Stage 3 part 2, Wall to Sioux Falls, South Dakota

We had the worst food of the trip in Wall. We ate dinner and breakfast at the same fast food joint, it was called Fat Boys BBQ The dinner consisted of chicken or ribs. They both looked awful. The chicken was very pink actually it was raw red. I only ate salad. Been there done that arse squirting stuff on bike trips. 3 of the riders have spent the last 2 days with very upset guts and the last two days have not been easy for them. 

We left Wall at 5.30 am on the way to Pierre the capitol of South Dakota, it was just light and the day was 198 kms of riding. The forecast was not good, we were to ride due south east for 100 km then north for 20 then east for 78. The wind was to be 15 to 20 kph from the SE then easterly from noon on. Oh whoopie. We rode a very tight day and arrived at 3pm pretty much stuffed. Dinner was at 6pm and some riders limped in at 6 and came straight to dinner  !!  

Capitol building Pierre, South Dakota. The Capitol only has 16,000 people and was chosen because because its in the exact centre of the state. Many other towns challenged the decision. Remind you of anywhere else  ?? 

Feel like I'm back in China today. We had 132 kms to ride to Chamberlain  and the forecast was for a direct head wind at 25 to 33 kmh. In fact the wind increased to 48 kph and we took 6 hours to get here. Right at the end we had 3 quite big climbs right into the wind. It was a F'ing hard day. 

Today I also had to speak to Phillipe the Israeli. He asked if he could ride with us because of the wind and we said yes if he would pull a turn on the front. ( In the past he sits on but will not pull a turn) One hour into the ride and we were doing 2 tight lines but Phillipe kept rolling into the middle of the road and not giving anyone any cover. The wind was howling and I finally got pissed off. I said to him forcefully  " Phillipe either ride here " and I pointed at the spot he should have been " Or Fuck off " his eyes widened with shock and he muttered " No you fuck off " and he rode off ahead. We rode past him about 2 kms up the road and never saw him till he rode in to the hotel 3 hours after us looking totally stuffed. The staff described him to us this evening as the most dangerous rider on tour. He is all over the road all the time, and they also took him aside and spoke to him tonight. Pk

We past the half way point today as well today, I guess it's all down hill from here. Haha sure. 

We arrived in Chamberlain and relaxed in the hotel swimming pool, right beside the Missouri River. 

Note the invisible bridge. 

Next day was a very strong side wind. 110 kms with the wind howling from our right. We rode 60 kms then stopped in a diner for apple pie and ice cream. Perfect.  !! 

Look at that shit coffee I'm being forced to consume  !! 

Final day before our rest day in Sioux Falls started with a slight headwind then back to a strong side cross head. The thought of a rest day after 8 solid days riding was very inviting too. It was only 115 kms too so seemed quite short. We arrived in town and went straight to a Stone Cold store and consumed ice cream FAAAAAST. The weather is starting to get very humid. 

At the riders meeting tonight several of the riders introduced a family member or friend who is joining to ride a leg with them. ( Jimmy, Michael dont you feel bad about leaving me here on my own   !! )

Today is day 28 of 50 days and it is starting to feel as though we are flying across the country. We have completed 3 of the 6 stages and the final 3 stages are shorter than the initial stages. 

Here are a few photos from the last week. 

Letterbox  !! 

Never heard of it  !!

Bison I managed to capture. 

WTF  ?? Anyone tried this stuff  ?? 

My riding mates - from the left

Mark who is also my room mate and an all round great guy, comes from Texas. 

Me also an all round great guy.

Josine from Holland.

Mitch also from Texas.

Ric from Finger lakes NY

People I have spotted, who do not ride bikes ( note all photos taken in restaurants  !! )

The shape of America  !! 

Next 7 days take us into and through Minnesota and then into Wisconsin. I'm looking forward to a change in scenery as we leave the plains behind us. 

Stage 3 part 1 Casper to Wall, South Dakota

'Total distance so far 2711 kms

Coffee milk shakes. 27

Ice creams. Lots and lots and lots  !! 

To day we left our second rest stop Casper. A more boring town I am sure does not exist. 

We went to the movies yesterday as most of the town was shut. The movie was The Lone Ranger even that was a shocker. 

First day out was 176 kms and if there is a god then he obviously likes me (at the moment). We had a great tail wind til the 150 kms mark then it became a strong side wind. We averaged 34 kms an hour for 176 kms  !! We even overtook a coal train which was travelling beside us. Yeeha I arrived in Lusk and have had some shocking cramps, guess I need to drink more ( I know Jack will give me a hard time ). We have a ritual now for our group of 5 riders. If you get the first puncture or mechanical of the day then you have to buy Chocolate thick shakes for the group. One day Mark had a puncture and 2 mechanicals and ended up buying us all lunch  !! 

Lusk is a tiny town but very friendly it does look a bit worn down though

it is small but not as small as Lost Springs

We left Lusk with a thunderstorm and rain on the road. Luckily the storm was blowing our way so we flew through the morning, unfortunately I had a flat just before lunch so the shakes were on me for the day. We rode to Hot Springs which is in South Dakota yeeha new State, a distance of 133 kms. 

Here is my riding group entering South Dakota - except the guy far left. ( Phillipe = HUGE KNOB )

We left Hot Springs with the thunder belting and rain everywhere on what should be a brilliant day. 

We rode uphill for 1000m and into Wind Cave Park. It is a natural habitat park for Bison and Elk and Antalope and prairie Dogs. It's a beautiful park, rolling expansive and spotless. We saw a herd of Bison but did not get close as they had young.

Can you see the Bison  ?? No well there aren't any I took the photo for the sun rays. But it is beautiful. 

35 miles up the road we rode past the Mountain they are carving as a huge sculpture of Crazy Horse. It is huge. This project has been funded by some very wealthy guy. 

It's about 680 feet x 600 feet it is expected to take 100 years to complete. This photo shows what has been done so far

This is what it will look like when completed with the horses legs in the middle of a large lake. 

We then rode up to Mt Rushmore where the 4 Presidents have been carved into the rock face. Really this bit of the ride is amongst the best riding I have ever done. The scenery is spectacular and the roads in great condition. 3 million people visit Mt Rushmore every year. Talk about a Cash Cow  !!  For South Dakota and nearby Rapid City which is a really nice town. About the size of Bunbury but much nicer. 

5 Great Men  ?? 

How many heads do you count in this picture ?? - the answer is two, see the marmot on the rock in the foreground  ?? 

We finished the day with almost 2500m and 110 kms.

Our pace line group went out for dinner in Rapid City and had a fantastic steak dinner. Wow wine is so cheap here. We paid about $35 for each bottle of wine which I think was a bargin as the wine was great as were the steaks. - Man cannot live by Pasta alone  !! 

When we returned to the hotel we were watching TV and a warning came on the screen. Saying warning in this area !!. 5 minutes later a severe wind storm hit the hotel. Amazing  !! 

Nice short day to Wall only 94 kms. Very strong cross breeze from the north all ride. I have learned from experience that because its a short day does not mean it is going to be easy. You must still be prepared to ride hard because something always comes along to stuff it up.

Wall is an interesting town. We have been seeing billboards advertising Wall Drug Store for the past 700 kms  !! The town is very small and appears a bit like a fake town. Wall Drugs started about 100 years ago and struggled. The wife of the owner suggested that they put signs on the Interstate motorway offering free iced water. Travellers started pulling off the motorway and coming to town to get their free iced water. Remember cars had no aircon and its damn hot here. The store is now a Mecca for tourists, with over 2 million visiting each year. It is a large western style store selling cheap crap by the ton. Oh yeah, they still serve Free iced water and coffee costs just 5c. 

Rare and endangered Jackalope

Nice touch in the motel

Post ride chocolate thick shake - great recovery drink. Any excuse  !! 

And we have 195 kms tomorrow so we deserve it  !! 

Secomd half of Stage 2, 5 days Idaho Falls to Casper

Really in the swing of it now. Into bed by 9pm and up at 5am. Pack what you haven't packed the previous night then off to a crappy breakfast. Brought my own Vegemite as I don't like grape jelly or fake scrambled eggs and if I'm lucky there is some cereal.  Load your bags at 6am and hit the road. We get given a basic set of directions the night before and it's up to you to get there. The basic instructions give you turn by turn instructions ie: 47.7    R    W 2000 ave

If you stuff up your computer or miss a turn and someone does every day then it's bonus miles for you  !! 

So far we have had 6 riders picked up by the sag van as they were unable to complete the days ride. 

Next town on the trip was Idaho Falls, we met a cyclist out training on our way into town and asked him where the best chocolate milkshake was to be found. He immediately told us to follow him and he took us to a family owned diner and the shakes were fantastic. The rooms were not ready til 4pm which was a bummer. The hotel was the worst we have stayed at. Mark my room mate and I had a swim in the local river it was very cool.  Here is a photo of the river in Idaho Falls

We have been following the path of the Snake river since we left the coast it starts in Yellowstone and wends its way to the sea. So we followed it up stream for 1600 kms. Only 106 kms that day. 

Snake river canyon 

Next day to Jackson was a huge day 186 kms and 2780m of climbing. We set off and within 5 kms we had a new road for 24 kms with fresh chip seal just been laid it was terrible to ride on, and we soon started climbing into a strong headwind. The ride had 2 big climbs with the second finishing with 6 kms of 10 - 12% gradient without a let up  !!   Just what you want at the end of a huge day. At the top of the pass at 2545m the view was great. The descent to Jackson was WOW  !! one steep fast descent, one of our group had a max speed of 93 kms per hour  !!

We also entered Wyoming State. It is a small state which has a population of 586,000

Jackson reminded me a bit of Margaret River but with a lot of cowboy influence. I think you could have a fun week there. Jackson is noted as having the highest per capita wealth in the USA. Houses cost between 1 to 30 million dollars. The mountain biking is incredible. We went with one of our group to have drinks with a mate of his who lives there and his family, he gave us a run down on the Mtn Biking in the area, it could be a great trip. 

Deer antler arch - Central Jackson, Wyoming. 

The next day up and at it again and off to Dubois. 144 kms, the ride was the most spectacular ride I have ever been on. We passed the mighty Teton ranges and over the Continental divide. ( This is the point where all water landing west flows to the pacific and all water /rain landing east flows to the atlantic. Along the way we passed a herd of wild Bison feeding in a field on the edge of Yellowstone.

The town Duboise was  known as "No Sweat" but the postal service would not open a post office because of the name  !! The Wyoming state government re named it Duboise. It was to be pronounced the French way BUT the town refused and it is now pronounced as deboys  !! 

This is the Grand Teton amongst the little Tetons, if you look carefully you can see people river rafting. 

What a brilliant view, looks just like the Dolomites in northern Italy 

Wild Bison in yellowstone park, where is my bow and arrow  !! 

In true cowboy style Duboise has wooden sidewalks

Here is a photo of a section of the sidewalk with the bit Janette paid for - NOT

It is a true cowboy town with a population of 900. They all wear the full cowboy outfits, we went to the pub after tea and they were arriving for a dance evening. Well howdy pardner  !! Cowboys and cowgirls aged 6 to 70 all dressed with dem boots and hats came to the bar and the bar was a true Wild West affair check these photos

Lots of stuff shot by cowboys  !! 

Looks like cowboy country. 

The ride to Riverton City was glorious 130 kms down hill slightly but with about a 15 kmh tailwind the whole way. We averaged 35.6 kmh. Yeeha  !!  Starting to get tired after 8 days riding 

last bit of this stage was 196 kms to Casper and a rest day, we rode as a paceline of 5 all day at an average of 30 kmh and got in just before the rain soaked the other riders. There was 75mm of rain in about 1 hour  !! 

The roads we are riding all have a rumble strip on the edge with about a one meter shoulder. The rumble strip is about 30cm wide and is a series of gouges made in the road surface. You are required by law in Wyoming to stay to the right of the rumble strip which is very hard when trying to hide from any cross breeze. If you waver onto the rumble strip it just about shakes you off your bike. 

We have only had one accident in the group so far. Terry a Canadian was not concentrating and went down heavily, crushing his helmet and requiring 20 stitches in his arm. He's a tough old guy though (70 years old) and he finished the ride before he would let them take him to the hospital for repairs. 

Dinner at Bubbas BBQ - that is a lot of food for one person. I had salad of course. 

By the way this is Cowboy Country

Stage 2 first 4 days of the 9 days - Boise to Casper

This is a 9 day stage so I thought it wise to not be stupid and flog along every day. Day one we left Boise about 8am, within one hour I had taken a wrong turn and had only realised my mistake 5 kms up the wrong road. That of course means retrace your steps and continue the right way, so 10 kms added to the days total. IDIOT.  I normally only make turns after I have checked my days notes carefully. 

Here was the view on the road. HTF could I get lost  ?? 

Next day was 155 kms to Twin falls. The weather was going to be hot so we started early. 5 of us rode a pace line for the entire ride and we arrived somewhat stuffed  !! It sure did get hot though and I was glad to get to the hotel. Directly opposite the hotel was a fabulous ice cream shop so I cooled down there. Some riders didn't get in til 5.30 and were frazzled. As always they are so worried about the heat they all talk about it at every opportunity. 

Twin Falls is the 5th biggest town in Idaho. It's population is about 40,000. It looks and feels like a very modern town and is squeaky clean. It sits on the East side of the Snake river canyon and the views are fantastic. 

You enter town over an amazing bridge way up high over the Snake River. The bridge is the only one in the USA where you can BASE jump without a permit.

 There is also a golf course which looks spectacular too.  See if you can see the kayakers on the water, it gives you an idea of the height of the bridge. 

Following day was just 75 kms to a small burnt hot town called Burley. On the way we called in to see the two waterfalls after which the town is named the most spectacular is Shoshana Falls

As it was a very short day ( 70 kms) the crew arranged a scavenger hunt along the way. We were given a vague list and had to collect (with imagination) items from the roadside. Our special "Unusual Item" was a deers leg we spotted just out of town. I presented it as a kangaroo leg - of course  !!   

Items from the scavenger hunt haha cop the deer leg. 

We all know Americans have a strange sense of humour. Does anyone get the joke I saw on this billboard  ?? Perhaps "Sex gives you wind"  ?? 

Our ride to Pocatello was 140 kms. It was into  our first serious headwind too, damn it brought back some memories. Problem is that there is a very hot weather system behind us so the wind is being sucked into the patch just west of where we are. We are now in the foothills of the Rocky Mtns so I think the wind after that wont matter for a few days. 

Today while riding in our 5 person pace line one of the guys gave a shout as his crank and pedal came off and bounced into my leg. It gave me a nasty shock. We managed to bolt it back on for a while then he rode the mechanics bike for the last 50 kms. The local bike shop fixed it. 

Upcoming weather

Fancy a coffee from Stinkers  ?? 

This is an add for an Idaho beer, in my room mates rating it's a " row lightly " he rates beer in rowing parlance - Fat Tyre is apparently just average. 

End of the windy day, two of my riding companions sleeping while they wait for their rooms to be ready

5 days til rest day 

Stage 1, Oregon to Idaho

You may notice the new link which shows the whole trip so far, it has replaced the other link as it gives more options and I think does a much better job. If you are so short of a life that you want to know where I am on an hourly basis feel free to stalk me there.

First 8 days:

Kilometres: 982

Meters climbed: 12675

Hamburgers eaten: 6

Ice creams swallowed whole: 7

Piss taken out of the Dutch: huge

After 3 days of riding are done I'm was back in the routine of a tour like this. The days are as long as you want to make them, dictated by how hard you ride the bike. 

Day one from Astoria where we had dipped our wheels in the Pacific we rode to St Helens it's a small town about 10 kms from the site of the St Helen's volcano. 

Bit over the top !!

Day two we rode through Portland along the canal / river and saw lots of house boats. Some of these are 3 levels, they all have a garage door on the river side  where they store their boat. We saw a whole suburb of them on one part of the river.  8 houses wide by 4 deep just like streets. 

We rode to Welches which is about half way up Mt Hood so the day finished with a bit of a climb. Every day we have been told that it would be wet BUT still no rain yeeha. The radar had us in a huge storm yesterday evening but it cleared up over night and was fine the next morning.

 

Early start to day 3 as we had to ride down the road for a kilometre for breakfast. I'm still adjusting to eating plastic food for breakfast. Plastic plates, knives, spoons straws and the food is kind of plastic in the mornings as well. There is lots of it though so I'm not complaining. 

We climbed for the first 19 kms and at the top it was 4c and a wet cold wind. The view of Mt Hood is incredible - so I'm told, but it was covered in mist and cloud so I never actually sighted it. The descent on the back was brilliant, the road was so smooth and we had a tail / crosswind  - beautiful. We rode 112kms in total with about 1800m of climbing and ended in a resort in a town called Warm Springs. It's on an Indian reservation called Kah-nee-ta the tribe is called The Warm Springs Tribe, yeah really. The difference in terrain in one days riding is amazing. This morning we rode through huge green forests and it now looks like we are in cowboy country. 

Day four was just 98 kms and I rode with a Dutchman who is very strong, he does not call out the crap on the road when he is doing a turn. I asked him ton call it and he replied " No I don't do that stuff" WTF  ??  Is was a drag across a dry empty bit of country so we flogged along. Everyone else had an active rest day as the following day was 186 kms amd you know how yanks like to talk up their "Century" rides. We overnighted in Prineville, a tiny town which I bet you have never heard of. It's the town where Facebook and Apple run their data servers. 

In Prineville I came across this store.

WTF is a Growler fill Station anyway ??

Day Five was a 186 kms F'ing shocker I woke with very low sugar levels. My room mate later spoke of my " 1000 mile vacant stare" ( MH you know what he means  !! ) it was just raining as we left and I was well prepared with a light gillet NOT.  It rained for the first 50 kms and we got to the top of the first climb. It was freezing and it was zero degrees.  !! . I was so cold I had to stop on the way down as I was shaking so much, I thought I was going to crash for sure. The second climb warmed me up a bit and I was disappointed when I got to the top. (Most unlike me. ) it continued raining every F'ing inch of the ride to the town of John Day. If you look at the trip so far link you will also notice I also seemed to go very straight. It appears the Spot device I use to track the ride ran out of battery and also on that day my Garmin shut down. Normally a disaster as you need to know your distances to navigate your way and make the route., but that day it did not matter as the directions were:

1 Turn left out of the Best Western Hotel..

2. Turn left into the next Best Western Hotel. 

If you get lost on that day you are plain dumb. 

Next Six was 133 kms to Baker City. As spectacular day as you could ask for. Clear skies light head wind but not an issue. Beautiful climbs and a long steady descent to town. 

Day 7 we rode down hill to Ontario Oregon. It was brilliant fun, 100 kms down hill then 33 kms flat. Sun shining and a high speed pace line for the last 30. 

Day Eight was 102 kms to Boise and into the state of Idaho.

The headwind was quite strong in the morning but eased by about 10am. We arrived in town and stopped in a great bar/restaurant, we had all been asked to all wear our America by Bicycle riding tops so made quite a sight in the restaurant. 

Last night one of the Canadians was telling a story in a normal voice. One of the Americans said in a loud voice "Speak louder" he replied "No I'm not an American you listen up when I talk" - had a quiet giggle to myself. 

Speaking my language here.

Bike boxes US style. Great idea too as they are very strong. 

Don't see this sign too often on my rides back home.

Beautiful road and views, top of a climb it looks a bit like Switzerland.

Only coffee available in this town

Cleanliness Phobic America,

I have seen notices in the hotels saying the room is Ultra cleaned, super ultra cleaned, and super ultra clean and totally sanitised. 

Finally, check out the description of the fillings of this burger 

Stage two starts tomorrow, we have 5 new riders and we have dropped off 3. Have to start learning names again.