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Saturday, May 19, 2007

Nothing like a rest day to stoke another Century ride out of me

Yippee, I did 110 (thats a century plus folks) miles today, and we are in Marshfield, MO. I am one tired puppy. Tried out the new saddle today and I will tell you more about it in a bit here. One thing to keep in mind is a new saddle is supposed to be a bit uncomfortable until it is broken in. Today was a wonderful day because... well because of many things, but one of those things was the rest day and half we just got done with.
At Janice's (Heather's aunt) house we had a BLAST, of course the massage was a highlight, but geting to meet some of our faithful readers was an inspiration. So hello Steve, Ginger, and Bill. Steve said he rides 25 miles at a time then runs 3 miles. Janice almost had him convinced to join us for the weekend riding. To tell the truth, I am sort of glad he declined. The reason is because he is in really good shape and I probably would have been left far far behind him (imagine the embarrasment) on the wayside.
Bill is a cattle farmer so I took the opportunity to ask if having the cows follow me (I feel guilty about it) is a bad thing or not. His answer was not yes or no but he did tell me a story of a runner in his area that the cows like to follow, he said it always seems to happen right after the cows are fed. This seemed to irk him a little. So I have to tell you while I mostly do not encourage the cows to follow me (and I do kind of enjoy it) I now know it is wrong so I really feel guilty about it.
Today we have Dawn (Heather's sister) with us as well. This is a welcome addition to our entourage. This means we also have two vehicles (not counting the bikes, of course) with us. After we set up the camper here at the RV park, we were able to take Dawns car to Wal-Mart to buy some snack foods for us. At Wal-Mart, Heather and I went to the scales to weigh ourselves. Remember Heather was losing weight quickly and she was at 94 pounds in Tempe, AZ. well we have good news (actually good news for both of us). Heather gained back her weight she lost. She weighed in at 112 pounds (HOORAY!!!!) we seriously were considering taking her off this trip if her weight loss continued. As for me (thats Dana here), when I left I was easily 214 pounds (but I tell everybody I weigh 210). Well, at Wal-Mart their scale says I weigh 195 pounds, so that means I lost between 15-20 pounds. YIPPEE for me. We ate diner at KFC and I guess their extra crispy and original recipies are very similar now (I actually asked the lady if mine really was extra crispy). The weighing happened after dinner.
Now for the saddle woes. As I said, a new saddle is supposed to be a bit uncomfortable for the first several rides. I was expecting that with my new Brooks model B66 saddle. I did have to make a few adjustments on the ride today to get it fit just right. I am still not quite finished with my adjustments, but it is pretty close to perfect right now as far as settings. I had some issues attaching my saddle bag (bag that goes under the seat), but I think I have it rigged just right so it will not fall off. I know you are all dying to hear if the saddle rocks or sucks, but bear with me a little longer here. Keep in mind I did 110 miles today wich would be difficult on any saddle. So now for the sad news. The sad thing is that even though it is brand new, not broken in, the new saddle is much, much, much better than the old one that has already been broken in. So to Steve at Cynergy, sorry buddy, you may know a lot about bikes and equipment but you still have something to learn about equipping a bike for touring. Everyone else out there if you are considering touring on a bicycle you will read several posts about buying a Brooks saddle. Well, from me to you, Brooks Saddles have my 100% endorsement and I highly recommend them to anyone and everyone (I am talking touring here folks, I have no idea how they perform in other environments).
I met another guy touring today (actually Heather paged me and told me he was on his way towards me so I was forewarned) heading west. I pulled over to talk with him but he seemed really scared of me. He had that look like... is this guy going to mug me or just kill me. So after trying some small talk he did not seem to relax at all. I left him on his way and he seemed happy with that.
Well I am tired and sore (actually just my calf is sore, I got a cramp in it this afternoon) and ready for bed. This camp ground has a shower, so I am also clean and happy. Oh, and my back is sore from typing so long so this will complete my post.
I hope you are all doing as well as you would like to be doing. Until next time...
-dana

2 comments:

Mom said...

Dana.... you keep talking about your pictures but I can't find any new ones.
the only ones I see are the same you had there at the beginning. How do I get to them?

Call JB in SD. I love you both.
Mom

Anonymous said...

Grandpa and I are following you on the maps. Keep going you are both doing great. Emjoy reading your daily reports.
Patti and Grandpa