Day 18 - July 15th - Gillette, WY to Newcastle, WY
| Route Distance: | 75 | Average Speed: | 18.3 | |
| Total Distance: | 1248 | Maximum Speed: | 34.2 | |
| Riding Distance: | 76.3 | Elevation Gain: | 1046' | |
| Riding Time: | 4:10 |
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| Picture
Notes: Jersey picture Empty coal train Click here for more pictures from today |
| After Tuesday's wind experience and yesterday's heat experience we again
got on the road early after a quick bagel and cream cheese breakfast. We hit
the local convenience store for some road food, then proceeded east out of
Gillette, past another open pit coal mine and several oil drilling sites.
The skies to the west looked ominous and the afternoon forecast called for
thunderstorms and hail, so we decided to speed it up and try to finish
before the weather turned. We had generally favorable winds and
temperatures, helped by mostly overcast skies. Bruce and I filled our
Camelbaks with ice and fresh water at the first water stop at 26 miles, and
it was back on the road. Bruce stopped to take a picture of a Corgi while I
continued on, and soon I encountered a five mile stretch of freshly laid
asphalt, extremely smooth and a cyclist's dream! This took me almost all the
way into Upton where our second water stop was located. After a short break
we again cranked it up, and helped by a tailwind we rode almost non-stop
into Newcastle. We arrived at the Senior Center where we're staying tonight
at 11:20 am, not too shabby for a 75+ mile ride! Tonight we have an "indoor camping" opportunity, which means sleeping bags and Thermarest pads on the floor inside a dry and air conditioned room. Since rain is forecast tonight I'm not displeased at all with these arrangements. Dinner was provided by the folks here at the Senior Center, and my time this afternoon was spent updating this site and trying to fix my camera (with Bruce's help it might just work tomorrow, crossing my fingers...). |