Day 19, July 30th, 2010 (Route: Jackson, MT to Hamilton, MT)
Technical Data
Distance, mile: 93.14
Ride Time: 6:09:53
Work, kJ: 3242
Average Power, watts: 145
Normalized Power, watts: 164
Average Speed, mph: 15.02
Day Summary - Clear and no wind to start, once over the pass a head wind of 30+...
5:30AM pick up camp, grab a quick shower at the lodge, hope on the bike and get out of Dodge. I took the shower to warm up as its colder at the higher elevations. I wanted to have a killer day today, was shooting for close to 140 miles or so to Missoula, MT. Rolling now and wishing I had knee warmers and gloves as I'm freezing my fingers off! I have a slight head wind and heading down hill into Wisdom, MT. Along this stretch the hawks were hunting for breakfast, saw a few dive into the bush for some type of rodent. About half way to Wisdom, a random hawk was circling me and making some screeching noises and this went on for about 10 minutes. I had no idea what was going on, however it was rather interesting!
Once into Wisdom, MT I planned on making my hammer nutrition bottles up and getting on the road, however the convenient store was closed, arrived a little too early. I made the 18 mile gab in 54 minutes or so this morning, its riding pretty good pulling 50 lbs! Since the store was closed I headed over to the local cafe that was open and looked at the menu, thought if pancakes were cheap I would go for it. 4.50 for some pretty good sized cakes so I went for it. Went outside to grab my sustained and mix it up. When I came back into the store I met a sweet couple from LA - Carl and Cookie. They asked me to join them for breakfast and tell them more about my journeys and my plans on riding across country, couldn't resist! They were great - Carl a successful business man from LA and his wife the ocean swimmer were great company this early in the morning. Cookie mentioned she had just swam the channel between Alkatraz and San Fran. After having a great conversation with Carl and Cookie. Cookie mentioned I should stop in LA on my way to San Diego to go to a club. Well, Cookie if your reading this I'm going to hold you to it! (I'll email you in a couple weeks to let you know when I plan on being in the area) - (Carl and Cookie - Thank you again for breakfast too, you didn't have too)
Rolling out of Wisdom, heading to the last pass before a long decent into Missoula was great, no wind and the roads were like glass! I loved this section, climbed and looked for wildlife the entire time as I didn't really want to push on a full stomach of pancakes! Once up the pass I saw Jordan (18 year old cyclist heading to Florence, CA then off to Yosemite, CA to hike before he heads off to school in CA). Jordan had stayed at the lodge last night too, he had passed me when I was enjoying great conversation and breakfast with Carl and Cookie. We decided to descend together. The decent was great, nice and fast and smooth....
Once into the foothills off this decent I started to feel the wind starting to pick up and I knew that my legs wouldn't have the energy to get me to Missoula today so I went with my second plan of crashing with Terry from www.warmshowers.com. I was about 20 miles out when I called and made plans to crash in her backyard! The next 20 was like yesterday, just trying to get to the final destination, which was now Hamilton as the head winds were eating me up mentally after yesterday. Mind was really blank during this section as I was not having fun, however I knew that I had what it took to get to Hamilton, then set up camp and shower and get ready for a nice relaxed afternoon, which was needed after a 120 mile day into the wind.
Once to Terry's it was great from the beginning to the end. Hosting cyclist now because her sone took the trip last year and she loved the fact off all the people that helped him on his journey. She now has been hosting for a year and half and loves it! It's nice to see familys open there homes to those traveling cross country, shower and a place to camp out is really very simple however it means so much to tired hungry cyclist. Thank you Terry for everything!!!!!
Okay - its late and I'm tired. I've noticed my writing has gone down the last couple days. Let me explain - when you meet up with other cyclist your time starts to get spent doing other things versus just blogging, so as I meet these great folks out on the road I'll have to add additons to my post when time allots!
Off to bed - short day tomorrow up to Missoula and then to Lolo, MT before I head into Idaho for my baked potatoe!
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Day 18 July 29th, 2010 (Route: Ennis, MT to Jackson, MT)
Day 18 July 29th, 2010 (Route: Ennis, MT to Jackson, MT)
Technical Data
Distance, miles: 120.61
Ride Time: 9:57
Average Power, watts: 169
Normalized Power, watts: 192
Average Speed, mph: 12.02
Work, kJ: 6113
The morning started off just like others except I didn't have my nutrition prepped as usual. I woke in the RV park and ready to bail as again I'm trying my best to conserve on cash. The ride this morning was going to be tough from what I had heard. The climb out of Ennis, MT was supposed to belong and daunting. The couple I meet in the Tetons mentioned it just climbed and climbed so I should be prepared. After packing up BoB I wanted to hit up some breakfast, however I'm out of fuel so I hit the local convenient store for the bargain rack. Score - 50 cents for a Luna Bar and 50 cents for a ButterFinger Crunch (figure I could eat it later on the route!) and they don't have tax on food in this state so I saved a few cents by not having to pay tax.
Once out of Ennis it started to climb and it was one of those climbs that you can see the switch backs and the summit, so you get to think about it the entire time your on it! Running a 25 as my largest cassette I wasn't looking forward to an eleven mile climb to start off the day but no worries. The mountain air was great and Pronghorns were chasing each other, I could tell its getting close to mating season as males were on the move! The climb was what was expected, a lot of low cadence power work, however the ride to the summit was well worth it as the view was spectacular of the Madison Range! I could live here for sure, just not sure what I would do for work!
Many thoughts going through my head at this point in the ride, its early, I'm hungry and thinking about how long the day is going to be on the bike. The sun is shining bright and the winds are low and I'm enjoying the day! The alpenglow was brief and spectactular! Once at the summite I thought about all the ranches in the area and the valley's ecology. Once a great valley for thousands of elk and bison to graze on, was not inhabitated by thousands of humans. The land has been divided by fence after fence to keep the animals from roaming free as they once did? Have we as humans altered the true state of the life here on planet earth for the positive, or have we affected it for the negative? Has all what we have done a selfish act? What was it like when Lewis and Clark first saw this land that was native to the American Indian? Did they think of the naturual beauty of the land or did they think of natural resources and dollar signs like the majority of Americans do today?
Getting back on the bike after the first climb of the day wasn't hard. The landscape ahead of me was just as beautiful as the valley I just left and I was feeling pretty good, strong to be honest, the short rest day seemed to bring back the legs and I was looking to have a fun day! The downhill was fun, however I would really like to unleash the trailer and bomb the downhill but if I did that I would have to climb back for my shelter and food so no unhitching today. Reminded me a lot of the the phrase "Unleash the trailer" we used to say in baseball when one of my buddies would get thrown out at second or just seemed slow running around the bases. Lots of memories coming back on this trip from when I was a young kid playing ball!
Cruising down the road now and really enjoying the beautiful scenery God has to offer! Riding along and a few cyclist pass, then a family of four on a tadem! I loved this when I saw it, two parents pulling a kid spinning on a tag along, then a tow cart for the youngest. I stopped to chat and just enjoy the moment, family of four out on a week trip from Bozeman taking a journey around a loop in beautiful Montana. Talk about a way to experience life as a young kid! Quality time with the family and doing it by way of bike!
Before seeing this family I stopped in Twin Bridges to see the "Bike Camp"! What a deal, a camp site just for cyclist riding cross country. The hook up too, picnic tables enclosed with power outlets, a shower, bathroom, bike washing station, all next to a beautiful river. Very simple what we cyclist need on the road. Shower and a place to crash, and water of course! The shelter was filled with a few magazines and some literature to read while resting before pushing on.
The ride to Twin Bridges was relatively an easy one, just 40 miles in on the journey I still had 80 miles to go and it was relatively early so I was feeling pretty good, not to mention all the great things that I have seen and people I have encountered. Now heading to to Dillon, MT out of Twin Bridges the head wind started to pick up, since I had a good day of rest in Ennis I was feeling pretty good and thought just power through this wind and get to Dillon, enjoy lunch and see if the wind is at your back out of Dillon as I would be heading NW out of Dillon on my way to Jackson, MT. The ride to Dillon was good, a 28 mile stretch full of open space and nothing but large ranches surrouned by mountains! (I love the mountains so much)
Once into Dillon I stopped and refilled right away as it was starting to heat up and I needed plenty of fluids. After downing a few Gu's and lots of water I headed downtown to grab some lunch in a local park. I stopped at an old Rail Depot, lots of shade adn fresh cut fescue, gathered my thoughts and just tok in the moment. Light lunch today, left over peanut butter and what I had left of my mixed nuts from Whole Foods in Colorado Springs.
Tourist approached as many do when your cycling across country and asked "Where's Home?" I had to think about this one for a while as all my stuff is currently in storage and I'm not exactly sure! I told him "Right Here" and just redirected the question asking "How about you?" He was from Arizona, heading North into Canada. He was an older gentlemen, retired I presumed just taking his greyhound out for a walk. Didn't chat much as I was really just interested in eating and getting on the road as still had a long stretch ahead of me.
Rolling out of the depot I head past a park and see a couple touring cyclist and stop in, my rear tire was a little low so I thought I would check it out before I headed on to Jackson. The road to Jackson is pretty bare with no services so I filling up on nutrition and water is a must if your only carrying two bottles as I have for this entire trip. Many I have met, don't see how I do it, however I see it as keeping me motivated to move on the road and and not piddle. The two were from Melborn, Australia, first time to the states and loving there ride! They were very interesting as I got to see the perspective of foreignors of our restaurants here in the states, I think it was there goal to talk all of America in on there journey. Sitting in a park eating chicken from Dairy Queen and a large container of fresh strawberry's. Thier vote for DQ was a big thumbs down they mentioned, I told them if I would have seen you before DQ I would have mentioned that! I told them to try local places if they can as they appear to have more taste in there food.
After looking at my rear tire I stopped in at the National Forest service to refill again before I headed out on this long barron stretch of highway. The gals in the Forest Servies were extremely nice. I like to stop at different places along the way to fill for water because convenient stores get a little dull, covenience stores are full of people in a hurry and typically not as nice as you get when you go into a place of business. Maybe because at a place of business workers are willing to take a few minutes out of their day.
Heading to Jackson, MT and two passes to climb before a nice little decent into Jackson. I was feeling pretty good at this point, however the head winds were now picking up and have changed direction. I have found out this trip that the end of the day is going to take a lot of work as I can never finish with a tail wind. You cross a path or change direction and sure enough the gusty wind is blowing directly into your face.
Destination Jackson, MT and no other spot to stop as I'm in open country with little water. Once committed to this stretch there is truly no turning back and I was up to the challenge! I love challenging myself with these types of challenges! 40 miles to go with 80 miles in and see what I'm made of. Two passes to climb and the first one was tougher than the second, long stretch of open road with no trees to block the wind. The horses graze in the open spaces, while I'm swatting at horse flys.
Once up the first pass I was starting to feel mentally drained. Only able to average 10 miles an hour if that I was feeling like I wasn't going anywhere fast! The thoughts that run through your head when your going this slow really takes you out of the moment, thoughts of frustration, of quitting, of resting, of what the hell am I doing again? Wind can be fun at times however not as fun as a still day or riding cross wind, or even the luxery of riding with a tail wind! Out of Twin Bridges I was looking forward to the head wind, now I was cursing it! Slight up hill and a nice head wind can mentally break about anyone, tired and hot with 90 miles in their legs. I kept going though, I had to mentally coach myself through this section as I needed to get to Jackson for water. I had all kinds of motivators running through my head now and kept talking myself "Just keeping moving and you'll be there in no time at all" Sure enough the passes were covered and the downhill in to the little Oasis of Jackson, MT was well worth it.
Today was the toughest day yet, I had burned over 6K worth of energy and I was exhausted from the heat! 10 hours on the bike and I kept thinking, works not over, now you need to finish your blog, refuel for tomorrows 130 mile day and get to bed. I think I have worked more on this trip than I have any place in the corporate world. Funny how much work I'm doing, however I'm enjoying almost every minute of it, okay there are times when the wind says otherwise.
To the grocery I go to start refueling for the day. Chocolate milk in the 1/2 gallon and some snacks...then to the computer and chat with some folks and to bed. I'm exhausted so writing more would keep me from sleeping...
Technical Data
Distance, miles: 120.61
Ride Time: 9:57
Average Power, watts: 169
Normalized Power, watts: 192
Average Speed, mph: 12.02
Work, kJ: 6113
The morning started off just like others except I didn't have my nutrition prepped as usual. I woke in the RV park and ready to bail as again I'm trying my best to conserve on cash. The ride this morning was going to be tough from what I had heard. The climb out of Ennis, MT was supposed to belong and daunting. The couple I meet in the Tetons mentioned it just climbed and climbed so I should be prepared. After packing up BoB I wanted to hit up some breakfast, however I'm out of fuel so I hit the local convenient store for the bargain rack. Score - 50 cents for a Luna Bar and 50 cents for a ButterFinger Crunch (figure I could eat it later on the route!) and they don't have tax on food in this state so I saved a few cents by not having to pay tax.
Once out of Ennis it started to climb and it was one of those climbs that you can see the switch backs and the summit, so you get to think about it the entire time your on it! Running a 25 as my largest cassette I wasn't looking forward to an eleven mile climb to start off the day but no worries. The mountain air was great and Pronghorns were chasing each other, I could tell its getting close to mating season as males were on the move! The climb was what was expected, a lot of low cadence power work, however the ride to the summit was well worth it as the view was spectacular of the Madison Range! I could live here for sure, just not sure what I would do for work!
Many thoughts going through my head at this point in the ride, its early, I'm hungry and thinking about how long the day is going to be on the bike. The sun is shining bright and the winds are low and I'm enjoying the day! The alpenglow was brief and spectactular! Once at the summite I thought about all the ranches in the area and the valley's ecology. Once a great valley for thousands of elk and bison to graze on, was not inhabitated by thousands of humans. The land has been divided by fence after fence to keep the animals from roaming free as they once did? Have we as humans altered the true state of the life here on planet earth for the positive, or have we affected it for the negative? Has all what we have done a selfish act? What was it like when Lewis and Clark first saw this land that was native to the American Indian? Did they think of the naturual beauty of the land or did they think of natural resources and dollar signs like the majority of Americans do today?
Getting back on the bike after the first climb of the day wasn't hard. The landscape ahead of me was just as beautiful as the valley I just left and I was feeling pretty good, strong to be honest, the short rest day seemed to bring back the legs and I was looking to have a fun day! The downhill was fun, however I would really like to unleash the trailer and bomb the downhill but if I did that I would have to climb back for my shelter and food so no unhitching today. Reminded me a lot of the the phrase "Unleash the trailer" we used to say in baseball when one of my buddies would get thrown out at second or just seemed slow running around the bases. Lots of memories coming back on this trip from when I was a young kid playing ball!
Cruising down the road now and really enjoying the beautiful scenery God has to offer! Riding along and a few cyclist pass, then a family of four on a tadem! I loved this when I saw it, two parents pulling a kid spinning on a tag along, then a tow cart for the youngest. I stopped to chat and just enjoy the moment, family of four out on a week trip from Bozeman taking a journey around a loop in beautiful Montana. Talk about a way to experience life as a young kid! Quality time with the family and doing it by way of bike!
Before seeing this family I stopped in Twin Bridges to see the "Bike Camp"! What a deal, a camp site just for cyclist riding cross country. The hook up too, picnic tables enclosed with power outlets, a shower, bathroom, bike washing station, all next to a beautiful river. Very simple what we cyclist need on the road. Shower and a place to crash, and water of course! The shelter was filled with a few magazines and some literature to read while resting before pushing on.
The ride to Twin Bridges was relatively an easy one, just 40 miles in on the journey I still had 80 miles to go and it was relatively early so I was feeling pretty good, not to mention all the great things that I have seen and people I have encountered. Now heading to to Dillon, MT out of Twin Bridges the head wind started to pick up, since I had a good day of rest in Ennis I was feeling pretty good and thought just power through this wind and get to Dillon, enjoy lunch and see if the wind is at your back out of Dillon as I would be heading NW out of Dillon on my way to Jackson, MT. The ride to Dillon was good, a 28 mile stretch full of open space and nothing but large ranches surrouned by mountains! (I love the mountains so much)
Once into Dillon I stopped and refilled right away as it was starting to heat up and I needed plenty of fluids. After downing a few Gu's and lots of water I headed downtown to grab some lunch in a local park. I stopped at an old Rail Depot, lots of shade adn fresh cut fescue, gathered my thoughts and just tok in the moment. Light lunch today, left over peanut butter and what I had left of my mixed nuts from Whole Foods in Colorado Springs.
Tourist approached as many do when your cycling across country and asked "Where's Home?" I had to think about this one for a while as all my stuff is currently in storage and I'm not exactly sure! I told him "Right Here" and just redirected the question asking "How about you?" He was from Arizona, heading North into Canada. He was an older gentlemen, retired I presumed just taking his greyhound out for a walk. Didn't chat much as I was really just interested in eating and getting on the road as still had a long stretch ahead of me.
Rolling out of the depot I head past a park and see a couple touring cyclist and stop in, my rear tire was a little low so I thought I would check it out before I headed on to Jackson. The road to Jackson is pretty bare with no services so I filling up on nutrition and water is a must if your only carrying two bottles as I have for this entire trip. Many I have met, don't see how I do it, however I see it as keeping me motivated to move on the road and and not piddle. The two were from Melborn, Australia, first time to the states and loving there ride! They were very interesting as I got to see the perspective of foreignors of our restaurants here in the states, I think it was there goal to talk all of America in on there journey. Sitting in a park eating chicken from Dairy Queen and a large container of fresh strawberry's. Thier vote for DQ was a big thumbs down they mentioned, I told them if I would have seen you before DQ I would have mentioned that! I told them to try local places if they can as they appear to have more taste in there food.
After looking at my rear tire I stopped in at the National Forest service to refill again before I headed out on this long barron stretch of highway. The gals in the Forest Servies were extremely nice. I like to stop at different places along the way to fill for water because convenient stores get a little dull, covenience stores are full of people in a hurry and typically not as nice as you get when you go into a place of business. Maybe because at a place of business workers are willing to take a few minutes out of their day.
Heading to Jackson, MT and two passes to climb before a nice little decent into Jackson. I was feeling pretty good at this point, however the head winds were now picking up and have changed direction. I have found out this trip that the end of the day is going to take a lot of work as I can never finish with a tail wind. You cross a path or change direction and sure enough the gusty wind is blowing directly into your face.
Destination Jackson, MT and no other spot to stop as I'm in open country with little water. Once committed to this stretch there is truly no turning back and I was up to the challenge! I love challenging myself with these types of challenges! 40 miles to go with 80 miles in and see what I'm made of. Two passes to climb and the first one was tougher than the second, long stretch of open road with no trees to block the wind. The horses graze in the open spaces, while I'm swatting at horse flys.
Once up the first pass I was starting to feel mentally drained. Only able to average 10 miles an hour if that I was feeling like I wasn't going anywhere fast! The thoughts that run through your head when your going this slow really takes you out of the moment, thoughts of frustration, of quitting, of resting, of what the hell am I doing again? Wind can be fun at times however not as fun as a still day or riding cross wind, or even the luxery of riding with a tail wind! Out of Twin Bridges I was looking forward to the head wind, now I was cursing it! Slight up hill and a nice head wind can mentally break about anyone, tired and hot with 90 miles in their legs. I kept going though, I had to mentally coach myself through this section as I needed to get to Jackson for water. I had all kinds of motivators running through my head now and kept talking myself "Just keeping moving and you'll be there in no time at all" Sure enough the passes were covered and the downhill in to the little Oasis of Jackson, MT was well worth it.
Today was the toughest day yet, I had burned over 6K worth of energy and I was exhausted from the heat! 10 hours on the bike and I kept thinking, works not over, now you need to finish your blog, refuel for tomorrows 130 mile day and get to bed. I think I have worked more on this trip than I have any place in the corporate world. Funny how much work I'm doing, however I'm enjoying almost every minute of it, okay there are times when the wind says otherwise.
To the grocery I go to start refueling for the day. Chocolate milk in the 1/2 gallon and some snacks...then to the computer and chat with some folks and to bed. I'm exhausted so writing more would keep me from sleeping...
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Day 17 - July 28th, 2010 (Route: Rest Stop to Ennis, MT) REST DAY!!!
Day 17 - July 28th, 2010 (Route: Rest Stop to Ennis, MT) REST DAY!!!
Technical Data:
Distance, miles: 34.39
Ride time: 2:05:14
Average power, watts: 105
Normalized power, watts: 125
Work, kJ: 797
Average speed, mph: 16.3
A much needed day of rest today. Woke up in the bathroom and felt pretty good but new that I was going to shut it down at Ennis, MT and force myself to relax and enjoy the day! The ride was down hill and I know that a two hour is by no means a recovery ride but when I'm riding this type of mileage day after day, 35 is a good day of rest!
The ride was cool as I started at 6AM and headed into town around 8:30 or so and just tried to enjoy myself! First stop was the convenient store to fill bottles and start rehydrating for the day! I asked around about showers and laundry and settled for the RV park where I could wash my clothes which needed it, and grab a shower which I needed worse then washing my clothes. I'm trying to look presentable on the road to ensure any help if needed from complete strangers. After washing and drying my clothes so I could have a clean small towel to dry off. I took a long shower and made sure to try and clean as good as possible, still difficult without a wash cloth and soap. I borrowed the hand soap from the sink next door to wash with...
After my shower I headed into town to get some breakfast, since it was a rest day I figured I could spend a little money on food today so I had some large pancakes and eggs! The diner was empty when I came in, however lunch was just around the corner and tourist were filling up the booths! After downing breakfast I headed to the library to the library to attempt to write my post, however the sofa in the teen section was a little too comfy so I took about an hour nap or so! I needed it after last nights attempt of sleep in the bathroom.
After my nap I thouht I would check out this small town (Ennis, MT - Home of 1000 people, 11,000,000 trout) a small mountain fly-fishing town! I really like this small town after walking around it! Little cafes, tourist shopping traps, fly fishing shops but what I liked most was the views! Just perfect...and the small park down by the river was so beautiful! Couple ball parks and the freshest looking river I have ever seen with a nice backdrop of the Madison Range!
Sleep and eat was the plan for today! So I did and just enjoyed the day! I did have thoughts of feeling lonely today as I usually do on rest days! It's so easy to keep the mind busy when your riding 6-10 hours a day, but when you take the work away I sometimes fail to relax and just be! Living in the moment is what I try to do but sometimes when I'm living in that moment its tough emotionally. Seeing couples walking around holding hands, kids playing on the swings, kids eating ice cream (makes me think of my nieces!) and the thought of having someone with me gets to me sometimes!
I did what I should do today, rest and eat! For dinner I ate at this little cafe and enjoyed watching the people of this little town! (mostly tourist though) - After dinner I headed back to the RV park and grabbed a spot in the tent camping area and called it a day. I really wanted to sleep in the local park but there was a sign that stated $100 fine for overnight camping, and I'm don't have that type of cash with me so I headed to the RV Park where I could sleep and get out of there before anyone woke. I talked with guy earlier and he allowed me to shower for free and I figured he would do the same on the camping as no one was there in the tent area.
Off to sleep I go...
Technical Data:
Distance, miles: 34.39
Ride time: 2:05:14
Average power, watts: 105
Normalized power, watts: 125
Work, kJ: 797
Average speed, mph: 16.3
A much needed day of rest today. Woke up in the bathroom and felt pretty good but new that I was going to shut it down at Ennis, MT and force myself to relax and enjoy the day! The ride was down hill and I know that a two hour is by no means a recovery ride but when I'm riding this type of mileage day after day, 35 is a good day of rest!
The ride was cool as I started at 6AM and headed into town around 8:30 or so and just tried to enjoy myself! First stop was the convenient store to fill bottles and start rehydrating for the day! I asked around about showers and laundry and settled for the RV park where I could wash my clothes which needed it, and grab a shower which I needed worse then washing my clothes. I'm trying to look presentable on the road to ensure any help if needed from complete strangers. After washing and drying my clothes so I could have a clean small towel to dry off. I took a long shower and made sure to try and clean as good as possible, still difficult without a wash cloth and soap. I borrowed the hand soap from the sink next door to wash with...
After my shower I headed into town to get some breakfast, since it was a rest day I figured I could spend a little money on food today so I had some large pancakes and eggs! The diner was empty when I came in, however lunch was just around the corner and tourist were filling up the booths! After downing breakfast I headed to the library to the library to attempt to write my post, however the sofa in the teen section was a little too comfy so I took about an hour nap or so! I needed it after last nights attempt of sleep in the bathroom.
After my nap I thouht I would check out this small town (Ennis, MT - Home of 1000 people, 11,000,000 trout) a small mountain fly-fishing town! I really like this small town after walking around it! Little cafes, tourist shopping traps, fly fishing shops but what I liked most was the views! Just perfect...and the small park down by the river was so beautiful! Couple ball parks and the freshest looking river I have ever seen with a nice backdrop of the Madison Range!
Sleep and eat was the plan for today! So I did and just enjoyed the day! I did have thoughts of feeling lonely today as I usually do on rest days! It's so easy to keep the mind busy when your riding 6-10 hours a day, but when you take the work away I sometimes fail to relax and just be! Living in the moment is what I try to do but sometimes when I'm living in that moment its tough emotionally. Seeing couples walking around holding hands, kids playing on the swings, kids eating ice cream (makes me think of my nieces!) and the thought of having someone with me gets to me sometimes!
I did what I should do today, rest and eat! For dinner I ate at this little cafe and enjoyed watching the people of this little town! (mostly tourist though) - After dinner I headed back to the RV park and grabbed a spot in the tent camping area and called it a day. I really wanted to sleep in the local park but there was a sign that stated $100 fine for overnight camping, and I'm don't have that type of cash with me so I headed to the RV Park where I could sleep and get out of there before anyone woke. I talked with guy earlier and he allowed me to shower for free and I figured he would do the same on the camping as no one was there in the tent area.
Off to sleep I go...
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Day 16 - July 27th, 2010 (Route: Campground b/w Teton & Yellowstone to Rest Stop 35 miles south of Ennis, MT)
Day 16 - July 27th, 2010 (Route: Campground b/w Teton & Yellowstone to Rest Stop 35 miles south of Ennis, MT)
Technical Data:
Distance, miles: 115.66
Ride Time: 7:47:23
Average Power, watts:160
Normalized Power, watts: 192
Work, kJ: 4559
Average Speed, mph: 14.65
Day started early this morning! Woke around 5:30AM after a night of rain showers, sleeping up off the ground is key here in the parks I thought before falling asleep. Two reasons, 1. I didn't want to put my tent in the wrong spot and wake in a pool of water, and 2. getting stepped on by a bear in the middle of the night didn't sound too appealing! Rained all night, however the night was good as I went to bed with a full belly and really enjoyed my sleep tonight. I sure do wish my sleeping pad was holding air all night. I'll replace it once I'm back to working.
Once up I headed straight to the bathroom as it was cold and four walls and some fuming methane didn't sound appealing but did sound warm. Waking up in the mountains with no sleeping bag isn't too tough. If I had a bag I might want to sleep in and waking up and getting on the bike warms me so to the bike first thing is appealing to me when I'm sleeping out in the open.
After warming myself in the Jon for just a few minutes I packed up a wet tent and sleeping pad. BoB got a night in Marks car last night as we stored him there to keep the smells from any lurking bears in the area. I'm sure BoB was happy to be off the trailer and enjoying a nice cushy seat!
After downing two cliff bars and some trail mix I loaded BoB onto the trailer and headed off, I didn't have my cycling kit on as I planned on riding up the road to the grocery store I visited and kitting up there as the bathrooms would be plenty warm and I could grab some hot water for my hot chocolate I had with. Riding to the store was cold! Once to the store I read the sign, "Closed"! Open at 6:30 - I was thinking I'm not waiting another 40 minutes to kit up and then head out. The goal this morning was to get out of Yellowstone before the RV traffic hits - the traffic in Yellowstone this time of year is THICK and I wasn't going to risk getting injuried in a nataional park and ruin someone's vacation!
So I changed outside the grocery store, resituated BoB for travel! While doing so a local camper approached smoking a cigerette. I greeted him accordingly, but was thinking take that cancer stick somewhere else, your ruining all this fresh air around me! Talking with this cat was interesting! He started the conversation off with how many miles do you have on your bike. I just said a lot because I really don't know, however I do know its a lot since I've had it since 2002. The conversationed continued and lead down a road I really didn't want to go down! This guy was bringing way to many negative vibes into my world right now, first turned off by his puffing on his last smoke! I was thinking what's this cat doing up this early anyways - must be down to his last cancer stick! (okay I'm on a tangent now but this guy kinda made me made and being up, cold, and looking to have a great day this was like rolling off the wrong side of the picnic table!)
Conversation lead down the road about cyclist and not having the right to be in the road, I thought what a way to start the day! This idiot, took the same drivers test I did, its legal to ride on the road! I just told him its a "Law" and if you want to debate it there really isn't any reason to as the law allows us, your opinion doens't mean much to me buddy!
HIs reasoning was, well if I'm heading up a hill at 45 and a biker is on the crest and there is another car in the lane I don't have anywhere to go. I was thinking just use the brake, you know cars do come with those these days! (this conversation was taking place while I was packing BoB so I couldn't just escape)
I'll save my rants and switch to something more enlightening!
Lets think about it! That bicycle is not heading down the road on its own! A human being is pedaling it, that human being could have been on that bike for 10 hours and very tired and reaching the top of the hill could have been a lot of work! The point is, on that bike is a human life and if you want to take the "offensive" driver approach when passing a cyclist, remember that he/she has a family that cares about them very much and its worth the 30 seconds or minutes to slow and pass giving the cyclist plenty of room to feel safe!
What's the opportunity cost if you don't slow and respect the cyclist (aka car/truck/bus) - vehicular homicide sounds worth it don't ya think. I'll trade hours worth of slowing for cyclist to avoid a long stretch of my life in prison. I lost a friend last year to a drunk driver that has givin' me a strong opinion on this topic...
Heading out of the grocery I had to quickly adjust my attitude as I couldn't let this guy get to me today. Once on the road heading into Yellowstone I had this guy on the back of my mind but the landscape was breathtaking so I couldn' t waste any energy thinking about this guy! The climb up into the park from the South entrance was nice this morning! It was a lot of work, but who doesn't like riding next to a perfectly clear river and mountains! Traffic was low so I was accomplishing my goal of getting to West Yellowstone to avoid traffic!
Once to the Thumb junction, I had 17 miles to Old Faithful and 47 to West Yellostone. I was right on my nutrition as I was going Gu's all day vs. Hammer even though I had been restocked with my nurtition. I have enough Gu's right now to support a local century ride with at leat 75 people it seems so I'm trying to drop the weight I'm hauling behind me! I was riding this morning and the legs were feeling good, really no touring today as my safety was the goal for the day!
Thoughts were all over the place on this section! Thoughts of explorers hitting this area and what they were thinking? How we can shelter only a select few acres and not the entire US. This country is so beautiful, just depends upon the eyes looking at it! Take a close look next time you take a trip, stop on the highway! Take in the smells, look for the different mammals, birds, insects, critters running around. Don't just take 5 minutes - stop and smell the roses this time around! It might just change you life!
"Sun rises over the forest to the east, dew shimmers, river roars, spider webs dangle from the trees, all only noticable with the sunlight. Eagle flys away with breakfast, a brookie from small river flowing south. Timber lies elagantly placed in the forest, creating a path of confusion for all who travel through. This place, quiet, peaceful, only in this morning before we as humans disturb its beauty."
Traveling by bike I see everything, from the beer bottles, from cigerette butts, to random litter on the sides of the roads. Objects I have seen since I started this journey: McDonald's trash, full bags of trash left by someone (not the ones those who have adopted the highway) but strategically placed ones with rocks on top, nuts, bolts, hats, shirts, wrappers, edging blade, axe head, pens, pennies (okay - I pick those up), et cetera...
Why do as Americans not respect our environment? Doesn't make since, we drink from our streams, lakes, rivers. We eat from our lands that we pollute and we sit and admire special places, why not all? I've pondered this for some time - we only like certain places instead of putting in the little work to keep all of it beautiful. Most people I know's attitudes turn when they see a messy, dirty city, however when they think of some place well maintained you can see it in there eyes of approval and enjoyment. Again just random thoughts running through my head but must think about this. When in Colorado Springs I was happy to see so many taking the effort to recycle when Jan and I went to the recycling center. Tree Hugger - maybe but I love everything about the life I have been given...
Yellowstone is busy busy this time of year! I would prefer to come back in September when all the kids are in school. True it might be colder then, however I really would like to see it when its slower to be able to enjoy it more!
Heading up to "Old Faithful" was a pretty solid ride! I was having fun and thinking about refueling and collecting my thougths before I pushed on to West Yellowstone. I pulled in and refilled bottles and used the mens room. When I was refilling my bottles I met nice family on vacation and chatted for a bit. This was a great moment to see a family of four enjoying breakfast before pushing off to the Tetons for the day. Chatting with them, they had tons of questions - one that sticks out is "Do you get Lonely?" - this was the second time I had heard this question in the last couple of days. I answered "Not Yet" - It's genuine Americans like you that keep me from getting lonely out here on the road! They were great, really interested in my journey as many have been so far. Again - I wish I could have remembered there names - I'm terrible with remembering things when I'm at the end of a week of riding and ready for a rest day! Leaving the small parlor - they wanted to look at my bike since the father had done some touring himself so we went out and continued our great conversation, good for me as I liked to visit and see and hear what Americans are up too.
Back on the bike I had 30 miles to West Yellowstone, almost out of the park!!! I have been to the park before and would have loved to see more sites however I'm more interested in seeing parts of Montana, Idaho, Oregon that I have not seen! The terrain was great, lots of short climbs and decents! The work was what I wanted as I had slept great on that old picnic table and the body was full of life and energy.
The next 30 miles was a lot of fun. I did have a slow leak in my back tire and I was tired of it, I had aired it up a couple times and thought just get where your going then change it. Plenty of time to work on the rig, so stopping in the middle of YellowStone to look for a microwire that had weaseled its way into my tire parallel with the rubber wall creating a micro puncture that when not fully aired up it would stop leaking, but under 120 psi it would lose pressure. What a challenge it was to find this wire, I found it though and it took some time as I have 15 to 20 little knicks in this old tire!
Stopping to live in the moment which I feel like I have not written about in a while was nice at this point. Looking across the street, thousands of tourist walking around to see the thermal hot pools. The colors that are encompassed within these pools can steal ones attention for hours! Languages from all over can be heard, people offering help are around, those who wouldn't dare give away five minutes of there vacation are abundant too.
After inflating my tire I rolled on and needed water so I rolled into a campsite to refill. In the campground I meet four French tourist. Extremely nice, and I mean extremely nice! The four of them had ridden into the park from West Yellowston to tour the park by what I love best, the bicycle! What a way to see the park, to slow things down and take it all in! They had just finished there tour of the park and were refilling two gallon jugs for there decent out of the park. They took off a little before so I had some catching up to do! Once I caught them I passed them and was on my way...we said a few peaceful phrases as I rolled by because we were all enjoying the day and the ride!
A few miles past the French bikers I stopped to snap a few photos. The French group then passed me and I had some catching up to do. I caught them once again and it was time to have a little fun. I pulled the front and slowed down so they could draft off BoB and we had a blast. We cruised for a few miles before three of the tourist dropped back, the cat that I met filling bottles was still on my wheel and I couldn't understand what he was saying, I think he wanted to pull so I let him! Okay I drafted for about 300 meters before I thought this cat needs to pick it up, so I moved to the front and put the hammer down just a little and off the back he went. This was a little fun today, riding with some foreigners in a place as beautiful as this! Cruising!!!!
Once out of the park I was into West Yellowstone where I planned on heading to a coffee shop or hotel to rest a little and grab some lunch. I rolled around the town to check out the sites for just a bit. This is definitely a tourist town, busy busy in the summer and probably really slow and peaceful in the winters, of course your cross country skiers and snow mobilers help keep this tourist town alive in those long winters I'm assuming. I decided on the Hotel, headed into change and start typing yesterdays thoughts.
I sat at the bar and asked for a water as I need to keep the spending to a minimum as I have to stretch the allotted funds out another 6-8 weeks worth of riding. I still have a couple weeks till I hit the coast and then to San Diego. I'm having a lot of fun making this challenge happen. Enjoyed the barkeeps company as she was amazed at what I was doing hooked me up with some fish soup and crackers along with a small cup of ice cream to help me along this journey I am on...Shared with here a few thoughts that were in my head and even shared my sisters youtube.com song "Older Now". I was enjoying the time in out of the heat and really shouldn't have stayed as long as I had. The wind when I got off the bike was a head wind and it would be until I reached Ennis, MT. There was no goal destination today, the goal was to put in 100 plus miles and see were I was on the map and then go from there!
After hanging out at the bar for alittle while I went out to check on BoB and noticed the wind was now blowing pretty stiff out of the South. I thought perfect, I'll ride this tail wind as long as I can as I was headed North!!! It was close to 70 miles to Ennis and running a little late to try and nail that type of distance after already covering 80 miles or so. Map had lots of campgrounds along the highway heading into Ennis so I figured I would just get as many miles in as I could. The first 10 miles out of West Yellowstone were a fast!!! Can tell I'm out of the park now, the truck traffic is thicker again but I'm glad to be out of the park and the RV drivers gazing out at the sites!
The junction heading West to Ennis approached rather quickly and I turned West where I would run along one of the most scenic places I have ever scene! The lake which I will leave unnamed was surreal!!! I leave it unnamed to keep the locals spot a hot spot! A while back I watched "Band of Brothers" and this place was like the Austia pictures in the movie, whether it was shot there or not it reminded me of that. Every pine tree uniquely rising out of the forest, giving the the feel of vertigo...words cannot even explain how beautiful this place is!
The river that flowed out of this damned lake was so peaceful, fly fishermen wading and flying lines in the river hoping to catch that record brown or rainbow. Eagles flying high in the sky, campgrounds nestled into the woods along this quiet peacful highway.
Traveling out of this gap in the mountains I did not look forward to as I could stay here for weeks and never get bored of thew views! Once out of the gap I was kinda lost as now the mountains were so large to my East, typically having them on the West. I wasn't lost by any means, however I did have to adjust my outlook on things. The wind had definitely changed once through the gap, it was like I was in a completely different ecosystem! The wind now was a head wind! 41 miles to Ennis I had covered a pretty good distance, however with a storm looming on the horizon where I was heading I wasn't looking forward to what lie ahead. I put on my jacket and put my head down and rode! I was getting tired but I new the more distance I covered today the less I would tomorrow on my rest day! (Was looking forward to this rest day for sure!)
The cabins in this prairie were something out of a movie to me! A perfect looking cabin in the middle of the open prairie, surrounded by green grass and fresh cut pastures. I could only imagine what the view was like in the winter when covered with feet of snow! The hay was stacked high to support the livestock during the harsh winters here. People all hard working and willing to endure these 8 month winters to enjoy there 4 months of summer, I can see now why many do it! This place is amazing, no beetle kill on there forest like in Colorado and simply breath taking. The ride was now heading North and downhill along the river. Miles after miles of rivers with fisherman hoping for that one trout that would change their next story while with family and friends. I often wonder if fish that are caught are truly as large as they say?
Getting tired, weather clouding the sun, I decided to shut it down after a ten minute self talk on why you shouldn't be riding anymore. Self coaching myself on this trip I have to make all the decisions which can be tough as I'm very competitive and love to challenge myself, yet I have to try and think clearly when fatigued and sometimes this can cloud my judgement. I talked myself into shutting it down at 115 miles even though I as feeling good phyisically but concerned about the weather and riding on the dark open stretch of highway. I stopped at a rest stop and decided it would be a good place to crash because I wasn't exactly sure how far the next campground was.
I walked around the site and it was a good spot, however there was no potable drinking water so I was thinking about pushing on, however I didn't and was fortunate to have some people stop and give me two bottles of water and a gatorade. There is just something about being on the open road and on a bicycle that people just want to help out! Makes me feel pretty good about this journey...the river was flowing and had a couple fishermen fishing, so I sat down to cook and get things situated. After getting situated and the first round of food into my system I run out of fuel on stove and find out my batteries are out in my head lamp. Ouch - a double wammy tonight, however it is less to hall around so I have look at the positive!!!!
Bradley and Brad came out of the river and we chatted a little bit. Couple college kids from Athens, GA up here fishing for the summer. It was good to talk to some youth at this point as I had a long day! Day started at 5:30 and now its close to 10PM - what solid day of travel and writing! It was good to have some humor as Brad from New York brought some light to the night...use the line on the girls! Both loved the outdoors and you could tell, both loved to hunt and fish! Myself being from Kansas I have been surrounded around some of the best white-tail and bird hunting in the United States. At this point I promised Bradley I would help him out the best I could, he wants to get to Kansas sometime and do some hunting! So all my friends reading this that are still in SouthEast Kansas I have some boy's that need some help!!!
If I could have a job just networking people that would be an awesome job. Think about it, these two kids want to fullfill a dream of hunting in Kansas, then they meet me! All we should have to do is make a phone call and make it happen. Sharing life with others is what its all about isn't it? Giving to others brings such a blessing to my life, to help those in need and just to help others fulfill there dreams or create opportunities is worth it.
When I'm older rocking in that rock chair on that big porch over looking the moutains and sunset I want to be able to share stories with those I'm with about how many peoples lives I've affected along this life I have lived. I thought about this a lot on the ride today about my rocking chair dream. To be able to share with my grand kids all the adventures I have taken and the life I have lived. So many people out here to learn from, reason why I don't like to sit in front a television, don't get me wrong televisions are good for recovery days and movie watching however I would rather be exploring and meeting new people as memories are created and lessones are learned.
Once the two Brad's left I looked up at the weather and thought a lot about what Bradley mentioned of his story on the hail that moved through the area just a few days ago and how everything was white as snow. With a storm to the North I wasn't sure where it was heading I made a decision to sleep in the bathroom tonight at the rest stop as I really didn't want to deal with any kind of weather after a long long day! I opted to sleep in the womens restroom vs. the mens because I figured most truck drivers were male and I wouldn't be bothered. The restrooms were exceptionally clean so I didn't mind sleeping in them! So I pulled BoB into the bath along with my bike and fell right asleep. At about 1:30 a female trucker attempted to roll into the restroom and I scared her pretty good! I woke up and allowed her to do her business then I went back to sleep. Lots of noise from the mens side so I'm glad I opted for the womens...
In retrospect I probably would have been okay outside but tonight I didn't want to risk it and the warmth of the bathroom was worth it!
Technical Data:
Distance, miles: 115.66
Ride Time: 7:47:23
Average Power, watts:160
Normalized Power, watts: 192
Work, kJ: 4559
Average Speed, mph: 14.65
Day started early this morning! Woke around 5:30AM after a night of rain showers, sleeping up off the ground is key here in the parks I thought before falling asleep. Two reasons, 1. I didn't want to put my tent in the wrong spot and wake in a pool of water, and 2. getting stepped on by a bear in the middle of the night didn't sound too appealing! Rained all night, however the night was good as I went to bed with a full belly and really enjoyed my sleep tonight. I sure do wish my sleeping pad was holding air all night. I'll replace it once I'm back to working.
Once up I headed straight to the bathroom as it was cold and four walls and some fuming methane didn't sound appealing but did sound warm. Waking up in the mountains with no sleeping bag isn't too tough. If I had a bag I might want to sleep in and waking up and getting on the bike warms me so to the bike first thing is appealing to me when I'm sleeping out in the open.
After warming myself in the Jon for just a few minutes I packed up a wet tent and sleeping pad. BoB got a night in Marks car last night as we stored him there to keep the smells from any lurking bears in the area. I'm sure BoB was happy to be off the trailer and enjoying a nice cushy seat!
After downing two cliff bars and some trail mix I loaded BoB onto the trailer and headed off, I didn't have my cycling kit on as I planned on riding up the road to the grocery store I visited and kitting up there as the bathrooms would be plenty warm and I could grab some hot water for my hot chocolate I had with. Riding to the store was cold! Once to the store I read the sign, "Closed"! Open at 6:30 - I was thinking I'm not waiting another 40 minutes to kit up and then head out. The goal this morning was to get out of Yellowstone before the RV traffic hits - the traffic in Yellowstone this time of year is THICK and I wasn't going to risk getting injuried in a nataional park and ruin someone's vacation!
So I changed outside the grocery store, resituated BoB for travel! While doing so a local camper approached smoking a cigerette. I greeted him accordingly, but was thinking take that cancer stick somewhere else, your ruining all this fresh air around me! Talking with this cat was interesting! He started the conversation off with how many miles do you have on your bike. I just said a lot because I really don't know, however I do know its a lot since I've had it since 2002. The conversationed continued and lead down a road I really didn't want to go down! This guy was bringing way to many negative vibes into my world right now, first turned off by his puffing on his last smoke! I was thinking what's this cat doing up this early anyways - must be down to his last cancer stick! (okay I'm on a tangent now but this guy kinda made me made and being up, cold, and looking to have a great day this was like rolling off the wrong side of the picnic table!)
Conversation lead down the road about cyclist and not having the right to be in the road, I thought what a way to start the day! This idiot, took the same drivers test I did, its legal to ride on the road! I just told him its a "Law" and if you want to debate it there really isn't any reason to as the law allows us, your opinion doens't mean much to me buddy!
HIs reasoning was, well if I'm heading up a hill at 45 and a biker is on the crest and there is another car in the lane I don't have anywhere to go. I was thinking just use the brake, you know cars do come with those these days! (this conversation was taking place while I was packing BoB so I couldn't just escape)
I'll save my rants and switch to something more enlightening!
Lets think about it! That bicycle is not heading down the road on its own! A human being is pedaling it, that human being could have been on that bike for 10 hours and very tired and reaching the top of the hill could have been a lot of work! The point is, on that bike is a human life and if you want to take the "offensive" driver approach when passing a cyclist, remember that he/she has a family that cares about them very much and its worth the 30 seconds or minutes to slow and pass giving the cyclist plenty of room to feel safe!
What's the opportunity cost if you don't slow and respect the cyclist (aka car/truck/bus) - vehicular homicide sounds worth it don't ya think. I'll trade hours worth of slowing for cyclist to avoid a long stretch of my life in prison. I lost a friend last year to a drunk driver that has givin' me a strong opinion on this topic...
Heading out of the grocery I had to quickly adjust my attitude as I couldn't let this guy get to me today. Once on the road heading into Yellowstone I had this guy on the back of my mind but the landscape was breathtaking so I couldn' t waste any energy thinking about this guy! The climb up into the park from the South entrance was nice this morning! It was a lot of work, but who doesn't like riding next to a perfectly clear river and mountains! Traffic was low so I was accomplishing my goal of getting to West Yellowstone to avoid traffic!
Once to the Thumb junction, I had 17 miles to Old Faithful and 47 to West Yellostone. I was right on my nutrition as I was going Gu's all day vs. Hammer even though I had been restocked with my nurtition. I have enough Gu's right now to support a local century ride with at leat 75 people it seems so I'm trying to drop the weight I'm hauling behind me! I was riding this morning and the legs were feeling good, really no touring today as my safety was the goal for the day!
Thoughts were all over the place on this section! Thoughts of explorers hitting this area and what they were thinking? How we can shelter only a select few acres and not the entire US. This country is so beautiful, just depends upon the eyes looking at it! Take a close look next time you take a trip, stop on the highway! Take in the smells, look for the different mammals, birds, insects, critters running around. Don't just take 5 minutes - stop and smell the roses this time around! It might just change you life!
"Sun rises over the forest to the east, dew shimmers, river roars, spider webs dangle from the trees, all only noticable with the sunlight. Eagle flys away with breakfast, a brookie from small river flowing south. Timber lies elagantly placed in the forest, creating a path of confusion for all who travel through. This place, quiet, peaceful, only in this morning before we as humans disturb its beauty."
Traveling by bike I see everything, from the beer bottles, from cigerette butts, to random litter on the sides of the roads. Objects I have seen since I started this journey: McDonald's trash, full bags of trash left by someone (not the ones those who have adopted the highway) but strategically placed ones with rocks on top, nuts, bolts, hats, shirts, wrappers, edging blade, axe head, pens, pennies (okay - I pick those up), et cetera...
Why do as Americans not respect our environment? Doesn't make since, we drink from our streams, lakes, rivers. We eat from our lands that we pollute and we sit and admire special places, why not all? I've pondered this for some time - we only like certain places instead of putting in the little work to keep all of it beautiful. Most people I know's attitudes turn when they see a messy, dirty city, however when they think of some place well maintained you can see it in there eyes of approval and enjoyment. Again just random thoughts running through my head but must think about this. When in Colorado Springs I was happy to see so many taking the effort to recycle when Jan and I went to the recycling center. Tree Hugger - maybe but I love everything about the life I have been given...
Yellowstone is busy busy this time of year! I would prefer to come back in September when all the kids are in school. True it might be colder then, however I really would like to see it when its slower to be able to enjoy it more!
Heading up to "Old Faithful" was a pretty solid ride! I was having fun and thinking about refueling and collecting my thougths before I pushed on to West Yellowstone. I pulled in and refilled bottles and used the mens room. When I was refilling my bottles I met nice family on vacation and chatted for a bit. This was a great moment to see a family of four enjoying breakfast before pushing off to the Tetons for the day. Chatting with them, they had tons of questions - one that sticks out is "Do you get Lonely?" - this was the second time I had heard this question in the last couple of days. I answered "Not Yet" - It's genuine Americans like you that keep me from getting lonely out here on the road! They were great, really interested in my journey as many have been so far. Again - I wish I could have remembered there names - I'm terrible with remembering things when I'm at the end of a week of riding and ready for a rest day! Leaving the small parlor - they wanted to look at my bike since the father had done some touring himself so we went out and continued our great conversation, good for me as I liked to visit and see and hear what Americans are up too.
Back on the bike I had 30 miles to West Yellowstone, almost out of the park!!! I have been to the park before and would have loved to see more sites however I'm more interested in seeing parts of Montana, Idaho, Oregon that I have not seen! The terrain was great, lots of short climbs and decents! The work was what I wanted as I had slept great on that old picnic table and the body was full of life and energy.
The next 30 miles was a lot of fun. I did have a slow leak in my back tire and I was tired of it, I had aired it up a couple times and thought just get where your going then change it. Plenty of time to work on the rig, so stopping in the middle of YellowStone to look for a microwire that had weaseled its way into my tire parallel with the rubber wall creating a micro puncture that when not fully aired up it would stop leaking, but under 120 psi it would lose pressure. What a challenge it was to find this wire, I found it though and it took some time as I have 15 to 20 little knicks in this old tire!
Stopping to live in the moment which I feel like I have not written about in a while was nice at this point. Looking across the street, thousands of tourist walking around to see the thermal hot pools. The colors that are encompassed within these pools can steal ones attention for hours! Languages from all over can be heard, people offering help are around, those who wouldn't dare give away five minutes of there vacation are abundant too.
After inflating my tire I rolled on and needed water so I rolled into a campsite to refill. In the campground I meet four French tourist. Extremely nice, and I mean extremely nice! The four of them had ridden into the park from West Yellowston to tour the park by what I love best, the bicycle! What a way to see the park, to slow things down and take it all in! They had just finished there tour of the park and were refilling two gallon jugs for there decent out of the park. They took off a little before so I had some catching up to do! Once I caught them I passed them and was on my way...we said a few peaceful phrases as I rolled by because we were all enjoying the day and the ride!
A few miles past the French bikers I stopped to snap a few photos. The French group then passed me and I had some catching up to do. I caught them once again and it was time to have a little fun. I pulled the front and slowed down so they could draft off BoB and we had a blast. We cruised for a few miles before three of the tourist dropped back, the cat that I met filling bottles was still on my wheel and I couldn't understand what he was saying, I think he wanted to pull so I let him! Okay I drafted for about 300 meters before I thought this cat needs to pick it up, so I moved to the front and put the hammer down just a little and off the back he went. This was a little fun today, riding with some foreigners in a place as beautiful as this! Cruising!!!!
Once out of the park I was into West Yellowstone where I planned on heading to a coffee shop or hotel to rest a little and grab some lunch. I rolled around the town to check out the sites for just a bit. This is definitely a tourist town, busy busy in the summer and probably really slow and peaceful in the winters, of course your cross country skiers and snow mobilers help keep this tourist town alive in those long winters I'm assuming. I decided on the Hotel, headed into change and start typing yesterdays thoughts.
I sat at the bar and asked for a water as I need to keep the spending to a minimum as I have to stretch the allotted funds out another 6-8 weeks worth of riding. I still have a couple weeks till I hit the coast and then to San Diego. I'm having a lot of fun making this challenge happen. Enjoyed the barkeeps company as she was amazed at what I was doing hooked me up with some fish soup and crackers along with a small cup of ice cream to help me along this journey I am on...Shared with here a few thoughts that were in my head and even shared my sisters youtube.com song "Older Now". I was enjoying the time in out of the heat and really shouldn't have stayed as long as I had. The wind when I got off the bike was a head wind and it would be until I reached Ennis, MT. There was no goal destination today, the goal was to put in 100 plus miles and see were I was on the map and then go from there!
After hanging out at the bar for alittle while I went out to check on BoB and noticed the wind was now blowing pretty stiff out of the South. I thought perfect, I'll ride this tail wind as long as I can as I was headed North!!! It was close to 70 miles to Ennis and running a little late to try and nail that type of distance after already covering 80 miles or so. Map had lots of campgrounds along the highway heading into Ennis so I figured I would just get as many miles in as I could. The first 10 miles out of West Yellowstone were a fast!!! Can tell I'm out of the park now, the truck traffic is thicker again but I'm glad to be out of the park and the RV drivers gazing out at the sites!
The junction heading West to Ennis approached rather quickly and I turned West where I would run along one of the most scenic places I have ever scene! The lake which I will leave unnamed was surreal!!! I leave it unnamed to keep the locals spot a hot spot! A while back I watched "Band of Brothers" and this place was like the Austia pictures in the movie, whether it was shot there or not it reminded me of that. Every pine tree uniquely rising out of the forest, giving the the feel of vertigo...words cannot even explain how beautiful this place is!
The river that flowed out of this damned lake was so peaceful, fly fishermen wading and flying lines in the river hoping to catch that record brown or rainbow. Eagles flying high in the sky, campgrounds nestled into the woods along this quiet peacful highway.
Traveling out of this gap in the mountains I did not look forward to as I could stay here for weeks and never get bored of thew views! Once out of the gap I was kinda lost as now the mountains were so large to my East, typically having them on the West. I wasn't lost by any means, however I did have to adjust my outlook on things. The wind had definitely changed once through the gap, it was like I was in a completely different ecosystem! The wind now was a head wind! 41 miles to Ennis I had covered a pretty good distance, however with a storm looming on the horizon where I was heading I wasn't looking forward to what lie ahead. I put on my jacket and put my head down and rode! I was getting tired but I new the more distance I covered today the less I would tomorrow on my rest day! (Was looking forward to this rest day for sure!)
The cabins in this prairie were something out of a movie to me! A perfect looking cabin in the middle of the open prairie, surrounded by green grass and fresh cut pastures. I could only imagine what the view was like in the winter when covered with feet of snow! The hay was stacked high to support the livestock during the harsh winters here. People all hard working and willing to endure these 8 month winters to enjoy there 4 months of summer, I can see now why many do it! This place is amazing, no beetle kill on there forest like in Colorado and simply breath taking. The ride was now heading North and downhill along the river. Miles after miles of rivers with fisherman hoping for that one trout that would change their next story while with family and friends. I often wonder if fish that are caught are truly as large as they say?
Getting tired, weather clouding the sun, I decided to shut it down after a ten minute self talk on why you shouldn't be riding anymore. Self coaching myself on this trip I have to make all the decisions which can be tough as I'm very competitive and love to challenge myself, yet I have to try and think clearly when fatigued and sometimes this can cloud my judgement. I talked myself into shutting it down at 115 miles even though I as feeling good phyisically but concerned about the weather and riding on the dark open stretch of highway. I stopped at a rest stop and decided it would be a good place to crash because I wasn't exactly sure how far the next campground was.
I walked around the site and it was a good spot, however there was no potable drinking water so I was thinking about pushing on, however I didn't and was fortunate to have some people stop and give me two bottles of water and a gatorade. There is just something about being on the open road and on a bicycle that people just want to help out! Makes me feel pretty good about this journey...the river was flowing and had a couple fishermen fishing, so I sat down to cook and get things situated. After getting situated and the first round of food into my system I run out of fuel on stove and find out my batteries are out in my head lamp. Ouch - a double wammy tonight, however it is less to hall around so I have look at the positive!!!!
Bradley and Brad came out of the river and we chatted a little bit. Couple college kids from Athens, GA up here fishing for the summer. It was good to talk to some youth at this point as I had a long day! Day started at 5:30 and now its close to 10PM - what solid day of travel and writing! It was good to have some humor as Brad from New York brought some light to the night...use the line on the girls! Both loved the outdoors and you could tell, both loved to hunt and fish! Myself being from Kansas I have been surrounded around some of the best white-tail and bird hunting in the United States. At this point I promised Bradley I would help him out the best I could, he wants to get to Kansas sometime and do some hunting! So all my friends reading this that are still in SouthEast Kansas I have some boy's that need some help!!!
If I could have a job just networking people that would be an awesome job. Think about it, these two kids want to fullfill a dream of hunting in Kansas, then they meet me! All we should have to do is make a phone call and make it happen. Sharing life with others is what its all about isn't it? Giving to others brings such a blessing to my life, to help those in need and just to help others fulfill there dreams or create opportunities is worth it.
When I'm older rocking in that rock chair on that big porch over looking the moutains and sunset I want to be able to share stories with those I'm with about how many peoples lives I've affected along this life I have lived. I thought about this a lot on the ride today about my rocking chair dream. To be able to share with my grand kids all the adventures I have taken and the life I have lived. So many people out here to learn from, reason why I don't like to sit in front a television, don't get me wrong televisions are good for recovery days and movie watching however I would rather be exploring and meeting new people as memories are created and lessones are learned.
Once the two Brad's left I looked up at the weather and thought a lot about what Bradley mentioned of his story on the hail that moved through the area just a few days ago and how everything was white as snow. With a storm to the North I wasn't sure where it was heading I made a decision to sleep in the bathroom tonight at the rest stop as I really didn't want to deal with any kind of weather after a long long day! I opted to sleep in the womens restroom vs. the mens because I figured most truck drivers were male and I wouldn't be bothered. The restrooms were exceptionally clean so I didn't mind sleeping in them! So I pulled BoB into the bath along with my bike and fell right asleep. At about 1:30 a female trucker attempted to roll into the restroom and I scared her pretty good! I woke up and allowed her to do her business then I went back to sleep. Lots of noise from the mens side so I'm glad I opted for the womens...
In retrospect I probably would have been okay outside but tonight I didn't want to risk it and the warmth of the bathroom was worth it!
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Day Fifteen: July 26th, 2010 (Dubois, WY to Campground, WY)
Day Fifteen: July 26th, 2010 (Dubois, WY to Campground, WY - between Yellowstone and Grand Tetons)
Technical Data (Will download tomorrow)
Distance, miles: 77.54
Ride time: 6:05:08
Average power, watts: 136
Normalized power, watts: 167
Work, kJ: 3034
Average speed, mph: 12.49
Day Summary - 85+ degrees and partly cloudy.
Rolling out of Wind River Gear parking lot I wasn't feeling to hot this morning! I packed everything up as normal and headed on down to the local grocery as I needed a new toothbrush as some how I misplaced mine. Once I had my new brush I brushed my teeth right there in the parking lot. An older gentlemen talked to me for a bit while I was brushing my teeth, he was from Nebraska so we hit it off pretty quick being from Kansas. Was a good little conversation however nothing really enlighten to share. I debated hitting up the donut shoppe before heading out of town as it was a Daylight and I grew up with a Daylight...I debated it for about 3-5 minutes then I decided to head on down the road.
25+ miles or so to the top of the pass and I wasn't feeling good this morning. The legs just didn't have any power and I was really struggling to find motivation. One of those mornings when you look for the Ipod to wake you up on your way to the gym. Spinning down the road, I was thinking just relax today, get over the pass, pick up your nutrition drop at Moran Junction, WY and head north as far as you can before shutting it down for a day of rest.
The ride up to the pass was an easy grade and I was just spinning. I'm writing this right now and I'm "smoked" (military term) - meaning I really don't feel like I have much left in the tank today. Riding up to the pass I couldn't help but get lost in the scenery and stop and take some photos. I can see now why the West has won the hearts of millions! Climbing up the pass I was warned that the road runs out for a 2+ mile stretch and I would have to get sagged across the construction site by a local construction worker. Once to the top of the pass I had to wait 10-15 minutes for his shuttle across the work zone. I really thought I should be riding it, however it wasn't that it wasn't ridable, it was more about safter. Pat - a local to Dubois gave me a ride across the work zone and we just chatted about the area, the fishing, the small town of Dubois, the winters, and how tough it is to make a living up here.
Once over the pass I put on my jacket for the decent, thinking it was going to be a long fast decent however it was very mild so I stopped to strip down. The Tetons were breathtaking!
I'm having trouble concentrating on writing so I'm going to crash - two weeks straight worth of riding and writing, to be honest I'm getting a little exhausted! So to recharge - I'm going to go sit by the river just outside of Yellowstone and relax...
(More to come...)
Once over the pass I headed into Moran Junction to pick up my mail drop. In it, more Sustained energy and more GU then I can possible choked down over the next couple of weeks. Total weight 20 lbs, and some of the best climbing to come so now that I'm strength training its going to be a good trip! I would like to Thank my Brother for drop shipping it out to Moran. I rolled into Moran a little before one o'clock and it was getting hot, so I reorganized BoB so all the nutrional product would fit and headed on my way. Before I got to Moran I stopped for water at this little RV park which had Hostels, I thought about crashing there but moved on. This was a funny moment in my day though, as the bear proof trash cans fooled about 10 people right in front of me. I took some pictures of the can, I was laughing my ass off when I watched this! The instructions were right there but still people walked away, you had to have been there as it was one of the highlights of my day!
Rolling out of Moran the legs were still underneath me so I thought I would continue to cruise until I found a camping spot that looked nice. Camp site after camp site was "full", (note* - don't come to the Tetons and Yellowstone in July!!!) After stopping in at Lizard Creek to see if they had any tent sites, which they didn't I headed to a free site. I was planning on paying tonight because I wanted to grab a shower and do some laundry, however for $37.10 for a place to throw my tent was outragous so I headed out!
I headed over to this lodge to get out of the heat and try and get some recovery in! I decided to celebrate my Kansas crossing today, I hadn't had my Hostess Chocolate Cupcakes yet so I spent a few bucks and bought some and more chocolate milk and had me a good celebration, sitting on the front porch of this lodge in a rocking chair enjoying the day! Watching all the tourist do there thing, the tourist count here has to be out of this world right now...
I changed at the lodge and wrote a little. I was getting tired so I headed to the camp site on a slow leak, I have to say the Contential tires I have are not the best for cross country trips. I love my Specialized Armadillos the best and really would like to have another set on this trip, however I'm making due and my friend Julian is going to drop a few in a couple days to somewhere on the route. Rolling down this gravel road looking for camping was pretty interesting, nothing like riding on road tires on course rocks and then crossing a small creek to find a place to throw a tent.
I found the sites, all full! What do you do when you're on the bike and people just keep saying head up the road 20-30 "miles"...Legs were pretty tired today so I decided to ask if I could share a site and I'm glad I did. The couple that passed me on the way into the sites mentioned we could share too, so we all shared a site that night. It was wide open spaces so I could have camped pretty much anywhere!
Turns out I asked Mark - whom was on a bike tour of WY with his son. The couple that came into the site when I did were from Bozeman, MT and awesome! All the people I have met on this trip have been great...gives you a different out look on people in America! I enjoyed chatting with the couple from Bozeman, I'm having the toughest time remembering names, however I know where he works so I should be able to find them and "Thank" them for the cliff bars - they were great today and it was nice to have a change in food on the ride today!
As for Mark and his son it was great to see him and his son interact, precious moments in time today! Watching a father teach his kid how to cut a tree with a 4 foot saw (note* = look up the name of the saw). After watching them for a little bit I asked if I could help, it would be good to get a little upper body workout in on this trip as I'm loosing all of it! That's a different story all within itself (my weight lose). I fixed the small leak on my rear tire. Mark saw me do this and mentioned his sons bike had a very similiar thing going on, so I offered to fix it as well. Spending the evening with complete strangers can be rewarding! I had dinner with Mark as he offered me some Tea and Spaghetti, what a trade I thought!
It was pretty close to bed time so it was time to put food in the bear storage unit and call it a night. I decided to sleep on the picnic table tonight off the ground so I wouldn't get stepped on by a bear if one were to walk into camp. Today was a refreshing day for recovery, I was still able to get 70-80 miles in and enjoy the day. Met some interesting people and some truly genuine people too...
O' before I went to bed the couple from Bozeman walked me through the route I was planning and gave me the insights on the terrain. I like the unknown, however at this point in the trip I'm going into unknown territory with no idea what lies ahead. I do this because I love the challenge! If I have the maps for the route I would know the elevation profile and that's not what I want. What I love is setting a destination and getting there, no matter how much time it takes or what stands in the way (wind, heat, elevation changes, et cetera). This provides me with the training I'm looking for and the opportunity to talk with complete strangers on asking questions...
Off to bed and hopefully tomorrow will provide me with fresh legs and the needed motivation to continute on!
Other Notes
Talk with Dean and PitBull
Talk with Bozeman Couple (Hostel, Local, Et Cetera)
Ran into two other cyclist
Landscape
Camp Host (Huge smile when she sent me 7 miles down the road - all up hill!) Quote...
Conversation with barkeep at lodge (foreign presence)
Technical Data (Will download tomorrow)
Distance, miles: 77.54
Ride time: 6:05:08
Average power, watts: 136
Normalized power, watts: 167
Work, kJ: 3034
Average speed, mph: 12.49
Day Summary - 85+ degrees and partly cloudy.
Rolling out of Wind River Gear parking lot I wasn't feeling to hot this morning! I packed everything up as normal and headed on down to the local grocery as I needed a new toothbrush as some how I misplaced mine. Once I had my new brush I brushed my teeth right there in the parking lot. An older gentlemen talked to me for a bit while I was brushing my teeth, he was from Nebraska so we hit it off pretty quick being from Kansas. Was a good little conversation however nothing really enlighten to share. I debated hitting up the donut shoppe before heading out of town as it was a Daylight and I grew up with a Daylight...I debated it for about 3-5 minutes then I decided to head on down the road.
25+ miles or so to the top of the pass and I wasn't feeling good this morning. The legs just didn't have any power and I was really struggling to find motivation. One of those mornings when you look for the Ipod to wake you up on your way to the gym. Spinning down the road, I was thinking just relax today, get over the pass, pick up your nutrition drop at Moran Junction, WY and head north as far as you can before shutting it down for a day of rest.
The ride up to the pass was an easy grade and I was just spinning. I'm writing this right now and I'm "smoked" (military term) - meaning I really don't feel like I have much left in the tank today. Riding up to the pass I couldn't help but get lost in the scenery and stop and take some photos. I can see now why the West has won the hearts of millions! Climbing up the pass I was warned that the road runs out for a 2+ mile stretch and I would have to get sagged across the construction site by a local construction worker. Once to the top of the pass I had to wait 10-15 minutes for his shuttle across the work zone. I really thought I should be riding it, however it wasn't that it wasn't ridable, it was more about safter. Pat - a local to Dubois gave me a ride across the work zone and we just chatted about the area, the fishing, the small town of Dubois, the winters, and how tough it is to make a living up here.
Once over the pass I put on my jacket for the decent, thinking it was going to be a long fast decent however it was very mild so I stopped to strip down. The Tetons were breathtaking!
I'm having trouble concentrating on writing so I'm going to crash - two weeks straight worth of riding and writing, to be honest I'm getting a little exhausted! So to recharge - I'm going to go sit by the river just outside of Yellowstone and relax...
(More to come...)
Once over the pass I headed into Moran Junction to pick up my mail drop. In it, more Sustained energy and more GU then I can possible choked down over the next couple of weeks. Total weight 20 lbs, and some of the best climbing to come so now that I'm strength training its going to be a good trip! I would like to Thank my Brother for drop shipping it out to Moran. I rolled into Moran a little before one o'clock and it was getting hot, so I reorganized BoB so all the nutrional product would fit and headed on my way. Before I got to Moran I stopped for water at this little RV park which had Hostels, I thought about crashing there but moved on. This was a funny moment in my day though, as the bear proof trash cans fooled about 10 people right in front of me. I took some pictures of the can, I was laughing my ass off when I watched this! The instructions were right there but still people walked away, you had to have been there as it was one of the highlights of my day!
Rolling out of Moran the legs were still underneath me so I thought I would continue to cruise until I found a camping spot that looked nice. Camp site after camp site was "full", (note* - don't come to the Tetons and Yellowstone in July!!!) After stopping in at Lizard Creek to see if they had any tent sites, which they didn't I headed to a free site. I was planning on paying tonight because I wanted to grab a shower and do some laundry, however for $37.10 for a place to throw my tent was outragous so I headed out!
I headed over to this lodge to get out of the heat and try and get some recovery in! I decided to celebrate my Kansas crossing today, I hadn't had my Hostess Chocolate Cupcakes yet so I spent a few bucks and bought some and more chocolate milk and had me a good celebration, sitting on the front porch of this lodge in a rocking chair enjoying the day! Watching all the tourist do there thing, the tourist count here has to be out of this world right now...
I changed at the lodge and wrote a little. I was getting tired so I headed to the camp site on a slow leak, I have to say the Contential tires I have are not the best for cross country trips. I love my Specialized Armadillos the best and really would like to have another set on this trip, however I'm making due and my friend Julian is going to drop a few in a couple days to somewhere on the route. Rolling down this gravel road looking for camping was pretty interesting, nothing like riding on road tires on course rocks and then crossing a small creek to find a place to throw a tent.
I found the sites, all full! What do you do when you're on the bike and people just keep saying head up the road 20-30 "miles"...Legs were pretty tired today so I decided to ask if I could share a site and I'm glad I did. The couple that passed me on the way into the sites mentioned we could share too, so we all shared a site that night. It was wide open spaces so I could have camped pretty much anywhere!
Turns out I asked Mark - whom was on a bike tour of WY with his son. The couple that came into the site when I did were from Bozeman, MT and awesome! All the people I have met on this trip have been great...gives you a different out look on people in America! I enjoyed chatting with the couple from Bozeman, I'm having the toughest time remembering names, however I know where he works so I should be able to find them and "Thank" them for the cliff bars - they were great today and it was nice to have a change in food on the ride today!
As for Mark and his son it was great to see him and his son interact, precious moments in time today! Watching a father teach his kid how to cut a tree with a 4 foot saw (note* = look up the name of the saw). After watching them for a little bit I asked if I could help, it would be good to get a little upper body workout in on this trip as I'm loosing all of it! That's a different story all within itself (my weight lose). I fixed the small leak on my rear tire. Mark saw me do this and mentioned his sons bike had a very similiar thing going on, so I offered to fix it as well. Spending the evening with complete strangers can be rewarding! I had dinner with Mark as he offered me some Tea and Spaghetti, what a trade I thought!
It was pretty close to bed time so it was time to put food in the bear storage unit and call it a night. I decided to sleep on the picnic table tonight off the ground so I wouldn't get stepped on by a bear if one were to walk into camp. Today was a refreshing day for recovery, I was still able to get 70-80 miles in and enjoy the day. Met some interesting people and some truly genuine people too...
O' before I went to bed the couple from Bozeman walked me through the route I was planning and gave me the insights on the terrain. I like the unknown, however at this point in the trip I'm going into unknown territory with no idea what lies ahead. I do this because I love the challenge! If I have the maps for the route I would know the elevation profile and that's not what I want. What I love is setting a destination and getting there, no matter how much time it takes or what stands in the way (wind, heat, elevation changes, et cetera). This provides me with the training I'm looking for and the opportunity to talk with complete strangers on asking questions...
Off to bed and hopefully tomorrow will provide me with fresh legs and the needed motivation to continute on!
Other Notes
Talk with Dean and PitBull
Talk with Bozeman Couple (Hostel, Local, Et Cetera)
Ran into two other cyclist
Landscape
Camp Host (Huge smile when she sent me 7 miles down the road - all up hill!) Quote...
Conversation with barkeep at lodge (foreign presence)
Day Fourteen: July 25th, 2010 (Jeffery, WY to Dubois, WY)
Day Fourteen: July 25th, 2010 (Jeffery, WY to Dubois, WY)
Technical data: (batteries worked!!!)
Distance, miles: 136.75
Ride Time: 9:14:20
Average Power, watts: 169
Normalized Power, watts: 191
Work, kJ (calories burned): 5667
Average Speed, mph: 14.56
Day Forecast: Sunny and warm, temperatures in the 90's with wind (I just say wind as I'm in Wyoming and who knows where the wind is going to blow from!!!!!
*Today was planned to be a large day, so don't be too shocked by the mileage! I was shocked by the wind the last 20 miles as I battled it for at least 2.5 hours trying to get into Dubios, WY!
This morning was really no different then the last couple of nights, slept on a picnic table as I wanted to be off the ground, very similiar to sleeping in the church! Sleep was good, however I have to keep airing up that therma rest every couple hours as the patch did not work and money isn't budgeted for another one on this trip so I'm just going to have to make due! Once I woke - 1 minute before my phones alarm was set to go off, gotta love the enternal clock! I felt great this morning when I woke, hoping I didn't startle the other cyclist that planned on sleeping in.
I loaded my things and when doing so I looked at my back tire and it had a hole in it about the size of a nickel. I thought, well I thought some not so pleasant thoughts about this as I looked the front over last night but failed to look at the rear I guess. I knew there was a bike shop in Lander so I figured just make it there on this tire then change the tire with a spare you have!My thoughts were, if it goes on the road then it goes and you got as many miles out of it as possble! So off I went - thinking I'm going to have to change this tire soon and all my spares are buried in the bottom of BoB - gotta love getting all your belongings out on the open highway in the Wyoming wind!
The ride this morning started at around 6:30 and it was "Awesome"!!! No cars and the temperature was perfect for riding. I kept thinking at this point, how can those other cyclist miss out on the perfect time to ride! Thinking about it, you get to ride on the road which is more forgiving on your tires, which I needed at this moment in time. Along with cool temperatures and low wind speeds! I just don't understand somes logic sometimes I guess...
Not much too this section between Jeffery and Lander - it was just shy of 60 miles and a great ride with a long 5-6 mile decent and realitively all downhill. Downhill elevation wise is one thing, with rolling terrain you still have to work so don't think this was easy by any means! The 60 miles did go quick and I was fortunate enought to make into Lander at close to a little after 10 so I did what any hungry cyclist does, find some food! After finding some food and packing in some calories I headed towards the bike shop to change my tire and to look over my rig - Brian and Donna where great! I was able to use all the shops tools and stand to make a quick and easy change! Yup - the tire made it the 60 miles and now I have it as an emergency tire just in case something happens in the future - I did post a photo on FB, so check it out when you get a chance.
Once at the shop and I was getting ready to roll out when the other group of cyclist I saw at SweetWater when I filled bottles rolled in, they needed some major bike repairs as "Jamie" I think needed a front derailer. I'm not sure what I would do without one...I stayed at the shop for a little longer and talked with Donna and ate a milk shake one of the girls from the other group bought me. Hey - I'm not going to turn down free calories! I sure wish I would have remembered there names!
Back on the road as I was close to 65 miles into today's journey and I had another 70 to go! I was close to noon now as I spent way too much time at the shop and eating this morning in Lander. I didn't want to stay long, not because I didn't want to but becuase 70 miles out here is not a 3.5 hour ride as it would be in Kansas or Oklahoma. Out here 70 miles can take all day long depending on the wind and the terrain. I think I mentioned this in another post about everyone having detailed maps and I was winging it. The maps have a topographic profile of the elevation changes which would be nice, however I like the unknown! This is a journey and if I had ever detail that would take the fun out of it. Plus - I force myself to get to know people this way! All those other cyclist who bought these maps are missing out on all the people you get to meet when you have to ask questions! This makes it fun for me and I get to see just how friendly and helpful the "American" is...
It was hot now and I was thinking just stick to the game plan on the nutrition, actually I think this was a smart move! Eating breakfast and a milk shake as I put in another 2K worth of calories on this break and since I new I was going to have a long day, better be fueled! The ride was just like the last couple of days. Long 1-3% climbs then a down hill, a nice false flat, head wind and sunny skies with not a single cloud in the sky! Mind was thinking about working today and how great my legs felt compared to yesterdays ride. I have to give credit to watching the nutrition better today and last night! I had to pee 6-8 times this morning once on the bike so I knew I had drank plenty of water the night before...
Traffic was low on this stretch and I was feeling pretty good - stopped a few times for water and the ice water was tasting pretty good! The roads I have been riding on are pretty much chip sealed with the shoulder showing the old road where they did not chip seal it. I hate riding on roads like this as the shoulder is covered in fresh chips that did not adhear to the road surface when they paved it. I used to be in the road construction industry so I know a few things about roads...Sometimes I wish I didn't though as I know why they put these types of roads down. However you would think on a bike route that the shoulders would be groomed for cyclists...okay wishful thinking!
I stopped again for water on the American Indian Reservation and had a million thoughts going through my mind. One of the gals working there was extremely nice and asked how I ride in this heat? I really haven't noticed it today - when your moving on a bike the cool breeze is nice and you don't feel the heat, its when you stop that sucks or when your climbing up hill and moving like molasses. This stretch had some beautiful scenery as I was getting close to the Wind River. (Its a no brainer on how this river got its name! - the word from the locals is that the average wind speed on a dialy basis in this area is 22 mph!) After the last couple of days I would think its a lot higher then that!
Continue my riding and still really just focusedon the ride today. It was one of those days when your legs feel great! Your quads are firing and not filling with acid - I did notice on some parts of the climbing I was bumping up into the 400+ watts area which is dangerous on a ride this long for me, so I backed it down quickly.
I just lost a few paragraphs of writing - this laptop is finicky sometimes! Saving everyonce in a while so I did not lose the whole thing!
Continuing on down down road 278 to Dubois WY, I hit up a rest stop on the left hand side of the road about 40 miles out from my destination. Fill bottles and take a quick bathroom break. Coming out of the facilities I ran into a really nice lady from Boulder. She mentioned that she tours on her bike as well and was curious on my journey, then she made the mistake asking me if I needed anything. I said - something sweet if you got it! Chocolate doesn't carry well in this heat and I was craving some! We walked over to the picnic table where her and a friend were having lunch. They were great ladies, just up in the area for some camping and R&R - I can't remember their names off the top of my head while write this but I do have it written down in my jersey. The loaded me up with about 1500 calories worth of food! Thanking them and wishing them safe travels before I took off! I would have stayed, however at 2PM and 40 miles to go in this heat and terrain not a chance I was going to get caught out in the middle of the Wyoming highways. (Thank You both for the great conversation and the food, I know it went to good use today! Did you ladies make it to the music in Lander?)
Continuing on my journey I was thinking I'm right at 96 miles, what's the rush to get another 40 in? Well back at the bike shop, Donna mentioned I should go to "Wind River Gear" and talk with Margo as she knows the ins and outs of where to eat in Dubois, along with showers, and a place to camp. The caviate was I needed to get there by 6PM to ensure I get the opportunity to meet Margo and ask my questions.
Crusing now and just enjoying the scenery! This part of the country is amazing from bike, the moutains sometimes take my thoughts away from me and which I truly enjoy, allows me to be in the moment! The pictures I have taken are not even close in representing the beauty of this place!!!
Make a couple more water stops along the way to ensure I was properly hydrated, since I was still going pee on a regular basis I new I was on top of things. I kept thinking the more you stop the longer its going to take! Another part of me really wanted to just pee on the bike, like I do when I'm racing Ironman, however walking up to someone after with no shower available might smell...need I say more?
Still riding and feeling pretty good but can tell I'm fading. 20 miles left and someone turns the wind up 30+ mph right out of no where. So I'm 20 miles out and now have this head wind that is blowing hard! I was committed by this point so no longer how long it was going to take I was bound to hit my goal! I was pretty angry about the wind but thinking back to the bike shop when I was listening to this negative nancy talking about the head winds in Kansas and how he's ready to go home, et cetera. I just wanted to tell this guy, your life sounds pretty cool, what do you have to worry about???
The remaining 20 miles was by far the slowest compared to all my other rides, tough to beat a headwind that was blowing like it was. Ten miles from my destination I see four cyclist and stop to say Hello! All four look tired and ready to crash - after chatting for just a bit I continue on as I want to try and get to Wind River Gear and meet up with Margo so I can get some information on where to go for the night, et cetera. The last seven miles were those miles where you just want to stop and sit, however I didn't! I kept pushing on and it sucked to be honest, I had my ups and downs during this stretch and it was only 7 miles but when the wind is blowing like it was 7 miles can feel like an eternity.
Once in Dubois I rolled up to Wind River Gear - it was now 6:18 and I was late. The store closed at 6 PM, however I didn't let a sign stop me. I knocked on the widnow and Margo opened the door...I explained that Brian told me to come talk to her for where to crash in town, et cetera. She explained there was no free camping in town, but I was more then welcome to crash on here front porch of the shop! I kindly accepted as I thought it was an ideal spot, bathroom across the street, and wi fi right there on the porch to update my where abouts.
Once they finished up closing the store, they envited me to a National Geographic Photo presentation. Again, I kindly accepted. I was a little leary about leaving my things on the porch as when your traveling by bike and all you have is your stuff and your with it 24/7 its tough to walk away afraid I would never see it again. She said, "This is Dubois", trust me lets go". Before we headed to the art gallery we stopped at the local grocery so I could pick up some pasta for dinner. The art gallery was really neat and the photography was amazing! I really enjoy photography myself so I could relate to the angles and the moments in time...I met a lot of people however I can't remember anyones names as everything is a blur. I'm glad I'm recording this now because there is so much going on! Since this was right after my 130+ day I was starving, lucky they had cookies and pink lemonade at the art gallery as I at as many cookies as I could and had a few bottles of sugar water!
Back at the shop I cooked up the pasta I purchased and tapped into the net to upload yesterday's blog. While on the PC I had an interesting chat with my little sister that I will write an essay on as its a complete other story all in itself. Downing the pasta I picked a spot to crash and did so pretty quickly...
Technical data: (batteries worked!!!)
Distance, miles: 136.75
Ride Time: 9:14:20
Average Power, watts: 169
Normalized Power, watts: 191
Work, kJ (calories burned): 5667
Average Speed, mph: 14.56
Day Forecast: Sunny and warm, temperatures in the 90's with wind (I just say wind as I'm in Wyoming and who knows where the wind is going to blow from!!!!!
*Today was planned to be a large day, so don't be too shocked by the mileage! I was shocked by the wind the last 20 miles as I battled it for at least 2.5 hours trying to get into Dubios, WY!
This morning was really no different then the last couple of nights, slept on a picnic table as I wanted to be off the ground, very similiar to sleeping in the church! Sleep was good, however I have to keep airing up that therma rest every couple hours as the patch did not work and money isn't budgeted for another one on this trip so I'm just going to have to make due! Once I woke - 1 minute before my phones alarm was set to go off, gotta love the enternal clock! I felt great this morning when I woke, hoping I didn't startle the other cyclist that planned on sleeping in.
I loaded my things and when doing so I looked at my back tire and it had a hole in it about the size of a nickel. I thought, well I thought some not so pleasant thoughts about this as I looked the front over last night but failed to look at the rear I guess. I knew there was a bike shop in Lander so I figured just make it there on this tire then change the tire with a spare you have!My thoughts were, if it goes on the road then it goes and you got as many miles out of it as possble! So off I went - thinking I'm going to have to change this tire soon and all my spares are buried in the bottom of BoB - gotta love getting all your belongings out on the open highway in the Wyoming wind!
The ride this morning started at around 6:30 and it was "Awesome"!!! No cars and the temperature was perfect for riding. I kept thinking at this point, how can those other cyclist miss out on the perfect time to ride! Thinking about it, you get to ride on the road which is more forgiving on your tires, which I needed at this moment in time. Along with cool temperatures and low wind speeds! I just don't understand somes logic sometimes I guess...
Not much too this section between Jeffery and Lander - it was just shy of 60 miles and a great ride with a long 5-6 mile decent and realitively all downhill. Downhill elevation wise is one thing, with rolling terrain you still have to work so don't think this was easy by any means! The 60 miles did go quick and I was fortunate enought to make into Lander at close to a little after 10 so I did what any hungry cyclist does, find some food! After finding some food and packing in some calories I headed towards the bike shop to change my tire and to look over my rig - Brian and Donna where great! I was able to use all the shops tools and stand to make a quick and easy change! Yup - the tire made it the 60 miles and now I have it as an emergency tire just in case something happens in the future - I did post a photo on FB, so check it out when you get a chance.
Once at the shop and I was getting ready to roll out when the other group of cyclist I saw at SweetWater when I filled bottles rolled in, they needed some major bike repairs as "Jamie" I think needed a front derailer. I'm not sure what I would do without one...I stayed at the shop for a little longer and talked with Donna and ate a milk shake one of the girls from the other group bought me. Hey - I'm not going to turn down free calories! I sure wish I would have remembered there names!
Back on the road as I was close to 65 miles into today's journey and I had another 70 to go! I was close to noon now as I spent way too much time at the shop and eating this morning in Lander. I didn't want to stay long, not because I didn't want to but becuase 70 miles out here is not a 3.5 hour ride as it would be in Kansas or Oklahoma. Out here 70 miles can take all day long depending on the wind and the terrain. I think I mentioned this in another post about everyone having detailed maps and I was winging it. The maps have a topographic profile of the elevation changes which would be nice, however I like the unknown! This is a journey and if I had ever detail that would take the fun out of it. Plus - I force myself to get to know people this way! All those other cyclist who bought these maps are missing out on all the people you get to meet when you have to ask questions! This makes it fun for me and I get to see just how friendly and helpful the "American" is...
It was hot now and I was thinking just stick to the game plan on the nutrition, actually I think this was a smart move! Eating breakfast and a milk shake as I put in another 2K worth of calories on this break and since I new I was going to have a long day, better be fueled! The ride was just like the last couple of days. Long 1-3% climbs then a down hill, a nice false flat, head wind and sunny skies with not a single cloud in the sky! Mind was thinking about working today and how great my legs felt compared to yesterdays ride. I have to give credit to watching the nutrition better today and last night! I had to pee 6-8 times this morning once on the bike so I knew I had drank plenty of water the night before...
Traffic was low on this stretch and I was feeling pretty good - stopped a few times for water and the ice water was tasting pretty good! The roads I have been riding on are pretty much chip sealed with the shoulder showing the old road where they did not chip seal it. I hate riding on roads like this as the shoulder is covered in fresh chips that did not adhear to the road surface when they paved it. I used to be in the road construction industry so I know a few things about roads...Sometimes I wish I didn't though as I know why they put these types of roads down. However you would think on a bike route that the shoulders would be groomed for cyclists...okay wishful thinking!
I stopped again for water on the American Indian Reservation and had a million thoughts going through my mind. One of the gals working there was extremely nice and asked how I ride in this heat? I really haven't noticed it today - when your moving on a bike the cool breeze is nice and you don't feel the heat, its when you stop that sucks or when your climbing up hill and moving like molasses. This stretch had some beautiful scenery as I was getting close to the Wind River. (Its a no brainer on how this river got its name! - the word from the locals is that the average wind speed on a dialy basis in this area is 22 mph!) After the last couple of days I would think its a lot higher then that!
Continue my riding and still really just focusedon the ride today. It was one of those days when your legs feel great! Your quads are firing and not filling with acid - I did notice on some parts of the climbing I was bumping up into the 400+ watts area which is dangerous on a ride this long for me, so I backed it down quickly.
I just lost a few paragraphs of writing - this laptop is finicky sometimes! Saving everyonce in a while so I did not lose the whole thing!
Continuing on down down road 278 to Dubois WY, I hit up a rest stop on the left hand side of the road about 40 miles out from my destination. Fill bottles and take a quick bathroom break. Coming out of the facilities I ran into a really nice lady from Boulder. She mentioned that she tours on her bike as well and was curious on my journey, then she made the mistake asking me if I needed anything. I said - something sweet if you got it! Chocolate doesn't carry well in this heat and I was craving some! We walked over to the picnic table where her and a friend were having lunch. They were great ladies, just up in the area for some camping and R&R - I can't remember their names off the top of my head while write this but I do have it written down in my jersey. The loaded me up with about 1500 calories worth of food! Thanking them and wishing them safe travels before I took off! I would have stayed, however at 2PM and 40 miles to go in this heat and terrain not a chance I was going to get caught out in the middle of the Wyoming highways. (Thank You both for the great conversation and the food, I know it went to good use today! Did you ladies make it to the music in Lander?)
Continuing on my journey I was thinking I'm right at 96 miles, what's the rush to get another 40 in? Well back at the bike shop, Donna mentioned I should go to "Wind River Gear" and talk with Margo as she knows the ins and outs of where to eat in Dubois, along with showers, and a place to camp. The caviate was I needed to get there by 6PM to ensure I get the opportunity to meet Margo and ask my questions.
Crusing now and just enjoying the scenery! This part of the country is amazing from bike, the moutains sometimes take my thoughts away from me and which I truly enjoy, allows me to be in the moment! The pictures I have taken are not even close in representing the beauty of this place!!!
Make a couple more water stops along the way to ensure I was properly hydrated, since I was still going pee on a regular basis I new I was on top of things. I kept thinking the more you stop the longer its going to take! Another part of me really wanted to just pee on the bike, like I do when I'm racing Ironman, however walking up to someone after with no shower available might smell...need I say more?
Still riding and feeling pretty good but can tell I'm fading. 20 miles left and someone turns the wind up 30+ mph right out of no where. So I'm 20 miles out and now have this head wind that is blowing hard! I was committed by this point so no longer how long it was going to take I was bound to hit my goal! I was pretty angry about the wind but thinking back to the bike shop when I was listening to this negative nancy talking about the head winds in Kansas and how he's ready to go home, et cetera. I just wanted to tell this guy, your life sounds pretty cool, what do you have to worry about???
The remaining 20 miles was by far the slowest compared to all my other rides, tough to beat a headwind that was blowing like it was. Ten miles from my destination I see four cyclist and stop to say Hello! All four look tired and ready to crash - after chatting for just a bit I continue on as I want to try and get to Wind River Gear and meet up with Margo so I can get some information on where to go for the night, et cetera. The last seven miles were those miles where you just want to stop and sit, however I didn't! I kept pushing on and it sucked to be honest, I had my ups and downs during this stretch and it was only 7 miles but when the wind is blowing like it was 7 miles can feel like an eternity.
Once in Dubois I rolled up to Wind River Gear - it was now 6:18 and I was late. The store closed at 6 PM, however I didn't let a sign stop me. I knocked on the widnow and Margo opened the door...I explained that Brian told me to come talk to her for where to crash in town, et cetera. She explained there was no free camping in town, but I was more then welcome to crash on here front porch of the shop! I kindly accepted as I thought it was an ideal spot, bathroom across the street, and wi fi right there on the porch to update my where abouts.
Once they finished up closing the store, they envited me to a National Geographic Photo presentation. Again, I kindly accepted. I was a little leary about leaving my things on the porch as when your traveling by bike and all you have is your stuff and your with it 24/7 its tough to walk away afraid I would never see it again. She said, "This is Dubois", trust me lets go". Before we headed to the art gallery we stopped at the local grocery so I could pick up some pasta for dinner. The art gallery was really neat and the photography was amazing! I really enjoy photography myself so I could relate to the angles and the moments in time...I met a lot of people however I can't remember anyones names as everything is a blur. I'm glad I'm recording this now because there is so much going on! Since this was right after my 130+ day I was starving, lucky they had cookies and pink lemonade at the art gallery as I at as many cookies as I could and had a few bottles of sugar water!
Back at the shop I cooked up the pasta I purchased and tapped into the net to upload yesterday's blog. While on the PC I had an interesting chat with my little sister that I will write an essay on as its a complete other story all in itself. Downing the pasta I picked a spot to crash and did so pretty quickly...
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Day Thirteen: July, 24th 2010 (Rawlins, WY to Jeffrey, WY)
Day Thirteen: July, 24th 2010 (Rawlins, WY to Jeffrey, WY)
Technical Data:
Still unavailable as I did not have time last night to buy batteries. No mapquest.com to calculate miles either - however I'm pretty sure it was between 60-70miles.
Day Summary:
High Blue Sky! Wind out of the North to NorthEast at 10-15 mph. (yet another day of head winds)
Day started out a little different then others as I was getting hit by the sprinkler system all morning. After crawling out of the bush (what the Germans call it!) I packed things up wet and headed straight for some warm temperatures. I headed to the nearest Holiday Inn to hit their free wi fi and update my blog for yesterdays ride. It was nice to be dry and in a some warm controlled climate - it wasn't cold out but I was a little frigid this morning.
I wasn't feeling hot while sitting in the hotel lounge this morning and decided that this was going to be a lite day considering the last three were not to bad, I figured if I got 70 miles into I would still be averaging 100 a day so I planned on getting to Jeffrey and see how I felt. Lots of people at the hotel this morning and I was able to score a free shower thanks to Ricky York. Ricky was down stairs getting some breakfast when he asked me about my pc, according to him he was in the market for something lighter as his was too bulky and a pain. After talking with Ricky for a little bit we really connected as we are both Christians, he is actually in the ministry down in Arkansas. He shared his testimony with me and prayed safe travels for me as well. I shared a little with him about my story and we just connected...He then mentioned I could use his shower so this mornings venture over to the hotel was well worth it as I was able to take a shower and wash a "kit" for tomorrows riding...
Ricky and I exchanged contact information and I'll make sure I stay in touch as he and his wife were extremely nice people! Ricky - Thank You for the use of your room as it came in handy today, I'm a fan of road grim however after a couple of days I do like to ride clean. Just something about a hot shower that washes away the thoughts and emotions of yesterday.
I needed this, this morning from Ricky! I wasn't having a good morning emotionally and really needing a pick me up, or for those that have been following an "Up-Draft" - so many "Up-Drafts" this morning. Let me explain - yesterday I believe I failed to stay on my nutrition like I had planned and since the headwind caused me to be out in the heat a lot longer than expected I was hurting today. (At 40+ mph one is going to be tired) I was feeling pretty down and letting things get to me this morning. Little things that I usually just let roll right off my back but this morning, not so much! I was feeling lonely this morning and wondering what I am doing, The trip thus far I have had a few thoughts like this but nothing just parked in my mind like this morning.
Having Ricky share what he shared, and I too him washed away those thoughts and my mind was back! Yesterday I planned on hitting up the hotel first thing in the morning and now I know why. I waited a couple hours and then met Ricky and it was worth the wait. Funny how when your doing your own thing the Lord shines down upon you in a time of need. So Thank You Ricky and plan on me keeping in touch!
Besides allowing little things affect me this morning I was missing home, family and friends. One of my friends has been on my mind a lot the last couple of days, receiving a text from her this morning was also another "up-draft" for me which I needed! I needed to hear from her, I can't explain it - the funny thing was I was texting her the moment she sent her text, it appeared we were thinking of each other which made me smile. So two positives to start my day at the hotel I didn't crash at...
I gave out my blog url to a few at the hotel just off conversations I was having and it made a very enjoyable morning. Then Derek called and gave me the good news that he is home from basic training, fitter than ever, and he is expecting a little boy! What a great morning when I needed to hear from friends and be in the right spot to meet Ricky. (Blessed, I am...)
Once on the road I needed some batteries to fix that power tap, well trouble shoot it and see if I can get back on the technical data for this epic adventure! So I rolled into the grocery and the three cyclists I saw yesterday were there loading up on food I presume and fixing a flat. I went in to grab some peanut butter and some batteries, now I have spent 34 dollars! I thought I would roll out with the other three, but before we did a couple of them used my floor pump - I'm so glad I brought that pump!
Chatting with them for about 20 minutes or so I decided to roll on as I needed to make sure I stayed my own pace, I've traveled hiking before at a slower pace and made myself miserable by staying in the heat way to long so I told them I would see them up the road. So I hit it for a while and just enjoy the ride this morning - 45 miles to Muddy Gap and very pretty! This area of the country is a quite dry with no large mountain peaks, but some wonderful vistas. I stopped and took a few photos along this stretch, however I sure do wish I had my other camera as the quality out of this phone is okay but not great.
These were some boring miles to be exact, I wasn't feeling too hot. I told myself light day today so I could rest up and get my mind back after creating a hole yesterday. The mind was good on the ride and I was really enjoying myself today, I was pretty giddy at times! Singing to myself and just really feeling how blessed I was this morning - got chills thinking about it.
Once to Muddy Gap I refilled bottles and found this place very interesting as when you walk in there is writing all of the walls, not sure what it is about this state but people like to put things on walls! I'm sitting in the only business in Jeffery City and there are hundreds of one dollar bills all over the wall - again not sure why but I'm stairing at hundreds - all marked on with sharpy! Some date back to the 70's...
I ran into a couple German cyclist on this stretch - actually hit them at the convenient store there in Muddy Gap. For those that don't know this part of the country - there is not much here. A T-intersection and a convenient store and that's about it for 20+ miles in all directions so this was a must stop for water...
The Germans took off when I was in town, figured I would pass them out on the road as we both had the same destination. Since this was a short day for me I planned on drying out all my wet items in BoB, hydrating and getting as much nutrition I could so I can make the time tomorrow depending how I feel.
Once into Jeffrey City I stopped at the local establishment for water
and some information on where this park is supposed to be. The park turns out to be two old buildings that have only been used by cyclist over the last 40 years according to the gal tending bar. No cell service in this small town or internet service, well to be honest there is internet service at the bar but to tap their line $3 is required and I wasn't that anxious to post my blog for the day as there is a library 60 miles down the road which is free. $3 bucks can buy me some food and money is needed for that as I'm eating tons!
The gals at the bar are quiet - they just sit here while I type this playing card games on the internet and watch the television up in the corner of the bar. I haven't heard them talk to each other to be honest...I assume when you live 20 miles from the nearest small establishment you don't talk much. Maybe they just don't like cyclist that don't spend money at there establishment, who knows?
Before heading over to the buildings where I plan on crashing I tour the fine estabilishment. In the far corner is a video game, one of the sit down ones and I'm get excited before I get to the machine as its either Ms. Pac Man or Galaga which are my favorite games! (Could have been Donkey Kong) I approach the machine and its Ms. Pac Man and I'm doing a happy dance, because I love this game! I know I get excited over the littlest things, however when you have been unplugged from society for almost two weeks this is a treat! The bonus - there is a free credit on the machine, can someone say "Blessed"! I had a good game but to be honest wasn't really focusing as I was ready for a nap - I think my score was in the 65K range and when I'm on its always over 100K so I wasn't really into it, however it sure did raise the spirits!
Off to this park, okay two buildings in the middle of the WY desert! I head over there and check things out and its 15-20 degrees cooler in the shade. I'm tired and its 2PM in the afternoon and I'm thinking nap but I still have chores to do so instead tend to them! The good thing is the PowerTap is now up and running and things are organized! I'm a bit of an organize freak when it comes to things like this, just like to know where all my stuff is as right now its all I have to tend to and if I loose something I have to replace it and I didn't budget for that!
While organizing I had a lot of thoughts about people in third world countries and how they utilize everything they have to its fullest. I dropped a few almonds and by no means was I going to let those calories go to waste! After my chores I took a short nap, then the Germans rolled up! I got their names and blog information however I left it with my stuff at the buildings, I'm back at the bar stealing some electrons for the phone and computer so when I bail tomorrow they are fully energized. I'm hoping by the time I wake tomorrow I'll be fully energized as I hope to cover 135 miles and land myself in Dubois, WY. This will make up for today and put me as close as possible to the last climb into the Grand Teton's where I need to pick my mail drop of nutrition. (All this depends on the wind and how the legs are feeling tomorrow)
I'm questioning the water quality here in this little town, story has it this was an old mining town for uranium, need I say more?
To my thoughts for the day - Today I was thinking about all the comments I had on my blog at the beginning of this trip and how they have dropped off since. Then I thought that is selfish - what about all the people out there and their lives! So I wanted to say "Thank You" for reading these post as it means a lot to me, however I want to know what's going on in your lives as well! Being out here has its pluses don't get me wrong!
A couple days ago I had a text from someone that was at work and the said they were jealous of me and what I was doing. Then I thought just send the same back as I'm jealous of many of you - let me explain! You have a steady income, a family to come home to, warm meals on the table, warm showers when ever you want, I could go on and on. I know I can have those too, just at the moment I've been lead to do this, why I cannot explain. There have been many questions posing why are you doing this, doing it for any cause, et cetera? I'll truly never know until I finish...The point of this ramble is again - live in the moment! Your day will come when you can escape from the job for a while and life, the same as mine will come when I'm back to working, however never take what you have for granted! Smile and enjoy every moment in your life because you only have one!
I came across this phrase a few years back "What is your dash"? Any thoughts on what this dash may represent? Think about it and let me know what you think...
scroll down...
Okay enough thinking, let me share! My dash looks something like this (1979 - ?). Got it? Yes the dash represents all the moments between when I was born and when I will perish - the choice is what do I want to do with this dash, this life I have been so blessed with! Questions I have for myself is - How will I make a difference? How will people remember me? - This brings up another thought - while out on my bike I see a lot of things. When I was in Missouri riding my single speed I saw a sign that read "LIve the life he has for you, so the pastor doesn't have to lie at your funeral" - okay I don't think I got the quote right but I think you get the picture I'm painting...
Ever heard a eulogy that was negative? Makes ya think doesn't it...My thoughts for myself here are to try and live the positive so the individual speaking at my funeral doesn't have to dig for the positive - it was was present through the way I live! I'd prefer the speaker just say - "When he was alive - he truly was alive! Need I say more..." I know that I'm not perfect by any means so for those who are reading this that I have caused harm to - I'm truly sorry for what I have done! (had to put that in there as I'm human and I'm sure I have done way too many negative things in my life - however this trip is changing my life!)
On the bike today a thought came to mind about my destination in Oregon, this being Astoria, OR. Going to show my age here, even though I'm not old by any means! I absolutely love the movie the Goonies and it happened to be shot in Astoria - so when I'm there I'm going treasure hunting for "One-Eyed Willies" treasure!!! :-)
It's now 7:35 or so here in WY and I'm startin to doze off at the PC and can tell I need sleep...night!
Technical Data:
Still unavailable as I did not have time last night to buy batteries. No mapquest.com to calculate miles either - however I'm pretty sure it was between 60-70miles.
Day Summary:
High Blue Sky! Wind out of the North to NorthEast at 10-15 mph. (yet another day of head winds)
Day started out a little different then others as I was getting hit by the sprinkler system all morning. After crawling out of the bush (what the Germans call it!) I packed things up wet and headed straight for some warm temperatures. I headed to the nearest Holiday Inn to hit their free wi fi and update my blog for yesterdays ride. It was nice to be dry and in a some warm controlled climate - it wasn't cold out but I was a little frigid this morning.
I wasn't feeling hot while sitting in the hotel lounge this morning and decided that this was going to be a lite day considering the last three were not to bad, I figured if I got 70 miles into I would still be averaging 100 a day so I planned on getting to Jeffrey and see how I felt. Lots of people at the hotel this morning and I was able to score a free shower thanks to Ricky York. Ricky was down stairs getting some breakfast when he asked me about my pc, according to him he was in the market for something lighter as his was too bulky and a pain. After talking with Ricky for a little bit we really connected as we are both Christians, he is actually in the ministry down in Arkansas. He shared his testimony with me and prayed safe travels for me as well. I shared a little with him about my story and we just connected...He then mentioned I could use his shower so this mornings venture over to the hotel was well worth it as I was able to take a shower and wash a "kit" for tomorrows riding...
Ricky and I exchanged contact information and I'll make sure I stay in touch as he and his wife were extremely nice people! Ricky - Thank You for the use of your room as it came in handy today, I'm a fan of road grim however after a couple of days I do like to ride clean. Just something about a hot shower that washes away the thoughts and emotions of yesterday.
I needed this, this morning from Ricky! I wasn't having a good morning emotionally and really needing a pick me up, or for those that have been following an "Up-Draft" - so many "Up-Drafts" this morning. Let me explain - yesterday I believe I failed to stay on my nutrition like I had planned and since the headwind caused me to be out in the heat a lot longer than expected I was hurting today. (At 40+ mph one is going to be tired) I was feeling pretty down and letting things get to me this morning. Little things that I usually just let roll right off my back but this morning, not so much! I was feeling lonely this morning and wondering what I am doing, The trip thus far I have had a few thoughts like this but nothing just parked in my mind like this morning.
Having Ricky share what he shared, and I too him washed away those thoughts and my mind was back! Yesterday I planned on hitting up the hotel first thing in the morning and now I know why. I waited a couple hours and then met Ricky and it was worth the wait. Funny how when your doing your own thing the Lord shines down upon you in a time of need. So Thank You Ricky and plan on me keeping in touch!
Besides allowing little things affect me this morning I was missing home, family and friends. One of my friends has been on my mind a lot the last couple of days, receiving a text from her this morning was also another "up-draft" for me which I needed! I needed to hear from her, I can't explain it - the funny thing was I was texting her the moment she sent her text, it appeared we were thinking of each other which made me smile. So two positives to start my day at the hotel I didn't crash at...
I gave out my blog url to a few at the hotel just off conversations I was having and it made a very enjoyable morning. Then Derek called and gave me the good news that he is home from basic training, fitter than ever, and he is expecting a little boy! What a great morning when I needed to hear from friends and be in the right spot to meet Ricky. (Blessed, I am...)
Once on the road I needed some batteries to fix that power tap, well trouble shoot it and see if I can get back on the technical data for this epic adventure! So I rolled into the grocery and the three cyclists I saw yesterday were there loading up on food I presume and fixing a flat. I went in to grab some peanut butter and some batteries, now I have spent 34 dollars! I thought I would roll out with the other three, but before we did a couple of them used my floor pump - I'm so glad I brought that pump!
Chatting with them for about 20 minutes or so I decided to roll on as I needed to make sure I stayed my own pace, I've traveled hiking before at a slower pace and made myself miserable by staying in the heat way to long so I told them I would see them up the road. So I hit it for a while and just enjoy the ride this morning - 45 miles to Muddy Gap and very pretty! This area of the country is a quite dry with no large mountain peaks, but some wonderful vistas. I stopped and took a few photos along this stretch, however I sure do wish I had my other camera as the quality out of this phone is okay but not great.
These were some boring miles to be exact, I wasn't feeling too hot. I told myself light day today so I could rest up and get my mind back after creating a hole yesterday. The mind was good on the ride and I was really enjoying myself today, I was pretty giddy at times! Singing to myself and just really feeling how blessed I was this morning - got chills thinking about it.
Once to Muddy Gap I refilled bottles and found this place very interesting as when you walk in there is writing all of the walls, not sure what it is about this state but people like to put things on walls! I'm sitting in the only business in Jeffery City and there are hundreds of one dollar bills all over the wall - again not sure why but I'm stairing at hundreds - all marked on with sharpy! Some date back to the 70's...
I ran into a couple German cyclist on this stretch - actually hit them at the convenient store there in Muddy Gap. For those that don't know this part of the country - there is not much here. A T-intersection and a convenient store and that's about it for 20+ miles in all directions so this was a must stop for water...
The Germans took off when I was in town, figured I would pass them out on the road as we both had the same destination. Since this was a short day for me I planned on drying out all my wet items in BoB, hydrating and getting as much nutrition I could so I can make the time tomorrow depending how I feel.
Once into Jeffrey City I stopped at the local establishment for water
and some information on where this park is supposed to be. The park turns out to be two old buildings that have only been used by cyclist over the last 40 years according to the gal tending bar. No cell service in this small town or internet service, well to be honest there is internet service at the bar but to tap their line $3 is required and I wasn't that anxious to post my blog for the day as there is a library 60 miles down the road which is free. $3 bucks can buy me some food and money is needed for that as I'm eating tons!
The gals at the bar are quiet - they just sit here while I type this playing card games on the internet and watch the television up in the corner of the bar. I haven't heard them talk to each other to be honest...I assume when you live 20 miles from the nearest small establishment you don't talk much. Maybe they just don't like cyclist that don't spend money at there establishment, who knows?
Before heading over to the buildings where I plan on crashing I tour the fine estabilishment. In the far corner is a video game, one of the sit down ones and I'm get excited before I get to the machine as its either Ms. Pac Man or Galaga which are my favorite games! (Could have been Donkey Kong) I approach the machine and its Ms. Pac Man and I'm doing a happy dance, because I love this game! I know I get excited over the littlest things, however when you have been unplugged from society for almost two weeks this is a treat! The bonus - there is a free credit on the machine, can someone say "Blessed"! I had a good game but to be honest wasn't really focusing as I was ready for a nap - I think my score was in the 65K range and when I'm on its always over 100K so I wasn't really into it, however it sure did raise the spirits!
Off to this park, okay two buildings in the middle of the WY desert! I head over there and check things out and its 15-20 degrees cooler in the shade. I'm tired and its 2PM in the afternoon and I'm thinking nap but I still have chores to do so instead tend to them! The good thing is the PowerTap is now up and running and things are organized! I'm a bit of an organize freak when it comes to things like this, just like to know where all my stuff is as right now its all I have to tend to and if I loose something I have to replace it and I didn't budget for that!
While organizing I had a lot of thoughts about people in third world countries and how they utilize everything they have to its fullest. I dropped a few almonds and by no means was I going to let those calories go to waste! After my chores I took a short nap, then the Germans rolled up! I got their names and blog information however I left it with my stuff at the buildings, I'm back at the bar stealing some electrons for the phone and computer so when I bail tomorrow they are fully energized. I'm hoping by the time I wake tomorrow I'll be fully energized as I hope to cover 135 miles and land myself in Dubois, WY. This will make up for today and put me as close as possible to the last climb into the Grand Teton's where I need to pick my mail drop of nutrition. (All this depends on the wind and how the legs are feeling tomorrow)
I'm questioning the water quality here in this little town, story has it this was an old mining town for uranium, need I say more?
To my thoughts for the day - Today I was thinking about all the comments I had on my blog at the beginning of this trip and how they have dropped off since. Then I thought that is selfish - what about all the people out there and their lives! So I wanted to say "Thank You" for reading these post as it means a lot to me, however I want to know what's going on in your lives as well! Being out here has its pluses don't get me wrong!
A couple days ago I had a text from someone that was at work and the said they were jealous of me and what I was doing. Then I thought just send the same back as I'm jealous of many of you - let me explain! You have a steady income, a family to come home to, warm meals on the table, warm showers when ever you want, I could go on and on. I know I can have those too, just at the moment I've been lead to do this, why I cannot explain. There have been many questions posing why are you doing this, doing it for any cause, et cetera? I'll truly never know until I finish...The point of this ramble is again - live in the moment! Your day will come when you can escape from the job for a while and life, the same as mine will come when I'm back to working, however never take what you have for granted! Smile and enjoy every moment in your life because you only have one!
I came across this phrase a few years back "What is your dash"? Any thoughts on what this dash may represent? Think about it and let me know what you think...
scroll down...
Okay enough thinking, let me share! My dash looks something like this (1979 - ?). Got it? Yes the dash represents all the moments between when I was born and when I will perish - the choice is what do I want to do with this dash, this life I have been so blessed with! Questions I have for myself is - How will I make a difference? How will people remember me? - This brings up another thought - while out on my bike I see a lot of things. When I was in Missouri riding my single speed I saw a sign that read "LIve the life he has for you, so the pastor doesn't have to lie at your funeral" - okay I don't think I got the quote right but I think you get the picture I'm painting...
Ever heard a eulogy that was negative? Makes ya think doesn't it...My thoughts for myself here are to try and live the positive so the individual speaking at my funeral doesn't have to dig for the positive - it was was present through the way I live! I'd prefer the speaker just say - "When he was alive - he truly was alive! Need I say more..." I know that I'm not perfect by any means so for those who are reading this that I have caused harm to - I'm truly sorry for what I have done! (had to put that in there as I'm human and I'm sure I have done way too many negative things in my life - however this trip is changing my life!)
On the bike today a thought came to mind about my destination in Oregon, this being Astoria, OR. Going to show my age here, even though I'm not old by any means! I absolutely love the movie the Goonies and it happened to be shot in Astoria - so when I'm there I'm going treasure hunting for "One-Eyed Willies" treasure!!! :-)
It's now 7:35 or so here in WY and I'm startin to doze off at the PC and can tell I need sleep...night!
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Day Twelve: July 23rd (Walden, CO to Rawlin, WY)
Day Twelve: July 23rd (Walden, CO to Rawlin, WY)
Technical Data:
Distance: 109+
Power Tap has gone dead - will trouble shoot batteries tonight...
Waking up in Walden, CO was a blessing this morning as this small town is amazing! In a valley with 40 miles on one side and 30 on the other. Surrounded by the Colorado Rockies and some of the most beautiful mountain prairies I have ever scene. Beautiful place for sure!
And I can see that my computer is having some trouble with all this travel. When typing this the key strokes are sticky and some are not responding...
I sure don't want to lose my computer on this trip! Man this really sucks...
The morning was perfect, breakfast and load BoB then I was off, not knowing what I was gettin myself into! The first 22 miles to the junction was perfect, mostly downhill with a light tail wind, I was really thinking this was going to be an easy day after looking at the profile of the route from the fellow cyclist maps. I have this old atlas and I'm finding out all these other people have these detailed maps of the route and I'm just winging it with this old atlas and any wi fi I come across. I am in the middle of Southern Wyoming and feeling pretty good, though pretty pissed that my PowerTap is not workin.
From the junction I had another 55 miles to a little town called Saratoga where all the other cyclists were going to stay. I wanted to push on and wish I would have stayed as the wind was brutal today! From the junction the wind was blowig in my face all day and I had no other choice but to put my head down and ride. Stopping in Riverside for some water I chatted with a few motorcylist before pushing on. They were heading to Dubois, CO, I'll eventally get there but not today!
I just had to put my head down today and ride as this was the hardest day yet! 109 miles of 90+ heat and winds gusting up to 40+ miles an hour. It took a while! This part of the country is beautiful - reminds me a lot of the movie with Kevin Costner(Open Range)...
I have a feeling this post is going to be a lot shorter than I want, however I am exhausted and need to find a place to crash!
(break in writing)
It's morning and I crashed in Washington Park last night, a local park a few blocks from the historic WY State Pen. I would have rather stayed inside the Pen as it would have been warmer and a lot more comfortable. If anyone is interested in staying in a local park, look for sprinklers as I got hit with sprinklers all night long - I think a deterant for anyone attempting to sleep in the local parks. I thought it was starting to rain once I got hit, then I looked out of my single person tent and the stars were breathtaking so I knew it wasn't rain. Since I haven't really set up my tent since I started this trip, I usually just crawl in and use it as a bivy as its small enough to treat as...
Note* - Watch where you place your tent when you camp in a park!
Yesterday was not very hot but it was by far the hardest riding as the head winds were horrendous and the road conditions were not ideal for traveling, chip seal from the state line and loose chip seal at that. I did have an interesting bike test today though, while heading down a decent there was a deer carcus on the side of the road, right in on the shoulder in my path. Traveling at 35 mph with BoB does not make things very agile...I swerve left to avoid, then right and over compensated and ended up in some loose gravel/sand and was having trouble keeping it together. The mind was releasing more adrenaline at this moment in time then has been released on the entire trip! After fighting the bike for a couple more seconds, that felt like my entire life I was able to pull it back in line! I kept thinking as my mind went into the moment, this is going to hurt!
Since I'm having to recall my thoughts after a night of sleep things are not exactly fresh, again I like to write directly off the bike. Other things I saw yesterday - antelope, wide open spaces, porcupine, coyotes, more birds then I could count, farms miles from each other, long climbs over breathtaking landscapes, open roads with no traffic for miles.
Another interesting thing that happened yesterday was when I got to Walcott the next 20 mile stretch was on the Interstate which I thought was odd, but it was actually a lot more forgiving then I thought it would be as the truck traffic was wanted today, the wind generated by the trucks helped push me to Rawlins. Once into Rawlins I asked around about a park and coffee shop and could tell the people were a little less responsive then the folks in Kansas and Colorado. After spending an hour in the Coffee house I headed over to the park, made some dinner and thought about what the next day would bring.
When it comes to thoughts for the day. I would like to thank everyone for the "Warm Wishes" for my travels and all the kind thoughts on my blogging and sharing my journey with you. It means a lot as yesterday was a mental day. Not sure if for you but, after a 10-12 hour day of hard work I'm typically not thinking clearly and need some rest, I plan on taking today (Friday) as a lighter day hoping to eat and get a lot of sleep so it might be an uneventful day of writing, however I doubt it if I stay in the moment!
My last post I wrote a lot about the ups and downs in life and how turmoil can take hold on all our lives, my sister sent me an email the night before last that really affected me, I received it right after I shared my thoughts on my conversation and negative thoughts. I find it appropriate to share this as this is real life happening this week:
"Hi Lacey,
I don't mind you asking at all. I've been doing a lot of genealogical research on my own family history, and I know how important it is to know as much as you can know, both the good and the not so good, and the down right outrageous. I think it really has a way of centering us to know these things. I have discovered that I have a lot of "outrageous" in my own family, and I'm so glad I've been able to find out about it, and come to grips with it over time. It makes me feel more complete. You have just as much, if not more, "outrageous", in your own family history. I certainly don't know all the facts, especially going back to Baxter Springs, but I was really close to both of your parents and had a lot of experiences with both of them. For a time, it seemed like we were all nearly inseparable, and that included Bill, and our little tight sphere pulled in several other people, and groups of people, it was like a magnet. We were free . . . we were uninhibited . . . we didn't care what the rules were (and yes, we were reckless).
Your uncle Bill was one of the nicest guys you would ever want to meet. He was a free spirit. He was gentle. He was a natural "girl magnet" (as I'm sure you have guessed from some of the photos) He never had a bad word to say about anybody. Bill was always ready for fun or the next adventure. If anybody said, let's go drive the Boulevard, Bill would say OK. For someone in his late teens, Bill was not one of those kids in some kind of teenage angst, trying to figure out who he was, or where he fit in. Bill knew who he was, and he was so content with who he was. I do think he was very bored, at times, especially later on, because most of the rest of us at least had some kind of job or temporary job that we had to go to, and that took us away from the tight sphere that we all had. In fact, I had actually started college, (aimlessly, at first, just taking a few classes that seemed half way interesting), and I think Bill was just kind of seeing it all change, or even dissolve, I mean it couldn't go on forever the way we were living (or maybe it could have, I still wonder that today . . . )
When Bill left us, it was devastating, to all of us. We were all stunned in a way that would leave us scarred for the rest of our lives. I was actually angry, at first. I went through so many head trips about this, I can't even tell you. I could not cry. I would not cry. I couldn't believe he would do this to us, how could he do this to us, take himself away, forever, like that. It was like the ultimate "I've got to head out now" kind of thing. This event really blasted us, all of us, into different directions, like shrapnel from an exploding grenade. Eventually, we all just kind of picked ourselves up from all the scattered places we had landed, dusted ourselves off, and decided we had to move on with our lives, without Bill. I did finally cry, the other day, when I found and scanned the first pic of Bill. Thirty some odd years, and I had never been able to let my tears come out. It brought me to a new place, it felt so really good, and so really right, to finally let these tears come out." G. Paul
I feel asleep thinking about this other night, how people can appear so together then they're gone. This story just reiterates to me that knowing, truly knowing someone is an "unknown"...I have lost a lot of people in my life, though not as many as others. I've lost a few surrogate parents and a couple close friends and I agree with G. Paul that letting go takes time however when the time comes to let go of the pain you hold inside, the feeling is liberating. Though those souls will never be forgotten, only cherished forever until scene again!
This morning has been a tough morning, I feel like I have lost my captain on this journey as communication has been spotty, leaving me feeling lonely out here on the road. Spending too much time with your thoughts can be a scary thing sometimes if your deep thinker like I am, sharing these thoughts with others is key to balance, hence why I needed another phone. Even though I may not see my friends at least I can talk to them! So if you feel like calling/texting go for it as I look forward to catching up...for some reason if I don't answer, the odds are high that I am riding my bike or my phone is dead and needs some charging...
Technical Data:
Distance: 109+
Power Tap has gone dead - will trouble shoot batteries tonight...
Waking up in Walden, CO was a blessing this morning as this small town is amazing! In a valley with 40 miles on one side and 30 on the other. Surrounded by the Colorado Rockies and some of the most beautiful mountain prairies I have ever scene. Beautiful place for sure!
And I can see that my computer is having some trouble with all this travel. When typing this the key strokes are sticky and some are not responding...
I sure don't want to lose my computer on this trip! Man this really sucks...
The morning was perfect, breakfast and load BoB then I was off, not knowing what I was gettin myself into! The first 22 miles to the junction was perfect, mostly downhill with a light tail wind, I was really thinking this was going to be an easy day after looking at the profile of the route from the fellow cyclist maps. I have this old atlas and I'm finding out all these other people have these detailed maps of the route and I'm just winging it with this old atlas and any wi fi I come across. I am in the middle of Southern Wyoming and feeling pretty good, though pretty pissed that my PowerTap is not workin.
From the junction I had another 55 miles to a little town called Saratoga where all the other cyclists were going to stay. I wanted to push on and wish I would have stayed as the wind was brutal today! From the junction the wind was blowig in my face all day and I had no other choice but to put my head down and ride. Stopping in Riverside for some water I chatted with a few motorcylist before pushing on. They were heading to Dubois, CO, I'll eventally get there but not today!
I just had to put my head down today and ride as this was the hardest day yet! 109 miles of 90+ heat and winds gusting up to 40+ miles an hour. It took a while! This part of the country is beautiful - reminds me a lot of the movie with Kevin Costner(Open Range)...
I have a feeling this post is going to be a lot shorter than I want, however I am exhausted and need to find a place to crash!
(break in writing)
It's morning and I crashed in Washington Park last night, a local park a few blocks from the historic WY State Pen. I would have rather stayed inside the Pen as it would have been warmer and a lot more comfortable. If anyone is interested in staying in a local park, look for sprinklers as I got hit with sprinklers all night long - I think a deterant for anyone attempting to sleep in the local parks. I thought it was starting to rain once I got hit, then I looked out of my single person tent and the stars were breathtaking so I knew it wasn't rain. Since I haven't really set up my tent since I started this trip, I usually just crawl in and use it as a bivy as its small enough to treat as...
Note* - Watch where you place your tent when you camp in a park!
Yesterday was not very hot but it was by far the hardest riding as the head winds were horrendous and the road conditions were not ideal for traveling, chip seal from the state line and loose chip seal at that. I did have an interesting bike test today though, while heading down a decent there was a deer carcus on the side of the road, right in on the shoulder in my path. Traveling at 35 mph with BoB does not make things very agile...I swerve left to avoid, then right and over compensated and ended up in some loose gravel/sand and was having trouble keeping it together. The mind was releasing more adrenaline at this moment in time then has been released on the entire trip! After fighting the bike for a couple more seconds, that felt like my entire life I was able to pull it back in line! I kept thinking as my mind went into the moment, this is going to hurt!
Since I'm having to recall my thoughts after a night of sleep things are not exactly fresh, again I like to write directly off the bike. Other things I saw yesterday - antelope, wide open spaces, porcupine, coyotes, more birds then I could count, farms miles from each other, long climbs over breathtaking landscapes, open roads with no traffic for miles.
Another interesting thing that happened yesterday was when I got to Walcott the next 20 mile stretch was on the Interstate which I thought was odd, but it was actually a lot more forgiving then I thought it would be as the truck traffic was wanted today, the wind generated by the trucks helped push me to Rawlins. Once into Rawlins I asked around about a park and coffee shop and could tell the people were a little less responsive then the folks in Kansas and Colorado. After spending an hour in the Coffee house I headed over to the park, made some dinner and thought about what the next day would bring.
When it comes to thoughts for the day. I would like to thank everyone for the "Warm Wishes" for my travels and all the kind thoughts on my blogging and sharing my journey with you. It means a lot as yesterday was a mental day. Not sure if for you but, after a 10-12 hour day of hard work I'm typically not thinking clearly and need some rest, I plan on taking today (Friday) as a lighter day hoping to eat and get a lot of sleep so it might be an uneventful day of writing, however I doubt it if I stay in the moment!
My last post I wrote a lot about the ups and downs in life and how turmoil can take hold on all our lives, my sister sent me an email the night before last that really affected me, I received it right after I shared my thoughts on my conversation and negative thoughts. I find it appropriate to share this as this is real life happening this week:
"Hi Lacey,
I don't mind you asking at all. I've been doing a lot of genealogical research on my own family history, and I know how important it is to know as much as you can know, both the good and the not so good, and the down right outrageous. I think it really has a way of centering us to know these things. I have discovered that I have a lot of "outrageous" in my own family, and I'm so glad I've been able to find out about it, and come to grips with it over time. It makes me feel more complete. You have just as much, if not more, "outrageous", in your own family history. I certainly don't know all the facts, especially going back to Baxter Springs, but I was really close to both of your parents and had a lot of experiences with both of them. For a time, it seemed like we were all nearly inseparable, and that included Bill, and our little tight sphere pulled in several other people, and groups of people, it was like a magnet. We were free . . . we were uninhibited . . . we didn't care what the rules were (and yes, we were reckless).
Your uncle Bill was one of the nicest guys you would ever want to meet. He was a free spirit. He was gentle. He was a natural "girl magnet" (as I'm sure you have guessed from some of the photos) He never had a bad word to say about anybody. Bill was always ready for fun or the next adventure. If anybody said, let's go drive the Boulevard, Bill would say OK. For someone in his late teens, Bill was not one of those kids in some kind of teenage angst, trying to figure out who he was, or where he fit in. Bill knew who he was, and he was so content with who he was. I do think he was very bored, at times, especially later on, because most of the rest of us at least had some kind of job or temporary job that we had to go to, and that took us away from the tight sphere that we all had. In fact, I had actually started college, (aimlessly, at first, just taking a few classes that seemed half way interesting), and I think Bill was just kind of seeing it all change, or even dissolve, I mean it couldn't go on forever the way we were living (or maybe it could have, I still wonder that today . . . )
When Bill left us, it was devastating, to all of us. We were all stunned in a way that would leave us scarred for the rest of our lives. I was actually angry, at first. I went through so many head trips about this, I can't even tell you. I could not cry. I would not cry. I couldn't believe he would do this to us, how could he do this to us, take himself away, forever, like that. It was like the ultimate "I've got to head out now" kind of thing. This event really blasted us, all of us, into different directions, like shrapnel from an exploding grenade. Eventually, we all just kind of picked ourselves up from all the scattered places we had landed, dusted ourselves off, and decided we had to move on with our lives, without Bill. I did finally cry, the other day, when I found and scanned the first pic of Bill. Thirty some odd years, and I had never been able to let my tears come out. It brought me to a new place, it felt so really good, and so really right, to finally let these tears come out." G. Paul
I feel asleep thinking about this other night, how people can appear so together then they're gone. This story just reiterates to me that knowing, truly knowing someone is an "unknown"...I have lost a lot of people in my life, though not as many as others. I've lost a few surrogate parents and a couple close friends and I agree with G. Paul that letting go takes time however when the time comes to let go of the pain you hold inside, the feeling is liberating. Though those souls will never be forgotten, only cherished forever until scene again!
This morning has been a tough morning, I feel like I have lost my captain on this journey as communication has been spotty, leaving me feeling lonely out here on the road. Spending too much time with your thoughts can be a scary thing sometimes if your deep thinker like I am, sharing these thoughts with others is key to balance, hence why I needed another phone. Even though I may not see my friends at least I can talk to them! So if you feel like calling/texting go for it as I look forward to catching up...for some reason if I don't answer, the odds are high that I am riding my bike or my phone is dead and needs some charging...
Friday, July 23, 2010
Day Eleven: July 22nd, 2010 (Route Frisco, CO to Waldon, CO)
Day Eleven: July 22nd, 2010 (Route Frisco, CO to Waldon, CO)
Technical Data
Distance, miles: 106.12
Ride Time: 6:52:58
Work, kJ: 3718
Average Power, watts: 148
Normalized Power, watts: 182
Average Speed, mph: 15.23
Today was a little different as I woke, cold and wanting some warmth! I headed to the Starbucks I mentioned in yesterday's post and caught up on the writing I failed to do the day before. Kinda funny how work will always be there if you forget! As this is my job for the next "X" amount of days it is imparitive I stay on what I have set out to do...
Note* - a gentlemen at Starbucks, owns a shirt company that produces cycling T-Shirts mentioned right outside that I won a T-Shirt - I'm holding it to him and once I get to wi fi I'm looking up the contact information as I could use a cycling shirt!
Rolling out of the Starbucks I planned on heading to North on highway 9. On to the pavement and two cyclist a little younger were out for a training ride. What a beautiful place to train - surrounded by mountians and a crystal flat lake...more terrain then you could ask for and a giant ice bath right in the middle! Can someone say perfect for training...I really wish I was on a training ride today to throw in some intervals as all this endurance/recovery zone riding is starting to get to me, just want to switch it up a little! I let them pass me then on the down hill I went right by them as BoB adds a little weight to the downhill and I had to just smile! Nothing like flying by a couple younger cyclist on a bike with a trailer...
I was a little confused navigating in Frisco as the map appears to be a long ways away, when in reality my turn was just a few blocks. After stopping at a filling station to check the map I wasn't too far off, I stopped soon as I really didn't want to get that much out of the way. Once I found the turn I was headed down hill and loving it as the body could use a little recovery after yesterday's climbing. First stop was Kremmling - a small town on the way to Steamboat where I filled for gas about a year ago. The ride was rolling and mostly downhill with no passes to cross. The blue river was on my right and scenic, very scenic to be honest. Many fly fishermen wading out into the river trying to capture some of those beautiul rainbows and browns my friend Stephen catches on a normal basis in Colorado. Past a few camp grounds I had stayed at in the past with a few friends and really enjoying the ride. The peaks to the West were so majestic today - little to majestic for words even.
The cloud cover on these peaks was were the beauty was today. The sky was full of clouds and rain as I would run into a nice 30-45 minute shower out on hwy 40 headed to SteamBoat. I cruised into Kremmling with no problem this morning and it reminded me of Beuna Vista as you roll right into a neighborhood when entering the town. I pulled into c-store and refilled my water and downed a couple bottles while I was there, went to the bathroom and snagged a handful of honey that was near the tea. I like to use the honey like a gu shot while out there on the road for some quick energy if I find myself fading.
Outside the c-store I grabbed the map to check where I was headed as I was near Estes and wanted to see if I could make it over to see Stephen, even though I thought it would be too much climbing after a day like yesterday and it would put me a little out off my route so I called him and let him know I would be in Waldon, CO tonight if he had time to drive up and visit. No worries if we didn't catch each other this time around as we will see each other soon! I sat and collected my thoughts, donned some sunscreen and had a few gu's and one of the bars Jan gave me. The bars were a nice treat as they had a little bit of chocolate (I love me some chocolate) and it was nice to have something to chew on. I have been downing Sustained Energy and Gu's during the rides and nothing really solid as I don't do well with solids when riding at higher intensity's, however at this pace everything should be okay!
Talked with a lot of the folks going in and out of the c-store and there appeared to be alot of campers/hikers headed towards SteamBoat. Then I was off and heading towards SteamBoat myself - I had another 27 miles or so until the junction where I would take a right and head towards Waldon. This section I would get rained on and it was nice to ride in the rain, I actually enjoy it if the rain is not too cold and after the last couple weeks of riding it was truly resfreshing! Thoughts were pretty much all over the place today, the downhill allowed for a lot of this as didn't have to work too hard on these sections, you can tell from the kJ I didn't work near as hard the last couple of days. Burning under 4K in kJ for a 100 mile is good for me, it just tells me I was utilizing the terrain to my advantage...
Thoughts that come to mind today - the first thought that came to mind today is what is going to happen when all of this is over? Will I get a job or go to school or will there be another large adventure I will go on? One thought that did come to mind was how all of this should end, I was thinking that the only way to end this journey would be with my neices! Madi just got a bike and that would be the perfect ending to a perfect journey. The last mile or 1/2 mile with Madi at my side and little Emmy sitting in BoB if Mom and Dad approve. Then celebrate with a little ice cream as I know the girls like ice cream! lol Since I'm not married or have someone to welcome me home sharing my journey with those two little girls would be ideal, I would love to have Captain there too of course! (she can bring her bike too!)
Finding it hard to think of what I was thinking on the ride after riding so many days in a row. Brain food on this trip is hard to come by on the budget I have laid out. Another thought that came to mind today was quiting. Not quiting myself just those in life that have quit or given up on themselves because they just found "life" to be so hard. After having a conversation with a good friend of mine on Monday, one that I have not spoken to in years I've had this topic on my mind ever since. Both he and I have gone through some battles of the mind that have put us in the gutter where we have experienced thoughts of suicide and other depressing like thoughts. I have been battling with these thoughts for a long time, I think ever since I was 14 years old, I would always blame it on heridity as my grandfather committed suicide, and this affected my father.
I know that many people have gone through these types of things in there life, some are even on drugs to help with the issues, however I choose not to seek my help through the means of drugs (prescription drugs). I believe that we all experience highs and lows or as I like to call it, peaks and valleys. I'm a very positive person, however I can have my lows. I like to counter these with "up drafts". When we fall into the valley we have the choice whether or not we have our hang-glider on to catch one of those updraftas to take us back up to the peak. Let me explain - when your on the peak nothing appears to stop you from acheiveing everything you want in life, however things can trip us up or push us off the peak. These things can be anything, we all have them it just depends on what you allow to get to you.
Once off the ledge of the peak you have the choice to fall or put yourself in an "up draft" - "up drafts" can be anything that makes you land back on the peak. Take me for an example, when I'm down I tend to isolate myself which is not a good thing for me, one might think then what the hell are you doing a cross country trip solo for! Well when I made this trip I was so strapped to the peak I'm not worried about falling off and missing an updraft! I make sure I'm in my updrafts when I'm down by playing with my nieces, playing with my dog AJ, spending time with friends and family as they always pick me up and put me back on the peak, sometimes it takes a little longer then it should but I always get back to where I belong! The peak where I can be me...
The moral of my analogy is that we all need an updraft everyonce in a while to keep us functioning at out best! There will come a time when you need help in life and don't be afraid to accept it when it presents itself! It's part of being God's family - we are here for each other when we need each other. Take my "Captain" for example - she just took an exam the other day and I sent her an "up draft" (pick me up) and she responded with "I needed that" - I had no idea what she was going through at the time but I sent it because I was thinking it at that moment in time - again back to my machine that lets others now that your thinking of them! Very important...
Back to my ride - I was heading up to the junction and was thinking "How" much further as I was starting to mentally break today, I knew it would happen eventually as I have never done something like this before and taking my physicality to the point of unknown is exciting for me as I know this will build fitness for the future! Climbing Muddy Pass which was only a 2 mile climb something was off, either nutrition or hydration, however it could be residual fatigue. Only two I can get a grasp on right now is nutrition and hydration as the fatigue can only be reduced through tons of sleep! So I put a few more honey packs in my system and down some water. Once up the climb I was at a cross roads with only a half of bottle of water. 35 miles to Waldon and I was thinking on this much water - this isn't going to happen, there better be a farm house near!
Then a truck pulling a 5th wheel pulls in and two gals get out to get in the camper for some food, I kindly ask for some water and score! Two full bottles of water and a banana! Double Score!!! Now since I had been riding into a head wind all day, it was time to catch a tail wind! The first 11 miles were flying!!! That wind had to been blowing 35 mph, it was the front of a storm as it was raining behind me and coming in quick, it was like I was surfing! Staying ahead of the wind and boy was I flying - the mental block had left me and I was having fun!
This leads me to another thougth on quiting! The thought that working through the rough patches in life need to happen as on the otherside is a lot of positive! I have rough spots in races all the time, but it doesn't take me too long to just work through it and more on! Very similar to life, though I have been known to be a slow learner on some topics, however I'm getting better as my patience is improving. On some of these big climbs i have done I just keep fighting even though the body is aching and the mind is saying what are you doing? The heart is stronger then anything, even the mind in my thoughts. With heart you can do anything...
Quiting was not an option and is never an option unless I am putting myself or others in danger! The same concepts can be used in daily life if you know how to approach situations correctly! :)
With less than 25 miles to go I was having some tough mental periods as I think I was a little low on fuel however I would just have to wait until the energy would come around!
Out of the saddle, dancing on my small lollipop pedals, sun high in the sky. Feel the left peddle drop, then the right. Sweat accumulating on my jersey, jersey pocket sticky mess of gu wrappers. Bull dozer to my right, prepping the land for a home, a business. Wind blowing 15-25 mph directly into my face, do I quit, do I rest? No I must press on - work is not through for the day and I must put in a good days worth of work everyone else in the world is...
Rolling into Waldon was great as I stopped at the second filling station I saw and downed 2 bottles and washed up in the bathroom. Refilled my bottles, then grapped some salt and sugar, along with asking the clerk for some matches. The auto ignite on the camp stove went out two nights ago and now I was relying on matches to start the burner...score though as all this was free! (Is anything free? - The answer is "No" - I'm trained in the art of Economics)
Rolling out of the the filling station I was headed to the library when I saw three rigs (bikes with trailers or paniers) parked outside the ice cream parlor. Now they have it figured out! Nothing like a lot of sugar and fat to replenish from a hard day of riding! I stopped in to see who it was, it was the four riders that last logged into the Church log in Sheridan Lake that was a day ahead of me. After talking with them, found out the guy was from Wichita - small world isn't it! He even bought me an ice cream!!! I told him where I started and that I was trying to make the journey on less then $500 so I guess maybe he felt bad or something, but I'm not going to turn away an Ice Cream!
I should have gotten there names!!!
Off to the park for me as I needed to eat and shave! I know why shave on this trip, well I brough my kit and I'm going to use it so I don't have to carry it anymore I thought...Park is in an ideal spot - look to the East and huge mountain range, look to the West and guess what - a huge mountain range! I keep thinking as I sit here how nice it must be to live in the mountains, even in the winter as snow mobiling sounds like a blast! Dwon some instant potatoes, make a few phone calls and do my normal routine - unload Bob, throw away any unneccessary trash and reorganize. This allows me to keep track of what I have and what I need...prep for tomorrow and get to blogging!
Tomorrow's a nice ride on the rolling terrain of WY and into Rawlings - I hope to get an earlier start in the AM as I now have my blog finished and about to load BoB's belly and catch some sleep before I get to do this fantastic job all over again! I wouldn't trade this adventure for anything, well if the right lady came along I might just have to go see about a girl...
Technical Data
Distance, miles: 106.12
Ride Time: 6:52:58
Work, kJ: 3718
Average Power, watts: 148
Normalized Power, watts: 182
Average Speed, mph: 15.23
Today was a little different as I woke, cold and wanting some warmth! I headed to the Starbucks I mentioned in yesterday's post and caught up on the writing I failed to do the day before. Kinda funny how work will always be there if you forget! As this is my job for the next "X" amount of days it is imparitive I stay on what I have set out to do...
Note* - a gentlemen at Starbucks, owns a shirt company that produces cycling T-Shirts mentioned right outside that I won a T-Shirt - I'm holding it to him and once I get to wi fi I'm looking up the contact information as I could use a cycling shirt!
Rolling out of the Starbucks I planned on heading to North on highway 9. On to the pavement and two cyclist a little younger were out for a training ride. What a beautiful place to train - surrounded by mountians and a crystal flat lake...more terrain then you could ask for and a giant ice bath right in the middle! Can someone say perfect for training...I really wish I was on a training ride today to throw in some intervals as all this endurance/recovery zone riding is starting to get to me, just want to switch it up a little! I let them pass me then on the down hill I went right by them as BoB adds a little weight to the downhill and I had to just smile! Nothing like flying by a couple younger cyclist on a bike with a trailer...
I was a little confused navigating in Frisco as the map appears to be a long ways away, when in reality my turn was just a few blocks. After stopping at a filling station to check the map I wasn't too far off, I stopped soon as I really didn't want to get that much out of the way. Once I found the turn I was headed down hill and loving it as the body could use a little recovery after yesterday's climbing. First stop was Kremmling - a small town on the way to Steamboat where I filled for gas about a year ago. The ride was rolling and mostly downhill with no passes to cross. The blue river was on my right and scenic, very scenic to be honest. Many fly fishermen wading out into the river trying to capture some of those beautiul rainbows and browns my friend Stephen catches on a normal basis in Colorado. Past a few camp grounds I had stayed at in the past with a few friends and really enjoying the ride. The peaks to the West were so majestic today - little to majestic for words even.
The cloud cover on these peaks was were the beauty was today. The sky was full of clouds and rain as I would run into a nice 30-45 minute shower out on hwy 40 headed to SteamBoat. I cruised into Kremmling with no problem this morning and it reminded me of Beuna Vista as you roll right into a neighborhood when entering the town. I pulled into c-store and refilled my water and downed a couple bottles while I was there, went to the bathroom and snagged a handful of honey that was near the tea. I like to use the honey like a gu shot while out there on the road for some quick energy if I find myself fading.
Outside the c-store I grabbed the map to check where I was headed as I was near Estes and wanted to see if I could make it over to see Stephen, even though I thought it would be too much climbing after a day like yesterday and it would put me a little out off my route so I called him and let him know I would be in Waldon, CO tonight if he had time to drive up and visit. No worries if we didn't catch each other this time around as we will see each other soon! I sat and collected my thoughts, donned some sunscreen and had a few gu's and one of the bars Jan gave me. The bars were a nice treat as they had a little bit of chocolate (I love me some chocolate) and it was nice to have something to chew on. I have been downing Sustained Energy and Gu's during the rides and nothing really solid as I don't do well with solids when riding at higher intensity's, however at this pace everything should be okay!
Talked with a lot of the folks going in and out of the c-store and there appeared to be alot of campers/hikers headed towards SteamBoat. Then I was off and heading towards SteamBoat myself - I had another 27 miles or so until the junction where I would take a right and head towards Waldon. This section I would get rained on and it was nice to ride in the rain, I actually enjoy it if the rain is not too cold and after the last couple weeks of riding it was truly resfreshing! Thoughts were pretty much all over the place today, the downhill allowed for a lot of this as didn't have to work too hard on these sections, you can tell from the kJ I didn't work near as hard the last couple of days. Burning under 4K in kJ for a 100 mile is good for me, it just tells me I was utilizing the terrain to my advantage...
Thoughts that come to mind today - the first thought that came to mind today is what is going to happen when all of this is over? Will I get a job or go to school or will there be another large adventure I will go on? One thought that did come to mind was how all of this should end, I was thinking that the only way to end this journey would be with my neices! Madi just got a bike and that would be the perfect ending to a perfect journey. The last mile or 1/2 mile with Madi at my side and little Emmy sitting in BoB if Mom and Dad approve. Then celebrate with a little ice cream as I know the girls like ice cream! lol Since I'm not married or have someone to welcome me home sharing my journey with those two little girls would be ideal, I would love to have Captain there too of course! (she can bring her bike too!)
Finding it hard to think of what I was thinking on the ride after riding so many days in a row. Brain food on this trip is hard to come by on the budget I have laid out. Another thought that came to mind today was quiting. Not quiting myself just those in life that have quit or given up on themselves because they just found "life" to be so hard. After having a conversation with a good friend of mine on Monday, one that I have not spoken to in years I've had this topic on my mind ever since. Both he and I have gone through some battles of the mind that have put us in the gutter where we have experienced thoughts of suicide and other depressing like thoughts. I have been battling with these thoughts for a long time, I think ever since I was 14 years old, I would always blame it on heridity as my grandfather committed suicide, and this affected my father.
I know that many people have gone through these types of things in there life, some are even on drugs to help with the issues, however I choose not to seek my help through the means of drugs (prescription drugs). I believe that we all experience highs and lows or as I like to call it, peaks and valleys. I'm a very positive person, however I can have my lows. I like to counter these with "up drafts". When we fall into the valley we have the choice whether or not we have our hang-glider on to catch one of those updraftas to take us back up to the peak. Let me explain - when your on the peak nothing appears to stop you from acheiveing everything you want in life, however things can trip us up or push us off the peak. These things can be anything, we all have them it just depends on what you allow to get to you.
Once off the ledge of the peak you have the choice to fall or put yourself in an "up draft" - "up drafts" can be anything that makes you land back on the peak. Take me for an example, when I'm down I tend to isolate myself which is not a good thing for me, one might think then what the hell are you doing a cross country trip solo for! Well when I made this trip I was so strapped to the peak I'm not worried about falling off and missing an updraft! I make sure I'm in my updrafts when I'm down by playing with my nieces, playing with my dog AJ, spending time with friends and family as they always pick me up and put me back on the peak, sometimes it takes a little longer then it should but I always get back to where I belong! The peak where I can be me...
The moral of my analogy is that we all need an updraft everyonce in a while to keep us functioning at out best! There will come a time when you need help in life and don't be afraid to accept it when it presents itself! It's part of being God's family - we are here for each other when we need each other. Take my "Captain" for example - she just took an exam the other day and I sent her an "up draft" (pick me up) and she responded with "I needed that" - I had no idea what she was going through at the time but I sent it because I was thinking it at that moment in time - again back to my machine that lets others now that your thinking of them! Very important...
Back to my ride - I was heading up to the junction and was thinking "How" much further as I was starting to mentally break today, I knew it would happen eventually as I have never done something like this before and taking my physicality to the point of unknown is exciting for me as I know this will build fitness for the future! Climbing Muddy Pass which was only a 2 mile climb something was off, either nutrition or hydration, however it could be residual fatigue. Only two I can get a grasp on right now is nutrition and hydration as the fatigue can only be reduced through tons of sleep! So I put a few more honey packs in my system and down some water. Once up the climb I was at a cross roads with only a half of bottle of water. 35 miles to Waldon and I was thinking on this much water - this isn't going to happen, there better be a farm house near!
Then a truck pulling a 5th wheel pulls in and two gals get out to get in the camper for some food, I kindly ask for some water and score! Two full bottles of water and a banana! Double Score!!! Now since I had been riding into a head wind all day, it was time to catch a tail wind! The first 11 miles were flying!!! That wind had to been blowing 35 mph, it was the front of a storm as it was raining behind me and coming in quick, it was like I was surfing! Staying ahead of the wind and boy was I flying - the mental block had left me and I was having fun!
This leads me to another thougth on quiting! The thought that working through the rough patches in life need to happen as on the otherside is a lot of positive! I have rough spots in races all the time, but it doesn't take me too long to just work through it and more on! Very similar to life, though I have been known to be a slow learner on some topics, however I'm getting better as my patience is improving. On some of these big climbs i have done I just keep fighting even though the body is aching and the mind is saying what are you doing? The heart is stronger then anything, even the mind in my thoughts. With heart you can do anything...
Quiting was not an option and is never an option unless I am putting myself or others in danger! The same concepts can be used in daily life if you know how to approach situations correctly! :)
With less than 25 miles to go I was having some tough mental periods as I think I was a little low on fuel however I would just have to wait until the energy would come around!
Out of the saddle, dancing on my small lollipop pedals, sun high in the sky. Feel the left peddle drop, then the right. Sweat accumulating on my jersey, jersey pocket sticky mess of gu wrappers. Bull dozer to my right, prepping the land for a home, a business. Wind blowing 15-25 mph directly into my face, do I quit, do I rest? No I must press on - work is not through for the day and I must put in a good days worth of work everyone else in the world is...
Rolling into Waldon was great as I stopped at the second filling station I saw and downed 2 bottles and washed up in the bathroom. Refilled my bottles, then grapped some salt and sugar, along with asking the clerk for some matches. The auto ignite on the camp stove went out two nights ago and now I was relying on matches to start the burner...score though as all this was free! (Is anything free? - The answer is "No" - I'm trained in the art of Economics)
Rolling out of the the filling station I was headed to the library when I saw three rigs (bikes with trailers or paniers) parked outside the ice cream parlor. Now they have it figured out! Nothing like a lot of sugar and fat to replenish from a hard day of riding! I stopped in to see who it was, it was the four riders that last logged into the Church log in Sheridan Lake that was a day ahead of me. After talking with them, found out the guy was from Wichita - small world isn't it! He even bought me an ice cream!!! I told him where I started and that I was trying to make the journey on less then $500 so I guess maybe he felt bad or something, but I'm not going to turn away an Ice Cream!
I should have gotten there names!!!
Off to the park for me as I needed to eat and shave! I know why shave on this trip, well I brough my kit and I'm going to use it so I don't have to carry it anymore I thought...Park is in an ideal spot - look to the East and huge mountain range, look to the West and guess what - a huge mountain range! I keep thinking as I sit here how nice it must be to live in the mountains, even in the winter as snow mobiling sounds like a blast! Dwon some instant potatoes, make a few phone calls and do my normal routine - unload Bob, throw away any unneccessary trash and reorganize. This allows me to keep track of what I have and what I need...prep for tomorrow and get to blogging!
Tomorrow's a nice ride on the rolling terrain of WY and into Rawlings - I hope to get an earlier start in the AM as I now have my blog finished and about to load BoB's belly and catch some sleep before I get to do this fantastic job all over again! I wouldn't trade this adventure for anything, well if the right lady came along I might just have to go see about a girl...
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