Today was to be one of the easier days of the final week. Notice I said was to be... It turned out to be a pretty tough day. It was an 83 mile ride on pavement. Sounds like one of the nicer set ups. Not!!! We first crossed the border and then began climbing. We climbed a steady grade of 2-3% for 28 miles. It would peak up to 6% every now and then but consistently climbing the entire distance. No rolling hills, no short downhills to give the legs a break... just climbing. Oh and to make it even better, a headwind came up shortly after we started the climb. It increased with intensity as the sun continued its ascent and the temperatures climbed as well.
That was the first part of the day. The second part was rolling hills with 6-10% grades to climb and the headwind of course. It was one of the toughest 83 miles of the tour.
Tomorrow is a 95 mile day off road on the dirt. I think that they are trying to kill us before we can get to Capetown. I think that way they save on meals for the final celebration banquet. :)
Here is the scenery that I saw on the grueling ride:
Pretty desolate country... still in the desert.
28 miles of steady climb would be tough and a head wind. It seems like it is a high desert. It would be hard to make a living on.
ReplyDeleteRay