Day 28. July 15

Day 29.  July 15. Sioux Falls, SD to Worthington, MN. 71 miles

Yesterday was a bit rainy, but that's ok, as it only emptied the sky of water, making for clear skies and great riding today. Temperatures started in the high 60s and reached the mid 80s. We started the 

day by riding  8 miles on the bike path in Sioux Falls, past the falls and out of town.  At mile 25, we entered Minnesota. They were repaving the road, so we were diverted onto a dirt road for about two miles, but after that, the roads became pretty smooth. As hinted before, the landscape has been changing again with lots and lots of corn fields, bean fields and lots more trees. In addition to cattle, we're starting to see (and smell) hog farms. Towns are getting closer together now. In South Dakota, it was not unusual to ride two hours or more between towns. Today, towns were 8 to 10 miles apart, making the ride a lot more interesting. I hesitate to say that 70 mile bike rides are getting to be easy, but today was a great day to be on the bike. There were times our pace line was averaging between 20 and 22 mph. Then we slowed to about 18, and then even a bit slower, as we realized that over the next four days we will be riding nearly 390 miles. No real need to hurry. Better to save a little energy than to get to the hotel 15 minutes sooner. We still got here by 12:30.

Worthington is a growing town of about 15,000 people, according to Yolanda, the desk clerk here at the Travelodge Motel, even though the last census showed less than 13,000. The population is quite diverse, as people come here to work in some of the meat packing plants in and around Worthington. Pork, beef, chickens and turkeys are all rendered here and sent to stores around the country.
A one point, Worthington packaged a lot of turkey and for years has celebrated "King Turkey Day." This is a four day celebration here in Worthington and is touted in all the brochures. When I asked Yolanda to tell me about King Turkey Day, her face lit up and she became quite animated as did many of the locals standing in the lobby. This is a big celebration here, with parades, a pancake dinner, turkey calling contests, turkey bowling (stick your hand in a frozen turkey) and, since 1973, the highlight of the weekend is the Great Gobbler Gallop, a race between two turkeys - Paychecks from Worthington and his rival, Ruby Begonia from Cuero, Texas. It is a rivalry that each town takes seriously, as each bird undergoes lots of training for this block long race. They race here in September and in October, they race in Texas. The winner is determined by the best total time. The turkey incurs a five second penalty every time it is touched by one of the handlers or one of the thousands that line the street to watch the race. Sadly, this last year, Ruby Begonia was declared the champion, but the citizens of Worthington are optimistic that Paychecks will return the crown to Worthington.  Why the name Paychecks? Because it goes fast! I may have to come back in September to watch this spectacular event. If interested, type in "King Turkey Day Race, Worthington, MN" on YouTube and you can watch videos of at least a few of the races. Try the 1982 race.

There are lots of other activities here in Worthington. We just missed the International Festival this past weeks. In June, there is a sailing regatta on Lake O. In February, you can attend the winter festival and jump through the ice and into the lake. What a great place to be.

I also talked with Sunny. He is an immigrant, originally from near Bombay, India, but transplanted here 20 years ago from New Jersey. He and his wife raised their 3 kids here, and, even though they have moved to Minneapolis and Florida, he still stays because everyone knows his name and he doesn't like crowded cities. The folks from Worthington all seem to love this little town.

Tomorrow it's off to Mankato, about 110 miles away.

Be well.   Do good.

Don