Day 7: Chamberlain to Mitchell, SD

Mileage: 71 Miles
Temperature at start: 66
Temperature at finish:  92
Clear skys and light winds

The morning arrived with a glorious sunrise in Chamberlain. We had a buffet breakfast at the a restaurant on Main Street and then Erin and I were off to Mitchell - home of the world famous Corn Palace. The only real climb of the day was right off the bat - a two mile jaunt up the bluffs surrounding the Missouri and then head almost due east along country roads. The terrain was corn, corn, and more corn. It was very green though the area is currently suffering a drought.

Climbing out of Chamberlain

Still early on the 1st hill - can still wave!

With the short stage today there would be only one SAG at the halfway point so we both took two bottles. An interesting stop was in the town of Kimball. It is home to the Tractor Museum so we took a side trip to see the exhibits.

Erin,TJ, and I

I think they want to put her to work?

Inside the tractor museum

After the stop at the musem Erin and I rode quickly to the SAG stop to top off the bottles and refuel the motors a bit.

We made sure that when we left the SAG that we were with the group of Richard, Polly, and Mimi. Richard is a strong rider from New York that I rode with yesterday. Today with flat terrain and favorable winds we rode the last 36 miles in 1 hour and 45 minutes averaging a bit over 21 mph.

See, we actually stop at Stop Signs!

Paceline - Richard, Erin, Polly, Mimi, and I

We arrived in Mitchell at a little past 11:00 and rode over to the Corn Palace. It's an interesting building that was first built in 1892 and is currently on its third iteration. It actually has walls lined with different colored corn.

Erin and Karen Bauer from ABB

That's the Corn Palace in the background

Tomorow is the end our adventure. We have a 72 mile ride into Sioux Falls where we will say goodbye to all of our new friends and wish them safe journeys on the remainder of their ride across America.

Day 6: Pierre to Chamberlain, SD

Mileage: 83 Miles
Temperature at start: 73
Temperature at finish:  94
Cloudy skys with clearing late in the day - winds light most of the day

So, every day after we've ridden, gotten our rooms, and cleaned up, the entire group of cyclists will meet in a designated area for rap. Rap is where our ride leaders, Mike Monk and Karen Bauer will go over the logistics of the next day's ride along with a few jokes tossed in (exclusively by Mike).

Ride leader, Mike Monk, conducting rap.

Today's route had three steep climbs, one located 25 miles into the ride and two located near the end. After a quick breakfast at McDonald's, Bob and I were off to Chamberlain! We quickly got into a paceline and sped through the miles coming into the first sag. For the cyclists going from Oregon to New Hampshire, today was a big day. It marked the halfway point in their long trip.

Shortly after this sag, Bob suffered knee pain and decided it was best to sit out the remaining miles in hopes of no further damage. I got in with a strong rider named Richard. He and I rode the last 55 miles together. We rolled through corn and hay fields and varying livestock and there were many, many cows. Wind was light and mostly favorable, and the pace was often over 20+ mph. The miles clicked by near effortlessly.

Early in the day

Only 25 miles left to go!

As we got to mile 70 we came upon the second three climbs. It looked pretty steep and long, but Erin yelled out as I rode by the encouraging news that "It's worse than it looks!". And it was. But the second hill was worse because it was all gravel due to road construction. So imagine having ridden 75 miles in the heat and then finish on a 1.5 mile climb @ 5-6% grade ... But it was an accomplishment when it was summitted. And the reward was a two mile downhill finish to the Missouri river.

Chamberlain is a small river town but it has a quaint old time feel to it.

Chamberlain Main Street

After we got our room we took a walk along the Missouri. Tomorrow is a relatively short day of 71 miles.

Erin and I along the Missouri

Day 5: Wall to Pierre, SD

Mileage: 117 Miles
Temperature at start: 72
Temperature at finish:  100
Sunny skys with strong winds - favorable most of the day


Today was going to the longest day of the trip. 117 miles across rolling land with sharp rollers and one long climb at the end. We loaded early and ate a pretty good breakfast at a barbeque joint next to the hotel.

I was sagging today and Erin and Bob were both planning on new personal records for distance in a day. The ride started with an 11 mile section of chip seal ... but for the most part they enjoyed 70 miles of mostly tailwind to get their average mph way up!

This is definitely America's heartland - these farmers here feed the world. It was farm after farm of corn , livestock, and wheat. Definitely amber waves of grain.

Amber waves of grain

One time while I was waiting on Bob and Erin to roll through I pulled into a deserted turn off. After sitting there for a few minutes I looked back behind me and saw that a herd of horses had ambled over to see what I was doing ...

The grass is greener on the other side of the fence

Bob and Erin were zipping ahead of the tailwind so quickly that I missed some photo ops because they were upon me so quick.

Bob cruising at mile 40

Erin spent the day riding with Karen from ABB

At mile 77 the route turned right and favorable wind became very unfavorable and the temperature jumped into the upper 90's. At 11:30 I saw a 102 reading on the van's thermometer.

Erin was at the front of the ride for most of the day, but the heat, wind, and terrain got her at 102 miles. A new PR nonetheless! (Personal record). I put her in the van with me and we raced up to find Bob. He was at the 108 mile mark and he and everyone he was with were out of water. Erin and I filled up a lot of bottles for the fast folks who were 30 miles out in front.

Bob at mile 113

 It was an important day for Bob - he dedicated the day to his sister-in-law, Coral, who is going through treatments for Leukemia. Despite the heat and the long climb to finish the day, he succeeded in the journey. We stayed at the Governor's Inn and due to bad internet connection, I'm just now getting caught up.

Tomorrow, Bob and I will ride the 83 miles to Chamberlain, SD.

Day 4: Rapid City to Wall, SD

Mileage: 57 Miles
Temperature at start: 70
Temperature at finish: 95
Sunny skys with strong crosswinds
Today's trip is a relatively short jaunt to Wall, SD. Wall is a town of 930 people and its claim to fame is Wall's Drug Store. It was founded in  1931 and the simple promise of free ice water prompted enough travelers to stop there that it today is a huge entity taking up a large city block.

It was a late load starting day - Erin and I left at 8:45 - and we were going to ride the entire stage. It was already getting hot and we caught the entire wind of the day.

The countryside consisted of rolling hills and steep rollers until the first SAG. We stopped at an old Biker Hangout to refill the bottles and load up on the snacks.

After the SAG we rode through ranchland and farms until we got onto I90 for the last 25 miles. The town of Wall has one attraction and that's the Wall Drug Store.

Erin with a scary wooden doll

Day 3 - Hot Springs to Rapid City, SD

Mileage: 74 Miles
Temperature at start: 62
Temperature at finish: 81
Sunny skys with moderate wind
Elevation gain : 5200+

Today was an exciting day for our adventure. Our main destination was Mount Rushmore. And the terrain certainly justified the Mount in Mount Rushmore.

Breakfast began at 5:30 AM with rollout from the parking lot at 6:45. Temperatures were a bit chilly, so both Erin and Bob sported arm warmers.

Today's ride started with a climb out of Hot Springs to Wind Cave National Park. Often riders through here see herds of buffalo and multitudes of prairie dogs. Although no herds were sighted, a couple of lone stragglers were seen, including one that even came onto the road!

After the national park, Bob and Erin were off to the town of Custer. Custer was a neat, little tourist trap of a town. Beware of student drivers! (Erin had a close call with one.) The town is most memorable to us because of a steep hill when exiting the tiny town. Next stop: Mount Rushmore.
It was about here where I went ahead and drove directly to the mount and ride the course backwards until meeting Erin to ride to the top with her. Before reaching the monument, I stopped in the car and got a picture of the Crazy Horse monument. Although it isn't finished, it is certainly shaping up to be something special in the future.

Some of the hilliest terrain we had were the hills leading up to Mount Rushmore and Keystone, but the view and company certainly made it worth while. As you can see in some of these pictures, all three have been put up on the mountain.

Descending from Mount Rushmore is quite the rush! The gradient of this particular descent is a whopping 10% for two miles. As I used with care, Bob achieved a speed of 54 miles an hour. He claims he would have gone faster had cars not been in his way, as they were following the speed limit of 25. We stopped at a pizzaria in Keystone and each had a delicious pie. Bob and I ended up with a whole pizza left over between the two of us while Erin, after a hard day of climbing, wolfed the entire eight slices. An additional note is that Erin was the second rider to reach the 57 mile mark at the top of Mount Rushmore. It was a phenomenal day of mountain climbing for her, and I enjoyed riding the last eight miles of climbing with her. Erin, Bob, and I rode the last 24 miles into Rapid City. Some of the toughest climbs were left as we left the Black Hills as we entered the prairie lands surrounding Rapid City. It was also done at a high temperature with a dry atmosphere (not fun).

Tomorrow is a short ride of 57 miles into Wall, SD. Erin and I will ride the entire distance as Bob has agreed to SAG tomorrow.

Day 2 Lusk to Hot Springs, SD

Mileage: 91
Temperature at start: 60
Temperature at finish: 81
Overcast and foggy in morning - sunny in afternoon
Elevation gain: 3891 feet

Breakfast was at 5:30 with a 6:30 rollout. Erin and Bob rolled out and maintained a 20 mph pace until the first SAG stop at mile 35. The terrain had opened up to beautiful vistas and ravines with isolated farm houses and many, many cows. The wind was mostly favorable until the first stop.

Erin was ready to drive so I was able to ride starting at mile 35. Bob and I maintained a quick pace with a crosswind from the southeast. Life was good until we turned almost due east at mile 46. The terrain immediately had large hills and the wind was directly in our face. I remember topping one hill and assuming a sprinters tuck and only being able to accelerate to 12 mph going downhill!

At mile 57 we crossed from Wyoming into South Dakota.

The terrain continued to rise pretty steadily until we stopped for lunch in Edgemont at mile 67. We ate at a restaurant that took a record amount of time to cook a ham and cheese for me and eggs and toast for Erin. We probably stayed at that SAG stop for at least an hour. Bob took over the driving and Erin and I headed for the mountains.

Soon after leaving Edgemont Erin and started on the big climb of the day. It was a four mile climb that averaged between 4.5% to 8% grade. Doesn't seem to steep until you've been on it for a few miles. I told Erin that I would give her $5.00 for each minute she beat me up the hill. The ride leader, Mike Munk, timed the gap at 2:45 minutes, earning her $13! Soon after the summit, we went over a high mountain bridge with a staggering, beautiful view.

Erin mile 72

Beautiful view mile 72

Craig mile 72

The last twenty miles consisted of beautiful, mountainous climbs with sharp climbs and steep descents. With four miles to go the steepest climb of the day came upon us. It was an 8% climb for a out a mile. We were rewarded with a two mile descent into Hot Springs. A note about this climb was that it was steep enough to require trucks to pull over and test their brakes before making the climb and descent. We arrived at Hot Springs at 2 PM and rested until dinner time, served at a local bowling alley!

Erin even bowled a game with some fellow riders and her team won!

Tomorrow we ride to Rapid City, SD and make a stop at Mt. Rushmore along the way.

Day 1 - Casper Wy to Lusk Wy

Mileage 106
Temperature at start 58
Temperature at end 79
Overcast day with north winds early and south winds late

The day started with breakfast at 6:00 and luggage load at 6:30. Breakfast was buffet style with eggs, bacon, pancakes, fruit and other good food to fuel a 106 mile day.

Bob and Erin rolled out of the hotel at 6:45 headed to the first SAG stop at mile 25. They made great time running in front of a pretty nice tailwind.

The first SAG had water, fruit, cookies and a chance to take a breather. The rolling hills with mountains in the distance were beautiful as we crossed ranches and farms heading to Douglas WY. I saw several antelope within a stone's throw of the road.

Bob and Erin on I-25

Douglas was the first town we rolled through at the 50 mile mark. We all bought sub sandwiches and took them with us to the second SAG at mile 65. The terrain at that point was the lowest of the day and we were about to turn East resulting in a headwind or at best crosswind the rest of the day. But the great news (for me at least) is that I got on the bike and started riding from that point. The plan was that I would ride to the last SAG stop at the 86 mile mark.

Bob and Craig heading to Lusk

Erin early in the day

But I felt so good there that Bob agreed to drive and Erin and I rode in together. Bob and Erin got 86 miles in and I got 41! It felt great to be back on the bike again.

Erin later in the day.

We got to Lusk at about 2:30 after stopping for pie at the Three Sisters Truck stop at mile 96. The room at Lusk has three beds, so no one needs to sleep on a rollaway bed tonight.

It was Western day in Lusk so that there was a parade that went right by in front of the hotel.

Western parade in Lusk,WY