June 28, 2018 Ennis to West Yellowstone

Although today was only 72.5 miles with 3250 feet of climb it was a hard day.   The road conditions were a major contributor to the difficulty of the day.  The shoulder was only 2-3 feet wide and there was a foot wide rumble strip along the white line this gave you only a one  or two  feet to ride in.  The portion of the shoulder to right of the rumble strip was really rough and filled with gravel and tire bits.  There was a very flat light so you could not always see the rumble strip so you were constantly hitting it.  The traffic was heavy enough and consisted of too many semi-trucks and half tonnes pulling trailers or boats that riding to the left of the white line was way too dangerous. 

Four years ago there was such a nasty head wind you could only make 4 mph.  We had a rotating pace line going which enabled us to make 6 mph.  No such need to day as the wind was very light even though I think that overall it was a bit of a head wind.

At the 43 mile mark we were at Earthquake Lake which was created when an earthquake broke a section of the mountain off which dammed the Madison River.  It is a really steep climb up and over the earth quake rubble but once up there is a great view of the valley below.  This is where picnic was and it was great to sit and eat and enjoy the view. 

After lunch there was a 30 mile ride down along the lake.  There were lots of huge rollers as the highway doesn’t exactly follow the lake shore.   I was making pretty good time and the wind was not a big factor.  The big illuminated sign which was warning motorists of wild animals on the highway four years ago is still there but was not flashing to day.

The last 8 mile the road turned due south and there was such a heavy head wind blowing I had to stop 3 times to recover enough energy to continue on. 

Tomorrow I am going to leave the tour and head off with Tom R into Yellowstone.  We will have a 71 mile ride to Grants Village and then a 60 mile ride down to Jackson to re-join the tour.  This means no blog tomorrow.  I will catch the blog up on Sunday as that is the rest day in Jackson. 

Terry  

June 27, 2018 Townsend to Ennis

I nearly froze this morning.  I set off at 6:50 Am and had not put on either arm or leg warmers and had only short fingered gloves.   My rain shell just didn’t cut it and I was frozen.  I know that if you are not cold for the first 10 minutes then you are over dressed, but this was well beyond just a little chilly.  At about the 3 mile mark I considered turning around and riding back in to Townsend but my vow to never return keep me headed down the road.

At about the 8 mile mark Ron the other Canadian and Graeme one of the Auzzies showed up and suggested a pace line to keep the freezing wind off. It was not a hard decision to join them.  So we set off and in no time picked up Ken T. and the 4 of us continued on headed south on MT 287.  Most of the time there was a good shoulder with a rumble strip but when there was no shoulder it was downright scary as there were a bazillion semi-trucks, and half tonnes.   

At the 30 mile mark we came to The Montana Wheat Bakery which is right on the intersection of 287 and I-90.  We rolled in there to get cinnamon buns, and what cinnamon buns they were. I got the standard glazed and it was at least 9 inches across. The cinnamon bun was to die for. What a place.  While we were there at least 4 bus loads of Japanese tourists pulled in.

After we crossed the I90 the road got very quiet.  It was quite nice rolling along.  Ken T spotted a brown bear squaring off with a big buck Elk.  I saw the Elk but missed the bear.   I also spotted a couple of deer frolicking in a meadow but they were too far off to get a picture.

A big climb at the 45 mile mark and then it was picnic in a school parking lot and then more highway, another big climb and a downhill into Ennis. Lots and lots of really beautiful Big Sky Montana.

The last 10 mile bit seemed to take forever as I was pretty much done and there was a vicious cross wind.   

All and all an excellent day.  I had a lot of fun in the pace line and Ron and Graeme are natural clowns.  I also had lots of fun barking.  Barking at riders, other dogs, cattle, horses, and everything I could see.

I got the same spot that Earnie found 4 years ago around the back of the school.  In 2014 there were 4 of us in the spot this year I have it to myself.

Terry

June 26 2018 Lincoln to Townsend Montana

Today’s ride was over the Great Divide at Flesher’s Pass. This marks a big milestone on our journey east as in theory it is all downhill now. 

Ken and I were off early at 6:45 Am towards the pass.  We made good time and in no time were at the 10 mile mark where we turned south on MT 279 towards the pass.  We were made to believe that the climb was a series of steps with a level spot between each step however that was not the case it was a straight ever increasing gradient to the summit at 6131 feet.  The climb was only 9.5 miles and even though the final grade was around 11% it took me only about an hour to make the climb.  When I got to the summit there was quite a crowd of cyclists with everyone taking pictures and celebrating.

After departing the summit we had a wonderful decent through a pine forest.  The wind had picked up and was delivering a 10-15 mph tail wind.  Sailing down the decent at 30+ mph was easy.  After the decent we were out on the rolling prairie but not the wind had picked up and was delivering a 15-20 mph tail wind.  This resulted us being into picnic which was at the 53 mile mark around 11:00 am. 

Just as Tom Ryan arrived at picnic his bike made a loud crack and the frame broke just below the seat post. I think that the seat post was wiggling inside the aluminum tubing and wore a thin spot which eventually caused the failure.  I have never seen a frame fail in such a dramatic way.

Picnic was in a beautiful river side park in down town Helena.  Shuli’s homemade tortilla soup was great.  I could have hung around all day eating treats off the picnic table. However with the big tail wind blowing I had to take advantage of that so off I went.

The ride out of Helena is down a very busy highway. In 2014 it was a horrid ride as it was hot and we had the wind blowing into our face.  Today we had temperatures of around 75 F and a great tail wind.  The result was even though the road was busy the howling tail wind made up for it. 

I arrived in Townsend at 2:00 Pm  at the high school to find that the athletic coach was refusing to allow any camping on the field and not allowing anyone to use the showers. Greg was not set up so I wheeled my bike around and rode on down to the local gas station where I got a couple of roller dogs.  They were great.  Upon returning to the school we now allowed to camp in this one little bit of grass which is at the end of the field.   I decided to wash in the sink basin in the men’s room.  Looks like the scheduled practice consists of about half a dozen kids tossing a football around.   GO TOWNSEND BULLDOGS GO What a self-serving self-important little jerk.

Tom rode into the local Trek shop in Helena where they immediately informed him they will be sending him a new bike. In the meantime Tom had to buy a new bike so he took a Giant with disc brakes.  Looks like a pretty nice ride.  

Today’s great tail wind made the 90 mile day and 3260 feet of climb seem easy.  A lot of it was at 25 mph without pedalling.  

Do I feel stronger every day or was it just the wind?

Terry

June 25, 2018 Missoula to Lincoln Montana

I always like the dorm cafeteria breakfasts.  There is lots of choose without dipping into the egg casserole.  So I enjoyed a breakfast burrito and a big plate of fresh fruit.  The pineapple was particularly tangy and good.   So right after breakfast Ed W and I rolled out.  We decided to skip the Adventure Bike Club headquarters tour which was on the way having seen it a couple of times already.   

I think it was a good move as getting down the road early enabled us to cover a few extra miles before the temperatures started to climb.  Ed reported 93F on his cycle computer later in the day and it was hot alright. 

We were back to following hwy 200 all day.  The shoulder was again variable from none to huge wide open shoulders with a nice rumble strip.  Somehow it seemed that the second the shoulder disappeared we would be set upon by conveys of semi-trucks and pick-up trucks all blowing diesel exhaust in our faces.

At about the 10 mile mark we started a big long climb which extended all the way to the 30 mile mark.  However it was only a 2-5 % grade and a person could wheel right along.   However I do have to admit that by the end of the climb I was looking forward to the decent on the other side.

My tires were pretty thin when I showed up for this ride as they had about 3500 miles on them. They were well past the wear dimples so I was concerned about them. Coming down a decent at 35 mph on thread bare tires may not be the best.  At lunch I had the mechanics mount two new Continental Gator Skins.  They were so smooth.  Do old tires get lumpy? I wonder.

After lunch Ed and I were joined by Ken T and the three of us rode along taking turns pulling up the rolling hills. 

Over all it was a very nice ride today with a total distance of 80.8 miles and a total climb of 2890 feet.

Terry hot biker

June 24, 2018 Rest Day in Missoula

I had a tough time getting to sleep last night and in fact only got a few hours.  You would think that being in a real bed in a dorm would be better than my cot in my tent.  However I find that I sleep better in familiar surroundings and in a familiar bed.  All that said I am armed with a bottle of milk which I will warm up before bed to night and an aspirin.  Warm milk and an aspirin and I am usually out before a count of ten.

It was a pretty low key day which was the plan and it worked out very close to plan.  Walk down to the local coffee house and have coffee and a simple breakfast.  Mission accomplished.  Set tent up to dry in the sun after the big rain storm.  Mission accomplished.  Go to the grocery store and get a bottle of milk and some candy for eating in the tent after supper. Mission accomplished.  Lay down for a nap.  Mission accomplished.  Drop my bike with the mechanics to have it washed, lubed, and tuned (the front derailleur seems to be jumping the middle ring).  Mission accomplished.   Walk down to the local burrito store for a lunch of burritos. Mission accomplished.   

I think that pretty much wraps up a relaxing day in Missoula.  Things I did not do include climbing the big hill behind the campus to the big white “M”,  Cleaning my own bike,  Doing laundry as I had actually done it on Saturday.

Not much has changed here in Missoula since I was here last in 2014.  The dorm is the same and the down town is totally unchanged.  There does seem to be a lot of street construction, with detours everywhere.   The only thing which looked different was that the Missoulli river was running very high.

Tonight is the organization meeting for the second week.  These kick off meetings always seem to take forever.  This week is only 456 miles as compared to the 602 miles last week so it should be much easier.

Terry hot biker

June 23, 2018 Thompson Falls to Missoula

I think it started raining around 1:30 am this morning.  I turned over and tried to ignore it but it didn’t stop, in fact it just kept getting heavier and heavier.  By 5:00 Am the alarm went off and I had to do something.  Normally by that time it is full light but this morning I had to hang my little LED lantern in the tent to see as it was still dark.  The present situation required a total rethink of everything I had laid out for the morning.  Different shorts, now I need leggings and arm warmers, plus I need all of my rain gear.  Ok figure out which compression bag these items are in and get them out.  You know that meant opening every bag.   There is really nothing to compare with rolling up your tent in the pouring rain. 

Breakfast was just down the road so we pedalled off to breakfast.  It was being served up by the same fellow, who had provided our supper last night, which I might add was probably the best one so far.  It was hearty breakfast burritos which was a nice change from the breakfast casserole we have been served.

The low hanging clouds filled the valley and mist lay in every hollow. It was only around 60 F so it took a while to get rolling. With 105 miles to cover it was going to take a while.  The road was well worn with two distinct wheel ruts, a center swale and a high spot on either side. The wheel ruts were filled with water so that every vehicle which passed you gave you a good spray of ice cold water, and when a semi-truck went by it was like having a 10 gallon bucket of ice water pitched on your back.   The shoulder was variable but mostly about 3 feet with a set of rumble strips down the middle making most of it un-rideable.  What was rideable was large stone chip seal which had not been swept in a very long time.  I was taking my chances riding to the left of the white line. 

By time I got to first water at the 20 mile mark it was miserable.  By time I got to the 40 mile mark and second water Greg was sitting there in the van picking up cyclists.  I had really wanted to ride to picnic at 57 miles but there he was so it took me only a few seconds to hit the van.  Warm and dry versus cold and wet. A tough choose!  Plus getting in the van with Greg means a direct ride to camp.  Unfortunately that also means you have to help unload luggage.   And I thought my bags were heavy. 

Well it is the end of  week one and we have a rest day tomorrow in the Missoula University dorm.  This ends the toughest week of over 600 miles. Next week is easy by comparison.  Two nights in a dorm and hopefully the rain clears off.  

Off to find a local brew and a steak.

Terry hot biker

June 22, 2018 Kellogg to Thompson Falls

What a day! Thompson Pass was totally spectacular.

However before I get to that I want to tell you about last night.  I finished posting my blog and came outside to find the sky had turned totally black. There was a huge rain front just off to the west. I realized that I had to get my laundry off the fence and as I was pulling it down the first really big rain drops hit me.  Knowing I had less than a minute I made a dash for my tent.  I dived into the tent and pulled the fly zipper closed.  Within 5 second there was a huge flash of lightning and enormous boom and the skies just opened up.  The down pour continued for another 2 hours before it settled down to a steady rain. Lying on my cot listening to the rain on the tent was so soothing. It was great.

This morning there was a low hanging fog which enveloped the valley.  It wasn’t cold but just a little clammy.  However it was very pretty riding up the river valley in the fog.  The route to Thompson Pass is a long steady climb of about 3% for close to 40 miles. I was feeling very strong and made good time.  At about the 20 mile mark sun had burned the fog off.  We turned this right hand corner and there was a beautiful little bridge over the river.  It brought back memories of 2014 and taking Earnie’s picture turning the corner while riding with no hand.  At about the 39 mile mark the grade starts to increase steadily as you approach the summit.  Most of the last 3.8 miles to the summit is over 9% with a good portion exceeding 11%.   Yes I walked a couple of the last few miles.

At the summit (4859 feet) was picnic.   What a spot for picnic!  You can see for miles and the road thousands of feet below.  It was wonderful rolling into picnic.  The feeling of you have made it. Sounds of Credence Clearwater playing. Smells of Shuli’s wonderful soup in the air.   WOW! It just doesn’t get any better.

After lunch was a steep decline down 25 miles to Thompson Falls.  It was a great ride flying down. I think I hit 37 mph without even trying. 

A beautiful day. 

Terry hot biker

June 21, 2018 Spokane WA to Kellogg ID

Another day and another outlandish adventure.  The heat wave we have been broiling under made a 180 degree turn and delivered us pouring rain and vicious head winds.  Ken and I started off from the dorm this morning into a 20+ mph head winds and within a couple of miles a downpour was added to the mix.  It didn’t matter whether it  was up hill or down the best I could manage was about 5-8 mph.  After numerous turns getting out of Spokane we wound up in this canyon which had a distinct down hill and I am guessing at around 5 % down.  Struggle as I would I could not get over 5.1 mph. 

I was suppose to meet Wendy from Trilogy and ride with her to picnic.  The deal was I was suppose to phone her when I reached mile 18.   By time I reached mile 13 I phoned and told Wendy not to come out.  Have a nice cup of coffee and enjoy being at home.  It was quite disappointing as I had looked forward to seeing a friend from our winter home. 

Ken and I struggled on and by the time we reached mile 40 I was soaked and freezing.  The van showed up just then and we jumped in.  A few short miles later we arrived at the trail head to the Coeur de Lane bike trail.  It wasn’t raining and Ken decided to ride from there on to picnic which was only 8 miles as he wanted to get his bike worked on.  I have not had a good opportunity to visit with my friend Ed so I stayed in the van. 

We drove back to Worley where first water stop was to pick it up and went in to a local eatery called Fredneck’s Saloon.  I had the bleu burger which had to be a half pound burger and had ¾ of an inch of bleu cheese on it.  It was so good.  Put this place on your stop list next time you drive through Worley.

We weren’t on the road 5 minutes when the phone rang to say the one of the riders had gone down and was injured.  It was about a 20 minute drive so we were off to rescue him.  When we got to him I jumped out of the van as the weather had switched around and was a beautiful sunny afternoon with a very nice tail wind. 

It was about 25 miles in to Kellogg down the bike path.  So I just sailed along with a couple of other riders. 

The story on the rider who went down is it is a very serious dislocated shoulder but no break.  Unfortunately he is going home. 

Looks like the heat wave has dissipated and we are in for some nice weather.  Tomorrow is a 68 mile ride into Thompson Falls. We cross the second summit of the ride at Thompson Pass but I don’t want to leave a bunch of spoilers.

I am looking forward to a nice evening in the tent.

Terry

June 20, 2018 Coulee Dam to Spokane

Another long day at 93.5 miles into Spokane, but less than half of the climb at only 2400 feet.  Most of the climb was out of the Columbia River valley up to the plateau.  We were staying right downtown Coulee Dam which is on the river.  It is a really cute little town which hasn’t changed since the dam was built in 1941.  If your are looking for a 1940’s home in a quiet are this may be the place for you. 

Breakfast was at Pepper Jack’s which is about half way out of the valley and a great family diner.  I would highly recommend it on your next visit to Coulee Dam. 

After breakfast on the road and up the hill.  It was the same blast furnace as yesterday with a hot blast of air hitting you straight in the face.  Sun is just broiling you as we rode along. 

The ride wasn’t too exciting other than as Ken and I were riding along one of the big field irrigation units was spraying water across the highway.  We were talking about how cold the water was and how long we could stand under it.  Then just as we go up to it the unit shut down and we were robbed of our cold shower.

The second bit was that at the final water stop the peloton caught up to Ken and I.  A few laughs about how did a pair of slow pokes get so far ahead (not stopping and getting an early start) and they zoomed off.  About 25 minutes later we caught up to one of the riders and he had a flat. Ken and I stopped and fixed his tire and it was a really tight Continental, It was a really wrestling match getting it off and then back on.  He never would have fixed it on his own.  Really nice the cool kids just ride off and leave one of their pals. 

Tonight we are in the dorm on the Gonzaga campus.  It is a gorgeous facility and one of the highlight places to stay.  The cafeteria isn’t bad either.  Nice comfy chairs and great internet.

Terry

June 19 2018 Wenatchee to Coulee Dam

What a day 104.5 miles with 5400 feet of climb.  Ken and I were on the road early at 6:20 Am.  Feeling strong and looking forward to a ride to one of the big land marks on the tour.  Who has never heard of Grand Coulee Dam?  It is billed as the largest concrete structure in the world.  However I think this info may be out dated as I think that Three Gorges Dam in China has more concrete in it. However this maybe the way concrete structure is defined.

So down the road we go the route follows the Columbia River for the first 20 miles before making a sharp right turn up a gorge with drops into the Columbia Valley from the plateau above.  The climb is just over 7 miles of 7 unrelenting percent or 2600 feet.  So even though we had left early the heat of the day had set in and the canyon was into the 80’s.  A totally brutal climb by any ones perspective.   After we reach the plateau we are treated to a series of huge rollers, each one higher than the previous one.  But wait we also have a head wind which while not large in velocity is blowing a hot gust straight out of the blast furnace into your face.  Out on the blacktop it is easily into the 100’s.  Picnic is a long way down the road at 60 miles but Ken and I struggle in.  Picnic is grilled Costco sausages warm and toasty in fresh buns.  I stop at a store and buy 2 Arizona Iced teas and guzzle them down (46 oz total).   With just over 40 miles we are still looking at something around 4.5 hours. 

Down the road we go and now the sausages are talking back and my stomach is turning over.  It isn’t far now it is only 35 miles.  Oh no another huge roller.  Keep going as it is only 30 miles well 10 to water stop and so on. 

Touch down in Coulee Dam and I am so exhausted I lay in the grass until supper at 6:00 pm.  Something like 11. 25 hours in the saddle.  After supper I assemble my tent and crawl into bed.

There may be a take away here; don’t go on a C2C bike ride with zero training when you are  66 years old.

Terry

June 18, 2018 Skykomish to Wenatchee

Today was an interesting day as it was 77 miles the first 16 was a long grind up to the summit of Stevens Pass.  Over the 16 miles there is a 3100 foot climb.  Given my serious lack of training and my telling of how Jerry rode Crossroads at 85 by taking a little bump to him over the hills, I decided to do what I preach and jumped in the van.  Sixteen miles later I was at the summit.  It was so easy no four hours of grinding away at 4 miles an hour. 

At the Summit Ken and I jumped out and pedalled off.  From the summit at 4100 feet we rode almost all downhill to Wenatchee at 730 feet.  The first 30 miles was at 20-30 mph with out pedalling and by then we were at picnic.  Picnic was great! Shuli had made split pea soup with bacon.  I could have stayed there all day eating her soup. However we still had a long way to go and it was getting hot. 

The route followed Hwy 2 most of the way and it was tremendously busy.  At the 50 mile mark we turned off hwy 2 and rode along through a series of orchards.  It was a very pretty road however it was filled with really steep pitches and as it was now well over 90 F so the hills were very draining.  I think I would have preferred to just follow the highway cars notwithstanding.  The school we are at is at the far end of town so we had about 5 miles of winding through town.  A bunch of the route was up three blocks turn, left then ride a block, and turn left again down the same hill. Ok that is three sides of a square.  I don’t care how busy the streets are riding three sides of square up and down the same hill when the temperature is 90 F is not fun.

Ken and I got in before the van so we headed off and found some cold cokes in a Safeway. 

A quick up date on the new cot.  It is working out just great.  I am finding it very easy to assemble and it is very comfortable.

Tomorrow is a big day at 107 miles.  I am really hoping that the temperatures moderate a little. I am feeling much stronger after only a couple of days so maybe I will be able to ride myself into shape.  

Terry