The Winds but no wind

So the leg felt better, it was still sore and a bit tight but the knot from yesterday was gone and I could walk normalish. Today's forecast had no wind but high temps. With that in mind everyone got up and moving. The brits and flag wearing Americans were gone by 6 and we went over to the bar for breakfast.

That was a mistake I'm pretty sure I caught a cold from that damn bar. Still it was necessary since I got my first flat of the trip and the mosquitos were relentless. A tiny piece of tire metal had made it into my tube. Not bad considering this is the first flat in over 2500 miles.

So I figured out why there are so many mosquitos in the desert. Apparently this entire area is a frozen marsh. The pioneers would cut blocks of ice and take it down to Utah to help with the heat. It doesn't usually thaw until late July or August. With the lack of wind the mosquitoes were vicious. This was only the second time I've been forced to use deet.

The ride was uneventful except for the heat. We got up close and personal with The wind river mountain range. I tried explaining how amazing they are to the guys but until you get 20 miles into the backcountry you can't appreciate them. They'll just have to go hike them to see for themselves.

The final 9 miles into Lander was terrible. I was limping along with my sore hamstring in 98+ temps. We made it but there was a cow pond I was seriously considering jumping into. When we got to Lander we stopped at the first place with a.c., a McDonalds. This might have been the first good experience I've had at McDonalds. An all you can drink sweet tea for a dollar and 55 cent ice cream.

Once we were cooled off enough for us to leave McDonalds to find somewhere we could get edible food I got my second flat of the trip. This was a bad one my tire didn't even hold air for a minute. The bike shop, best one on trail btw free ice cream and beer, said it was due to the liner that keeps my spokes in place rubbing the tube. The mechanic said it was because the liner wasn't glued down and once he replaced that on both tires I had him due chain maintenance since he did such a good job and Jim hadn't finished his beer yet. We eventually got dinner then camped in the city park.