WORST: Trying to ride the bike after breakfast which was two eggs, bacon, two biscuits. I ordered the biscuits without gravy although the other riders did the gravy thing. It would have made me go back to Seattle if I had eaten that.
MOST UNEXPECTED: Seeing dinosaurs in somebody's back yard. (picture below)
Last night we had to ride our bikes from the high school we were staying at (picture show school and tents if you squint real hard) to downtown Townsend Falls to Minnies. All of us were already tired of riding our bikes, and although it was only about 1.5 miles in, a strong headwind made it seem like we were riding to Missoula a day early. Dinner was chicken fried steak smothered in gravy, a baked potato, and corn which was only about a year old from a can. I am not sure what is really in a chicken fried steak, but whatever the mystery meat was, I was hungry and wolfed it down. Dessert was the high point being blueberry sour cream pie freshly made that day.
Today was our first century ride, and I thought it was going to be a very long day. Yesterday's ride, while scenic, was not my best day on the bike, and I was feeling it in my legs. This morning I felt like krap, and I resolved to just keep moving. After about ten miles, my legs started actually working, and both my legs and spirits started soaring. I caught up to the first group (less one person who had gone gonzo ahead) at a rest stop, and jumped on the train exchanging pulls with a couple of other riders. Except for getting a little lost in Missoula trying to find the University of Montana campus, we did great. Dinner was across from our dorm (we are sharing rooms) and I walked into town for dessert at the Big Dipper Ice Creamery for Huckleberry ice cream. I am looking forward to a good nights rest in a bed with sheets in a room without a train whistle. I hope my room mate doesn't snore too loud.
I did my laundry today downstairs in the dorm basement for free, and noticed one of our younger riders decided his tent was dirty, so he threw it in the washing machine. As a heads up, laundering a tent is not a good idea as the waterproofing kind of goes away.
The Big Ride is hard! Riders are suffering from rashes, foot problems, hand numbness, hurting seat bones, sunburns, knee issues, and the rider who crashed on the first day and broke her thumb. She is currently having surgery and will be rejoining the ride later in Montana. I continue to have sore sitbones and beat up hands, but the good news is that my back and feet so far are holding up. Tomorrow is a day off although we are meeting with the Mayor of Missoula and the President of the American Lung Association for publicity and ice cream. I hope the ice cream is from the Big Dipper.
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