The day started at 2am with a spectacular lightening storm to the west.
There was a tremendous gale force breeze. At one point I had to shut my window to prevent the torrential rain pouring in.
The storm eventually drifted north east, taking with it the cool breeze. It had cost me over an hour of sleep. I worried for the safety of the RV at one point.
The early alarm was disregarded and I didn’t get out onto Highway 50 until 08:38.
It was another scorcher of a day with the relatively cooler part of the day missed. Starting at 28 Celsius is difficult.
Coincidentally, day 55 of the run across the USA in 2011 had the same issue: “The current problem is that I'm not getting enough sleep over night. This is leading to late starts. This, in turn, means that I'm running the mentally tough miles during the hottest part of the day.”
There was an ornamental metal structure across the road from the start point.
There was the usual cattle nearby to say good morning too. I was also surprised to see a tortoise next to what looked like a spilled load of onions.
I was pleasantly surprised to get a call from my friend Helen in Perth, Australia. That helped me take my mind of the heat for 10 minutes
I met the RV for the first time at the five mile point in Strong City. Alan had made a toasted peanut butter bagel which I took with me to eat. It was delicious.
The traffic was quite busy today. There were times where I wouldn’t see a thing for a few minutes then convoys of trucks and cars would pass me.
I just about managed to get to the RV at the 8.25 mile point. I felt very unwell again. A lie down for 30 minutes with a towel full of ice cubes helped to get me back on my feet. It was at this point that I made a minimum of 20 miles the target for today. If there were to be cloud cover or a better wind to take advantage of then I’d revise that. For now though, it was one of those days where it was just about survival.
At the 10 mile point, I ran over Diamond Creek. I noticed a lot of very agile birds swarming overhead.
I ducked into the RV again just before the 15 mile point. I had a plain omelette and watched the trains go by. There was a small breeze which gave some comfort.
The final 5 miles were done at the hottest part of the day. The 33 Celsius heat made it very difficult to keep moving forward with any pace whatsoever. I had my full head covered with 2 buffs to keep the sun off. It became a case of head down and keep going on the long straight highway 50.
At the 20 mile point, a police officer stopped to ask if I was ok. He was called Michael and another in a long line of police that I’ve met all over the world while running. I gave him a leaflet and explained that this was the finish point for the day. He recommended a shaded spot for our overnight stop just a few hundred yards down the off road.
All in all, it was a very difficult day. It’s interesting to see that it was just as tough back in 2011. In Kansas.
I think we are in for a very uncomfortable overnight sleep tonight. There is no breeze and the luxury of the previous 2 nights isn’t there.
TUNE OF THE DAY: Harmonia's Dream - The War on Drugs
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