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Friday, September 2, 2011
Day 3
Today we decided to try something a little different. Randy is so strong and fast that it is hard for him to ride at our pace. He rode with us the first five miles or so and then he was on his own. Judy, Kelly and Shirley rode the entire ride together changing leaders every couple of miles. There were a lot of hills with great down hills. We were riding some of the down hills at 35 to 38 miles per hour. Great fun.
In the town of Lucas we passed a little guy named Devon (7 or 8 years old) riding his bike. He turned around and rode with us for a bit. When we asked him where he was going (thinking he was on his way to Grandma's). He says he is riding to Mackinaw, which made us all chuckle.
We had some high winds that were mostly behind us and to our side, we were told 20-30 MPH wind gusts...Thought it would blow the bike right out from underneath you at times. There was a somewhat "portly" gent that offered to "break wind" for us...We took him up on the offer and rode about 10 miles drafting off him. Not sure I would take many people up on that offer.
We skipped lunch since none of us were hungry and rolled into Elk Rapids at about 1:00 (shouldn't you be greeted by a giant swan in all towns?) and decided to pass on the dinner they serve at 5:00 and go to the hotel. Showered and ready to go get some dinner (and maybe a couple beers...) Pictures to come later from the last two days.
In the town of Lucas we passed a little guy named Devon (7 or 8 years old) riding his bike. He turned around and rode with us for a bit. When we asked him where he was going (thinking he was on his way to Grandma's). He says he is riding to Mackinaw, which made us all chuckle.
We had some high winds that were mostly behind us and to our side, we were told 20-30 MPH wind gusts...Thought it would blow the bike right out from underneath you at times. There was a somewhat "portly" gent that offered to "break wind" for us...We took him up on the offer and rode about 10 miles drafting off him. Not sure I would take many people up on that offer.
We skipped lunch since none of us were hungry and rolled into Elk Rapids at about 1:00 (shouldn't you be greeted by a giant swan in all towns?) and decided to pass on the dinner they serve at 5:00 and go to the hotel. Showered and ready to go get some dinner (and maybe a couple beers...) Pictures to come later from the last two days.
Day 2
Sorry for the delay...No internet in Cadillac, and asking the clerk at the Holiday Inn to do anything for us was going to be a tall order. She apparently missed Customer Service 101. I'm certain Randy will get that resolved though; more on that later.
That was one wicked ride. There were a whole lot of uphills and not a lot of forgiving downhills; continually up. But, we did get out of the cornfields and into beans; on the tail end of the day we started to get into a whole lot more of that "Up North" feeling. We did start to see more lakes and even had lunch at the Lake George Campground. But don't eat the chili there according to Barb (Barb and Chuck shuttle with us to the hotels every night with Rick). Rick is the shuttle guy we hired for this trip. He owns Michigan Cycling Charters and he is fabulous.
The end of our ride brought us past some wind turbines. They are amazing and it great to see technology work with nature. Loved it.
This was a really tough day. It was harder than we could have imagined. But, we conquered it!!!
That was one wicked ride. There were a whole lot of uphills and not a lot of forgiving downhills; continually up. But, we did get out of the cornfields and into beans; on the tail end of the day we started to get into a whole lot more of that "Up North" feeling. We did start to see more lakes and even had lunch at the Lake George Campground. But don't eat the chili there according to Barb (Barb and Chuck shuttle with us to the hotels every night with Rick). Rick is the shuttle guy we hired for this trip. He owns Michigan Cycling Charters and he is fabulous.
The end of our ride brought us past some wind turbines. They are amazing and it great to see technology work with nature. Loved it.
This was a really tough day. It was harder than we could have imagined. But, we conquered it!!!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Three more things...
Shirley's computer battery died 15.5 miles in.
Dude on a Huffy Mountain Bike...Must be one of Heidi's customers.
Interviewed by the CMU reporter for her story.
Dude on a Huffy Mountain Bike...Must be one of Heidi's customers.
Interviewed by the CMU reporter for her story.
Day 1
An uneventful start to our ride was quickly dashed when it started to sprinkle. The rain was done by the time we got just outside of Lansing except for the pelting rain and/or hail that was hitting Judy in the direction she was headed. (She is simply a dork and couldn't take a few rain drops...)
The scenery was pretty much this: Corn Fields. Although we weren't without some pretty nice changes. We passed by a field of Oregano that smelled awesome; and then the farmer with the manure spreader that pulled out in front of us was another "fragrant" part of our ride.
Lunch was okay (what to expect at the Perrinton VFW?) but when you're hungry...That's what I like about biking; no need to feel guilty about anything you eat.
The best thing we got to see today had to be the two goats sunbathing on the top of some farmer's shed. It had to be quite a sight from their perspective as well.
Dinner at CMU was way more than we expected and we also had ringside seats to watch everyone paw through the ice cream cart looking for "the right thing". I must say the coffee was exceptional.
Pictures on their way after few Ibuprofen...
The scenery was pretty much this: Corn Fields. Although we weren't without some pretty nice changes. We passed by a field of Oregano that smelled awesome; and then the farmer with the manure spreader that pulled out in front of us was another "fragrant" part of our ride.
Lunch was okay (what to expect at the Perrinton VFW?) but when you're hungry...That's what I like about biking; no need to feel guilty about anything you eat.
The best thing we got to see today had to be the two goats sunbathing on the top of some farmer's shed. It had to be quite a sight from their perspective as well.
Dinner at CMU was way more than we expected and we also had ringside seats to watch everyone paw through the ice cream cart looking for "the right thing". I must say the coffee was exceptional.
Pictures on their way after few Ibuprofen...
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
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