Leg 1 - Completo!

Was this classic tune going through your head today as you watched all those SPOTs begin their decent to Albuquerque?  Apparently, it is one of Chris Sakala’s favorites, and Kirsten has been known to sing along to The Partridge Family too.  

But my 3 minute afternoon conversation with Kirsten went more like this:

Me:   “How are you feeling today?  I saw your spot outside Great Basin this morning.”

K:     “Yes, I slept there last night.”

Me:   “I saw the SPOT, but there’s not that many hotels near Great Basin.”

K:      “I know – I slept in the parking lot and when it got light enough to take the picture, I took it and left.”

Me:    “Wait, so you’re telling me you slept in the parking lot at Great Basin last night?”

K:       “Yes – I used my cover stuffed in the bag for a pillow, I took off my boots, and I kept my gloves on because it was a little cold, and I slept right on the tarmac.  Man, I slept hard too!  It was so serene, but those birds were so loud this morning!”

Me:     “Sooo – you’re going to be really happy to be in the hotel tonight.”

K:       “You have no idea.”

And that, Rally watchers, is what you call an Iron Butt hotel.  

Which did help to recharge her batteries because she made excellent time here on day 4, picking up parks and her 12th state this leg on the way to the barn.  The 103+ degree weather yesterday really wiped her out and she finished off (aka “slammed”) the rest of her V8 and Gatorade and then a Subway sandwich to try and balance out the electrolytes and calories.  Apparently, an impromptu soaking in the sprinkler system at a never to be named in public park yesterday made her feel EVEN MORE BETTER!

As of this post, she’s back at Rally HQ in ABQ, readying herself to present for scoring.  Then food, a bit of route planning for tomorrow’s launch of Leg 2, then big sleep.  You know the mantra – big roads, big rocks, big sleep, big fun.