Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Dinosaur, Colorado

It was a long and somewhat unpleasant ride today. With a group of others, we made the first 45 km stretch in an hour and a quarter, my fastest average yet. After that, it was one long gradual hill after another, on a very busy highway, with some very rude drivers. Some cut in really close, others would step on the gas right beside you and let loose a huge dark cloud of diesel exhaust. I wanted to wring some necks today!

The country we went through was not as beautiful as yesterday, and you’ll get the idea from the pictures below.

One very scary incident today: Jake Kuipers was biking along when his seat post simply sheared off. Jake was thrown onto the highway where, fortunately, there was no traffic at that moment. He has quite a few scrapes on his legs, hips, and face, but all in all he’s OK. I and two others - Randy De Wolde and Fred Meyerink - came upon him just shortly after it happened (he was on his own), and while Randy and Fred went ahead to look for a SAG wagon, I stayed to make sure he was OK and wasn’t in shock or anything. Our nurse, Betsy, picked him up and checked him out, then brought him to the next town (Vernal) to a bike shop where he got a new seat post and he was on his way again. This could have been something very serious, even life threatening, and we thank God for protecting Jake from anything worse.

I expect that a lot of people will be “sagged” in today, that is, will be picked up by support vehicles. It is hot, windy, and hilly. The last 32 kms today is basically one very long and very gradual uphill with the wind in your face. Not fun.

So now we are in Dinosaur, Colorada. Yes, we crossed another border today (see below) and the first thing we saw was a liquor store, because Utah is a “dry” state –meaning you can’t buy liquor in stores but can only get it in bars, etc. We are also 2 miles away from Dinosaur National Park, but too tired to go there. Hope you enjoy the pictures below, especially my personal favorite of the day, my yellow taxi against the backdrop of the Utah hills. That’s it for today. I am done in….

Today’s stats:

Distance: 148.75 kms
Average speed: 22.5 kph
Maximum speed: 56.0 kph
Time in saddle: 6.36.15
# of flat tires: 6 (I had another while parked last night!)

4 comments:

tveldboom said...

Hey Bert,
Keep up the great work, and keep on bloggin. Can't wait to read your stories from the road each day. Thanks for the update on Pastor Jake, I've been wunderin how he's been doing and now we get an uo-oh story. Give him my best.

Godspeed, tv.
Terry Veldboom

Unknown said...

I know you don't know me...but Jake Kuipers is my uncle and I wanted to thank you for all your support! God has truly been watching over every rider on this trip as I have heard of more than a couple of falls since this saga began...I wish you all God's blessings and keep an extra eye on my uncle!
God's blessing to you all,
Donna Kuipers

John and Fran Slofstra said...

Hey Bert and Diane!

Great to hear that all is well with you. Judging from your writings, biking hasn’t always been easy but it’s great to see that you are continually up for the challenge. That’s my brother! Fran and I are proud of you both and continue to hold you in our thoughts and prayers. We look forward to reading your blog and always feel better knowing that you made it another day safe and sound. Give our love to Diane, as well. At the moment, we are about to leave San Francisco on our way further south. We’re having a great time but the weather is cool here on the coast (eat your heart out!). We’re looking forward to warmer days ahead. We love you both.

John and Fran

Anonymous said...

Hey Bert
THanks for the consistent blogging on this trip. I'm enjoying seeing the tour through your eyes. Please give Jake a big hug and tell him we're praying for him. We're so relieved he wasn't seriously hurt.

Gayla