Tunnel Vision

The wind was back with a vengeance today. Not AT my back. Just back. And very much NOT at my back. After enjoying a few days of unexpected (but dare I say well deserved) tailwinds, nature had corrected its course and the winds were once again coming from the east. It was fun while it lasted. As such, today was not an excessively fun day on the bike. On the upside, from a distance standpoint today was to be a short ride.

Today’s destination was Globe and it was only 40 km from Superior. Why such a short day? Well, it was primarily a geographical decision. To get from Tempe to Safford was either going to be a couple of long days (made even longer by the wind) or two reasonable days plus a short day. Clearly I opted for the latter. Had I started earlier yesterday and pedalled faster, I could’ve made it to Globe yesterday. But I didn’t. Had I started earlier and pedalled faster today, I could’ve made it to Safford today. But I didn’t. In both cases, I was okay with that.

With a short day on the agenda I certainly wasn’t racing around to get on the road this morning. Plus, Mari had mentioned that starting early can be a bit dangerous in this area as drivers try to contend with the blinding rising sun. Add to that the limited shoulder and construction and it seemed like a good idea to wait until the sun was a bit higher.

The extra time was nice as it allowed me to get some photos, post another update, chat with Tim about his upcoming ride (he has decided to head over to the coast so I was able to offer a bit of insight) and hang out with the dogs (Sadie, Muffin, and Red). Sadie is a Newfoundland and, as such, huge. And pretty adorable. That said, she’s unlike an Newfoundland I’ve ever seen. With the exception of her head, her fur was white. I thought Newfoundlands were always black but apparently not. Apparently such Newfoundlands are called Landseers.

By 9:30 I was on the road. While Globe was now behind me, both the wind and the climbs were very much in front of me. I was in for a long short day. Plus, there was also a tunnel along the way. Did I mention the tunnel? No, well, there was a tunnel somewhere ahead. I had heard that this was a long, poorly lit tunnel with no shoulder. Good times.

It was shortly before 11:00 when I arrived at the aforementioned tunnel. As tunnels go, it certainly didn’t look pleasant but it didn’t appear to be as bad as I had heard. There wasn’t much in the way of a shoulder (that’s the nice way to put it), but the lighting was better than expected and it was probably only a few hundred metres. However, it would be a slow ride through the tunnel as there was a bit of an incline to it.

With my red blinking light turned on, I set course for the far side of the tunnel. I kept pretty much constant watch in my rear view mirror for bicycle-crushing traffic. And there was a fair bit of it this morning. As such, on more than one occasion I found myself stopping in the tunnel to get myself as close to the side as possible when large waves of such traffic approached. Yes, it slowed my progress but not as much as being flattened by a truck.

I managed to avoid vehicular contact and made it to the other side of the tunnel in one piece. Upon arriving on the other side, I was greeted by a large rest area – actually, it was more of just a gravel area. Either way, I stopped there to take a drink and a few photos. I was also greeted by Karen and Denny. They were out for a drive and had also stopped for some photos. We chatted for a bit before I continued down the road but not before Karen took a few photos of me which she promised to send me. Spoiler Alert: She did.

Despite the continuing headwind, the rest of my ride went relatively smoothly. It got a little unpleasant through one section of construction where the shoulder was replaced by concrete barriers which pretty much left no room for cars (and especially trucks) to pass me. Much like in the tunnel, I opted to stop a few times to get over as far as I could rather than cause a lengthy traffic jam.

My first pleasant surprise of the day came four miles after arriving in Miami, AZ. I know it was four miles because there was a big billboard telling me so. Sometimes I can be so observant. Anyway, of the things I expected to see on this day, Wendy’s was not one of them. I think a surprise Frosty might even be better than a regular Frosty. Either way, I had one and it was a fine reward for my tough (albeit short) day in the wind.

In addition to Frostys, Wendy’s also had WiFi so I was able to investigate my housing options for the evening. The Warm Showers host in the area was unavailable but he mentioned a community park as a camping option. While the community park would’ve been free – a very appealing quality – I ended up going to an RV Park. For $8, the services were somewhat limited for cyclists (i.e. No showers) but it was a seemingly safe and clean place to spend the night. It also had one other amenity that I just couldn’t pass up. Batting cages. I mean, seriously, how could I not stay at an RV Park that has batting cages?

With my batting cage fix settled, I needed to focus on other things. Namely food. Oh, and batteries. It would seem the batteries in my headlamp have died. It’s been a rough week for batteries. On the upside, there was a Safeway within walking distance. On the downside, there was a Safeway within walking distance. Warning: Mini rant coming. I hate Safeway. I think I’ve mentioned it before but it’s worth repeating (at least I think it is). Every time I go into that store I leave significantly less happy than when I went in. Today was no different. If I wanted to experience “Club Pricing” I’d go to Costco where the prices tend to actually be good – not just a lesser degree of gouging. I didn’t count but I’m sure half of Safeway’s products are marked with “Club Prices”. Yes, “membership” is free but it really bothers me that I have to carry another card in my wallet just to get slightly less gouged at checkout. And yes, I’m aware that this would qualify as a First World problem.

I returned to my tent with my Club Priced batteries only to find that my headlamp still didn’t work. Grrrrr. Fortunately, it was a somewhat short-lived problem. I’ll spare you the details but after some mildly creative adjustments I was able to revive my headlamp. For how long I can’t be sure.

When I arrived at the campground this afternoon, I figured I could use the afternoon to get this blog caught up. That only sort of happened. I have to say, I’m not really sure where the day went. Well, some of it may have gone to the batting cages. Did I mention there are batting cages at the campground?

With today’s headwind, minimal shoulders, tunnel, construction, and traffic, the riding portion of today was a bit of grind. That said, any day that includes a Frosty and batting cages can’t be all bad. One might even say it makes for another great day.

Today’s totals:
Distance travelled: 40.54 km*
Ride time: 2:49:13
Average speed: 14.37 km/h (how embarrassing)
Maximum speed: 48.71 km/h

* I’ve now pedalled over 6,000 miles on this journey.