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| Milkshakes: the nourishment of champions! |
The ride today had me singing "Blue Skies" as that's what we saw all day. There was not a cloud until after noon. Of course that means the sun was out and it was hot. 80 degrees by 8:00 and into the 90s in late morning. It was important to drink lots of water today. We were told late morning that a heat advisory had been issued. Of course, at the end of the day, we had to properly nourish ourselves so it was almost mandatory to stop for a large milkshake today. Cyclists have to care for their bodies, you know!
We got off to an interesting start this morning. We had two full blocks to warm up and then climb a 3/4 mile hill that measured 12%. Ouch, first thing in the morning! But we had lots more hills today than yesterday, so it was necessary to bring out the climbing legs again. I guess the 5 to 8 mph tailwind helped make up for that.
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| Downtown Rochester, MN |
It struck me today how the horizon in Wyoming, South Dakota and Minnesota is so much further away than in central Ohio. You can see a long way out here, even in Minnesota. Today, again, we passed miles and miles of corn fields as well as dairy and turkey farms. The difference from South Dakota is that here you see farm houses along the road. Some I'm sure have been farmed by the same family for generations.
Today I rode with Amy, Yuval and the two sisters - Katie, a retired teacher from Arizona, and Jane, a farmer from Nevada. It was nice having a couple extra riders in our line. We each took pulls of two miles plus, often going 19-20 mph.
As I mentioned, it has been hot lately. The tan lines are really pretty weird. You should see folks in their bathing suits. Only cyclists appreciate these weird lines. For cyclists, though, that is a sign of distinction! I'm afraid my legs and arms are going to be pretty leathery by the time I get back.
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| Mayo Clinic |
Tomorrow at the 85 mile mark, we will cross the Mississippi River and enter Wisconsin. We will be nearly 65% finished. It is starting to go fast now.
Be well. Do good.
Don
Glad to hear that you are doing so well, my friend. God bless and Godspeed!
ReplyDeleteJim Vonau
Thanks, Jim
DeleteSo far so good. Each day is a new adventure with its own challenges. Hard to believe we have less than three weeks to go.
Don