Category: Cycling

Thursday, July 20, 2017

Start: Rochester, Minnesota
End: La Crosse, Wisconsin
Mileage today/cumulative: 87 / 2,357
Elevation Ascended: 2,661′
Weather: Partly cloudy, 69° at start; sunny, 87° at finish
3D Relive Video (approx. 1 minute)

We are officially in the East! The last few miles of today’s ride included crossing the Wisconsin state line and riding over the Mississippi River. For some reason, the Mississippi is the demarcation between east and west even though we’re still in the Central Time Zone and we’re still in the Midwest. Go figure.

Minnesota sent us out on a positive note today with a couple of real climbs, nicer roads, and a slight change of scenery. There was still corn and soy as far as you could see, then kale and broccoli appeared out of nowhere. WOOHOO!!! After seeing nothing but corn and soy for days, it doesn’t take much to get us excited.

We were clearly in Scandinavian country with bakeries prominently featured in each town we rode through. In fact, our route featured ten miles on a bike path that ended at bakery/coffee shop. We devoured a couple of strawberry-cream cheese pastries that were memorable. Minnesota farmers also have a sense of humor. One of them painted a sign that read “We hope you enjoy our dairy air.” Nordic humor is an acquired thing.

I’d also be remiss if I didn’t give a big Happy Birthday shoutout to my Mom, who has always encouraged me to live a full and rich life by being curious and adventurous. I would never be doing something like this if not for her.

 

Wednesday, July 19, 2017

Start: Mankato, Minnesota
End: Rochester, Minnesota
Mileage today/cumulative: 101 / 2,270
Elevation Ascended: 2,083′
Weather: Sunny, 71° at start; cloudy, 82° at finish
3D Relive Video (approx. 1 minute)

Today’s ride was windy. How windy, you ask? On today’s ride I’m pretty sure that I saw Dorothy, her house, and Toto, followed by my ex-mother-in-law riding a broom.  This ride was a complete Minnesota beat down and we were never happier to see our hotel at the end when we finally rolled in at 3:00. And then this popped up on my phone while Bev was showering:

This was soon followed by a “Minnesota nice” Hampton Inn employee knocking on the door to inform us that we were under a tornado warning and that “if the wind picks up, get in the bathtub.” Well, okay, if I MUST get back in the shower/tub with my hot wife…

Today, the view on both sides of the road had four variations: corn and corn, corn and soy, soy and corn, soy and soy. It’s also apparent that every town in Minnesota schedules all of their road construction in July. I guess that’s what happens when winter begins in September and ends in June. Because of that, we had detours that added a mile and one-half to the ride. That wouldn’t have been a big deal except that we were already riding 99 miles into relentless, punishing headwinds with repeated gusts that moved our bikes where we weren’t pointing them. It also pushed us over 100 miles for consecutive days. The road conditions were rough for most of the route, so combined with the wind and mileage, we agreed that this was the toughest day so far.

The tornado warning has been lifted, torrential rain has stopped, and skies are clearing. Tomorrow is our last day in Minnesota and we’re counting on better conditions to push us over the Mississippi River and into Wisconsin!

Tuesday, July 18, 2017

Start: Worthington, Minnesota
End: Mankato, Minnesota
Mileage today/cumulative: 111 / 2,169
Elevation Ascended: 1,325′
Weather: Cloudy, 70° at start; partly cloudy, 82° at finish
3D Relive Video (approx. 1 minute)

It took thirty days and 2,090 miles, but we finally got wet. We were hoping to outride the rain today but it finally caught us thirty miles into the route. Nothing hard – just enough to make a mess of our bikes and clothing. We skirted thunderstorms for the first half of the ride, keeping our eyes out for buildings that could provide shelter from lightning and grateful that we didn’t need them today. In the end, it turned out to be another beautiful ride in Minnesota with rolling farmland and interesting skies. We ran into our share of road construction and minor detours over dirt and gravel roads but nothing that did more than make an even bigger mess of our bikes. We’re also still in search of an unkind Minnesotan but I think they must deport them to New Jersey.

The towns between Worthington and Mankato are small town Midwest with tree lined streets and green lawns. Each town has a grain elevator, which can be seen from several miles out. There were also lots of hog farms that are hard to miss because the smell can be detected from miles away. We spent some late miles on a shaded bike path that had a few downed tress from the storm that we managed to miss. A little bush whacking and tree hurdling with bikes made the ride that much more interesting.

Because it was a longer mileage day and the forecast called for a high chance of early afternoon thunderstorms at our destination, we pushed hard to “get it done”. The forecast turned out to be wrong but that was okay. It just meant extra time for a Dairy Queen visit, bike cleaning, a quick load of laundry, and showering. We silently apologized to Holiday Inn Express for all of the dirt and grime that ended up in our shower drain. When riding a bicycle, everything sticks to sunscreen. Sand, mud, even the road spray from passing cattle trucks (lovely!). Showering tonight reminded me of returning home from week-long Boy Scout summer camp and my mother making me strip down before entering the house (presumably so that she could burn my clothing) and getting in the shower, which was hopelessly overmatched.

We began this adventure exactly one month ago by dipping our wheels in the Pacific Ocean and we’ve ridden our bicycles more than 2,000 miles in that time. You’d think it would get old but we wake up with just as much excitement and anticipation of what the day will bring as we did on day one. Tomorrow is another day and it’s “only” 99 miles to Rochester, home of the Mayo Clinic!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Monday, July 17, 2017

Start: Sioux Falls, South Dakota
End: Worthington, Minnesota
Mileage today/cumulative: 69 / 2,058
Elevation Ascended: 1,217′
Weather: Sunny, 75° at start; sunny, 91° at finish
3D Relive Video (approx. 1 minute)

Rest days are good but it sure was nice to get back on our bikes again and head east. Sioux Falls was good for massages, afternoon naps, and a Lycra-free day but it’s not going to show up on any Best Places to Live lists. To their credit, the city planners built a nice bike path that we spent our first nine miles on today, but otherwise it’s not yet a cycling or pedestrian friendly city.

Once we got out of Sioux Falls, it was a short ride to the Minnesota state line, where we took photos and celebrated entering our fifth state (and adding a new state to our cycling map). The humidity level kicked up a notch today and we’ll be adding bug spray to our growing list of things to apply every morning. Our pores may be permanently clogged by the end of this tour.

Today’s landscape was corn and soybeans for as far as the eyes could see. Unlike central South Dakota, which is suffering from a drought, the corn fields in southern Minnesota look healthy and provided some Field of Dreams photo opportunities. With fresh legs and, at 69 miles, the shortest day we’ll ride in the coming week, everyone made quick work of the route. Bev and I rode the second half of the day by ourselves and worked efficiently to cut through the wind and maintain a strong pace.

Minnesota holds a special place in my heart because so many old friends from Wells Fargo still call it home. I  loved traveling to Minneapolis on business (even in winter) because the people here are extraordinarily kind. When we checked into our hotel today, the staff were Minnesota nice and so excited to see us roll in. They had an entire table with granola bars, bottles of Gatorade, and fresh bananas set out for us.  Welcome to Minnesota!

Mother Nature is shaping up to throw something new at us tomorrow – rain. Staff and riders have all been surprised by the complete lack of rain in these first 29 days but that streak could end tomorrow with a chance of thunderstorms building on a day when we’re riding 111 miles. We’re hoping to outride it but, if not, we’ll be ready.

 

 

 

 

Saturday, July 15, 2017

Start: Mitchell, South Dakota
End: Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Mileage today/cumulative: 71 / 1,987
Elevation Ascended: 1,168′
Weather: Partly cloudy, 74° at start; sunny, 95° at finish
3D Relive Video (approx. 1 minute)

There was one thing and only one thing on everybody’s mind this morning: go straight to Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Stop only for food (one Snickers bar), water, and restrooms. Ride into the two SAG stops, sign in, take care of business and get back on our bicycles.  Why the laser focused, ride like our pants are on fire, bat out of hell game plan? Because Sioux Falls is a REST DAY!

Getting to the hotel quickly means that we can knock out chores on “arrival afternoon” – grab lunch, do laundry, restock supplies from Walgreens, and coordinate dinner plans with friends. This leaves all day tomorrow, our third full rest day, for sleeping in, massages, and enjoying some hard earned R&R that does not include sitting on a bike saddle. It also marks the end of the third leg of our journey. Both of us agree that this was a particularly difficult stretch, even without the headwinds of the past two days (which, thankfully, were diminished today). The rolling terrain requires more consistent power output and, for the first time, we began to feel some cumulative fatigue in our legs. We’ll also remember this leg for how South Dakota pleasantly surprised us. We’ll definitely be returning here for hiking and rails-to-trails cycling.

At a SAG stop today, we met an elderly gentleman who was traveling with his wife and Pomeranian. He peppered several us with questions about our ride.  Finally, after contemplating our answers, he said, “I’ve got a lot of things I want to do in this life, but this isn’t one of them.”   Later, as he drove out of the service station, he leaned out the driver’s window and hollered, “If you step in front of my truck I can put you out of your misery.” A couple of days ago, we might have taken him up on that.

Bev’s Thoughts At The Halfway Point:

• I never thought my hands would be what pooped out on this tour. Many of us are noticing a loss of hand strength, so much so that holding a fork or picking up a glass of water has become difficult. In addition, the fingers on my right hand that have been ravaged by Dupytren’s Contracture are numb. I sure hope this is temporary.
• This morning, many riders said how happy they were that we had a short ride. Only on a bicycle tour like this would 71 miles be considered “short’.
• Riders seem much more fatigued today than on prior rest days. Personally, I need this rest day. I’m both physically and mentally fatigued. I think two really hard days into a headwind are mostly responsible for my exhaustion. I’m excited to give my back some time off the bike. Massage booked for tomorrow – yay!
• Like many others, I am bummed that Alastair’s (1/2 of the tandem) time with our tour is over. Chris’ (blind rider) regular partner, James, has arrived and will take over for the remainder of the tour. Alastair has been such a joy to be around. It does seem as though James is just as personable and funny, though.
• I now know the minimalist movement is not for me. I’m tired of wearing the same four jerseys and pairs of socks.
• It’s so funny how excited we get about tiny, random things on this tour. The single washing machine and dryer at a hotel are unexpectedly not in use allowing us to get our laundry done early. A hotel’s breakfast includes real oatmeal. Sliced nectarine at a SAG stop. A hotel room on the first floor, closest to the breakfast room. Lots of outlets in a hotel room for all the things we have to plug in to charge. A Starbucks nearby (yes, that’s how bad hotel coffee is – we now consider Starbucks the gold standard). 
• It is fun to talk to people about our ride across America. Responses have ranged from admiration to disbelief to a sureness that we are all nuts. “Holy Toledo!” , “You’re crazy!”, and “I’d ride one block and die” are all comments I have heard. Because I focus on just getting through each day’s ride, I sometimes lose sight of the big picture. It really is a daunting challenge and Greg and I are more than half way through it. High five!!
• I’m pretty sure a giant tapeworm is living inside my belly. I am hungry all of the time. It has been difficult to get healthy food so I find I’m eating things I don’t consume in “real life”. For example, I just finished eating a huge Cold Stone Creamery ice cream. I need to think of some kind of physical activity I can do to burn off all these calories……oh, wait……
• I’m watching the Tour de France while I type this and coincidently, they are talking about what the racers eat. Bob Roll just said, “You really don’t need to eat that many calories.” Uh oh.

Sioux Falls is our last stop in South Dakota. When we resume this journey on Monday, we’ll cross the Minnesota state line early in the day. Minnesota! Wow! See you then!