Highway 23

Windiest day of the trip so far. Weather.com said 15 - 25 mph, and you guess it, we biked right into it. We passed lots of oil pumps, all with windsocks, to confirm this further.

The terrain was interesting today because it was hilly, but you could see for over a mile if you were at the top of a hill. I rode with Sam all day, and Nolan after lunch, so we drafted a bit, but did alot of pulling as well. I would try and pick out landmarks (not many to choose from) and guess how far away they were - amazing how far you can see.

I am also very sick today. Sore throat and stuffy nose, but I refuse to get in the van. You're gonna have to carry me into that thing. I decided I would push through the day, get in early and sleep. Up through lunch my plan worked well, Sam and I were cooking and pushing through the wind.

After lunch, however, it got harder. The wind picked up and I was started to feel it alot worse. Coughing and spitting - no fun. We passed over a dozen oil pumps, and one that was being drilled. It was pretty cool to see the stuff upclose, though I had tons of questions, since I know mostly about downstream vs. upstream.

We stopped alot after lunch, for trucks with wide loads, flat tires, sore bodies, you name it - we were struggling. Somehow we made it into the parking lot of the taste freeze tho - and got some ice cream. Then I ran next door and bought a can of chicken noodle soup.

Apparently some of the other groups of riders were having alot more trouble with truckers than Sam and Nolan and I experienced. The road was dangerous today - no sholder, so you had to be real careful. When its dangerous like this, I'd much rather ride with 2-3 other people, not 5-6 because people can't communicate well enough. Luckily we all made it in.

When I got to the school I took a shower and went to sleep for a good 3 hours. I woke up, ate some soup and went back to bed. I've been in and out of bed the rest of the night, but am trying to stay awake until bed time now so that I will get good sleep tonight. Hopefully between the sudafed, and the liquids, and the sleep, I'll feel better tomorrow morning.

Tomorrow is a big day - we enter rattlesnake teritory and are camping in Teddy Roosevelt National Park tomorrow night. Prolly won't have serivce again, and no school computer to use, but all is well with me.

It was mail drop tonight, and its gonna be hard waiting a whole week for Doug's surprise. But I'll be patient.

Today we also started the longest stretch of continuous riding on the trip - 11 days. One down, 10 to go.

Stats of the Day:

Total Mileage: 75.02

Avg Speed: 15.41

Max Speed: 25.23