Spencer: Some days are better than others: today was certainly one of those (?). We started out from Albuquerque after saying our goodbyes to Vincenzo, who cut his tour short to return to work in London. He’ll likely return for another segment next year. It was drizzling in Albuquerque, but as we skirted the south side of Sandia Peak and headed north the rain increased, the climb got steeper, and the temperature dropped into the low 40s. Sandia Peak is beautiful when you can see it; we couldn’t. As we climbed the 1800′ to the top of our route we all got progressively more miserable. Descending from the top many of us were having shaking chills and our better judgement told us to quit. We did not. We got to the SAG stop where I was able to put my Gore-Tex jacket under my rain jacket and put on some rain pants and warm gloves. After that I was able to finish the ride in relative comfort. My waterproof neoprene socks were great for the first 45 minutes, but after that my feet were just in bags of water. About half the group (the smart ones, perhaps) bailed and got in the vans. Chad and I made it to the hotel in Santa Fe after 67.4 miles of riding and 4200′ of climbing. Nap time! We had a wonderful meal with Peter in Santa Fe at Sassella, an Italian restaurant. Peter is definitely a food and wine snob, so we get along great. Tomorrow is a rest day, so we can sleep in and then head to the artsy downtown Santa Fe.

There aren’t many photos on a day such as today. We were just grinding it out. On a happier note, Chad likes his new bike saddle.