It was another long, long day, and although tomorrow is another 100 mile day, the 2 days in a row of 182 kms+ that have long been in the back of our minds are now over, and we have survived. Not everyone was able to complete both days, but certainly the large majority did.
Today seemed longer than yesterday because I was on sweep. That means our sweep team had to help serve breakfast, clean up, then load the gear truck before we could leave. So we left close to 9 in the morning, which makes it feel like you are way behind right from the start. We rode with a group of 6 of us for the first 50 kms, but at that point we came across an older rider, Roland, with major tire trouble. So the group split up: the girls left, and the guys helped Roland out. Two of the girls that left are Heidi & Denise Bentum, who are pictured below in a photo that captures the kind of sights we saw all day long: lots of rolling hills and windmills everywhere.
When Roland’s problem was solved, we rode with 3 of us, but after a lunch stop (pizza and grapefruit juice) it was down to 2 of us, and about 30 kms later I was on my own, leap frogging other cyclists and being leapfrogged all along the way. I finally pulled in at 5:10 p.m., just in time to shower before supper. Supper was great as usual: potatoes, meatballs, carrots (with lots of butter and brown sugar - yum!), salad, butterscotch pudding shortcake (don’t ask, but it was good), along with ice cold milk and coffee to follow. We eat well here, so you don’t need to worry about that!
People in Iowa are probably the friendliest people we have met along the way. I was stopped several times by people alongside the road, asking what we were up to and genuinely interested in what we were doing. One lady who had no connection to Sea to Sea simply saw a bunch of cyclists who were working hard and decided to hand out big freezies at the side of the road to all who stopped (I did, as did most).
Right now we’re in the middle of a peloton meeting, and I am subtly using the time to write this blog. We are at a high school again, which means lots of showers (the narrow kind that threaten to strip your skin right off) and lots of camping space. Tomorrow is an exciting day because we’ll be meeting daughter Ada and son-in-law Andrew in the evening. Diane will go home with them tomorrow night already, and they’ll pick me up after the ride on Saturday. Tomorrow is also a memorable day for Diane and myself because it marks the anniversary of our first date, which happened on August 8 at the Abbotsford Airshow 38 years ago.
Today’s stats:
Distance: 182.46 kms
Average speed: 24.6 kph
Maximum speed: 49.3 kph
Time in saddle: 7.24.29
# of flat tires on tour: 6
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