It is hot! Very difficult to sleep in our non-climate controlled dorm. Everybody was up early to try to get some miles behind us before the heat became oppressive. Margaret and I were actually the first bike on the road this morning.
During our "rest" day I replaced our bike's drive chain, had Rich install a new gear cluster to allow lower gears for climbing, and replaced our Schwalbe Marathon plus tires with easier rolling and lighter Duranos. The Marathons had over 3,000 miles on them, and had never had a flat, but we wanted to try a faster tire.
Well, before we had gone five miles, we had a flat. So much for an early start. Our friend, AnnMarie, and her mother were going to meet us this afternoon in Owatonna, so we wanted to be in camp as soon as possible. Still, we figured we had lost no more than 15 minutes, and we would still be fine.
The day became hotter and hotter as we rode. We even stopped a couple of times in local stores for "AC" breaks. By lunch, at mile 46, we were feeling pretty fried. As we left lunch, we noticed a BP station with ice cream. Perfect! Ice cream for dessert.
By now both of us were pretty tired. We had made a left off of Old Hwy 14 to enter the BP, so we knew we needed to make a left out of the BP parking lot to continue on the route. Neither of us noticed that the BP was on a corner, so when we came out we turned left onto the wrong street. I should have known this was the wrong road. It had very light traffic, very good pavement, and the cross wind was now a tail wind. Ah, but we were very tired.
Seven miles later, about the time we should be entering the town of Waseca, the road T'ed into US 60 at a stop sign. There was no stop sign, no T intersection, and no US 60 on our cue sheets. We were lost and off route. A consultation call to Charlton, our crew chief, gave us a route to get to Waseca and back on route. It only added about 13 miles to the day. Did I mention it was really hot? And humid? And we were tired? And we had friends driving all the way from Michigan to meet us?
We were almost the last to reach camp. AnneMarie was there to help us load our bags into her car, and take us to our air conditioned motel. After showering, she and her mother took us out to dinner. We slept well in air conditioned comfort. I love AnneMarie.
Tomorrow we ride 90 miles to Winona, MN, and our last night in Minnesota. Given the oppressive weather, we are hoping for air conditioning at Winona State College where we will be staying.
2 comments:
The dates and days are getting blurred - I am sure more for you than for we the reading public. "Day 28" shows on the blog as Thursday, July 21, which it was not. I think the blog is actually 2 days behind our intrepid riders. I know from delightful, first hand experience that John and Margaret are in Madison Wisconsin on a rest day today, Thursday, July 21. Spoiler - Wednesday was Winona to Madison, and you know about the heat wave our riders tried to ride through. They did it! But I know (again first hand!) that their descriptions of Wednesday will be MUCH more colorful than anything I could say. I had an option to ride the sauna with them, which I chose not to do! An observer today might say, they both look great! Trim, deeply tanned, happy, and full of rest day energy today! I was so glad to see them today, and I know it's all a downhill breeze from here on out! Yay for our travellers!
Yes, Andrew is right. Margaret and John look tanned, thin and athletic. They are amazing to watch and their drive to do this arduous task is an inspiration to us all. The heat is pounding on them and still they persevere. Hang in there and enjoy your rest day. You two have certainly earned it.
Anne Marie
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