Day 6 Sparks to Lovelock.

From my hotel room I saw the sun rise over the Nevada desert and it promised to be another sunny day. Going to breakfast at a local Denny's it was quite cool in the breeze. One of my riding companions is going to have to sit out the next two days and ride in the van because two days of climbing has taken it toll on his 'butt,' to use an American phrase.The route today won't be pan flat, but a lot less climbing. We started as a group of 3 with a strong steady tailwind and flew the first 37 miles to the first SAG, on the shoulder of Interstate 80, at an average speed of over 20 mph. However the road then started to turn and we found that the wind was now off the left and sometimes swirling to be head on, so the speed reduced and it was tough going. The desert is desolate, covered in sage brush and very arid with many salt pans. The road follows a wide valley but there are mountains on both sides some going up to 9000' and still with snow on the peaks. We caught up with many of the other groups riders as we usually leave the hotel last. Towards the second SAG one of my group had a slight problem so we had to slow a little, but we still made good time into the SAG. With thirty miles to go we took it at a reduced pace and sauntered into Lovelock where our hotel was part of a casino (even the toilets have slot machines in them, for gambling that is!). On the way into Lovelock I lost the Welsh flag off the back of my bike, but fortunately one of the other riders coming behing found it and returned it. No computer in the hotel to download photos. Very warm by the end of the day, mid 80'sF, but it is unseasonally cool for this area, last year on this ride it was over 100F.
Todays distance was 91 miles.