DAY
25
Chamberlain
|
|
|
|
|||
| Distance: 84 Miles | Climbing: 2349 Feet | Winds: North 10, tail for second half of ride | |||
| Weather: Beautiful, high 78! | Terrain: Rolling with 3 big climbs | ||||
TODAY'S TALES:
If I were to describe today in one word, I think it would be "Unusual, but we'll take it." Oops, that's 5 words. In all the years I've been through this area I've never seen it so green or mild. It usually is in the 90s and upper 90s at that if not over the century mark. Tonight, people sat in the sun in the parking lot for RAP. It's amazing how much better people feel at the end of the day when it's comfortable out. As I said, we'll take it. Usually today is pretty tough especially after riding into Pierre. Even with the cross wind for the first 48 miles, everyone was in good spirits as they got a nice push all the way to town.
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! 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.
T
he
terrain was a pretty good challenge today. Louis and Clark came through
here looking for a water trail to the Pacific. Their route took them along
the Missouri River 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.
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 the wind will be blowing.
All in all it was a great day with plenty of nice scenery along the river. Tomorrow promises to be another cool day but we expect pretty brisk cross winds as 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.
|
TODAY'S RIDING PHOTO RECORD |
 Our early miles were right along the Missouri River with rolling green hills on both banks. The shadows during the sunrise hours provided a beautiful topography for the riders to enjoy. |
 At mile 23 we found our first punch up above the river. A nice 8% climb this early gave everyone's legs a nice wake up call. |
 The climb was work, but the views of the river basin below were spectacular. |
 Our second big climb could be seen for a long time before we got there. |
 I guess we could see the first one for quite a while too. |
 The final descent into town was another scenic adventure. If we come this far down to get to town, tomorrow we'll have to climb back out. |
|
OTHER PHOTOS AND SUCH |
|
Righter of wrongs...Seeker of injustice...Rider of bicycles...Cycling's version of Captain America! Ta ta ta ta! |
 I found the men's room! |
 Ron, Gene, John, and Larry were stopped in their tracks when they came upon a rare South Dakota Balancing Fence Post Rock. They were mesmerized by the raw physics of the event. Gene commented, "How can something like this just balance on something for so long and why is it there?" I was surprised how excited they were about the sighting...then I realized that Wall Drug had them all a twitter. |
 After their late start, David and Garth were afraid they'd never catch up with the rest of the group until Ray showed them a short cut. These guys seem to always be going against the grain. |
 Who needs a pole when you have a double raspberry popsicle. |
 Sheri discovered all the shade was under the truck...so, why not just move the truck? |
Copyright © 2009 by Bamacyclist
All rights reserved.
Smileys provided by Smiley.com
