{"id":19479,"date":"2016-05-01T22:52:13","date_gmt":"2016-05-02T02:52:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=19479"},"modified":"2016-05-01T22:52:13","modified_gmt":"2016-05-02T02:52:13","slug":"day-9-sunday-may-1-tempe-to-superior-arizona","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tourdebocrie.com\/?p=19479","title":{"rendered":"Day 9. Sunday, May 1 – Tempe to Superior, Arizona"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our\u00a0early morning departure was cool, 61\u00b0 and breezy, this time in our face. \u00a0Thankfully, it was only about 10 mph out of the southeast; we were due, but that didn’t mean we liked it.<\/p>\n

The campus was still sleeping\"DSCN0558\"<\/a> as we pedaled out of town\"DSCN0555\"<\/a> on a long straight road. \u00a0\"DSCN0563\"<\/a>One housing development followed\u00a0another as suburbia spread from the city.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Stopped for breakfast with only 12 miles completed, yet almost an hour and a half\u00a0of biking; it was a slow go on our gradual climb. \"DSCN0566\"<\/a>An awesome Crunchy French Toast with ample butter and bacon was just the remedy for our slow progress (or anything other ailment, for that matter).<\/p>\n

It was still in the 60’s as we returned to our\u00a0straight road; for twenty miles we saw nothing but homes and mobile parks. \u00a0One cannot imagine how many mobile homes there are here, it’s tough to imagine this many exist in the world!<\/p>\n

It was not until Apache Junction\"DSCN0574\"<\/a> that the homes gave way to desert and\u00a0a better view of \"DSCN0582\"<\/a>Superstition Mountain.<\/p>\n

Four hours of steady climbing\"DSCN0590\"<\/a>\u00a0and still only 37 miles down. \u00a0And the serious climbing was only now<\/em> about to begin,\"DSCN0618\"<\/a> but the breeze had turned and was now to our back. \u00a0The dark clouds that had threatened rain\u00a0earlier had obviously hit before we got to our major climb;\"DSCN0617\"<\/a> wet roads and white fluffy clouds remained.\"DSCN0607\"<\/a> \u00a0Whether the new rain or cooler than average temperatures, the desert was awash with color.\"DSCN0614\"<\/a><\/p>\n

By 1:30 we made it over Gonzales Pass and were looking forward to the downhill into town. \u00a0As we turned the corner \"DSCN0627\"<\/a>we were struck by the beauty\"DSCN0632\"<\/a> of The Picket Post Mountain. \"DSCN0634\"<\/a>\u00a0The sun lit sections, while clouds shaded the top,\"DSCN0637\"<\/a> it was an awesome sight (as evidenced by all our photos of it). \"DSCN0638\"<\/a>\u00a0The mountain temporarily distracted us from the fact that our downhill was short-lived. \u00a0Though the road looked downhill, \"DSCN0636\"<\/a>we struggled to pedal the last eight miles into town. \u00a0It took us an hour to maneuver through traffic construction \"DSCN0646\"<\/a>and the continuous uphill grade. \u00a0We were spent after our 55 mile constant uphill ride and hoped our Stromboli refueling\"DSCN0652\"<\/a> would bring us back to life for tomorrow’s ride.<\/p>\n\n\t\t