Day 24, Halfway to D.C (DeSmet S.D.)

BEST: Assos Chamois Cream. (Assos is a Swiss company that started making bike clothes. Any connection between their name and where the cream is applied is purely coincidental.)

WORST: Hamburger in Miller was the worst I have ever had, and this morning I paid the price a second time. The burger was well done and chewy on one side, and nuclear wasted on the other.

MOST UNEXPECTED: DeSmet is the town where Laura Ingalls Wilder grew up and wrote the Little House on the Prairie series.

Sleeping in the Band room was very comfortable and nobody played the instruments last night. The ride was a flat 76 miles with a strong crosswind. There are very few (None) trees to block the winds. I understand there was some misunterstanding about the nature of the winds as to why the headwind didn't become a tailwind during the ride. While it is true the earth is round and if we kept circling the globe our travel would end up being a circle, we are traveling on this ride in primarily one direction, east, and so if there is a headwind at the start of the ride, it keeps going the whole time. We rode in a pace line of about seven riders, but after lunch and with the crosswind, we broke up into small groups. I think the other purpose of the crosswind was to try to blow us into the trucks that travel on the highway next to us at excessive speeds.

An observation, not a political statement: I am amazed at the amount of land we have traveled through which has the primary purpose of feeding livestock. Most of our riding for the last hundreds of miles has been through hayfields and cornfields whose purpose is to create feed for animals. There have been some wheatfields, but these have been the exception. The fields are as far as the eye can see, and in the plains, that is pretty darn far.

Everytime we pass cattle, I yell at them, and without fail, they will all stop what they are doing and stare at you as you ride by. Better than cow tipping, and much more safe.

At the end of the ride, we rode about a half mile past our final turn off and went to DQ for food. I had a basic hot dog (staying away from hamburger for a while) and a cherry shake. Really good recovery food.

We are staying at a City Park/campground which has lots of shade. Dinner tonight will be in town served up by the Chamber of Commerce. Note to Gus, I will race you to the barn when I get back. I wish you a speedy and complete recovery.