As I have said before, each day starts and it never unfolds as you might have expected it to. We were all a bit tired from yesterday’s ride but we were only scheduled to do 91 miles. (That actually turned out to be 94 miles.) We started off slowly leaving Lusk. You could tell by the temperature that it was going to be a hot day. There was no need for arm warmers or a vest at 6:00 AM.

Quite a number of us left, and within the first half hour a pace line had started and we began our rotation. Danny takes longer to warm up so he was way behind the line. To ride safely in a pace line one needs to know what is required and pay very close attention. One lapse in attention and the entire line could crash. Even under the best of circumstances, it is very dangerous.

After a while Steve Worthy passed me and said Danny wanted us to slow down. I dropped back to wait for Danny. I thought he may not be feeling well. Danny arrived shortly and was feeling fine and just was not interested in riding in a pace line that early and with so many people. As we rode on, soon Mary and Steve were on the side of the road waiting for us. They had just had a near miss in that earlier pace line and decided it was time for a picture.

The four of us know each other’s moves very well by now and feel safe riding with each other, but when unknowns are introduced into the line it changes everything. As we rode on we came upon a small group of riders who appeared to be changing a tire. As we approached we asked, as we always do, if they needed any help. Kate screamed, “We need help!” It was only then that we saw that a rider was down. Karen had hit an object on the side of the road and crashed. She was hurt quite badly. Once again Danny and this time Nancy, both nurses, assisted. Danny took charge and evaluated the situation and an ambulance was called, but it was decided that that could take 30-50 minutes. Danny determined that Karen’s injuries would allow her to be moved. So Danny assisted Karen into the van and Danny accompanied Karen all the way to her final destination, a Rapid City Hospital. Karen’s husband is also on the ride and was riding ahead of the accident site. He was later transported to the hospital to be with her.

I just pray for a speedy recovery. I believe Karen may have had three broken teeth, and damaged her mouth as well as numerous road rash places. She is a wonderful person and she had joined us for a couple of hours the day before. When her husband called the hospital to talk to her, one of the first things she asked him was for a Performance Bike Catalog so she could order a new bike helmet and continue on the ride. I hope she will be able to rejoin us.

As you can imagine this incident has shaken a number of people. It is a good reminder of how dangerous what we are doing is every minute of every day. I just pray that God will protect all of us and give us strength to complete our journey across America.

Steve, Mary and I continued together through the rest of the day. It would not have been that challenging except for the heat. When we arrive in Hot Springs at 2:00 PM it was already 102 degrees. The heat really zaps your strength. There just is no way to drink enough fluids on a day like today. Tomorrow we head to Rapid City and Mt. Rushmore. It is going to be super hot again. Spirits are high. We are all looking forward to a great day.

In closing, I would just like to ask all of my friends who have joined me on this ride to pray for Karen and her husband Darrel. I will be praying for a miraculous recovery.

Thanks again for joining me. I love Mt. Rushmore. I have many fond memories of times when I have been here with my family.

Click here to see more pictures from today!