Kathy Wrote:

Six days down, one to go.  Since Tommy filed this report from a pay phone, with a lot of
folks standing in line behind him waiting for their turn to reach out and touch someone,
this will be a relatively short report.

The trip from Frisco to Granby was an easy ride, with most of it downhill.  Tommy set the
pace for a lot of the ride; Dean was willing to let someone else lead the way today and
Alice kept up with the guys the whole time (you go, girl!).

Here are today's statistics:

Total miles:  72 (bringing the total for the week to 425)
Time from start to finish (including stops at the aid stations):  6 hours
Time in the saddle:  4 hours, 14 minutes
Maximum speed:  34.5 miles per hour (no big descents on today's ride)
Average speed while riding:  17.1 miles per hour (a good indication of the easy grade)

There were a lot of trucks on the road near Kremmling, and Tommy was extremely thankful
for the rear-view mirror on his helmet.  It broke somewhere between the end of the course
and his hotel, but he and the hotel manager were able to repair it with a glue gun and a
few other McGuyver-type items.  He is hoping that it will hold out for tomorrow's ride.
Alice has a new appreciation for such a mirror, and she is planning to get one for
herself.  Safety first!

Our gang remains relatively injury-free.  Tommy's sunburned lip is getting worse, but
happily his legs are feeling better.  He will need every bit of strength he has for
tomorrow's grueling ride over Berthoud Pass!  His heart rate is settling down quicker than
it was earlier in the week.  But he said that he is beginning to feel some fatigue, and
will be glad when the ride ends tomorrow.  He is planning a more normal schedule of
riding, combined with a little running, to keep in shape for the trip to Aspen in early
August.

The interesting tidbit from today's seminar is that the average age on this year's RTR is
44.  Tommy is amazed at the variety of shapes and sizes of the participants, with a lot of
folks looking like they would have difficulty biking a few miles, to say nothing of going
over mountain passes.  But looks are clearly deceiving, and they are all making their way
along the route.

Our favorite cyclists will meet for breakfast tomorrow at 6a.  Depending on the lines that
they encounter (and there have been some really long ones in some of the towns), they hope
to be on the road for the final leg of this year's RTR by 6:30a.  Complicating tomorrow's
ride will be some construction on the downhill side of Berthoud Pass.  Fortunately, CDOT
(Colorado Department of Transportation) agreed to hold off on tearing up the asphalt until
after RTR, so the road conditions should not be too hazardous.

Marv and JoAnn (part of Alice's family) will be there as they cross the finish line.  I also will be
there, hopefully with Judy, Dean's wife.

...
Day 6...Frisco to Granby, 71 miles.

Frisco was delightful with the camping among the trees beside the lake.  Photo A shows the breakfast area.  Each host town provides breakfast, lunch and dinner for a nominal fee.  Most of the breakfasts were high in carbohydrates consisting of pancakes, eggs, sausage and juice.  A 180 pound male burns 450 calories per hour pedaling at 12 mph on the flat.  I figure we were burning about 3500 calories per day, so the meals were welcome.  Nevertheless, I gained 4 pounds on the ride.  Pictures B and C show the surrounding area with Alice and Tom in C.
A.....B.....C

The ride from Frisco to Granby was by far the easiest ride since it was largely downhill along the Blue River.  Photos A through D show Green Mountain Reservoir with Dean and Alice in pictures B and C.
A.....B.....C.....D

Pictures A through C show the stop at Kremmling.  One of the nice things about the ride is the nice people that you meet.  Photo B shows Carrie and her father Dave from Boulder while picture C includes Tom.
A.....B.....C

From Kremmling, we turned east and rode along the Colorado River into Granby.  We had the river on our right and the train on our left.  Pictures A and B show the train and rugged terrain to our left.  As we approached Granby, Dean and I looked over and found that the train was going just a little faster than we were.  We immediately sped up which prompted Alice to say later, "I watched two little boys try and outrun a train today."  Hey, it's better than two old men :)
A.....B

One of the attractions of the ride was the Team Bad Boys and their rigs.  Pictures A and B show their setups which were mounted on mountain bikes.  Their rigs ranged from 175 pounds to 220 pounds, and yes, they did ride the whole way including the passes.
A.....B