a Kates bar and some cliff bar chews. I bet my blood sugar level was off the charts! I just kept pedaling and I got faster and faster to where I caught up to the slow group, then the next group. My butt was killing me – I think smoke was coming out of my bike shorts as it was such a mess down there. I talked to the guides about switching to different saddle – so some hope was in the air at least. But the day was long!

We stopped at a crazy way point for bus tours in Oacoma. Hotel was next door to Big Al’s which was a restaurant, gift shop, video arcade, jewelry and supermarket. Crazy place as the supermarket had stuffed animals of native animals to SD. Big Al was a stuffed Buffalo. It was like a Cabellas but a grocery store…go figure. While we ate dinner 5 buses of people come marching in – the place accommodated everyone.