Tour Divide 2014 guest post by Kristi.
Welcome back, my faithful Tour Divide followers. We are hitting the home stretch now. Andy has crossed into his last state – New Mexico! By the end of day 20 he had just under 600 miles to go. He has mentally been undergoing some challenges – first mud and now forest fires have slowed his progress over the last few days. (And I’ve heard there is more mud coming up, but shhhhhh…keep that to yourself and don’t dampen Andy’s spirits.)
Andy’s original goal for the race was 21 days (today) and he is ready to be finished. The end is in sight, just a few more days of pedaling will get him there. That sounds so easy as I type it, but I know he will be facing more challenges in the days ahead to get to the finish line. Andy has come so far, and we all know he can make it these last few days.
Allons-y!
Tour Divide Day 18: Sargents to Del Norte
112 miles
30 June 2014
Andy spent his last night in Colorado. Tough day riding through the sand, but he stayed on track and made it to his destination of Del Norte.
1. Andy calls in from Del Norte and talks a little biscuits and gravy. All you Southerners know what he’s talking about.
http://mtbcast.com/site2/2014/06/30/mtbcast-td14-andy-amick-called-in-from-del-norte/
2. “Tour Divide day 18 – another beautiful day for Colorado climbing #tourdivide”
3. “Tour Divide day 18 – lots of rock formations on the way into Del Norte #tourdivide”
Tour Divide Day 19: Del Norte, CO into New Mexico
107 miles
1 July 2014
A new month, a new state. Andy had a frustrating ride today, he encountered a lot of mud, slowing his pace considerably. He had a long day, and did not cover as many miles as he wanted to, which translates to an extra day to complete the ride. The good news? His shin was feeling better today as he rode.
1. “Tour Divide day 19 – sunset over Brazos Ridge in New Mexico #tourdivide”
Tour Divide Day 20: Northern NM to Abiquiu
83 miles
2 July 2014
Another short riding day today. Andy made it into Abiquiu and was ready to continue on his way towards Cuba, another 80 miles. He knew he didn’t have another 80 miles in him, but planned on camping out along the way when he got tired. However, about halfway between the towns there is an active forest fire. Andy did not feel comfortable sleeping in an active fire zone, so he again sacrificed more miles (and probably added on yet another day to his total finish time) to stay at Abiquiu.
1. Andy calls in from El Rito with wildlife encounters and fire updates.
http://mtbcast.com/site2/2014/07/02/mtbcast-td14-andy-amick-called-in-from-el-rito/
2. “Tour Divide day 20 – crossed from pine forest New Mexico into drier and more desert like landscape on the way into El Rito #tourdivide”
3. Bonus picture! Andy sent me this picture of his lunch, proving he does eat other meals besides breakfast.
Lunch complete with sopapillas.
