Today started out COLD. When we were at the hotel it seemed okay. It was 48 degrees and sunny and seemed like it would warm up quickly. So I put on a light base layer, a short sleeve jersey, a vest, thermal arm warmers, shorts, knee warmers, and full finger gloves. By the time we made it to the first van stop at mile 18 I was freezing. Instead of warming up we rode into fog and it got much colder. I was so cold that at the first van stop I ended up putting on a jacket, another vest, full shoe covers, and I borrowed thermal gloves from one of the guides. That helped and within a few miles I was warmed back up.
We had two route options for today. A "short" 75 mile option or a longer 90 mile option that would take us closer to the Devils Tower National Monument. After covering 660 miles in 6 days we all opted for the "short" 75 mile route. We did see Devils Tower from the road, but not up close, and no photos (sorry). We also raced some more pronghorn antelope. This time it was a large herd. Overall, the day was much easier than I expected, which is good because we have another huge day tomorrow as we head towards our second rest day. It was also nice to roll into the hotel in the early afternoon so we had extra down time.
Pizza for dinner! Only the third time I'm having pizza since the trip started, which for me is causing major pizza withdraw because I eat pizza like some people drink coffee.
Day 18 stats:
distance: 77.4 miles
elevation gain: 2953 ft
nutrition:
breakfast: eggs, potatoes, blueberry muffin, yogurt, NuGo protein bar
lunch: cheese slices, pea salad, potato salad, guacamole with chips, yogurt with granola, berries, and honey
post-ride: 1 recovery drink, cheddar sandwich crackers, 1 small coke, 1 lemon la croix
gels: 3
bloks: 1
26 oz skratch superfuel, 52 oz zym
Day 19 details - Sundance to Rapid City, SD
planned distance: 103 miles
planned elevation gain: 6211 ft