DAY 25
Pierre to Chamberlain SD
July 10
Distance: 84 Tough Miles Climbing:  2349 Feet Winds: SSE 10-15
Weather: Sunny and hot, 93 by early afternoon Terrain: Rolling with 3 big climbs.

Today's Report: 

If I were to describe today in one word, I think it would be brutal...not brutal to try to sum it up in one word, but brutal would be referring to the day. Everyone did so well yesterday I think they were really proud of themselves, but today gave them a bitter taste of reality again as they found themselves pedaling into a pretty brisk headwind for the last 35 miles on their tired "yesterday" legs.  By the time the last riders turned the corner at 48 miles, the temperature was pushing the 90 degree mark too.  We've been dodging the hot weather and the headwinds this whole section but it caught up with us today.

Our route today took us along the Missouri River all morning, and for the most part we spent a good portion of the day crossing the Crow-Creek Reservation. Throughout the day, we kept getting glimpses of the winding Missouri--which was blue green, studded with flooded tree trunks in places, and wind whipped into whitecaps. The only real change in the scenery over the last couple of days was the River on our right and greener vegetation than we'd been used to lately.  Aside from that, I'd give South Dakota the award for having the most roads that seem to ribbon off into nowhere (right)!  On the plus side, there is very very little traffic on these roads and few trucks.  Also, a large section of today's route was smoothly paved and a joy to ride.

The wind wasn't the only challenge they faced today.  It must have been Louis and Clark that laid out the trail for this road and the South Dakota DOT thought if it was good enough for Louis and Clark, it must be good enough for everyone else.  At least 3 times they must have decided to climb the bluffs to overlook the river...that's what we did today too.  We had 3 big 600 foot climbs today and two of them came in the last 15 miles.  The scenery was beautiful on the bluffs, but I think most everyone would have been happy enough to have seen the river up close without climbing to the top.  With the relentless headwinds, the last two climbs seemed to go on forever.

We did pass a major milestone today...we passed the official half way point in our ride.  It doesn't seem like we've been out here long enough to have ridden half of this ride so far...but we have.  We marked the road at the first SAG point for the midway celebration.  Only 3 1/2 more weeks to go.  When we get to Canada, the rest of the ride will fly.  In a couple of days the riders will start to realize they are on the downhill (only a figure of speech) side of the ride and soon their summer family will depart to the four corners...soon they will reflect on the significance of what they are doing.  Right now, all they can think about is where their next meal will be, how much climbing will we have tomorrow, and which way will the wind be blowing. 

All in all it was a pretty good day, but we have some tired puppies at the motel.  The scenery was fabulous all day if the riders could look up long enough to see it and I'm sure everyone is hoping for a little cooler day tomorrow when we trek our way to Mitchell...the home of the world famous Corn Palace...Yippee.  Tune in then and see for yourself...the palace is different every year.  See ya then.

 

PHOTOS AND SUCH

The riders were blessed with a rare Holabird sighting...the thought the nearest one was 18 miles away.

Lewis and Clark may think they know where the trail is, but DOT thinks otherwise.

 

All Bill could say was, "In the south this would be one Mac Daddy Fire Ant hill."  This is "South" Dakota.

The cow flies out here are pretty pesky so I spared no expense on a professional fly flap to save the riders from being eaten alive by the little buggers...not to mention to aid my amusement.  That was $0.49 well spent.

HEARD TODAY:

"I'm listening to my body so my brains don't ooze out my ears."

"My relative moved out here from MN."
"Why would anyone from MN where the 'women are pretty, the men are good looking, and the children are above average' move out here?"
"He was one of the below average."

"Mike, I assume you are still working on getting the winds turned around."
"Yep, my people are working on it."

"I'll make it today, but it won't be pretty."

"Mike, I had a flat."
"What caused it to go flat?"
"All the air gushed out."

"The first hill at 20 miles is a good thing...my pancakes have a chance to become energy."

A bit toasty today.

 

Besides the rare Holabird sighting, another thing that stopped the riders in their tracks was the sighting of a rare South Dakota Fence Post Rock.  The riders were mesmerized by the raw physics of the event.  Dan commented, "How can something like this just balance on something for so long and why is it there?"  Tom replied, "I'm not sure in South Dakota, but in Oklahoma they use these as weather forecasters...if it's hot, the sun is out; if it's wet, it's raining; if it's white, it's snowing; if it's gone, the wind is up."

After spending too much time admiring the fence post rock, the boys fell behind..."Never fear my friends,"  Tom urged, "I don't mean to go against the grain, but I know a short cut!"

Wasn't there a movie about these guys a while back?  CHILDREN OF THE CORN? 

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