It always takes some time to recover from a day like yesterday. It was hot, windy, and rainy. We were hopeful for today because it was only 83 miles and we were reaching the halfway point in our trip today. Wow!

We left about 7:00 AM. There was wind but we could manage it OK. We rode near the Missouri River. Great views were off to our left. At mile 23 we had a long climb, but it was not too bad. There was a nice view of the Missouri River from that point. A little further up the road we celebrated the _ way point in our ride across America. The actual half way point is 30 miles further up the road. We took pictures and reflected momentarily on when we started in Astoria, Oregon on June 22.

We refueled our bodies and headed into the wind, east that is. The wind was now growing stronger by the hour. I learned later it was 15-20 miles per hour with gusts up to 30 mph. At times it was all we could do to ride 6-7 mph. Steve bonked about mile 30. He just was plumb spent. The poor guy just had nothing left. Now many people rode the SAG on this day but the Stop A Lots are in this together. We flagged the van down and got Steve more water and food. Mary and I would take turns breaking the wind so riding would be easier for Steve. That was all we could do. Dan had gone up ahead of us earlier. I knew if we could get Steve to mile 48 that there was a store there and I might have a chance at bringing him back, is if he wasn’t too far gone.

When we reached mile 48 we made a right hand turn. This helped in terms of the wind direction. Now it hit us at about 90 degrees but we could work with this. We got Steve in the store. It was a very small place and not much in there. I got him a Sprite and we bought a sandwich which we heated in the microwave. Then we had another sandwich and I gave him an ice cream bar. When you are this far gone you are not only physically spent, but brain dead as well. Steve was about at this point, but he was showing signs of coming back.

We started back up the road moving at a much better pace. The next SAG stop was at mile 60.2. Steve showed some progress but was still not himself. When we rolled into the SAG we had more to drink and more ice cream, the food of champions. If there is any positive to bonking, it is that you can eat whatever you want. Steve felt like he was operating at about 1/3 his usual capacity. That was good! That was 1/3 more than he had earlier.

We hit the road and once again we turned into the wind. Mary and I took turns pulling and breaking the wind for Steve by rotating every half mile. We had two long climbs to get over and then it was a straight shot downhill into Chamberlain. Slow and steady wins the race! At times I know Mary and I weren’t sure we would be successful getting Steve in, but he was determined and so were we. We rejoiced when we reached the final downhill into town. We went straight for the Dairy Queen. After more fluids and food we went to the motel. Dan was concerned and had no idea what all of us had been through. It was about 4:00 PM by the time we got to the motel.

That evening Dan bought Steve some drink that is supposed to be for dieters, but he gave it to Steve to drink in addition to everything he was eating. I should mention that Steve eats like a horse. Bonking can happen to anyone at any time. One just needs to learn to recognize when it is beginning to happen. This is much easier said than done.

In summary, this was the most difficult day of riding I have ever done due to the wind. The best part is that we got Steve in safely and he did not have to ride the SAG. I believe that was important to Steve and that made it important to the rest of us. We have always said, it is more important that we are all successful than to be in early. I don’t really know what some of the other riders do for emotional support when they are riding by themselves all day long. Steve was extremely grateful for the assistance that Mary and I were able to provide. That alone made this a great day. Now we just have to help Steve continue to recover.

That night after dinner, Dan got Steve his drink and Mary and I did laundry. Then it was time to go to bed and ride another day.

Click here to see more pictures from today!