68 Miles to Brawley (actually 71 because I missed a turn) .....

Today's ride was challenging because of the head-winds, especially early in the day. We climbed for the 1st 5.5 miles, and then had a 10 mile decent where we lost all the elevation we had gained over the last 2 days. The rest of the ride was relatively flat and the wind died down considerably. A number of the women elected to be shuttled to the 15.5 mile mark because the rapid decent with high winds scared them. Yesterday there had been flakey cross-winds and it made it hard to control your bike at times. We lucked out because the wind for the decent was a head-wind and actually helped to keep our speed down. 

We're definitely in the desert, but I haven't seen any camels yet. I apologize not to be taking more pictures, but it means stopping and getting off the bike and usually I'm riding with others and don't want to ask them to stop.

I was asked if I have been riding alone. No, with 30 other women, you can find someone else to ride with. In the morning, people leave as soon as they are ready after breakfast. Our SAG vehicle stops every 20 miles and you can fill up water bottles, get snacks, etc. Today, after riding about 50 miles, 6 of us stopped for lunch at a Mexican restaurant in El Centro. People get strung out depending on their pace, but you can always find someone to ride with.

It started out in the 40s this morning, but climbed into the 90s. Because it was dry, it didn't feel hot.

We'll have dinner at 6:15 tonight and then we have time to relax and get ready for tomorrow's ride.