My first day of riding the Colorado High Country 1200k brevet. I gave everyone a 20 minute head start while I searched for a missing ankle reflector; I ended up settling for a back up band. The first person I caught up with had suffered a flat rear tire, and I rode with Jim and chatted for quite a while before moving on; nevertheless, we crossed paths many times during the four days, and he is a friendly chap with whom to ride, hailing from the midwest area, I believe. I climbed up to the Cameron Pass, elevation 10,276', and descended as we headed for Saratoga, Wyoming. Thunder clouds were amassing, and I tried to outrun the storm(s), but I was caught by a couple of very strong cells which were dropping rain with what I'm guessing was about a 40 mph crosswind. The hail really stung bare legs, but I was not about to stop under that pummeling and just hammered on through it. Leggings would have been a big help, and, while I had them, it was not actually causing any damage so I just got the hell out of there! I made it to the overnight control before dark, bought a quart of chocolate milk which I shared, had a nice shower and got a decent amount of sleep. I believe I was the last to start the next morning by a significant margin. Awful cracks in the asphalt which the bike slammed down into without mercy between Walden and Saratoga; not a huge problem on the first day, but the accumulated affect wears thin and my wrist was actually sore by the end of the second day.