Day 5 Springerville, AZ to Socorro, NM

Day 5 and the RAAM Qualifier dream remains alive.

There were many reasons for signing on with Lon and Sue Haldeman's Elite Cross Country bike tour.

1. See the US on a bike.
2. See the US on a bike really fast so that I don't have to miss too much work.
3. To get a piece of paper that I can hang on the wall.

Let's talk about reason #3

PAC Tour has a deal with RAAM (Race Across America) that allows cyclists who successfully complete every inch of the "Elite Transcontinental Tour" (that's me) within prescribed time limits, to qualify as a solo participant in RAAM.

All right I'll admit it. I want to have that piece of paper hanging on my wall. That piece of paper will say that George Metzler can race in RAAM for the next three years.

So far so good.

The ride today was great. Susan read us the riot act this morning telling us we are riding this tour like we are on the more leisurely paced "PAC Tour Southern Crossing" which takes 25 days. So we were given time targets for each rest stop today. As my friend Eric says, "The beatings will continue until morale improves"

Anyway I think we all responded quite well. A tailwind definitely helped as did a loss of elevation throughout the day. Most rider's enjoyed an easier fast day and still arrived at the hotel before their rooms we ready. I enjoyed some recovery on the bike today but I probably pushed a little too hard on the descents.

Speaking of elevation. We have been above 7,000 feet for almost 48 hours and you can hear the impact of the altitude in the coughing of the riders. I also noticed several bloody noses today, especially my own. I assume this is a combination of prolonged exercise in dry, thin air. Can't imagine what it must be like to climb a mountain.

See you all tomorrow as we try to find some aliens in Roswell, NM