Day Whatever: We're in Gila Bend

I missed a few days for lack of service and one long day in the saddle.
To read this in the correct order, read this post from the BOTTOM UP please!

Day 6
Today, from Dateland to Gila Bend was a short, 50.1 miles with a slight headwind and went fast. We had a number of miles on I-8 again and I was sailing along at 20+ and having a blast. Had a nice Mexican food lunch at Sophia's in Gila Bend. Now at the campground and typing this up while waiting for dinner.
It's also the first WiFi we have had.  I  have not had enough cell phone data bandwidth for PDAnet to let me use my laptop and updating this from my phone is a pain.
Oh, and our "End of Ride" pre-dinner, snack today was fresh, homemade guac and chips... Lord how I do hate roughing it.

Day 5
Yuma to Dateland was 70.1 miles. The longest to date. Also a headwind day but not too bad... Had a Date Milkshake! haven't had one in DECADES! I made excellent time and had a great ride. I may suck in the mountains (ascent AND descent) but this flatlander/Florida boy can fly on the flats, headwind or not.
Today we rode through the ag area where 90% of the romaine, broccoli, spring mix, etc  for the US (not Florida) comes from. It was a lucky chance the the fellow I was riding with and I arrived just as Bubba and the land owner arrived. The three of us got the "Senator and Congressmen" presentation. Here's a pic of me munching on HEADS of romaine. The gentleman just kept picking them and letting us (well, me) taste them. Let me tell you, they were amazingly sweet being so fresh.

Ferdi and I chowing down on Romaine

Campground in Dateland

Day 4
. We rode from Calexico to Yuma. We stopped at one of the strangest places on the planet: The Center of the World.... huh? I'm still not sure what it is and I was there!! The video in the normal building (IE NOT the pyramid) claims it is (and this is a quote) "The History of the World in Granite in Summary"....
How to put this gently: It's like a Frenchman, living in Arizona, laser engraved a Reader's Digest Condensed "History of the Wold" (from a VERY distinctly French point of view) onto thin slabs of Granite, glued them together in the shape of a prism with triangular granite endcaps so it looks like solid Granite, 100 foot long blocks, and tells everyone that they are "Guaranteed" to last 4,000 years....... Oh, and by the way, it seems that the location for the "Center of the World" was chosen from the seventh printing of a children's book..... You can't make this shit up. And please, don't ask me anything about it.. As your mom and dad used to say, "Look it up"....
The road to get there was terrible.. I mean TERRIBLE.. but when we left there and got on the old road to Yuma... THAT road was about a million times worse and it was 7-8 miles of teeth jarring, wheel breaking, brutal, broken road.
In Yuma we stayed in the National Guard Armory/Community Center and Wind Tunnel.... OK I'm joking about the wind tunnel part but the AC made the main armory/gym room the coldest, windiest room I have ever been in. We froze from the AC! I had to use everything I brought to sleep in: 10 deg sleeping bag, fleece blanket/liner and I wore fleece pants and a long sleeve T shirt.. AND still froze! I was FAR colder than in the Mountains east of San Diego! What a hoot.

The, uh, Center of the World

Yuma National Guard Armory and Wind Tunnel

Day 3
Boulevard to Calexico was scary/exciting. the first 16 miles were a hilly ride to the on ramp of I-8. then a 10+ mile serious downhill to the off-ramp to Calexico. I was on the brakes almost the entire descent, trying to keep my speed under 35-36 mph. A number of the upright folks experienced in mountain descents hit 40+ and a couple of the recumbents hit well over 50! It ain't le Tour but wow....
We Stayed in the Calexico Mission School's gym and were served vegetarian dinner and breakfast by the students as a fundraiser. The town across the street in Mexico (Mexicali) has suffered greatly since 9-11. In the 50s folks could literally walk across the street (any street) into Mexico to visit, shop or eat. Then after the typical checkpoints were put in you'd go thru and spend five minutes (if that) clearing Immigration and Customs. Now it's a two hour line of cars, many lanes wide... no one goes to Mexicali for dinner or anything else.
My Camera battery died so I don't have a pic of the descent but I'll get one form another rider and post it later.