Day Four: rest and rehydration day

I woke up with the sunrise. Mornings are really pleasant here. I slept very comfortably on top of my sleeping pad and sleeping bag, using my sleeping bag liner for a sheet. I didn't need a tent because there were no bugs.

I blogged a while, then walked over to the bait shop where Wayne was visiting with a friend of his, Steve.

Steve and Wayne are in the process of starting a recycling business and they discussed some of the hurdles.

I STILL had no cash and needed to go to the bank. When Wayne found out he offered me a ride since he was going to the bank anyway.

One would think a bank would cash a traveler's check. One would be wrong if one thought so.

Even the bank....

When Wayne found out they wouldn't cash my checks he asked the banker if I could sign them over to him, then he could just give me the money. The cashier, a friend of his, glanced very quickly in my direction then said to Wayne in a slightly softer voice, "You know you're liable if something happens."

He hardly missed a beat. "Aw... He's a friend of mine," he replied.

And the $400.00 transaction was completed.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa, and his name is Wayne Pinkerton.

Back in the truck, I insisted on taking him and his girlfriend out for supper. He'd been so helpful, you know, practically saving my life and all, that I really wanted to do SOMETHING for him.

He said that sounds good. Then, after a pause, "Or maybe I'll have you over for some barbecue tonight."

Sigh....

Heather persuaded me to take today off (it wasn't a hard sell) so I pedaled the three miles into town and rented a cheap hotel at about 10:30. It was already in the low 90's, and by the time I got checked in I was dripping with sweat. After turning the AC on high, I took a shower and settled in.

Later, I walked across the street to the Sizzler restaurant for some lunch but there were two full buses of people in front of me so I went back to the room, got my bike and slowy pedaled down the street to a Mexican food place.

After that I went to the library where I needed to do some things for my future employer, then went back to the room and blogged the rest of the afternoon.

At one point during the afternoon I turned on the TV to see what the temperature was (106 degrees).

Wayne called at 6:40 to say he wasn't going to be able to make it to supper because his girlfriend wasn't feeling well, but wished me the best of luck on my trip.

The rest of the evening consisted of washing and drying a load of laundry, walking across the street to eat at Sizzler, and talking to Heather.

Problem solving: It's too freakin' hot to ride after noon, so I decided to start waking up early and riding until 10:00 or 12:00, then check into a hotel. My plan tomorrow is to ride the 42 miles to Brenda, AZ, and stay at the Black Rock Motel.

Just to make sure things went smoothly I called the motel to make a reservation. No one answered so I just left a message with my name and number. A couple of hours later I tried again.

I packed, set the alarm for 4:45 and went to bed.

5.79 distance
21.2 max
12.3 avg
28:13 time