Elevation gain: 4800 ft
A few miles out of Santa Fe we started climbing. I think our highest altitude was 7500. The altitude really got to me. I was huffing and puffing up the hills.
The first 44 miles were pretty with pine trees covering the land. At one point I could smell the pines. The rest of the ride was scrub desert. There were lots of small houses on very barren land. It has to be a tough life out here.
The winds really started picking up in the late morning. It was a tail wind most of the time. But crosswinds would appear and really throw you around. The prediction was for 50 mph gusts later in the day. When I got to the SAG at 44 miles, I was about an hour behind the other riders. I decided to take a 15 mile bump in the van and then rode in after that. We have a 108 mile ride tomorrow so I didn't want to totally deplete myself today.
The SAG was at the El Alto Bar. They normally don't open until noon on Sundays because they can't sell alcohol until then on Sundays. But he always comes in early when Crossroads is coming through so the riders can use the restrooms. I was there before noon. About 5 minutes to 12 the cars started arriving and they swarmed into the store when it opened. Local color.
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You are one tough cookie. Hang in there.
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