DOUBLE Downhill!

Day 57 - July 30, 11:03pm
101 miles. Otter Creek State Park, UT to Milford, UT

What a day. Am just praying that at least one day this trip I wont have to wake up utterly exhuasted. Even mildly exhausted would be making progress. Waking up to balmy weather and eating cereal all bundled up by the lakefront during sunrise was, of course, super spectacular. It got me so pumped for the outdoor orientation trip im leading in the fall which is the same group bonding and silliness but without oh you know the 100 miles of biking daily.

The morning started off wonderfully and we went along these great valleys until lunch at mile 40. There's much more greenery in this part of Utah. And It almost makes up for the past few days of desolation. Almost. Had some great riding with Anne Lise, and one of our first real longer conversations. I like her a lot. Really got a good head on her shoulders and just such a pure soul. The fact that she can beast any boy on this trip on a climb doesn't hurt her either.

Hit a decent climb right after lunch and a solid 8% downhill. But wait. Just as we approached flattening out of the road we were met not with another climb, BUT WITH ANOTHER DOWNHILL!!! a double downhill! this one was also 8% for 4 miles. Possibly one of the best surprises ever. Probably even moreso than a surprise David Hasselhoff appearance at a concert.

The Interstate following that was pretty damn terrifying if not for the wide shoulder but soon enough we hit a burger king right before lunch that we all stopped at. Since i wasn't feeling like PB and J for the 574th time i opted instead for some Triple Super Deluxe Patty Supreme Burger which was gone in about 3 inhales. Now im not sure if im just a donation whore or people are getting really lazy about asking for donations. But personally with food being as tight as it has been, its tough to shell out cash for such a starving appetite. I mean what do we have to lose by asking. Well i did that with the Burger King and they were kind enough to donate 10 burgers. Thank you guys!

The last 30 miles were spent fighting a ferocious headwind(as in moving my bike 3 inches left and right continuously) and coming up with barnyard jokes. For example, why did the sheep go to college? Punchline: To get his Baaaachelors degree!

While we thought that we would be staying in a conference room tonight, the Oak Tree Inn was super kind to put us up in actual rooms! As in a real bed!. We were treated to dinner in this cute diner by the local newspaper reporter and Larry, Dan M, Noah and I couldn't have been giddier after we had all ordered our MONSTER Burgers. Just one of the six toppings was a fried egg. You get the picture. The sides of onion rings and shakes and floats completed the euphoria. But have to mention todays First alert: First Malt ever! It was chocolate and delicious. Officially a fan for life.

Afterwards Larry, Clarissa, Karina and I leaped for the jacuzzi where our minds, muscles, and any stress in them immediately melted. Seriously, at that moment with the burger in me and the boiling water around me, I had more of a buzz from times when i go party.

And i found my camera charger on top of it all!

Entering Nevada tomorrow. Good. Utah and especially Moab was okay but just not very high on the checklist, frustration wise at least. Off to my bed!