On Saturday Gona came and picked me up, along with CeCe (my bike.) CeCe was named by Kenna, even though she doesn't know it. The first thing she said when she saw it was that it looked like a Candy Cane....I couldn't very well call her candy cane...so CC, or CeCe was born.
Here is my ONE bag for Ragbrai as I am riding the truck this year vs. driver!
Goan and I made the drive to Bridgot and Mike's lake house in Okoboji. What a FUN and picturesque location. They bought a house right off of a canal that leads to Lake Okoboji. They have a view of the lake without all the hassle. Bridgot was lucky enough to buy the property from a woman that just didn't want the work of owning a lake property anymore. So, she left EVERYTHING, including linens, silver, everything. They have done ton of work replacing floors and building a dock for their pontoon and the place just SCREAMS Bridgot in all its cuteness. Was so lucky to have a great place to sleep and company to talk to!
Emmi and Kade drove up as well. We went out on the boat and got a lake view of the multi million dollar homes. We passed by one that was 14 million dollars...assuming it may be on the market for a while....
We also visited the Emporium which reminds me of a baby Pike Place. Cute old quaint shops, but this one has a fun park equipped with roller coaster and mini golf course next door. Was nice to see the lake before all he craziness of the Ragbraiers would come to town the next day.
After way too much to eat and drink we went to bed. Emmi and Kade were unsure if they wanted to ride the whole thing. Luckily Kathy had the idea for all of us to start together, and they could pick up the two of them when they were pooped. I somehow convinced everyone to leave at 5am. So, we got up at the crack of dawn, loaded our breakfast burritos in our bike bag, and off we went!
They did awesome! Both Kade and Emmi almost rode the entire way, we guessed about 62 miles (70 mile route.) I loved showing them all the sights and scenes. Was especially impressed with Kade as he set the pace a lot of the day and it was pretty quick!
After May City both Em and Kade had had enough. Fortunately Gona was waiting a few miles out and they threw their bikes in the back of the truck. They took off for Mike's and I took a "short cut" to get there as well. Those last 10 miles were harder than any other 10 miles on the route all day, very hilly and WINDY! The day was so very windy, 20-3o mph gusts all day, and it was even more difficult outside the pack of bikes! But I made it! We had another fun evening of celebrating with s'more pizza for Emmi's birthday and got to bed rather early that evening.
Then, this morning I got up early and headed out of Okoboji. The route was short, just 40 miles, but we had a ton of headwind! I found that my fanny and shoulder's were really sore right away, but it wore off. It was strange riding by myself, but I felt great because I knew Emmi was setting up my tent for me, so no rush to the Ragbrai truck to get my gear. I also knew that 40 miles in a whole day was a piece of cake! There were times when the wind was blowing right at me that I had to just stop and pull off to get a break from it. Was so relieved to find a popsicle stand about 4 miles out of the last town, really gave me the umph I needed to fight the wind in.
Today's weather didn't help...100% humidity and last I checked 90 degrees out...bleck! Luckily just one more day of this then it cools off at the end of the week. Tomorrow is the longest day of 80 miles, (figures!)
Today I got to meet a TON of people! That is the good part about riding on your own I guess? I met a man on the bus into town that was from Chicago. He rides every year on his own and just people "meets." We talked about the ride and Rails to Trails program I am passionate about, really cool.
The best time I have had was helping two newbies get their bearings. There were two girls I met while charging my phone, speakers, mophie and phone charger (man how did people ride ragbrai without electronics?) One was a teenager that flew up here from Florida to meet up with her best friend. They are riding all week. She was so sweet and just exhausted! I told her all about how there is a paper in each town, and how to find the shuttle, best ways to get a good shower and the food that she just MUST eat during the week. Was so fun! The other girl I met actually passed out from exhaustion! Yesterday she started the ride with a respiratory cold. By the middle of the day she was dehydrated and exhausted and actually passed out in a park. Luckily her friends got her medical help. Now she is trying to figure out how to get to Guttenburg where her car is! The whole afternoon made me feel old, but was fun to talk to them. Made me miss my kids in a strange way :)
Well, fortunate to have the ability to type this blog in real time! I was worried I may forget some of this but now it is captured here!
Here are the route maps for days 1-4 -
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