Closing in on Canada

 I put a bunch of time in on the bike today.  Today was what I expected the weather to be like in Alaska, in the 60’s and sunny.  My body was really sore this morning after spending all day yesterday fighting the cold and wet weather.  So while I didn’t really want to ride I knew I had to capitalize and make the most of the nice weather.  I did, putting down 85 miles with about 45 of them being through the hills.  So we are about 50 miles from the border with plans to make it to Beaver Creek, Yukon if everything goes well.

Not a whole lot to write about just spent most of the day grinding it out.  But I did meet a nice couple from Spain who are going to spend the next two years biking all over North America and South America.  Fortunately, their English was much better than my Spanish, so we had a very nice conversation and after giving them some PB&J’s we were on our way. 

There was one funny moment.  I came to a construction site early this morning only about 35 miles into my ride.  After having to sit it out and wait on the Dalton I didn’t want to suffer the same fate and wait around all day until they were done working.  My mind was running at light speed running through possible scenarios in which I would utter the magical words and they would allow me to ride without waiting.  I felt like Ralphie in A Christmas Story trying to find the right words to ultimately lead to him getting a Red Rider BB gun.  Would it help if I could work up some tears?  Even if it would I was so dehydrated that I probably didn’t have any to spare.  As I rolled up to the flagger, still trying to determine the best method to plead my case.  She looked at me and said “no need to stop honey… I’ll jump on the radio and tell the boys your coming through” I couldn’t believe it, so much so that I barely got out “thanks, have a nice day”.  I rode around the bulldozers and steamrollers ecstatic that I didn’t have to wait all day to ride a 1-mile section of torn up road. 

Shortly after that however, I hit the first hill of the day and spent the rest of the day climbing.  I want to clarify something, I am saying hill strictly because it Alaska they are hills, in Virginia they would be considered mountains.  Actually pretty much everywhere East of the Rockies they would be considered mountains. 

Tomorrow more hills and the border, Canada here we come.

84.5 miles

13.7mph average speed

39.7mph max speed

6:12:30 ride time