Because of the new time zone, the sun was up before we were today. We packed up and left around 6. The weather predicted a headwind day, and since our goal was to make it to Ordway -88 miles- we expected a long and tough day. The storm last night brought cooler conditions though, so it was only going to be 90.

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We started off strong and the headwind was pretty weak. We made good time to eads, about 25 miles away, where we first stopped at the transam halfway sign! I can't believe we are half way (~2100 miles).

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We also stopped at the convenience store to get water before getting back into the desert/prairie. The guy working the gas station told us a story about watching a cyclist get hit by and RV on the road we were taking. He was pretty graphic and talked about putting him in his car and driving to the hospital. He didn't even tell us if he lived. Way to get us psyched for the road ahead, dude. Also, we have been on highway 96 for 200 miles now, so I think we know whats up. We left the station and the mild headwind turned to a mild tailwind, the a full on 29 mph tailwind.

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We flew through the next small towns, stopping for water at a spigot in haswell. I was cruising around 25 mph for a while today and the only thing slowing us down was the poor road conditions.

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We got to sugar city and crushed the last few miles to Ordway in no time. It was only 1 or 2 so we stopped at the saloon for a cold crispy beer. After chatting with the locals, we paid up (1.50 per beer!), and went over to a church that Mallory had stayed at. She gave the contact info to mark and he had called and left a message, but we never got a response. We figured we would go over, and since it was Sunday, someone would probably be there. The place was completely empty and we checked the doors. No luck at the front, but the rear door was open! The place matched the description Mallory gave: shower, kitchen, etc. So we all showered and made a huge burrito meal. All the sudden, some dude walked into the hall and was surprised to see us. We explained that we were cyclists and we heard they put up cyclists. The guy was pretty mad at first and said we should have gotten permission. We name dropped our contact and that seemed to help, but he was sure to tell us to leave. He said they had a place on the other side of town where they let people stay, but it was pretty awkward since we just prepared a huge hot meal in several large pots. We decided to eat really quick, clean, and leave asap. We ate, packed and left while more and more church people showed up and glared at us. We biked the mile across town to this other spot and were greeted by this guy who unlocked it. It was a big gymnasium and matched Mallory's description as well. Oh well, at least it's a free place to stay! It's father's day today, so I called my dad and talked with him for a while. On this trip I always think back to the adventures we had on backpacking trips together. I definitely wouldn't be able to do a trip like this without having a dad awesome enough to teach me how to camp and travel.

Tomorrow we travel a short 59 miles to pueblo where I can hopefully get a new chain and some other odds and ends. We still aren't sure where we will sleep, but we will see. There is always a hotel as backup.

A short sidenote about Alex, after meeting him yesterday, we found out that he is riding his bike through all 50 states. He started last august and is finishing up the last few states on the transam. He is really cool and hopefully we can ride with him for a while.

Mileage:91
Altitude gain:1800