Day 4 April 30th Brawley to Blythe Ca.

I have been both dreading & preparing for this leg of the trip for a long time. This stretch goes from the irrigated farm lands of the imperial valley through the sand dunes & continues into the desert. The road is bordered on both sides by BLM federal land & there are no towns or services. Packing enough water is crucial. I launched @ sunrise in an effort to abate the heat of the day. The ride started off amazingly, with a slight tailwind & 60 degree temps. I made it to Glamis in the dunes that is home to thousands of off road riders on any given weekend. I felt so good I did the whole 30 miles non stop. As I continued up the road the tail wind turned into a quartering headwind. The only place along the entire route is a Customs & Border Patrol check point 46 miles up the road. These guys are serious. Every vehicle is inspected with a German Shepard dog that is all business! The only thing he found was my stash of homemade beef jerky that my good buddy Jeff Pepper & his son Ben made for my trip ….all three pounds of it! The dog refused a bribe of jerky & the ammused agents allowed me to rest along side their building. After a 1/2 hour break & getting to witness an unfortunate couple have their entire Toyota disassembled as the dog was pretty positive he found drugs! Was getting scary so opted to leave. I spent the next 30 miles watching 3 different thunderstorms develop & these storms caused me 2 weather delays, with no shelter! The last delay was about 4 miles out of Blythe & there was a small store with a rickety overhang I dove into. I went in & waited out the storm hanging with some locals. I really wish I had studied Spanish as I am sure that I was the butt of their amusement. There is no way to hang with a group of Mexican farm workers drinking quarts of Colt 45s when your wearing spandex:( We said our goodbyes ( I think?) & I finished my ride into Blythe with 91 miles in & feeling like I could do 25 more. My butt & quads are starting to get into “biking shape” & that is a good feeling. I am now on the Az. Border but the only way across would be going out I-10 . Garth did run out the interstate for 30 gut wrenching miles during his run X America in 2014 – I will opt to ride up the Colorado River tomorrow & cross @ Parker Az. It’s about 30 miles longer but a hell of a lot saner! So that’s it. Going to miss riding the trials @ White Rose tomo with my trials bud tomo back in Pa but I’ll be back soon enough. Remember to say your prayers for Justin & ck out the Bone Marrows registry site @

http://www.deletebloodcancer.org

PS if there is no post tomo I am going to be entering some no cell phone area so standby & I’ll get it out ASAP

  
Rain delay 😦