David's Journal Entry
The forecast tailwinds were a reality, so we pressed on during the earliest part of the day, making the best possible progress. Having ridden a little over 160km we reached our intended destination by 4pm. It was a windswept, desperate rest area, devoid of any appeal and covered in gravel, toilet paper, broken bottles and what appeared to be human excrement. The options were to stay or race the sunset all the way to Coober Pedy, neither of us wanted to pressure the other, given it was an additional 70km+ on an already long day, so it took a little while to figure out we both wanted the same thing - to push on. So we did.

After a modest feed, we left the rest area at 4.30pm having established we had another 73km to cover to Coober Pedy, a distance that was not far off a full day's riding just 3 weeks ago. We rode fast over the next couple of hours covering nearly 50km, but as the light faded the clouds that had loomed large to our west finally tumbled over us bringing a potent crosswind that almost slowed us to the point of stalling. The constant buffeting made even staying upright difficult. As the light dimmed to nothing the combination of stinging rain, biting winds, and fatigue made this among the most challenging riding either of us could recall. The final 20km took more than 2 hours, not least because of the frequent need to pull off the road to allow cars and road trains to pass. A process made more time-consuming because of the difficulty judging the speed and distance of the disembodied headlights barreling up from behind us. Nevertheless, as the conditions deteriorated we chose to pull over for each passing vehicle. To do otherwise would have risked us being blown into their path.

Our attempted phone calls en route consistently failed, due to a lack of signal, and so we arrived in Coober Pedy without any accommodation sorted. To add to the challenge the squall had knocked out power and water to much of the town, so two weary travellers were not very high on most people's priority list. Like moths we were drawn to the only place in town that seemed to be lit up, the Outback Bar and Grill, only to be informed they were closing early due to the water outage. Without an obvious source of food or accommodation, it seemed like we were running out of options.  It was then we noticed the unlit sign across the road "Opal Inn Hotel Motel Caravan Park" which despite its modest exterior, provided some of the finest hospitality one could possibly imagine. After an ample feed and three pints of beer each in quick succession (a very pleasant and effective way to replenish calories!) we retired to a well-earned room. 10 hours+ on bike seemed only to whet Mike's appetite for cycling, so naturally he flicked the TV on to watch "Le Tour" whilst we washed up, settled in for the evening and shared a bottle of wine (more calories!). 

After a very long day we are both looking forward to an unplanned but welcome rest day. The thought of a little exploration and a night in one of the underground houses for which Coober Pedy is renowned is very pleasant indeed. 235 km in a day is a record for each of us.