No Starbucks Here!
To say we've been rural for a few days would be a little light. The tour notes indicated the chef should stock up on groceries for a few days. One feels like you're riding off into the abyss somewhere.
We left Iowa on Tuesday and crossed Illinois over the next 3 days. We entered Indiana on Saturday and have a rest day today (Sunday).
Illinois and Indiana roads have been great, generally smooth, low to no traffic, and no markings. Iowa roads like these are usually gravel so I find this to be pretty unique and really enjoyable. In addition, this terrain has been flat, flat, flat. While Iowa isn't exactly full of mountains, of course, this is incredibly flat. Sometimes, the roads are lower than the fields. I think "flat" leaves us tomorrow as we continue east.
These types of roads keep us pretty rural. So, if Starbucks is important to anyone, this is not the route to take.
Being rural also means, we're quite often "The" big thing when the tour rolls through. Such was the case on Thursday as we stopped in Henry, Illinois for the last SAG of the day. Someone from the newspaper stopped by to ask the normal questions -- Who, What, When and the always shocking "Why?" The facts as posted to the city's website aren't exactly correct, but I think she had an ulterior motive in her visit -- https://www.cityofhenryil.org/ (scroll down to the Highlights of Henry section).
We can't say enough about the accommodations and staff at the Merrill Hotel in Muscatine. It was a little difficult to leave, but Bar Harbor wouldn't get any closer.
We continue to see standing water everywhere. On some routes it had obviously been across the road at times, but riding hours have been dry for the past few days and there have been no additional re-routes, so we are grateful.
We have started week 3 of riding. The last 2 days have been 90+ miles, but there's been a beneficial tail wind. Those days are still a challenge to complete with the final 10 miles (no matter how long the route) being the most difficult.
Tomorrow we move onto Huntington, Indiana and cross into Ohio on Tuesday.
This is a good, strong group. Some thought that the last 2 days weren't possible, and surprised themselves in completing every mile.
The youngest in the group is late 50's and oldest mid-70's, and they come from all over the United States and 2 riders from Canada. There is 1 recumbent rider and 1 rider who has completed 10 Iron Man triathlons and is training for a sprint Iron Man in Italy this fall. Yes, they are strong, but this is the point of the ride where things are difficult as everyone is tired and the end is not yet in sight. But, their strength amazes everyone that we meet.
We hope for continued good weather and safe riding. Thanks to Sophia and Natalie for the care package that was waiting at Logansport (Steve and Brenda for coordinating).
We left Iowa on Tuesday and crossed Illinois over the next 3 days. We entered Indiana on Saturday and have a rest day today (Sunday).
Illinois and Indiana roads have been great, generally smooth, low to no traffic, and no markings. Iowa roads like these are usually gravel so I find this to be pretty unique and really enjoyable. In addition, this terrain has been flat, flat, flat. While Iowa isn't exactly full of mountains, of course, this is incredibly flat. Sometimes, the roads are lower than the fields. I think "flat" leaves us tomorrow as we continue east.
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| Rural IL Farm to Market Road, about a lane and a half wide |
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| Hey Martha, look at those funny humans in spandex! |
These types of roads keep us pretty rural. So, if Starbucks is important to anyone, this is not the route to take.
Being rural also means, we're quite often "The" big thing when the tour rolls through. Such was the case on Thursday as we stopped in Henry, Illinois for the last SAG of the day. Someone from the newspaper stopped by to ask the normal questions -- Who, What, When and the always shocking "Why?" The facts as posted to the city's website aren't exactly correct, but I think she had an ulterior motive in her visit -- https://www.cityofhenryil.org/ (scroll down to the Highlights of Henry section).
We can't say enough about the accommodations and staff at the Merrill Hotel in Muscatine. It was a little difficult to leave, but Bar Harbor wouldn't get any closer.
We continue to see standing water everywhere. On some routes it had obviously been across the road at times, but riding hours have been dry for the past few days and there have been no additional re-routes, so we are grateful.
We have started week 3 of riding. The last 2 days have been 90+ miles, but there's been a beneficial tail wind. Those days are still a challenge to complete with the final 10 miles (no matter how long the route) being the most difficult.
Tomorrow we move onto Huntington, Indiana and cross into Ohio on Tuesday.
This is a good, strong group. Some thought that the last 2 days weren't possible, and surprised themselves in completing every mile.
The youngest in the group is late 50's and oldest mid-70's, and they come from all over the United States and 2 riders from Canada. There is 1 recumbent rider and 1 rider who has completed 10 Iron Man triathlons and is training for a sprint Iron Man in Italy this fall. Yes, they are strong, but this is the point of the ride where things are difficult as everyone is tired and the end is not yet in sight. But, their strength amazes everyone that we meet.
We hope for continued good weather and safe riding. Thanks to Sophia and Natalie for the care package that was waiting at Logansport (Steve and Brenda for coordinating).
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