Some days never go right

I had been flat free until today. I pumped up the tires as usual, but ruined the valve on the front tire. It was a good thing I was out there early as I was able to repair it and still have breakfast with 10 minutes to spare.

The first part of the ride was nearly completely on a bike path. Lots of turns and stop signs, which we barely slowed down for. I felt like an outlaw as I stop for all of them at home. After the first SAG, we were on roads for 4.5 miles. John and I were supposed to get back on a bike path which we did not see. This path would have taken us another 20 miles to the second SAG. Instead, we rode the next 20 miles on the highway with no shoulder to the second SAG. Once again I felt like an outlaw as I am off route and I wait for 10 miles to phone it in. As I am making the call, here comes Jeff in the van. He stops up the road at a gas station and I further explain the situation. No big deal, he says. My conscience is cleared! Because of near dire warnings of long descents with grades up to 15 percent and lingering thoughts of poor Rollie crashing earlier on a big descent, I elected to take the car in to the hotel from the second SAG. I could have handled the first one with ease as it turned out. The second was questionable not due to its technical merits but it was truly steep at 15 percent and the road condition was good only in the center. Not my cup of tea. After waiting around for what seemed forever, I took the car to the bottom of this descent with the intention of riding from there to the hotel. Staff dropped me off and lo and behold, I had a second flat, this time in the second tire. I had picked up a 1/2 inch tire wire that penetrated my tire liner. No big deal. I had the tire off and new tube in within 5 minutes. Wait! Where is my pump? Oh, it is in the car still as I had to take it off to put on the bike rack and neglected to take it out. Oops! Of course, there is so much stuff in this car that finding anything is a true miracle.

Here comes Kathleen and she has a pump! Wait! No air is going in the tire. Oops again! (and some other thoughts not expressed). I am thinking that it is really not my day. I am out of tubes. I call Pam and she comes to pick me up but we have to wait for the last riders to clear which takes another hour. By this time, I have not been riding for nearly 5 hours. Upon reaching the hotel, I examined the tube and the hole was in an unusual spot. I remembered stepping on the tube while trying to change it in a rock gravel driveway. Live and learn. By the time I get a new tube in and clean the bike from 10 minutes of light rain, it is 5:20. I have not showered and it is only 25 minutes until route rap and dinner (which was a wonderful catered affair).

Well it is all an adventure I told myself. I very much know this from previous rides and take it in stride. More steep drops tomorrow according to the route profile, but I will just ride down them.

Today's route was to Galena, near the Illinois-Wisconsin border. Old town looked quite interesting with many shops and plenty of Memorial Day tourists. The town is the birthplace of Ulysses S. Grant.

Partial day's stats: 54.4 miles out of 93; 15.3 miles; 760 feet of climbing. I missed 2000 feet of climbing in the last 39 miles.
Highlight of the day: Retaining a sense of humor (as I hope my dear readers can see).

A day to think

We had a relatively late start at 8 today and it seemed to be 80 degrees already. John and I rode together for the first 10 miles or so. Pam came up on John's wheel very fast and John moved in front of me. I think that Pam must have seen it as a challenge and she passed John. John was having none of it and they were off to the races at about 27 mph and settled into a cruise pace of 24 for a few miles. Pam is on the staff and she always rides sweep. After a few exhilarating miles, she turned around and went back to the sweep position. We had no idea that she was that fast. Of course, every ABB staff member is quite quick.

John continued on at a strong pace. I rode the rest of the day by myself. The SAG was in the small town of Viola. That was my mother's name and she was born just 125 miles from there. So I had in my mind that the town was named after her. Of course, that is a complete fiction. But giving some extended thoughts to my parents was comforting today. Anyway, riding by myself gave me time to think about something else besides switching position with John and keeping off his wheel when he is in front. With 5 riding days to go, thoughts are turning to home and post-ride plans.

The day was unremarkable in scenery. It was the usual cornfields on both sides of the road until the SAG. As I looked down the road from the SAG, I could see trees and rolling hills. So there were no more cornfields. The last 6 miles to the hotel were on a bike path along the river. After seeing much commercial traffic on the river, I saw recreational use on it the last 2 days. Today there were some cabin cruiser type boats moving along and yesterday I witnessed someone fishing from a boat in the river. There were plenty of idle industrial plants along the river. Our hotel tonight in Moline is the Stoney Creek Inn and is the nicest of the trip. The area around the hotel looks largely redeveloped and is quite nice. We saw many cyclists along the path, mostly casual riders out for a Sunday stroll. It was probably the largest number of other riders we have seen other than for the race in St. Genevieve last weekend.

In answer to Ira's comment yesterday about chocolate milk, I did have one yesterday at the second SAG. 13.5 ounces went down without taking my lips off the bottle. It was very tasty. My preferred recovery drink after a long day is V8 juice. It is richer in sodium and potassium. I bought a 46 ounce bottle yesterday after my lunch and consumed about 40 ounces of it by departure this morning. I find it to be a good preparation drink on these hot and humid days. I frequently buy a small bottle at a gas station along the way.

Day's stats: 59.8 miles; 16.5 mph; climbing unknown.

A whole lot of shaking going on

Today's ride was 97 miles. The temperature at the start was quite pleasant in the low 60s. One rider said he was tempted to go back to the start and get his jacket. We rode in the shade of the bluffs and trees for most of the first 14 miles to Nauvoo, IL. Nauvoo was the site where Joseph Smith led his original followers of the Latter Day Saints religion (Mormons). The historic Nauvoo contains many nice buildings. Fred said that they date to the 1830s and 1840s when Smith and his followers lived in Nauvoo. Smith is buried in Nauvoo having been martyred for his beliefs. A modern Mormon temple was constructed from 1999 to 2002 and stands on the site of the original temple. The original temple was destroyed by fire in the 1840s.

After leaving Nauvoo, we were in open territory for the remainder of the day. It was corn field after corn field. Corn is definitely king in Illinois. Nothing else was planted as far as I could tell. The soil is a dark black, much unlike the reddish clay soil of home.

The day became gradually warmer and we pressed on to the hotel arriving just before 2. At approximately 10 miles from the hotel, we made a turn onto a recently roto-milled road. This is a road that has been stripped of most of its asphalt surface in preparation for resurfacing. As all drivers know, such a road is quite bumpy. Imagine a force on the bicycle and its rider that is many-fold the discomfort. You are holding on for dear life and hope that you are not dislodged from the trusty bike into the path of a car. Most of the cars gave us a wide berth, although one came quite unnecessarily close. We were on this surface for approximately 4 miles. I could not read my bike computer as everything was jostled. We had to look far down the road to avoid a hypnotic state of looking at the grooves on the road immediately in front of the bike. Looking at the immediate road was very disconcerting. At one point I entered a large parking lot and entered back onto the roadway some 100 meters further saving some shaking.

We are spending the night perhaps as from the Mississippi River as will happen on the ride.

Day's stats: 96.8 miles, 15.5 mph, 2520 feet climbing.

Highlight of the day: A cool morning start and a fine sandwich and lemonade at the end of the ride.

In Keokuk Iowa

We traveled across the Mississippi twice today. Once leaving Hannibal and into Illinois, the second leaving Illinois and into Keokuk, Iowa. We are only 1/2 mile into Iowa and will turn around tomorrow and go back into Illinois.

I have had a recurring dream since I retired that I go back to work for the State of Colorado and can never leave. The nightmare of the dream is that I lose a portion of my pension benefits. I had the dream again last night and I finally was able to escape working for the state. Maybe I will never have this dream again. My synopsis of the dream is that I also wanted badly to escape the hotel we stayed in. I am usually the last one to have my gear to the lobby in the morning. Today I was 25 minutes early.

When we arrived in the outskirts of Quincy after 22 miles, there was a large opening to a cave with very frigid air pouring from it. It was an underground warehouseing storage place. Trucks were coming and going. It was carved from the limestone bluffs and covered nearly 11 acres inside. The year-round ambient temperature is 55 degrees and the warehouse contains refrigerator and freezer units. The air temp seemed much cooler to us as we passed by and seemed to linger for another quarter mile. We did not go into Quincy at all; I was hoping to see the mansions there.

We had a vicious hill after a turn at 44 miles. We were warned to gear down in advance because the grade rose to 14 percent. It seemed almost immediate. On an earlier tour, one rider fell over for lack of preparation for the hill. It was the most difficult hill yet.

Keokuk has a lock and dam system near the hotel. The original lock was constructed nearly 100 years ago. The current one was built from 1952 to 1957. It is 1200 feet long and 110 feet wide. It has a rise of 38 feet. As Rosy, Jordan, and I were having lunch at a restaurant with a river overlook, we saw a tug pushing several barges toward the lock. We walked to the lock after lunch. The river vehicles were in the lock and the water was rising quickly. It takes 20 minutes for the lock to fill and the tug/barges to proceed from there.

There are two unusual bikes on the tour. John owns a Moulton touring bike. It is quite small and has a dual suspension to it. Everyone crowded around his bike when we were in New Orleans. He uses it to commute to the University of Hawaii. The wheels are 20 inches versus the 27 that most ride. Keith owns an ICE Trice QNT trike. He can really move on it and can overtake most of us on the steep uphill climbs. One rider remarked that he was officially old when Keith passed him on our long hill on the way into St Louis.

Day's stats: 64.6 miles, 15.9 mph, 1679 feet climbing.

In Mark Twain's boyhood hometown

After yesterday's long ride, the order of the day was to take today easy for the most part. This was particularly the case after one of the riders was sick all night and morning and worshipped the white porcelain object in the bathroom. Not sure if it was food poisoning or lingering heat exhaustion and electrolyte imbalances. Better safe than sorry though as our immune systems are undoubtedly taxed by the riding, heat, and humidity.

Our ride for today was once again rerouted. Apparently the road we were supposed to go on was destroyed in a big rainstorm a few years ago and has not been repaired. The road just slid down the hillside. This is another sign of the fiscal problems that governments face: too few dollars chasing too many needs. The new route was on pleasant enough rural roads for the most part. We were on Highway 61 for 3+ miles and it was much busier than in the South. It reminded me of the interstate riding with many semis booming by.

Our SAG was in front of the Ralls County Courthouse in the town of New London. The town newspaper was across the street and a reporter came out to take our picture. The county assessor came out to greet us and give us a little history of the town. I chatted with him about his job and my background with Colorado's county assessors. His problems are no different than for assessors in Colorado.

Lots of rolling hills today. One of the pictures shows four rollers over the next 1 1/4 miles. This road was roughly surfaced so we were reluctant to gather speed down the hills. The rollers after the SAG were on smooth roads so we could let it go down those hills. There were 4 sections that had been freshly oiled and chipped sealed. The first one came up abruptly and we were scrambling to slow down and not hit each other as we found our way through it.

We are in Hannibal, MO tonight. As it was just a short ride of 41 miles, we had plenty of time to explore the area where Mark Twain grew up and had the experiences that led to the publication of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn. Staff kindly provided shuttle rides to the area about 2 miles distant from our lodging for the night.

This place of rest for the evening almost makes last night's stay look like a four-star hotel. We were notified at the SAG that the planned hotel was in a remodelling phase and could not accomodate us. The tour company's worldwide headquarters made apparent last-minute arrangements for this bombed-out looking place and would not upgrade us to a nationally- branded motel across the street. Of course, perhaps they could not accomodate us for the evening.

Highlight of the day: Blasting down rollers and steaming up the other side for as long as possible.

Day's stats: 41.4 miles; 14.1 mph; 2017 feet climbing.

Pictures: Group picture L-R Tom, Bill, John, Pixie, and Keith; Tom in front of Tom Sawyer's white-washed picket fence; rollers.

Back in Louisiana

Well, not the state of Louisiana. It is the city of Louisiana, Missouri. We rode over the bridge back into Missouri after spending most of the day in Illinois. We are staying at the River's Edge Motel, a pitching wedge from the Mississippi River. I think this was the only motel for the 106 miles from St Louis, otherwise we would not be staying in this very low budget place.

The river bike path was flooded just at the Arch heading out of St Louis. The company re-routed us out of town and we were on the levee bike soon enough. We were on it for all but about 4 miles to the first SAG at mile 27. We had a good view of the river and saw the first lock operation on the river. They will be more common in upcoming days. I did not stay to examine them as when you are riding in heat and have to cover 106 miles, you must move right along.

We were able to cross the Mississippi River into Illinois at mile 12 over the old Route 66 road. This bridge is now only for bikes and pedestrians. Some old route 66 memorabilia was placed on the bridge. A mural was on the wall commemorating the old road (see picture). There were what appeared to be old pilot houses in the river (see picture).

We had our first ferry ride today. The ferry was there when we arrived at it, but we had to wait while it was being gassed up. I like getting off a ferry because there are no cars after for a long while. At 60 miles we had covered 1000 feet in climbing. Over the next 20 miles, we covered just over another 1000 feet of climbing, including a couple of hills with a brief 15 percent grade on them.

I was pleased to make the whole distance today because I was doubtful on Monday. My head cold did not bother me too much but the allergies really cropped up with 25 miles to go. My eyes were very red.

Day's statistics: 106.7 miles, 15.2 mph, 2431 feet climbing.

Highlight of the day: John Hicks: riding along the Mississippi; John W., Ron, and I agree on the Old Chain of Rocks bridge. We are all sitting outside for Internet connectivity.

Rest day in St Louis

Today was our last rest day of the tour. We have ten days of riding ahead of us. I am feeling much better today.

I limited my activities today. I walked to the waterfront to see that the bike path is flooded. Staff has rerouted the way out of town tomorrow so that we can avoid the flooded spots. The alternate route will be on a road with a wide bike lane. We will have plenty of riding along the river tomorrow which is good since we see it rarely while riding.

I went to the museum at the base of the Gateway Arch and took in a movie about its construction. It was very complicated to build. Amazingly, not one life was lost despite working so far above the ground. There was less emphasis on safety then as men were working without harnesses or helmets in many cases. The arch is a memorial to the departure of Lewis and Clark to explore the West. It is 630 feet wide and has the same dimension to its peak. It is quite spectacular to behold.

Pictures: River right up to the path; Old Courthouse framed by the arch. The courthouse was the site of the first Dred Scott decisions which helped precipitate the Civil War.

St Louis

Today was another 3 H day, with 50 percent more climbing and a few more miles than yesterday. Because of the trying effort in Sunday's heat and humidity, the riders asked if we could leave at 6 this morning. The sun was barely over the horizon. Fog shrouded low-lying areas. To point out how humid it was, my mirror attached to my glasses fogged over. John and I are 2 of 4 riders who wear a Camelbak. We really feel the need for it as just 2 water bottles on the bike are just not enough to make it in this type of weather. After 1.3 miles, John realized that he left his Camelbak in the room. He told me to go on and he reversed course to retrieve the Camelbak. He wanted to catch up to me and worked very hard to the first SAG at 37 miles. He did not quite make it as I beat him there by about 5 minutes.

Today's SAG stops were at open stores and I took advantage to buy real Gatorade, rather than use the powder provided by the company. I also grabbed a V8 juice, rich in potassium and sodium, at the first stop and a Naked Juice, rich in potassium and antioxidants at the second. All together I drank approximately 160 ounces of water, 80 ounces of Gatorade, and the extras at the SAG stop. When I arrived at the hotel, I had 3 tall glasses of water and a lemonade. I needed it all with the high heat index of 94 today.

We had a very difficult climb at 51 miles. I am not sure how long it was, some argued only 1 mile, others 2 miles. The average grade was 8.3 percent on this hill. My speed was high 5 and low 6 mph. Seven of us started relatively close together at the bottom. I was the first to the top, though Jordan was faster. The last 22 miles into town were urban riding. We had only 2 turns to make at the beginning and then a long straight shot all the way to the hotel. One of St. Louis's finest officers cut me off at an intersection, turning right in front of me without a signal or using his siren lights. I was quite perturbed and Gerard gave him the what for with a hand signal (not the bird).

The triage has continued the past 2 days. At dinner last night, Bill had cramps through his entire body and was chilled. The emergency room was just 2 blocks away and he went in for an IV drip with electrolytes. He did not ride today but is cleared for Wednesday. HJ crashed today and sustained a broken wrist. His ride is over though he plans to stick with the tour for a couple of days. On the positive, side we pick up another rider for the remainder of the journey. Her name is Pixie and shares the same last name as John -- Hicks. John is beside himself to meet her. We have 105 miles on Wednesday and the heat index will be just as high. I do not think that I will ride all day as today wiped me out. I have either a cold or severe allergies and it is affecting me.

Today's stats: 84.3 miles, 15.0 mph, 4450 feet climbing.

Highlight of the day: Hearing that Gerard and Fred climbed into a cool stream and laid for 5 minutes. Wish I had done that but I was in front of them. Seeing the downtown skyline for the first time.

Pictures: Gerard looking spent at the top of the long, steep climb; Rosy looking her usual cheerful self; the route for today.

A 3-H day

I would like to give a shout out to my former XC friends, particularly those from 2009. I wish that you were here. Hopefully, you are getting a flavor for this ride from my commentaries. I woke this morning and remembered our friend Charlie who passed away 52 weeks ago in Santa Fe.

We had heat, humidity, and hills today. We were dripping wet after just a few miles. The temperature was 93 at the finish, and we had 3,053 feet of climbing, most of which was in the first 44 miles. At 44 miles we descended into the fertile river valley plains of the Mississippi. Not much was growing yet. A resident told us that they had temperatures in the 30s last week so they plant later here than in the southern states we started the ride in.

Until the last few miles into town today, there was very little traffic on the roads. We had one ten mile stretch with not a single car passing us. The busiest part of the morning was the rush hour traffic of people leaving church. We passed a church where the number of cars in the parking lot seemed to outnumber the listed population on the town sign. Of course, they come into church from the surrounding towns and unincorporated areas.

As we got 10 miles from our destination today, a sign announced that a bike race was in progress. They were riding 70 miles, the same as our mileage today. They did not look any faster than us. However, they were riding into a headwind, while we had tailwinds again today. Fortunately, I might add, as the one turn we made into the headwind dropped us to 13 mph. One large group asked how far ahead the leaders were. John told them 10 minutes which seemed to take their hopes away. I thought the lead was closer to 15 minutes (7.5 minutes since we had seen them) since the lead vehicle with a group of four riders behind it had gone by. Of course, it is hard to tell who is who on the road as they are several categories of riders on the road. I felt sorry for the lone individuals fighting it out on the road.

We passed the half-way point today at roughly 870 miles. Staff was present to take our picture and the accomplishment was marked in chalk on the road. It is one day to an off day in St. Louis.

St. Genevieve is an historic town dating to the late 1740s. The first white settlers were French Canadians who farmed the rich soil and mined salt and lead. The French influence remains today as there was a section of the old section of the city named the French Quarter.

Today's statistics: 72.6 miles; 16.0 mph into town, then slowed to 15.4 average as we dawdled about checking out old town and a place for lunch; 3053 feet of climbing.

Daily highlight: Rolling and beautiful hills of Missouri, reminding me of Chillicothe to Kirksville MO on the XC ride.

A Four-State Day

Yes, we were in four states today. We left Tennessee this morning and crossed into Kentucky at 8.8 miles. After approximately 52 miles, we crossed the Ohio River and into Illinois. However, this crossing was via a van shuttle. The bridge across the river is barely wide enough to accommodate two vehicles, let alone a bike in the road. We had a couple of motorcyclists volunteer to form a rear blockade for us, but I politely declined. There would have been many irate motorists behind. We were dropped in Cairo, IL, a once bustling town that now looks like a ghost town along its main street. Not only were most businesses closed, but a good many 19th and early 20th century homes were boarded up. We were warned not to linger as the local residents can be quite rough. We barely saw any though. We crossed the Mississippi River at mile 87. This bridge had a very wide shoulder and I stayed on the bridge for 20 minutes taking pictures.

The first SAG stop was in Columbus KY. After a devastating flood in 1927, the town was relocated 1 mile east of the river. It was the first time that an entire town was moved. We traveled to the river to see the sights. The east side was high on a bluff over the river and it was unimaginable that the river rose high enough to flood the town. The west side was much lower and I could easily see that it would flood.

The picture of the tugboat has 35 barges in front of it. The barges are lashed together. Last night I read in "Life on the Mississippi" that an experienced river boat pilot made $250 per month in the 1870s. That was virtually a small fortune at the time. The skill to push 35 barges at a time up the river must be immense and I imagine that today's wages must recompense the pilot quite well. The river has many sand bars and shoals. It is changing all the time. The current is quite swift now, as it is above flood stage, and you can see logs and branches floating in the river. Technology has undoubtedly made piloting easier than back in the bad old days, but I can see where it is still very challenging.

The bicyclist in the picture with the cannon is Jerry Griswold. He is by far the most experienced touring cyclist I will ever know. He has made well over a hundred trips. He has cycled in one SE Asian country (Thailand I think) 60 times. He has blogged his trips since 2005. The current trip already has more than 2,000 visits and two of his blogs have more than 24,000 visits. He is a very strong rider.

Our injured cyclist from two days ago stopped by the hotel this afternoon to retrieve his bike and belongings. I helped load his bike into his car and it seemed to not have a scratch on it. Despite his many facial cuts, Rollie was in a good mood. The helmet was in a bag and one of the riders said it was in pieces. It saved his life. So everyone out there, wear your helmet all the time. It was good to see him and I wish him well. The trip from his hometown to Ripley, TN is 658 miles.

Today's stats: 89 miles, 17.5 mph through mile 49 and the shuttle (I left the Garmin on during the shuttle to maintain cue sheet accuracy so end of day average speed is not accurate), 2183 feet climbing.

Highlight of the day. Crossing the Mississippi River.

Three days summary

Could not provide info on Thursday as the computer would not connect in the hotel. The day off in Memphis was filled with sightseeing. On Tuesday night, we wandered into the Rum Boogie Cafe on Beale street. This establishment is the oldest restaurant and bar in Memphis. Some excellent blues sounds drew us in. Unfortunately, we only heard two songs, though very good, until the band took a break. The cigarette smoke drove us out after one beer.

On Wednesday, we went to the National Civil Rights Museum. It was excellent. The location was at the Lorraine Motel where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in 1968. I was a senior in high school when it happened. The weekly assignment in English class was to write about a famous person. The work was due on Friday and Dr. King was killed on Thursday night as I recall. I chose Dr. King as my subject. The grader gave me an A grade. However, the teacher used a poor tone of voice when he told me that Dr. King was not an appropriate subject. I hope that his attitude has changed over the years. I toured Mud Island, a historical review of points of interest along the Mississippi River.

It started to rain as we left Memphis. It was not a good omen as 1 to 3 inches of rain was forecast. It stopped in 1/4 mile and we had only one brief shower the rest of the day. We were warned of a dangerous downhill. As I went down the hill, I saw one of our riders down on the pavement and two others running back uphill. For me, it happened in the blink of an eye. Rollie had serious facial lacerations and went to the hospital for care. His ride is over and his wife drove from Iowa to get him today. My speed down this hill was 35 mph and I was fortunate to maneuver around the crash. I stopped to call 911 at the bottom, but cell phone service was nonexistent. I spoke with a man coming out of a driveway and warned him of the accident. He told me that 4 motorcyclists have crashed and died on the hill. It brings home the dangers of cycling. We were extra careful the rest of the day and today on any downhill that we could not see the bottom for.

John Hicks is a big dog! Big dog refers to a top notch cyclist. This area is filled with many, many porch dogs and they defend their territory. Several of us were riding together when a pack of dogs took off after the lead riders. John let out a big scary sound after a spirited chase. This sound sent the dogs off the scent. We employed the technique today after my dog whispering technique failed. Between miles 7 and 12 today, we had over 20 dogs giving chase, including a German shepherd that had designs on my calf. Later in the ride, we had several more. The dog chases are supposed to stop after St. Louis, 3 days hence.

Friday's scenery was spectacular. We were riding along Oak Ridge Rd. amidst oaks and big towering pine trees. The scent was wonderful. We thought that it might rain, but it held off and the clouds disappeared. I missed a turn finally. My mirror on the glasses was coming loose and I fiddled with it before stopping to put it on securely. I saw the street sign we were supposed to be on and it seemed to be pointing in the direction we were heading. However, many signs in these parts are turned askew. I stopped for directions and the local resident told me that we were only 3 miles from the hotel. We cut off nearly 4 miles following his directions instead of following the cue sheet.

Observations on the south: People are huge. Mississippi is the most obese state in the country. Tennessee is fourth, Louisiana is 8th. My state of Colorado is the least obese. So to see all these really huge people is disappointing. I am a fan of the Biggest Loser TV program, solely to watch people succeed at becoming healthier. There are millions of candidates in the South. People are friendly here. I love listening to the southern drawl. Most of the people along the road do wave back. I try to wave to all or say hello.

Statistics:

Thursday: 79.7 miles, 15.6 mph, 2345 feet climbing.

Friday: 66.7 miles, 17.0 mph, 1950 feet climbing.

Saturday forecast: 90 degrees, less wind, 86 miles, flooded river so no ferry crossing, but a six mile shuttle over a Mississippi River bridge. It will be our first time on the west side of the river.

Rest day at last

First, it was a restless night in Senatobia. The interstate truck traffic buzzed on all night long. I did manage to get in 7 hours of sleep, but needed more.

We entered Memphis today after a 64 mile ride. I think that the last 14 miles were on Memphis roads. The thought of the day was from HJ who said that we should all receive a button reading "I survived Elvis Presley Blvd." When we reached it, Graceland was 1/4 mile to our left. The directions to the hotel were to the right. Several of us turned left to see Graceland. You can only go on the grounds of Elvis's house on a bus tour. None of us elected to do that but we did brush by the souvenir shop and some other kitschy stuff. There was quite a crowd there for early in the tourist season. John and I took a few pics and then headed down Elvis Blvd, a six-lane and then four-lane road with no shoulder most of the time and many potholes. At least the motorists were courteous and gave us a wide berth.

Further back on the route, we were under the flight path of jet planes going into Memphis International Airport. I could see the flaps drop as they approached the airport. We had been seeing planes on approach and takeoff for many miles before that. When one jet seemed to be just above our heads, I yelled out "Duck!". Not sure if any of the other 5 riders heard me, but I thought it was amusing.

The housing quality improved immensely as we rode through the Memphis countryside. The proximity of good-paying jobs in Memphis fuels the construction of a great many very large homes. No dogs to speak of today. There were two outside of Senatobia raising a ruckus but they never left their property. I was passing Kathleen and KimMarie at the time and they were thankful for me running a blockade. Truth is that I had not seen the dogs, but I would have blocked the dogs had I seen them.

Our hotel is in downtown Memphis and has close proximity to many attractions which I intend to see during the remainder of today and tomorrow. I will not post again until Thursday.

Days stats: 64.2 miles, 14.9 mph, 2200 feet climbing (700 was advertised for today). The headwinds were strong today and 14 miles of city traffic slowed us quite a bit.

Highlights of the day: Seeing a church named Mount Calm and a cemetery on the hill next to the church. Thinking about what else Graceland means to me.

Departing riders

Four riders will leave after Tuesday's ride into Memphis. Mark and Charlie will complete their journey along the Mississippi River and Valley after four years of riding it in various stages. Their previous rides were more or less self supported. Mark had his first century on Saturday. They are friends from Minnesota.

Lu and KimMarie are two of the strongest riders in this group, although they have shown a very relaxed, but proper, attitude. Lu did this tour to cross off Mississippi as the 49th state she has bicycled in and will notch the 50th, North Dakota, in the summer. KimMarie will do the Tour of Colorado this summer. Both have been ambitious in bike touring over the years. I enjoyed these riders' company and we will all miss them.

I finally got a good night's sleep last night. John has been snoring from the time he goes to sleep until the time he wakes up. All I could do was lay there and look across the room hoping that he would stop. Last night, I gave him a big smacking kiss and wished him a good night. He lay awake all night looking at me across the room and I slept like a baby! I should have done this with Rich last summer.

Hope you are LOL as it is an apocryphal story.

Rest for the weary

We are in Senatobia, MS, tonight after a ride of 62 miles. Senatobia is derived from the Indian word Senatohoba, meaning White Sycamore, a symbol of rest for the weary. There are 19 more weary souls in town tonight, although it remains to be seen how much rest we get as the hotel is less than 100 yards from rumbling trucks on Interstate-55.

Mississippi has the lowest median household income in the country. We saw some indications of its poverty today as we left Clarksdale. There were some very small homes, not larger than my hotel room tonight, and looking quite dilapidated.

We have not had rain while riding, although there was rain in the afternoons over the weekend. Sunday's storm was strong in Clarksdale and evidently quite stronger further north. Several ag fields were flooded. I saw one farmer looking to see if his newly planted field had survived. Several homes that were lower than the road had standing water up to the porches. Their residents were standing on the porches and I commented that it must have been bad last night and they confirmed it.

After pacelining with Gerard and John to the SAG averaging 17.7 mph, I took it easy for the next 12 miles. Upon hitting some rolling hills, I wanted to exercise the climbing legs and took off again. I came on a very rough road with a sign that said road work ahead. There was a bridge under repair after the rough road. Nonetheless, the rough road really worked me over as it did the other riders. Jeff said it was an improvement over two years ago.

Today's dog story--One gave chase to Gerard and I. We were ahead of it when we heard a big thunk. The dog was so intent on us that it ran right smack into an empty trash can on the side of the road. Gerard turned to see the can wobbling. We had a good laugh.

We saw some kudzu formations. Kudzu is a vine introduced to the US from Asia in 1876. It is known as "the vine that ate the South." It is advancing like Sherman's army and the March to the Sea through the south. It can grow a foot a day under ideal conditions. It will overtake anything it grows on, yielding sometimes weird-looking topiary figures. It has now been found in Canada and in Oregon.

Pictures: Flooded field, kudzu formation, and Astana's Contador leading me up the hill to catch other riders. Actually it is the great French rider Gerard Boisse, staff member on the tour.

Highlight of the day: I was passing a Methodist Church in Senatobia when the noon hour came. The church bells were ringing, playing familiar hymns. I stopped and listened for a couple of minutes. Thinking it was over, I left. It started again and I could still hear the bells ringing a quarter mile down the road. Now that was some rest for the weary.

Day's stats: 62.2 miles, 16.4 mph, 955 feet climbing, 700 feet plus after the 41 mile point.

I got the Mississippi blues

Not much happened today. Typical empty roads on a Sunday morning. It was mile after mile of corn and soybean fields with an occasional rice field thrown in. I think I have seen rice fields only one other time, near Sacramento. We could see the levee for the river in the distance at times but we do not get too close to it.

We traveled through Rosedale. It looked like a nice town. I thought of Eric Clapton's and Cream's lyrics mentioning Rosedale. I loved the song Crossroads and heard it for the first time when I was in high school, oh so long ago. It stayed on my mind the rest of the day, knowing that Mississippi is the birthplace of the blues and that Eric Clapton used alot of the old bluesmens' lyrics. So here it is:

I went down to the crossroads, fell down on my knees,
down to the crossroads, fell down on my knees,
Asked the Lord above for mercy, "Save me if you please",
I went down to the Crossroads, tried to flag a ride,
Down to the Crossroads, tried to flag a ride,
Nobody seemed to know, everybody passed me by,
Well I'm going down to Rosedale, take my rider by my side,
Going down to Rosedale, take my rider by my side...

Two ironic things: mention of Crossroads and rider.

Robert Johnson was the author of the lyrics and Cream used them in their song. Robert Johnson allegedly sold his soul to the devil in exchange for receiving musical talents. This took place in Rosedale. There was a sign in Rosedale referring to the town and the blues. There is a blues museum in Clarksdale where we are staying tonight. Several of us looked forward to going to it, but alas it is closed on Sundays. The sale of his soul to the devil is referred to in the Coen Brothers movie "Oh Brother, where art thou". My bible study Bohemian brethern refer to this movie often and I think that we have a sung a song or two from the movie in our fellowship on Friday mornings.

We had our first dog encounters today. My friend Doc told me that if you yell "Get off the couch", it will stop a dog in its tracks. It worked like a charm the first time. The second encounter was with dogs that looked like pit bulls. The larger one was tied to a chain the size of my forearm. I thought I was home free on that one, but Nathan soon yelled that the second was chasing and I used my Tyler Farrar sprinting prowess (LOL) to escape. The third encounter took 3 of us yelling at the top of our lungs to stop them from chasing. I had goosebumps after that chase. Another dog encounter was with some abandoned puppies in the middle of the road. One of the forward riders saw them crawl out of a box. Sad, but there was nothing to do as we were in the middle of nowhere. Hopefully, a driver picked them up.

Day's stats: 83.1 miles, 17.2 mph, 450 feet climbing.

Cheers,

Tom

The first century

For some of my former work colleagues, the first century does NOT refer to my birth year. I should have sued for age discrimination, but the statute of limitations has probably passed.

A century is a ride of 100 miles or longer. John and I fairly well flew through it. We were the second and third ones to the hotel. KimMarie beat us by one-half hour, the only time that a woman has been first to the hotel on our many trips. Well done, KimMarie! Gerard joined us in a paceline to the first SAG and we were averaging over 2o mph for a long time. As always, the first few miles through and out of town slows the overall average for the day. We climbed 400+ feet in the first 15 miles and then it was virtually flat. We passed the turnoff for Yazoo City, site of a vicious tornado 3 weeks ago, early on and passed over the Yazoo river. The river was still in a flood stage. The tornado's path of destruction extended well before Yazoo City. I looked for signs of it, but did not spot any.

At home in Colorado, we say that corn should be knee high by the Fourth of July. In many fields here in Mississippi, it is already chest high. Hard to believe! It may not be out of the ground at home yet. There are many fields of soybeans as well. This is cotton country as well, but I am told it is just being planted. I do not know what it would look like should I see it at an early stage. We also saw our first fields of wheat. I did see a few crop duster planes.

We are in Greenville, MS tonight. I asked at the restaurant for their famous personages. Our waitress did not know of anyone, but another server volunteered Jerry Rice and said that BB King grew up just 15 miles away. He tipped us to Beale St in Memphis for blues which I had already planned on scoping out on our rest day next week

Days stats: 101.1 miles, 18.2 mph, 865 feet climbing. We might not have made the century but for a missed turn at mile 75 and also passing the last turn for the hotel by a small bit. The cue sheet said that the turn was still one mile ahead but we had just passed the main drag through town and my intuition told me that the hotel had to be on the main drag. Many riders kept on going.

The Natchez Trace Parkway

Today's ride had nearly 50 miles of riding on the Natchez Trace Parkway. I cannot imagine that the riding will get any better than this. The road was as smooth as glass the entire way with no road debris at all and very little traffic. The entire Parkway is 444 miles and is used as a bicycle tour for its entire length. I would return to do the whole thing at some point, although the logistics would be more difficult as there is no commercial operations on its length. The scenery was spectacular. The Old Natchez Trace was a trail used by Indian tribes and connected the Mississsippi, Cumberland, and Tennessee rivers. It was later used by early European explorers in the late 1700s and early 1800s. In some places, their wagons and carts formed a depression in the ground up to 20 feet deep. Many travelers would travel south on the Mississippi River and return overland via the Trace. There were several signboards explaining the history of the Trace and some of its features. A couple of photos show these explanations.

It was a shame to leave the parkway. We had light traffic to start and then very heavy traffic into Vicksburg. Some drivers were quite impatient. After walking through a detour, I saw the house that had a dream view. It was on the corner at the end of the detour. Two sides were all glass and framed a magnificent view of the river.

Day's stats: 91.9 miles, 15.9 mph, 2635 feet climbing.

Seeing hills now

The easy flat days are behind us now. The heat and humidity are not. The hills were gentle rollers but added up to 1700 feet. Because of road construction that restricted HWy 61 to 2 lanes with no shoulder, all bikes were loaded onto the vans and shuttled to 4.5 miles from the hotel in two trips. After a few miles we got onto some very quiet back country roads. The LA roads were just fine, but the Mississippi roads were horrendous. I think they have been paved just once with about a million patch jobs. Six of us stopped at the state line for a picture. There was no sign, just a change in pavement to mark the change. After a few miles we were back on Highway 61 and its best road conditions. We flew down the road. Our hotel was not ready for us for another couple of hours and John, Kathleen, KimMarie and I went off for some lunch. We had an enjoyable conversation and I discovered that KimMarie is also an economist. She teaches at the University of Richmond.

Day's stats: 61.1 miles, 18.0 mph, 1735 feet climbing.

A side note to yesterday. We went past the state government complex in Baton Rouge. I took a photo of a building I thought was the state capitol building. It looked like a castle. Further up the road, there was a sign for the state capitol. On researching it at the hotel, I discovered the photo was of the Old State Capitol building. Here is what Mark Twain said of it: "It is pathetic that a whitewashed castle, with turrets and things, should ever have been built in this otherwise honorable place." It did seem an odd building and I tend to agree with Mr. Twain. But I did think that the current state capitol was not much of an improvement.

Riding the wind

The wind has been favorable thus far. We averaged 18.7 mph until Baton Rouge. City traffic and caution slowed us to 17.2 mph by the time we left town. We had the average back up to 18.2 mph by the time we hit St Francisville. We were at the hotel by 11:30. No one else is staying here so the room is ready. This town is quite nice, with some beautiful historic homes. We had lunch at Magnolia Cafe, apparently the most popular spot in town. It was full. We sat next to three men from Scotland who arrived yesterday and are in the States for a medical conference in NO. They rented a car in NO and loaded it with 3 bikes and headed to St. Francisville. They are planning a loop ride in the area today and then ride back to NO beginning tomorrow. They will raise money for the Scottish Lung Association and I chipped in about 7 quid. Two of the three will wear their kilts while cycling saying they are proud of where they are from. One climbed Mt Everest last year. We had a great chat with them, once again attesting to the brotherhood of cyclists no matter where you are from. John wore the Colorado jersey I gave him in 2007 and I wore mine as well.

Days stats: 57 miles, 18.2 mph, 706 feet climbing.

First day

Our initial ride was 63 miles to Gonzales, LA. We got up on the levee overlooking the river and stopped at an old plantation house built from 1787 to 1790 for a group picture. Much to our surprise, John and I were the first ones there. We did not pass anyone and did not think we were the first ones to leave as there were not many people around the van. The humidity here is difficult to deal with. The temps were 93 at the finish with likely equal humidity. I hit the wall with a couple of miles to go. Will have to drink more tomorrow and future days. One rider was taken to the hospital after passing out. Fortunately it did not happen on the road. He is OK now and plans to ride tomorrow. Another rider sagged in after not feeling very well.

It is a great group. It is one of the big reasons I ride. The fellowship of the road is really something to experience. There are 19 of us at this point. Four riders leave us in Memphis. Days stats: 62.8 miles, 16.6 mph, 375 feet climbing.

New Orleans musing

We got here very late Thursday night, actually Friday morning, after a lengthy flight delay out of Denver. Robin and I went to meet my 92 year old aunt who lives about 50 miles from NO. I did not know many of my relatives in earlier life due to distance. It was nice to see Aunt Florence (right) and my cousin. We left and went to City Park, home to the art museum. It was close to closing time and we went back the next day. Went to Bourbon Street and I was over it in about 10 minutes. The senses were assaulted. Stripper bars for the eyes. I kept my eyes averted and stayed off the rooftops for my Bible study friends. Loud music for the ears, not sure how someone can be inside listening to it. The smell of vomit on the sidewalks from the already inebriated at 6 in the afternoon. the only pleasing sense was the palate from some good NO food.

On Saturday, Robin, John my trip roommate and previous companion on 2 rides, and I went on a riverboat cruise. Enjoyed the sights along the river and some historical background. We ate dinner on the riverfront and I had the best-ever ahi tuna. On Sunday, I took Robin off to the airport to return to Denver. John and I went on a 20 mile shakedown ride along a bike path next to the river. It will be our way out of NO on Tuesday morning. good thing as there will be no traffic. The river was quite busy with shipping traffic, mostly headed upriver.

With regard to Jim's and Bob's comments on uphill riding, it will be nothing for a Colorado mountain climber! Actually the first few days are flat as a pancake, reminding me of the East Coast ride. Sounds easy, right. Actually, you get quite bored staying in the same gear. You have to remind yourself to stand up and flex some different muscle groups. I think the hills start in Missouri or misery as some bicyclists call the state. I have met many riders already and everyone is excited for the Tuesday departure.

Cheers,

Tom

Life on the Mississippi

I was looking for a book today to bring on the trip. I had been considering Mark Twain's "Life on the Mississippi" and ended up purchasing it. The year 2010 is the 175th anniversary of Twain's birth, the 100th anniversary of his death, and the 124th anniversary of the first publication of his book "Life on the Mississippi", first titled "Old Times on the Mississippi". The republication in 1883 was the first typewritten manuscript to a publisher. Part of the bike tour's itinerary includes an overnight in Hannibal MO where the young Samuel Clemens moved with his family at the age of four. The town has many festivities to celebrate these anniversaries this year. We have only 35 miles to travel into Hannibal, so I hope to see some of these celebrations or exhibits. The following opens the first chapter of his book:

"The Mississsippi is well worth reading about. It is not a commonplace river, but on the contrary is in all ways remarkable. Considering the Missouri as its main branch, it is the longest river in the world--four thousand three hundred miles. It seems safe to say that it is also the crookedest river in the world, since in one part of its journey it uses up 1,300 miles to cover the ground that the crow would fly over in 675.... No other river has so vast a drainage basin: it draws its water supply from 28 states and territories; from Delaware, on the Atlantic seaboard, and from all the country between that and Idaho on the Pacific slope -- a spread of 45 degrees of longitude....The area of its drainage basin is as great as the combined areas of England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Austria, Italy, and Turkey; and almost of this wide region is fertile; the Mississippi valley, proper, is exceptionally so."

I hope to include other quotes as I travel the route.

Cheers, Tom.