Today's Report: 

Nice day off yesterday...even the staff got a little time off in the morning and prerode the departure bike path, cleaned the vans, and did the shopping.  Glad we took the time to check out the departure...when we got about a half mile into the bike path, we found it missing.  They were doing construction and had the pavement all torn up.  We asked a local how to get around it and was able to mark an alternative route...whew.  It wouldn't have been fun to have all 50 of our riders standing on a pile of dirt where they were supposed to ride wondering which way to go...another chaos thwarted. 

The departure out of Sioux Falls was along it's bike path that circumvents the entire city.  The entire loop is 20 miles and includes parks, a river, and the falls that the city is most noted.  Since we were able to mark the route, our biggest challenge early on was avoiding the goose poop all over the path.  Made for a funny taste from our water bottles for sure.  But even with those hazards, it was still worth the trip just to see the falls on our way out of town.  The falls is one of the most beautiful I've ever seen with the water cascading over square red rocks through the Falls Park and there was plenty of water this year.  The river originally had 3 falls, but the lower one was removed by excavating the rocks for building and landscaping. 

Today we entered into the state where the women are pretty, the men are good looking, and the children are above average...welcome to Minnesota.  Everyone was smiling this morning as we had a relatively short day of only 70 miles and the weather was forecast to be pretty good.  We'd be hard pressed to order any better riding weather than we had today albeit a little humid...our first case of sweat for a long time.  The highs today were in the mid 80s, but the pesky quartering headwind kept us a bit cooler than if it'd been calm.

The word of the day was "Green."  It's a sharp contrast from what we were seeing in South Dakota where the rolling rangeland and large wheat fields were mostly brown.  Every where you looked today all you'd see was green...If it wasn't corn or soybeans standing in perfectly straight rows that stretched all the way to the horizon, it was tall grass that gave a different hue to the green patchwork that dominated the landscape.  It's really nice to be back into country that looks fertile again and according to National Public Radio, these farms are run by Norwegian Bachelor Farmers...mostly (ever heard of Powder Milk Biscuits?).  I think we are going to see a lot of corn and gently rolling terrain for the next few days...you betcha.

The South Dakota highway on our early miles had a nice shoulder for us, but when we got to Minnesota we lost the shoulder.  The saving grace was there was little traffic to contend with and the drivers that we did encounter were courteous.  The last few years they've been working on this stretch of road and we've always had to find a detour around it.  On our maps, it looks like there's lots of roads that parallel the main road we ride, but most of the parallel roads are gravel.  Every year we've had to make our way through several miles of sketchy gravel before town...but not this year.  The stretches they've been working on recently were silky smooth and fast...way to go Minnesota!

The farms along our route today were impeccable, each situated in a grove of trees and having a neatly painted house and outbuildings, flower beds, and nicely tended lawns.  No extra cars or farm equipment lying about.  Almost every farmhouse sat in the midst of vast cornfields...vaster even than those in South Dakota.  As each state has its charm, Minnesota is no different.  It's a beautiful state.

The people are pretty friendly too.  Every year everyone is curious as to what we are doing and are always amazed when they hear the magnitude of our ride.  I happened to talk to a guy while he was refueling his van.  He saw the our van go through and then several the riders...seeing the Long Distance Bicycle Tours sign on the side of the van he asked what that meant.  He described a long distance tour as being to the other side of town, but when I told him where we came from and where we were going, all he could say was, "Ya shure, that's a long way!"  That's the usual reaction we get.

It's amazing what a little sunshine and nice weather will do for a group of bicyclists.  I guess another thing that most are enjoying is there are no hills to speak of so far in Minnesota.  Everyone got in by 2:00 today...even with the detours and changes in navigation on the bike path.  Tomorrow we ride to Mankato...102 miles...that will get their attention.  Tune in again tomorrow...we'll see you then...you betcha...

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