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Day 32 – Telluride to Montrose

Wednesday June 17, 2009, 68 miles (109 km) – Total so far: 1,431 miles (2,302 km)

We left Telluride at about 8:30. I was reluctant to leave but leave we had to. It was an easy climb back to the Placerville junction and then it was a cold but fast drop into Placerville.

From here it was a gentle climb of about 1500 feet and then a long drop into Ridgway where we had lunch at a Thai Restaurant. It was surprisingly good. David said it was the best food he had had since arriving in America. It was good!

The ride into Montrose was mostly downhill and David and I rode it as fast as possible. We did a bit of drafting so between us we made good time. We had a headwind when we should have had a tailwind but because it was a gradual descent, it mattered little.

The ride was a bit boring. As Tom said, the view was actually always behind us. I felt really good today. The rest day helped, the initial tailwind up the mountain helped, my new chain and clean bike helped, but mostly, I am now and strong fit enough to enjoy these mountain climbs.

We had dinner at Garlic Mikes. It was good.