Day 15 - Custer SD to Rapid City SD via Custer State Park and Mt. Rushmore, 75 miles, 6750' cumulative climbing

What a day!  The map and profile have to take second billing to the sights on today's ride.

The Black Hills of South Dakota with sun burning off the morning haze

This was an epic day, both for our bike ride and for the sightseeing along the way.  I had originally thought of today's route as a recovery ride, seeing as how it was only 75 miles.  But the trip itinerary mistakenly showed the amount of climbing at 2000', when in reality we were up for 6750' of total climbing.  That's a workout.  However, it didn't seem like it, as the sights and surroundings were just so amazing and compelling.  

On the porch of the General Store with Elizabeth

We had a choice of two routes for today, the full ride of 75 miles, or a separate and shorter ride of 47.  Although the short ride included a chance to see the Crazy Horse monument (under construction still after several decades), Elizabeth and I decided to do the full 75 miles because it included a long stretch through Custer State Park's wildlife areas.  The two rides rejoined paths at the rest stop in the parking lot of Mt. Rushmore.  So lots to see either way we went.

We had to wait for the bison to move across the road and got some very up close looks at the herd.  The males were snorting and pushing the others to get out of the way of the cars and bicycles.  Even though it's their home, they would prefer to just be left alone.  Also we ran across a pack of wild mules, who were pretty tame-acting.  I suspect they've been fed frequently by park visitors because they come right up to car windows and wait for handouts.

Zoom in on the photo looking through the tunnel and you may be able to recognize something in the distance.  That tunnel was built through the mountain side after the Mt. Rushmore monument was completed as a "wow" scene for tourists  The artistry and detail of the Mt. Rushmore sculpture is really a sight to see.  It took more than 12 years to complete, both for the difficulty of the project and apparently for lack of funding at various junctures.  After all, it was during the Great Depression so money was short.  It's worth seeing if you're in this part of the country.
                                                                             

The rest of the ride was thoroughly enjoyable, for the terrain and sights as well as the challenge of big up and down sections.  Switchbacks with 360 degree loops, one-way narrow descents through wooded hillsides, meadows with deer and antelope; we had it all in one day it seems.  And in spite of all the climbing and descending, I did not feel like it was a tough day physically.  Which is a good thing, since tomorrow we have a 147 mile day!

Day 14 - Gillette WY to Custer SD, 115 miles, 4000' cumulative climbing

Yesterday after the ride, hanging out in the bike wash area drinking a Coke, another rider said something like "I thought they said I'd be getting stronger".  Suddenly it occurred to me that what's going on is that yes, we are all getting stronger (one of Lon's theories is that riding your way into shape has multiple benefits), but with 14 consecutive long days in the saddle, we are also getting tired.  So it's a balancing act now, to figure out how strong I feel vs how tired my legs have become.  Somehow I think this will become more important as the next few days go by.  We have our highest mileage days starting in succession on Monday with 145 miles, so getting enough rest between rides is even more important.
Today was similar to yesterday, in that it seemed like it would be an easy day compared to the previous few.  And the first 30 miles was a breeze, flat as a pancake and very little wind.  Sunny again.  We've had lots of sunshine which is a very good thing.  After the first refueling stop though, the wind picked up and the climbing began. As you can see to the left, not huge climbs but rather lots of long rollers.  Until after lunch that is.  Then it got tougher.  The big climb over the last 25 miles was actually a series of mile-long grinders, so I was feeling pretty worn out at the end.  We rode into South Dakota this afternoon (the late-day climbs were in the Black Hills).  So now I've ridden my bike in state #34.  The list is getting longer.

Roadside Blackeyed Susans

Maybe the getting tired thing is making even the easier days seem tough.  Hard to tell.  I'm still enjoying all of it, but it's more of a struggle to ascend hill after hill than it was a week ago.  Nonetheless, two weeks in, things continue to go extremely well.  The camaraderie among riders and crew has continued to build and if there are any personality differences among folks they're doing a good job of hiding it.

Stats for Week 2                                                Trip so far

796.1 miles ridden                                             1498.4 miles ridden
28,000' total climbing                                         60,620' total climbing  
2 broken water bottle cages replaced          

Day 13 - Sheridan WY to Gillette WY, 109 miles, 4300' cumulative climbing

Today was by all appearances one that should have been a good recovery ride day. A medium-effort morning climb out of Sheridan followed by mostly rolling hills but not difficult terrain.  What happened?  A headwind for the first 90 miles is what happened.  This turned the rolling hills into grinding efforts and generally slowed us down.  I had expected to roll into Gillette about 3:00 but it was 4:30 instead.  Hot and tired, ready to call it a day.  But not a bad day.  We haven't had a bad day yet.  Some have just been better than others!

Wyoming has the same Big Sky feel that Montana did, but not the same landscapes or beauty.  It has its own appeal, but is much more arid and desolate.  Ranching, cattle, sheep and long stretches of no humans.  For many miles today we probably saw an auto or truck only every half hour or so. To live here would be an unimaginable culture shock compared to being in the Chicago area.  I think life must be very hard out here, but the folks who live here seem to like it. 
Fortunately no more rider troubles today that couldn't easily be fixed.  Sometimes an uneventful day is a darn good day.

There's a certain beauty to the barren feel of northern Wyoming

Day 12 - Powell WY to Sheridan WY, 122 miles, 7300' cumulative climbing

 Our tour leader Lon Haldeman, had repeatedly been warning us over the past ten days about the difficult climb over the Big Horn Mountains in Wyoming.  Well, today was the day, and I can report that he was not exaggerating at all!  Nearly all of our elevation gain for the day was in the 25 mile climb to the summit at mile 60 on our route. With grades exceeding 10% for several miles, and tipping up to 14% in a few spots, this was perhaps the most challenging climb I've ever attempted.  At times my speed was hovering around 4 mph, and a brisk walker could have passed.  But I made it!

On a sad note, we lost another rider today, early in the ride.  Gerry took a bad fall when his front wheel got caught in a groove in a concrete street section, and he hit the ground hard, resulting in several broken ribs and a concussion.  I'm so sorry this happened to him; we will miss him in our little riding group. Gerry is a triathlete and will be back in competition in no time.  Best wishes to you, my new friend!  Losing two riders already is a strong reminder to us all that we take on risks every day and must be vigilant to our surroundings.  Pavement quality, auto and truck traffic, gusting crosswinds, blind curves and more are all potential issues you have to monitor.  Safety first. But we're still here to have fun of course!

So the show goes on, and we continued through the day, climbing higher and higher.  The payoff?  Unbelievable views of the Big Horn Basin, and a fantastic winding downhill run, where I could see the curves coming and had no sudden surprises, and a bit of a headwind but nothing to cause a problem.  My high speed today, and for the trip so far, was 46 mph. Exhilarating!  

The Big Horn Basin viewed from 9000' elevation

Dinner tonight was at the Wyoming Rib & Chop House near our hotel in Sheridan. Great steak and the biggest baked potato I've ever seen were the perfect ending to a tough but rewarding day.

Looking down at sections of the road we climbed to the summit

Day 11 - Columbus MT to Powell WY, 111 miles, 5500' cumulative climbing

Back to the big climbs again today.  We started the day with a 25 mile uphill run, punctuated at the very end with the steepest section of a mile or so.  Then, after a wonderful long downhill of nearly 20 miles, the afternoon featured another long session of climbing, ending with a steep pitch up right when the legs were ready to say "uncle". But, once again, the views were magnificent in the mountains and on the high plains of Montana.
Unfortunately Gerry had a flat only a few miles in so our whole group of 6 riders stopped to wait and help out.

It takes a village to change a tire!

Midday at the lunch stop we crossed another state line, into Wyoming.  This is the 33rd state I have had the good fortune to cycle in!  And still more to add to the list assuming the trip continues to go well.



Montana was truly a beautiful state to ride through; it might be the prettiest one I've been in of all. Quite remote over many miles, the changing climate zones, with evergreens, high desert, grassy plains, mountains, creeks and valleys just never get routine or boring.  Some more pictures from our last day in Montana:

And by the way, since tomorrow features our biggest, most challenging climb of the entire journey, crossing over the Big Horn Mountains, I'll warn you that photos may be all I have energy for in the next couple of entries. If possible I'll get something jotted down, and add to my thoughts later. But so far we've come a long way in a very short time!  The red line continues to grow longer on the map that greets us at the end of each day.

Day 10 - Bozeman MT to Columbus MT, 105 miles, 2300' cumulative climbing

10 days. 1042 miles.  I’ve ridden much higher single-day mileage many times before, but never averaged over 100 for 10 days and counting.  Frankly I’m pretty amazed that more joints don’t ache and I still look forward to getting on the bike tomorrow morning.  As this trip was approaching I heard from a couple of veterans that Day 4 or 5 would be the “tipping point”, when I would slide into the daily routines, start to feel less exhausted each day, my legs would feel less sore, and my mental attitude would turn more positive.  Because the first few days were very tough on everyone; no matter how hard you train it’s hard to replicate this many miles and at least in Illinois this many mountain summits.  So midway through Day 4 I felt it happening!  Going up hills seemed not quite so hard.  My quadriceps ached, but not as much as the day before.  And I had the feeling that yes, I will continue to take on the coming days with confidence.

On the other hand, Day 8 started out rather poorly, and in spite of a good night’s rest, typical great PAC Tour breakfast, and a sunny morning I was having trouble keeping up with my group on even modest hill sections.  I began to get discouraged, and after visualizing some doomsday scenarios of being left behind to ruminate in misery, I remembered one of my training lessons:  every 3-4 days things are just not going to go well.  Period.  Get over it.  So I hung in there, and after lunch got a second wind and felt better physically and mentally.  As Yogi Berra famously said about baseball, “the game is 90% mental, and the other half is physical”.

So Day 10 was really not a difficult route.  We had an early morning climb out of Bozeman, with just moderate steepness, followed by a gentle downhill for 85 miles.  Perfect "easy" ride, considering we have two big climbing days to follow.  However, there's always something to deal with in the great outdoors.  Today it was HOT, maybe like the rest of the country was already experiencing.  High of 94 as we finished up the route.  The crew had extra ice on hand for our water bottles (Thank You!). And we had several stretches on I-90 again today, for the same reason as always, there were not suitable alternative roads for cycling without going far off our route.  The last 12 mile stretch of interstate was a hassle; the shoulder had just been resurfaced with an oil and chip treatment earlier in the day and we all got oily tar on our tires, which picked up gravel and debris, causing some flats and a lot of sticky problems in brake pads and other tight spaces around the wheels. All of the cyclists wound up riding in the new asphalt of the slow lane to avoid the gravel and debris and we were glad to exit the highway.  Lots of solvent was needed to clean the bike tonight.

Cliff displaying PAC Tour's ready to go attitude

Tonight Elizabeth Wicks and I had dinner together at Subway (limited dining options near our motel).  It turns out we have a number of common acquaintances and we had a great time getting to know each other better.  Hopefully there will be more chances for us to hang out together during the rest of this trip.

Day 9 - Butte MT to Bozeman MT, 101 miles, 3200' cumulative climbing

Today is Continental Divide day!  That's the point at which water drains down one side of a mountain toward the Pacific, and the other side toward the Atlantic.  It's odd to think of water from the state of Montana finding its way to the Atlantic, but if you track it to the Missouri River, down to the Mississippi River, on to the Gulf of Mexico, and voila! You're swimming in the Atlantic before you know it.
After breakfast we only had a few miles to go to reach the summit of Pipeline Pass, our Divide crossing point, since Butte sits at about 5500' and we were only going up to 6418' at the top.   

 

Standing on the Continental Divide at Pipeline Pass - no sign to
mark the spot but there I am

Once again today we were graced with good clear skies and warm weather.  Neither yesterday nor today did we need to worry about big temperature changes at the tops of our climbs, like we had last Tuesday in the rainstorm.  Not having to carry extra gear makes the task easier when going up grades that exceed 8% in many spots.  The downhill run after the early morning peak was exhilarating, running on for nearly 30 miles including through an old mining town named Anaconda.  Who came up with that for a town name?

Riding to Bozeman was incredibly pretty once again.  And unlike yesterday we finished up earlier and had more time to take care of the end-of-ride chores that are so important to keep everything in good working order.  My new bottom bracket seems to be working just fine, but cleaning the drive train, washing the bike, relubing the drive train, and so forth are daily requirements.  When you're hot and tired it's tempting to let some small tasks slide, but you'll pay for it eventually on the side of the road, right where you don't want to be stuck!

Lunch stop on the Madison River

A good moderate ride day that continues to help improve our pack riding skills and overall endurance.  Because we are not finished with the mountains just yet, and when we approach the plains states we'll need the endurance for longer mileage days.

Michelle at lunch

Gerry and Cliff 

Day 8 - Missoula MT to Butte MT, 134 miles, 5400' cumulative climbing

 Today was a difficult riding day. One long climb over much of the day sapped a lot of energy and we didn't finish until nearly 5:30pm.  Not a terrible outcome, as the scenery was one spectacular view after another, but tiring and wearing, and hotter than the previous few days. While most of the country has been dealing with a massive heat wave this past week, the Northwest has been spared.  Except finally today it reached the upper 80s and we felt the difference.
Pedaling out of Missoula this morning, I remembered with fondness the day fifteen years ago when I began my first multi-day cycling adventure. 

It was the Montana AIDS Vaccine Ride, a journey of 575 miles over 7 days from Missoula to Billings Montana, with over 1000 riders. I made friends on that ride that I still am connected to today.  That week was the beginning of my affair with long-distance cycling, and now I'm right in the thick of it!
Our long climb today started out innocuously enough; just enough uphill that we couldn't go as fast as usual for several miles.  The steeper section was in the last 8-10 miles and was difficult.  We were rewarded with a really great 20 mile downhill run, on good road surfaces and yet more spectacular views.

One new experience today:  we rode on Interstate 90 for 22 miles! If you live in Chicago or any other metropolitan area you're probably thinking "what the...?!".  In the west it is not that uncommon to have an interstate section as the only realistic road to use, without taking a major detour to avoid it.  Of course, you must stay on the shoulder and watch for debris - tire tread pieces, wires, glass, other miscellaneous stuff - but it's not as scary as it sounds. My previous rides on interstates have occurred in Arizona, Montana and Missouri.  Not that it's fun but rather a necessary chore that you just get through in order to move on to better things.  More pictures from today:

Michelle hamming it up at a rest stop

Heading into the Rockies