3/14/15 Phoenix Rest Day (Pi Day 3.1415) 0 miles

Rest days are reserved for laundry and bike cleaning which most of us did.  There was a bike shop nearby - Exhale Bike shop which has the greatest staff!  The owners are a husband and wife team, Nathaniel and Jesse, who treated the WomanTours riders with extra special attention.  Jill had some extensive work done on her bike that was very impressive!

3/13/15 Wickenburg to Phoenix ~ 66 miles

Today we had 50 miles of uphill with a strong head winds and chip seal...however, once we got close to Phoenix (smoother shoulder) we started downhill and made a turn, all those problems were forgotten as we sailed the last 16 miles!

Once arriving in the Deer Valley (15 miles north of downtown )  Phoenix, we settled in for two nights and a rest day.  The next day we would be saying good bye to Carol Wilder and Patty Jackson, our ride leaders.  They were with us to mentor the new ride leaders and they have been doing wonderfully.  As Carol says, we will be fine!

3/12/15 Salome to Wickenburg, AZ 56 miles

Salome to Wickenburg was an easy day.  The temp started out at 60, but quickly climbed to 80.  The sky was overcast much of the time, wind was light, and there were some climbs, but much of the time was 1-2% downhill.  Doesn't get much better than that!

3/11/15 Blythe, CA to Salome, AZ 64 miles

We had 2,000 feet of climb today with some head winds and a lot of long uphill grades.  We went on 30 miles of I-10 (it was the only way) but the shoulders were wide and smooth.  We did have to avoid many pieces of 18-wheeler tire shreds, but the rigs themselves often moved over whenever they could.  The big pieces of tire are easy to avoid, but those small pieces with the tiny wires are the ones that will blow bike tires!

http://youtu.be/s8hSpRVFqWY