The morning started with breakfast at the Copper Penny in Brownsville with Kristen and Andy - EGGS!!!!! This was great fuel for the climb out of La Crescent...a low grade grinder known as the Apple Blossom drive...definitely woke up my legs before noon.
Our lunch stop in Winona (pronounced We-no-na) was fantastic. I got there first - since I totally missed the sign for the first rest stop (oops)
Young, our intern, found a great old school drive in diner and ice cream shop. Cars would drive up and order. When the food was ready, the waitresses would attach the food trays to the car doors.
When we arrived, we learned that two local professors were buying everyone lunch. Apparently, they met the group last year and wanted to thank us for riding.
Despite the fact that these random acts of kindness from strangers keep happening along our journey...I continue to be amazed and am sooooo grateful. These bits of encouragement continue to drive us forward and remind us that our efforts are appreciated.
I had a giant cherry coke, burger and sweet potato fries - with ice cream - what a treat!
After lunch, the soccer fans wanted to find a bar to watch the US play in the World Cup. Skylar asked about a bar called Bubs - the waitress confirmed that was actually pronounced Boobs...and off they went to catch a game.
That night, we stayed at a church in Washaba - I still have no idea how this is pronounced... We showered down the street at a local pool and slept in the dining hall. It rained that night - so it was great to be inside.
That night, we were also two days away from rest in Minneapolis. I heard that last year, a bunch of riders did a long ride to Minneapolis to cut out a riding day and add a rest day. I decided I definitely wanted to do this too (as my left hand was consistently numb from riding and my back was getting sore). I mentioned it to a couple of riders and there seemed to be support...so our group put it to a vote. It was decided that we would all travel to Minneapolis a day early so we could have three rest days instead of two.
Many thanks to our route leaders for reworking the route to accommodate the change of plans!
When I went to sleep that night, I was dreaming about THREE days off...WOW - only 90 miles to Minneapolis!
No comments:
Post a Comment