Day 35-Warm and Friendly Day of Riding

Indianapolis to Richmond, In

Miles: 84.0

Time: 5:39

Aver: 14.9 mph

Max: 26.2

Est Calories: 5,564

Ascent: 2,209

I really didn't take any pictures today, so I added the above picture from an earlier day because it represents what we expect to feel like after the next 4 days. If you expand the picture, you will note that the sign says: Dysfunction Junction. Today was fairly long but it will be the shortest of the next five days (including today which was 84 miles). We will working the last official century tomorrow, but the next day is 97 miles. Virtually another century. The next two days after that will be 91, and 87 miles. That rest day in Eire, Pa after these next four days is already looking good.

We were going to take it easy today, but like many mornings, we all started out virtually together, and I ended up riding with some of the more aggressive riders for some 30 miles. Two of us slowed down at about 8 miles from the SAG, and just chatted our way in to the SAG. It was nice to run with a new group for a while, and get to know Willie a bit more.

At the SAG, we split up with two other groups (that we have separately been riding with lately) , and we each motored along with our respective groups to get through the rest of the day. Our group stopped at a sandwich shop in a small town, Centerville. I ordered a grilled ham and cheese. I was pleasantly surprised when the sandwich came out with about a half inch of ham. It was just what the doctor ordered today.

I wasn't particularly attentive, but Sue from Sisters, Or. that just joined the ride, asked about all these large, shiny, colored or silver balls in so many lawn decorations. Apparently they are not found in Oregon. One hit with the male riders was a car wash that was being advertised by bikini clad high school girls on both sides of the road as we left the sandwich shop in Centerville. I would have taken a picture to prove that this actually occurred, but we felt that discretion was the better part of valor, and we hesitate to think what would have happened if some parents saw us lined up taking pictures of their daughters in bathing suits.

I hope that my recoupertive powers will work wonders tonight for tomorrow's, hilly and long sojour into our tenth state: Ohio, the state of my birth, and many years of living until I eventually found my self moving to Pennsylvania, and then to NJ, after college and the military. See ya........

Day 34-Short Day....... 8>)

Crawfordsville to Indianapolis, In

Miles: 65.8

Time: 4:24

Average: 14.9 mph

Max: 29.4 mph

Ascent 1,793

Est Calories: 4,393

This was the shortest day between now and 12 riding days from now, which will be the celebratory ride to the Atlantic Ocean near Boston. It was mostly flat and cool, but dry. I got to the hotel by 1:45 PM, and had a shower, and had my chain on the bike replaced by 2:45....a real treat; and then got a load of laundry done before dinner. The treat of extra time at the end of the day was amplified by the fact that the next 5 day's mileage will not be LESS then 83 miles per day. As we sometimes say, it will be time to go back to work starting tomorrow.

Today I rode with Hank and Champ, and two business friends of Hank's that live here, who only rode with us for the day. We were joined by Sue, who just joined the ride to Boston 2 days ago, and rides a recumbent (a good rider, but no draft off of the recumbent for the rest of us). At times, with the aid of a tail wind, we scooted along at around 21 mph. A extra treat, and but totally un-sustainable. You can look back over the days and see that it seems like no matter the day, the distance, or the conditions, we often end up averaging around the 15 mph average mark by the end of the day. You figure it out? We obvious find time to meander, get lost, stroll around a town looking for food, or slowing for a nature call. All these elements of a given day are all part of the ride, and sometimes even critical to our energy levels, pacing, and fun of the ride.

The one SAG for the day was at the Gentry Farm were the pictures above were taken. Historically this family has been kind enough to host the SAG, which included the use of their bathroom. (True hospitality above and beyond). The family used to have a dairy farm, but had to sell the cows a year or so ago. They now raise soybeans and corn, but with ONLY 650 acres owned and around 150 acres rented, they find this also economically challenging. So after 100 years (as of next year) and 4 generations in the family, the farm's next fate is unknown at this writing. At this point the owner's son does not seem so interest in farming. Just another story on the impact of the large industrial farmer versus small farmer, and the expections of succeeding generations. We all wish the best for the Gentry family. TTFN......TA TA FOR NOW............See Ya..............

Day 33-Crazy Helmet Day, and a Real Cruiser

Champaign, Ill to Crawfordsville, In.

Miles: 80.7

Time: 5:17

Average: 15.3 mph

Max: 29.5 mph

Ascent: 1,421

Est. Calories: 5,461

After a nasty weather warning of a night, including severe thunderstorms and tornado warnings, we started the day with damp roads, and standing water in places. But on the lighter side of things, we also started the day with crazy helmet decorations. Some of those are shown above. The last picture is yours truly, and I had balloons with various candies in the helmet holes. The idea is that it is the Party SAG. I donated the candies for the real SAG as I did not wear this stuff past the few minutes pre-ride. The next picture up is my roomie with a wine screw in the helmet that said: "screw old age"; which was appropriate as the second oldest on the ride. The other two most decorated people actually wore their stuff all day.....go figure. Harry, our British rep, was decked out in USA flags and stuff; and Nancy had long flowing BLUE hair.

The day actually turned out perfect: no rain, partly sunny, enough clouds to make it comfortable, a bit higher humidity, a fairly short day, virtually no ascent, and just a fun group to ride with. Looking for food by mid-day produced The Bus Stop; a small cafe in Veedersburg that was just a fun place, and not really a Bus Stop. All the people were very accommodating and friendly, and wanted to talk with us. One local couple actually came out to look at our bikes and learn more about our ride. While the cafe were out of a lot of things on the menu, what we had was all good. Pictures were being taken with babies, and we all n' all we had a good break in the day and gave the local Veedersburg-ites something to talk about. Once again, kudoes to middle America.

The top picture is credit to the "ghost riders in the sky"....empty bikes moving toward an Ice Cream sign......How appropriate! I guess you might even say that ice cream could be said to be our primary food group. One person, George, is stopping at every DQ he sees all across the county for a Blizzard with the same toppings each and every time. The rest of us at least vary our ice cream preference over time. My personal preference is for hard ice cream, not the soft ice cream you get in DQ's.

TIP: For those that may not be aware, if you click on the pictures in the blog, they will increase in size, with more visible detail. See ya..................

Day 30-31-32-Another Century, Another Delayed Start, and Another Rest Day

Day 30-Qunicy to Speingfield, Ill.
Miles: 108.2
Time: 7:06

Average: 15.2 mph
Max: 33.2 mph
Ascent 2,573

Est. Calories: 7,114

Day 31-Springfield to Champaign, Ill.

Miles: 87.5

Time: 5:49

Average: 15.0 mph

Max: 25.9 mph

Ascent: 1,926

Est. Calories; 5,908

Day 30-Another delay in starting because of lightening at our normal start times. At first the delay was expected to be an hour, and then the storm moved on enough to get started a few minutes early. I am beginning to feel like a fireman: first you are relaxing, then the alarm goes off and your out the door. Given the delayed start and the long day, we had to keep moving throughout the day to get into the next hotel at a reasonable hour, and still it took us a bit over 7 hours in the saddle. Fortunately, the wind shifted in the later part of the day, and we could pick up a bit more speed. The two bikers I was riding with were the two oldest riders, Bob and Hank, (see above). While following them, I decided to get a quick picture. I hadn't anticipated the speeds we were going (high teens), and by the time I stopped, got the camera out, they were almost gone. I had to kick it up quite a bit to close back in on them. So much for a little diversion. The second picture is Bob in his biking splendor.

Day 31-This was the last day before the fourth Rest day, and some riders were dragging a bit as we started out, but almost every kicked it up a bit through the course of the day; partly because the ride was quite flat, partly because the wind changed in the later part of the day to a tail wind, and partly because the sooner you get in the longer your rest day becomes.

While we had been through many, many miles of Agri business in terms of farms, growing crops, herds of cows and horses, and silos of all sizes, it just seemed to be more meaningful riding to day thinking that we will be moving into more industrial areas in the next week (northeast Ohio). Hence the farm and crop pictures. The pictures of the grasses along the road is also a strong indication of the direction that the wind is blowing. At the time of the picture, you can see the lighter side of the grass being on the left, which is the direction of the wind, and which, of course, was the direction we were riding at the time. Sometimes it seemed as though you watching your own garden grow as you moved across states, or just from one day to another. One day you'd see a plowed field, the next day you might see sprouts coming up, the next would show a couple inches, and then you might see a green corn field with a deer standing up to his neck in corn, and then bounding through the field to avoid us crazing on bike moving by. Just nice stuff!!

Riders continue to share ongoing issues: like sore hands, sore this and that, etc. And, other's willing share solutions that work for them. The sharing is part of the strength of the group. I can't imagine what would have happen to some of us with the tips and help of others. While some have gone across the USA more than once, I am sure those of us who haven't would have had a much more difficult time with the group dynamics and support.

Day 32-Besides the normal laundry, eating, and resting, most of us went to a party store to get sill things to put on our helmet for tomorrow. God only knows what some people will come up with, since some bikers are already carrying stuffed animals, a plastic fish tank, and seemingly all they can carry in their shirt pockets already. We'll see tomorrow. See ya....................

Day 29-A New State and 2,000 Miles

Kirksville, Mo. to Quincy, Ill.
Miles: 75.7
Time: 5:43
Average: 13.2 mph
Max: 26.2 mph
Total Ascent: 2,156 ft
Est Calories: 4,852

Another wet start to the day, so I again left my camera in my bag. Also, another day with headwinds for the majority of the day. What's with this prevailing winds of west to east? We're not going to change things, so we just ride. We were hoping for a bit of respite from the weather today given that tomorrow will be another century, but it wasn't to be. In fact, tomorrow is shaping up to be the same as the last two days as respects the potential for a rainy start, but there may be a bit of help from a more trailing wind. We'll see.

We did move into a new state today: Illinois, and have now covered over 2,000 miles of the 3,400 total. It seems like eons ago, but it used to be a big deal when I used to train 1,000 getting in shape for the Anchor House ride I do every year (see the first blog entry). I guess I won't have to do anything special this year other than this ride. Actually, Bob Fuller and I did a bit less then 2.000 miles since Jan 1, so I will have done almost 5,000 miles by the time this ride is over since the first of the year. I am tired just writing about this. While this ride has many challenges, one of the great upsides is learning more about our fellow riders each day. Each rider has his/her own unique stories and lives, and none of them are boring to be sure. People, riders and staff alike (some 20 people), live or have lived or have homes in Japan, Iran, Afghanistan, Israel, England, Mexico as well as all over the USA. Some lived there because that is where they are from, some lived there because their jobs took them to those locations, and some just retired there. Whatever the reason, the stories are interesting. And, occupations to not seem to breed the decisions to ride. We have a wonderful mixed bag of current and prior vocations, and avocations, and there does not seem to be a loss for subjects to talk about, which is one of the more interesting parts of the ride. And when the weather cooperates, and scenery explodes into all its splendor, this truly is a great ride! I'm not sure that there is another one of these in me, but more than one of these riders have done multiple crossings. We have people were this is their fourth crossing. I told you these folks weren't boring, whether or not you may have your own definition for these people..............

As the ride days pile up, we are getting stronger or just think we are, and in other ways we push harder, which makes us look even more forward to those rest days; the next being in 2 more days. See ya................

Day 28-Late Start

Chillicothe to Kirksville, Mo.
Miles: 75.0
Time: 5:11
Average: 14.5 mph
Max: 33.9 mph
Total Ascent: 4,875 ft
Est Calories: 5,189

No pictures today, as I buried my camera in my bag that is transported by truck. We had the potential for rains all day and I did not anticipate what nice opportunities there would be for great views because the sun came out for most of the day, and of the scenic green hills. and winds blowing the grasses in waves. We actually waited almost 3 hours before starting out in the rain, because of serious lightening, thunder, and hard rain before the actual departure. Some of the lightening was followed immediately by the thunder, proving that the storm was directly over us. By the time we started, some of us had been up almost 5 hours, and were ready to eat again. I must admit that I slept through most of the waiting time. Given the late start, we pushed most of the day to make up for the time lost in waiting around in the morning. One rider actually slipped in his bike shoes on the wet parking lot of the hotel, and hit his head. He rode today, though.

About 25 miles into the ride, we stopped at a store for some snacks and. on the way again, we ran into a parade (Fun Day in Brookfield). Waiting was interesting given the old tractors, and kids, but this cost us a bit more time to make up. Despite the views and parade, we had a busy day with a plethora of hills (one rider in a past ride counted over 148 hills in the last 50 miles). You do the math. If you didn't carry enough speed into the hill that carried you most, if not all the way up and over the hill, you were forced to slug it out in low gears....very taxing. The roads were wide enough and straight enough for my comfort zone that I was able to handle most the hills nicely.

Tomorrow is supposed to be a bit easier in terms of hills; but, the following day is another century, so I hope to pace a little better tomorrow. We'll see how that turns out. See ya............

Day 27-Middle America at its Best

St. Joseph to Chillicothe, Mo.

Miles: 85.8

Time: 5.21

Average: 16.0 mph

Max: 33.0 mph

Total Ascent: 5,842ft

Est Calories: 4,648

After some 30 miles of wind assisted hills, we came into Maysville, Mo. And, as has been the case for the last 10 years that CrossRoads tour has come through this town, the whole town seemed to show up to greet us. For those that were not personally involved, they would shout out to us from their cars, trucks, or tractors. The local Pre-K and Kindergarteners were taken out of class to greet us, and then walked up a few blocks to town to sit across the street and watch us bikers swarm over the food put out for us. The one picture above is me giving "low-fives" to the five year olds.

There was fresh cinnamon buns with cherry sauce and cherries on top, and plenty of PBNJ's to go around. It was difficult to stop the feeding frenzy to get back on the road. The "spread" was put out in front of the Historical Society, and people were there to see that we got as much as we wanted, and poured ice water and lemonade. One lady just recently retired from the bank over on the corner: she was 94 years old. It was pure Americana hospitality, and cordial conversation. We got to wander around the Historical Society's building while we ate, as well. Even though we had an 85 mile day to cover, there was no rush to press on. One guy kept asking everyone where they were from, and asking us to come back. Isn't that the best complement from someone you just met?

Once we did our "thanks, and farewell's" we continued our ups and downs, into the hotel. I guess I wish I had taken a few pictures of the hills, but I guess I was just busy riding them. They were higher and longer than I have done in past rides.

Dinner at the hotel was actually a BBQ wheeled in from an outside service, and was quite good. I often wonder if all this food is really this good, or are we in such a need that most anything tastes good. It may be a bit of both, but I'd like to think that good is good no matter what the rationalization. Tomorrow is more of the same in terms of Ups and Downs, but 10 miles shorter. Here's hoping the weather continues to be in our favor, winds and all. See ya.............

Day 24, 25, 26-Rest, Long and Windy, and a New State

Day 24. The Rest day was a rainy day, so much rest was accomplished. One fellow rider offered to have Bob and I join him and his wife, and one other rider for dinner. Peter's wife was visiting and had a rental car. We ate at the Farm House Restaurant, which was a favorite of President Eisenhower's, who is now buried, along with his wife and child in the Eisenhower Meditation Hall at the Eisenhower Library and Museum, in Abilene, Ks. We did have to call the restaurant more than once because we drove right by it because their sign was flat on the ground. OOPs.

Day 25. Abilene to Topeka, KS. So much for the Rest day. The next day was 108 miles with head winds for most of the day. In my opinion, if this had been earlier in the tour, many riders would not likely have made it all the way in this day. It was a beautiful day in terms of scenery, but the winds were brutel. I made it through the desert without serious sunburn, but this day gave me and a few other riders, a wind burn. You can see from above that road was also seriously rolling. The road above reminded me of the ribbon christmas candy. And, these rollers were the most benine portion of the ride this day. We also saw some elk, note second picture above. We did have a nice late ride treat. We did stop at a place for pie. Norma, the owner, has won a National contest for best pie. One of the riders actually had 3 pieces, plus ice cream, and a drink. There was only about 15 miles to go after the 90 plus up to that point. I admit that I had a piece of pie, and a bowl of ice cream. Since the pie was lemon merange, I did have the pie and ice cream separately. We just ordered, and they delivered it. Then, before you leave, you just go up to the cashier and state what you had, they ring it up, and you pay. Can you imagine that happening is any Big city?

We did manage to average 13.5 mph for the 108. That included some 6,624 ft of climbing per another's Garmin. I managed to incorrectly re-charge my Garmin, again, and I had to shut it down at the SAG at the 62 mile mark. At that piont, my Garmin was showing just short of 4,000 ft of climbing. We all know these figures are not exact, but they show give a good indication of the efforts being put out for most days. And, today took us to the half way point of the tour, in terms of miles covered.

Day 26. It was an overall good day. It took me a few miles to get my body in gear today, given a bit of fatigue spill-over from yesterday. We did move onto another state: Missouri. One of those, gett'r done days.
Topeka, Ks. to St. Joseph, Mo.
Miles: 85.8
Time: 6:04
Average: 14.1 mph
Max: 28.6 mph
Total Ascent: 3,035 ft
Est Calories: 5,537

See ya.............................

Day 23-A Cruiser into a Rest Day..... 8>)

Great Bend to Abilene, Ks.
Miles: 62.4
Time: 3:34
Average: 17.4 mph
Max: 30.0 mph
Total Ascent: 966 ft
Est Calories: 4,629

We continued our heartland tour today, continuing through Kansas. It was a really good ride day today: warm, with 40 miles of down wind cruising after a 22 mile stretch with a cross wind. At the turn that picked up the tail winds, Mack, one of the staff of CrossRoads who is from England, was standing on the side of the road with a large, black trash bag held above his head, and it was standing straight out demonstrating the benefits we could expect after the turn. And, it was true, and great. Hence, the 17.4 mph average for the day through rolling country roads that were mostly downhill.

One strange event happened during the first 22 miles. We came upon a non-CrossRoads rider along the side of the road with his recumbent bike (low rider type). He was offering us donuts; yes, donuts. He asked us where we were going, and said that he was jealous, but that he wasn't in shape for such a ride anyhow. When Bob Fuller asked where he was going, he said that he was just riding around scavenging. It turned out that there had been a recent truck accident, and there was a pile of rubble on the side of the road, including sealed bags of donuts. You know, the kind you'd find in any store; the powdered kind in a sealed white bag with a clear plastic window on the front. He had about a half dozen of these bags in a small cardboard box, but I couldn't help wonder how he planned to get these home, not to mention that he actually planned to eat them. I hear tell from Mack that the rider on the incumbent was actually on the other side of the road when he saw him, and must have crossed over when he saw the pile of "stuff" on our side of the road. Oh well. Every day brings us new sights and sounds, not to mention the people along the way.

We have our 3rd rest day tomorrow, and most all riders seem to welcome it. The day after the rest day, we kick it up a notch with a 106 mile day to Topeka, Ks. Actually, we will have 2 century rides next over the next 7 days, but we're moving into the second half of the tour with twenty-two days of riding down, and 23 to go. See ya............