Ka…plunk, Ka…plunk, Ka…plunk

So no more pictures of me as a kid or from my wedding.  Today was a short easy day of riding for us with not much to take pictures of so the blog will be a little brief today.  Remember when we were in the Grand Teton’s and Yellowstone and I had hundreds of pictures to choose from each day?  Well today I have a grand total of 11 pictures to choose from and some of those are duplicates.  Like I said, not much to take pictures of today.  Since we only had a short 47 miles with almost no climbing and a slight breeze at our back we weren’t worried about leaving early.  We slept in until almost 7a which is by far the latest we’ve gotten up the whole trip.  We then met Bob and Marilyn at Helen’s for breakfast and finally started pedaling at 9:20a.  Knowing that the next 3 days we’re cycling 90-105 miles each day and it’s supposed to over 100 each day, we enjoyed our leisurely morning.  With the three of us working together at an easy pace we were able to be at our destination, Gordon NE by noon with only a few stops for water or to check out a one street town along the way.

Much to our surprise, when we left Chadron, we quickly found ourselves in a forest.  Ed who lives in Omaha had no idea there was a forest anywhere in Nebraska.  It wasn’t particularly big, but it still had pine trees and made us think we were back in the Black Hills.  It didn’t last long and soon we found ourselves riding through the grasshoppers again only this time they were more dense.  The first rider was fine, but as he rode the grasshoppers would try to jump out of the way and the 2nd and 3rd rider would get pelted in the legs with jumping grasshoppers.  It was a time you definitely wanted to be on the front.  Fortunately, the worst of it only lasted about five miles.  We stopped in Rushville, NE after 32 miles for water and I found a Batman mannequin to take my picture with and send to my nephews.

When we left Rushville, the shoulder we were riding on changed.  Suddenly we were riding on a road that had expansion joints (cracks in the pavement for during the winter ice) about every 7-10 yards.  This meant our final 15 miles were spent riding and going Ka…plunk, Ka…plunk, Ka…plunk as our tires hit the depression in the road every few seconds.  It made for a long 15 miles and quickly became old.  We’re hoping we don’t have 92 miles of Ka…plunk, Ka…plunk, Ka…plunk tomorrow on our way to Valentine.  With our long days the rest of the week, Matt and I are spending the time catching up on work, home, etc.  Finally since there’s not anything else to blog about today I thought I’d review the words of the day since I last did so in Jackson:

• Day 15: Waiting – We had a miscommunication with the SAG drivers and spent some time waiting be the side of the road to be picked up
• Day 16: Yellowstone – Incredibly beautiful ride through the park with our good friend John Hansen
• Day 17: Mangy Moose – Enjoyed our rest day going to Teton Village and having lunch outdoors at the Mangy Moose
• Day 18: Chief – Matt’s Father-in-law had passed away and was in our thoughts throughout the day
• Day 19: Milkshake – After long hot ride, GREAT milkshake at Dirty Sally’s in Ten Sleep, WY
• Day 20: Powder River Pass – One of our all-time favorite days riding ever
• Day 21: Bull Penis – Marilyn and her sister Linda liven up the dinner conversation over wonderful Mexican food in Gillette, WY
• Day 22: Isabelle’s – Great Italian dinner in Newcastle, WY at very unexpected restaurant
• Day 23: Bumbleberry – First pie of our trip and it was unforgettable
• Day 24: Black Hills – Crazy Horse monument, Mt. Rushmore nad driving through the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota.
• Day 25: Southern France – Enjoyed our visit to Hot Springs, SD which Matt compares to Southern France
• Day 26: Grasshoppers – Felt like we were riding through a minefield

Leaving Chadron

Part of the small Nebraska forest we saw outside Chadron.

Nebraska windmill. Nice to see the wind blowing in the direction we were riding.

Saying goodbye to the forest.

Bike on top of bar in Gordon, NE.  Told you there wasn’t much to take pictures of today.

The one sight to see in Gordon, NE. Took us all of about one minute…

Matt enjoying his Red Beer