I was riding soon after the sun first gleaned light at 7 a.m. Despite five recent days of frustrating snags and/or no riding (Day 3, Day 4, Day 8, Day 9 and Day 10), I was cautiously optimistic that today could change the tone of my journey. Safford, 102 miles down the road, was my destination for the day.

Not many vehicles were on the road when I approached Queen Creek Tunnel (adjacent photos), located just a few miles east of Superior. It was a nice novelty to go through a tunnel!

Also, this particular stretch of highway has many picturesque hillsides with saguaros. I will certainly be back to this region to fill up my Arizona Photos web site soon. :)

I rested near this sign - It is my only photo between Superior and Globe because I was so wrapped up in the workout.

Oh and don't be deceived ... there isn't much downhill from Superior to Globe with the exception of some descent near the "Top of the World" area.

Above: An expansive view of desert and mountains on Highway 60 eastbound.

Above: A hillside with many saguaros.

Above: The highest peak is Mt. Triplet, altitude 5,299 feet.

Above: The view of Highway 60 looking back at my route. It was one of many "lonely highways" to come as I ventured through vastly underpopulated eastern Arizona and New Mexico.

Past Globe, the San Carlos Indian Reservation comprised the next 50 miles of highway. It is a fairly isolated region with wide-open views of desert and mountains. The downhill was much appreciated just east of Globe, but the road eventually begins a gradual, yet often unnoticable climb comprising off "rolling hills" into the Gila River Valley. I was out there for hours and captured five photos of the scenery.

Along with the wonderful Arizona views, I saw a plethora of broken glass and alcohol-related litter on the side of road. (I really should have gotten a picture!)

This ride was my most physically challenging so far, and my body needed a workout like this. Coupled with tomorrow's 86 mile ride over two passes into New Mexico, I reached a higher level of fitness that prepared me for the remainder of the trip.

Tiredness usually manifested in 10-15 mile cyclical periods of laziness - a physical unwillingness to exert anymore energy than necessary, followed by adreniline - a period of endurance with hard peddling regardless of comfort. Most often, the most awful forms of soreness would come after the ride. The toll of exhaustion manifested in my attitude and emotions even more. I tended to think negative thoughts during tougher portions of uphill or tiredness: Recounting incidents where I was wronged, contentious political issues or occasional fantasies of road rage towards the trailer truck that obnoxiously slammed its horn 20 miles earlier.

At the approximate milestone of 40-50 miles, my lower right back would begin hurting that, if I didn't begin taking more breaks, would result in an unbearable sciatic type of pain. Standing up and digging my fingers into the muscle area brought great relief.

In the end, I learned to accept that comfort was not a necessary condition for riding. Commitment required me to do what was necessary regardless of comfort. In real life, not much feels comfortable when you're uh ... out of your comfort zone and taking great risks. Tens of millions of people would be bicycling across America if it were easy and with little physical cost. (Emotionally, spiritually and financially too, but hey, that is whole topic in itself!)

And don't get me wrong about the tiredness. Just look at these scenic photos and you'll see what a beautiful and sunny day it was with a high of temperature 74. It was a great day for bicycling! Also, I remembered my many friends who were likely sitting in their cubicles working their miserable jobs on this Tuesday. It would never completely take away the various pains I experienced during my ride, but it surely helped.

This was my second "century ride" in my life - something to be very proud of. My body felt "trashed" in many respects, but it was tempered with joy over putting some significant miles behind me. Just over 48 hours ago, I was in Phoenix with Joel and Brandi, and now here I was in eastern Arizona. Announcing 102 miles in my daily text message to my gym owners, who tracked my progress on a large map of the USA, was very gratifying.

"Just put me in a casket and let me sleep forever." I sighed, as I laid down for the night. I did my best to help my body recover knowing today was the first leg in a two-day series that would test my stamina and mental toughness. I was getting into shape!