Day 27--Mitchell SD to Sioux Falls SD--July 17th
Miles Ridden 72.1
Avg Speed 16.5 MPH
Climbing 1000 Ft.
Total Miles Ridden 1989
Miles To Go 1640
What a difference a day makes. Yesterday we had a 70 mile ride over fairly gentle terrain that was fast and easy for just about everybody. Today we had a 72 mile ride over fairly gentle terrain and it was grueling for everyone. The difference was the heat and humidity. It seemed we crossed an invisible boundary between the hot and dry west into the hot and humid mid-west somewhere east of Mitchell. The land became much greener and the farms were growing a lot more corn and soybeans and the humidity went from 20% to 75%. The temperature also got into the mid-nineties by the time we finished and had everyone drained.
Just as four of us were entering the outskirts of Sioux Falls we had to make a right turn onto a busy city street. The first two riders made the turn but yelled out that there was a pothole in the turn. I was behind the third rider and he made a wider turn to avoid the hole. He went through what he thought was water on the road but was in fact a long leak of oil. As soon as the bike hit it, the wheels flew up in the air and he landed on his head, elbow and hip in the middle of the road. I stopped in time, signaled the traffic out of the way and picked up his bike as he scrambled out of the road. He suffered scrapes and bruises and some bike damage but ended up OK. It was a frightening and sobering moment for me. There were also two other falls on the ride today (no major injuries) which were the first of the trip.
Our third rest day after riding 25 of the last 27 days seems to be coming at the right time. I don't know much about Sioux Falls and probably won't be seeing too much of it with the temperature at 95 and no desire to get on a bike until we leave on Monday morning.
Avg Speed 16.5 MPH
Climbing 1000 Ft.
Total Miles Ridden 1989
Miles To Go 1640
What a difference a day makes. Yesterday we had a 70 mile ride over fairly gentle terrain that was fast and easy for just about everybody. Today we had a 72 mile ride over fairly gentle terrain and it was grueling for everyone. The difference was the heat and humidity. It seemed we crossed an invisible boundary between the hot and dry west into the hot and humid mid-west somewhere east of Mitchell. The land became much greener and the farms were growing a lot more corn and soybeans and the humidity went from 20% to 75%. The temperature also got into the mid-nineties by the time we finished and had everyone drained.
Just as four of us were entering the outskirts of Sioux Falls we had to make a right turn onto a busy city street. The first two riders made the turn but yelled out that there was a pothole in the turn. I was behind the third rider and he made a wider turn to avoid the hole. He went through what he thought was water on the road but was in fact a long leak of oil. As soon as the bike hit it, the wheels flew up in the air and he landed on his head, elbow and hip in the middle of the road. I stopped in time, signaled the traffic out of the way and picked up his bike as he scrambled out of the road. He suffered scrapes and bruises and some bike damage but ended up OK. It was a frightening and sobering moment for me. There were also two other falls on the ride today (no major injuries) which were the first of the trip.
Our third rest day after riding 25 of the last 27 days seems to be coming at the right time. I don't know much about Sioux Falls and probably won't be seeing too much of it with the temperature at 95 and no desire to get on a bike until we leave on Monday morning.
Dawn Outside Mitchell
Small lake outside Mitchell
Barn near Brandon SD
Don from Oregon waiting for his room in the motel lobby. All of us were exhausted.
Comments
Post a Comment