Eads CO, Tornadoes

We left Pueblo CO early Saturday morning. Our goal was to get 115 miles done, which would bring us to Eads CO. Even though that is a lot of miles, given the flat terrain (and if the winds are favorable) we felt we had a decent shot of making it. We did about 50 miles, and stopped to get some sandwiches to eat later for lunch. After Sugar City CO there literally was not a tree in sight as far as you could see. We cycled on for another couple of hours, and finally came to a bend in the road where we could stop under a tree. After lunch we went on another hour or so and stopped in Arlington CO, another bendin the road, bit this time with trees and a picnic table. There we met two cyclists going the other way (from Yorktown VA), Dave and Darren. They had just crossed their halfway point on the Transamerica Trail, and were bound for Portland OR. We then pushed on to Haswell, where we stopped. From there it was 22 miles to go. The winds picked up and all of a sudden the cross wind switched to a nice tailwind and were making 23 mph. Then it picked up more, we were going believe it or not 25 mph without pedaling, 30 if we peddled. The sky became extremely dark and ominous. Across the black skies we had dozens of tumbleweeds crossing the road, and only an occasional car going the other way. There was no place to get shelter, Eads was only about 8 miles ahead, so we continued to push on. Then before us about a mile off to the right we saw a twister form, and then just as quickly unform. The wind picked up more, and visibility was less than half a mile. We got within about four miles of town, then it started hailing. I could not believe it, we went from 90 degrees to half inch hail. We continued on, and then it turned into a torrential rain. We were fortunate that there was an open shed next to a house that we took shelter in. The heavens literally then opened up. Had we been five miles earlier on the road there would have been no where to go. We waited out the storm, and then after about twenty minutes the farmer who owned the shed, David Marble, pulled up with his wife. They were kind enough to let us stay, and we sat and talked with them for about an hour while the storm blew itself out. We finally got the last three miles to Eads, very happy to see the motel and to be dry.