A very windy cycle day of 138km

With great effort, I lift my head and gaze up to the barren, purple mountains to the north.They do little to raise my spirits, as my every fibre is involved in propelling my bike and myself forward against a vicious wind, blowing head-on, with powerful side gusts intermittently. Slip streaming is out of the question as none of us can keep a straight line- at best we are trying to avoid being blown down the steep road embankment. Massive trucks grind past and add to the physical danger. The air turbulence they cause tugs and pulls at us, like an invisible pillow beating from every angle, endeavouring to force us into the wheels, or headfirst into the tar.
The sky darkens and the air temperature plummets.
" Enough" yells Knut the Norwegian, as he disappears down the embankment, curls up in a sheltered spot and embarks on one of his well known snoozes. I am in awe of this magical ability he has.
I take a break sitting on the tarmac, adding another layer of protective gear. Suddenly an apparition comes into view on the road ahead. It is a tall Western looking being - but he is pulling a Chinese type handcart! He pulls along side and we exchange travel stories. He is a German fellow called Chris and he was a student of photography in Beijing for the past 2 years. Having completed his course- he needed to return home - so he decided to walk- all the way to Germany!He has set aside 3 years to do this- and he appears to be having a lot of fun.
We bade farewell and he disappears, walking jauntily into the distance.
This proves to be my turning point. From here on, every inch I cycle , he has walked. A front end loader chugs past me affording some wind protection. Suddenly I feel I can pedal harder and keep up with this mechanical giant. My speed increases from 8km per hour to a heady 24km per hour as I ride tucked in at a safe distance next to mammoth wheels. What a steal -I smile to myself And it comes into my head - how sweet the unexpected pleasures that emerge in the midst of seemingly unending adversity!
It is growuing late and cold. Only 10km to camp - but that may take over an hour. A very large startling white object looms up on the side of the road. I laugh out loud. It is a lifesize cement dinosaur. It is part of a series of bizarre cement animal statues which we have been passing along this desert road- camels, cows, even giraffe and kangaroos. Some road builder obviously is trying to prevent sense of humour failure on this desolate windy stretch.
Camp at last. Erecting tents proves yet another challange and our wishes of a dying down of the wind for the night are not met. It howls and buffets all night, pulling at fly sheets and causing a deafening racket within. Mike comments that sleep proved almost impossible as he felt he was sleeping in a subway tunnel.
A watery dawn breaks - and the wind is still whistling through our ears.
Can this go on for yet another day? We have another 140 km to ride today and 4 days more after that . Will we survive?
It is a very quiet group of cyclists seen leaving , heads down, legs straining, each privately hoping for some small reprieve.