July 11
Wednesday, July 11 Pierre, S.D. Chamberlain, S.D. 94 miles
Hi Paul,
I hope this gets
to you. I was walking back from the
restaurant and saw a sign in the window that said "check e-mail free"
I'll recap today
I made it to Chamberlain, SD. Today we passed our 1/2 way point. Everyone is whipped. These last several days have been very
challenging, and we are all very tired.
The winds of the Dakota prairie blow strong and unceasing. We fight it every pedal turn all day long. I have a saddle sore and it is not getting
any better. They are serious, and can
become infected. So when I get to Sioux
Falls, I hope to find some medical attention for this.
At route rap last night, Doug didn't
mention these last climbs coming into town.
After such a hard day, it was not a welcome sight to see MORE
climbs. But we made it. I saw pheasant birds today. I didn't see much of anything that wasn't right
in front of me on the road. When the
wind blows so hard, it is all we can do to keep on the road so we don't look
around at the scenery.
We are staying at
the Best Western right next to the Missouri River. Coming out of Pierre this morning we were following the River for
a few miles and then didn't see it again until we were about 12 miles out side
of Chamberlain. We were riding up high
on a bluff for a while and could look out over on to the wide river. I could just picture the fur trading business
of years ago that must have took place on this river. There were some historical plaques along the way that told about
different fur trading posts near this river.
I lucked out and didn't get wet
today. The rain clouds were not far
away and you could see it raining in
the distance. Yesterday the same thing
happened in the late afternoon and I rode out away from the rain storm.
Time to go to
route rap and see what is up for tomorrow.
Pray for us. These are tough
days for all of us!
I didn't get in until after 5 PM.
I am very tired. Since I saw
this free e-mail check - I didn't have the stats with me. I could go back to
the hotel and fax that to you later.
Take care. I miss you!
We are half way!
Add this to the
journal:
When I got in from the ride and was
approaching the motel door, a newspaper reporter from the local paper asked if
she could photo me and ask me about the ride.
I looked horrible. Hot, sweaty,
covered with black dirt that had been blowing on my skin all day, and I was totally
wilted. But I talked to her a little
while. The locals are always so interested
in what we are doing, and they wish us good luck.