TRAM (Day 4 - July 26, 2007

Wadena to Fergus Falls, MN

Distance = 54.44
Time = 3.35.48
Max speed = 30.5
Avg speed = 15.1

Lorrie decided not to ride today. Her left hand, in the pinky area, is quite swollen and sore. She's been taking ibuprofin and icing it but it's still sore. Yesterday was a very hard day so I thought it was a good idea that she not go. A bonus was that she could have our tent set up and get us all a good camp site for the night! It was weird saying goodbye to her in the morning. We all rode downtown for some breakfast. But I can't remember where we went! lol Must be starting to all run together. lol We all took off together. Actually we all rode together longer than usual. The road was pretty busy so passing wasn't terribly easy. That also made gaining speed difficult. Eventually I heard Heidi said, "I can't do this anymore. I'm going." and she was off. (= Tim followed. It all started to spread out a little eventually. I stuck with Daryl and Jeanie and we got past the crowd pretty well. It took awhile for my legs to get warmed up this morning. They didn't have quite the spunk they usually do. We passed by the first rest stop so that we could thin out the crowd even more. Daryl was singing and telling jokes the whole way as we rode. That seemed to cheer people up as we passed. It was pretty hilly, which I thought was fun. My legs did start to liven up a little bit. The scenery was very pretty... lots of flowers along this part of the road. We got to the second rest stop and decided to take a little break. Daryl asked Jeanie something about bonking and told her to get some water. She laughed and said she'd been trying to hide it. He's been biking in general and with her too long to be fooled. (= Daryl knows so many people after doing this ride for 17 years that every rest stop with him is like a party. It was fun to meet new people. I'm horrible with remembering people with helmets on. Maybe in 17 years I'll know the names too! (= While we were there, we ran into Bill who had apparently taken a spill. He was still steaming! Apparently one of the Ride Marshalls had cut him off or something. He said that instead of braking suddenly and taking Tim and other down with him he just let himself take the fall. He got up and wasn't hurt. But was PISSED! lol I asked him how fast he rode after that incident. He said, "Pretty damn fast!" lol I can laugh because he wasn't hurt. We didn't stay at the rest stop too long. Enough to do a little stretching, refill our bottles, and get a little food. I had put some bugles in my pocket to save for Lorrie. They take up a lot of room those things! Well, as we got going, we got back into some hilly sections. And one nice steep descent had me tucking in pretty tightly. The air swooshed around me and my bugles flew out. )= That was sad! Daryl came up next to me and said he was sorry to tell me that I had lost them. Someone also ran them over. Geez! I guess it's the thought that counts! (= It was actually pretty funny! On to the third rest stop, if I remember correctly, is one where skinny dipping is not uncommon. My finger was thinking about skinning dipping. But then chickened out and decided to just get into the photo of the skinny dipping dock! The line to the bathrooms is a funny thing at some rest stops. When we got to this one Tim and Heidi were still there. Tim came running down to us, real secretive like. He told us there was a bathroom up on the hill that was unlocked that we could use and there was no line. He was so serious about it and very quiet! I appreciated that so off I went! It was still just a hole in the ground. But no wait! Always a good thing! It seemed like we stayed at this rest area for a very long time. We gave each other shoulder massages and chatted with various people. I think I also ate too much. I hate when I do that. Finally we were off again. More hills! It started to look like it might rain. It wasn't cool or anything yet but it did sprinkle some as we got into the final rest stop. When we were there, I met a couple who is celebrating their 50th(?) wedding anniversary and they've been celebrating on the ride for many of those years. I thought that was pretty cool! They're both still riding strong! I hope I can be that way!! In the marriage thing and the riding thing! While we were at this rest stop, someone announced that Fergus Falls was set to get a downpour in about 30 minutes so if we wanted to beat that we'd better get going. I don't think there was anyone there who could make it the approximately 12 miles in 30 minutes. But we took off just in case. It did sprinkle and rain at one point. But it stayed off pretty well. I don't think I ever got completely wet. There were a few hills up to the finish and I actually had fun with those. I just decided to kick it to the end and see what I could do. I haven't done much of that this season so it was interesting. The finish in Fergus was very cool. There was a nice crowd of people cheering. Lorrie was there with her video camera filming us coming in. That was nice. She showed us to our site and it was wonderful! Good shade, close to the edge so we didn't have to walk as far to get to town, and flat! I got my stuff arranged and went to take a shower. The line was pretty long but seemed to go fast. Then we explored a little. They had computers set up for us and power strips so we could charge phones if needed. I love when host cities think of those little details for us. There was a tree that Lorrie was dying to show me! It was full of egrets! She said she'd spent some time sitting and watching them earlier in the day. These photos don't do them justice at all but they totally took over this little island! They are one of her favorite birds so she was extremely excited! We checked our email, plugged in our phones, and did some laundry. Meanwhile the rest of them had gone downtown to scope out some food. Daryl left a message saying they were at some Viking Cafe or something like that. So after we'd done our chores, we headed down that direction. It was still early in the day. So we had a good amount of time. When we got to the cafe, no one was there and it was a bit of a dive. We called Daryl again and he explained where they had decided to go. Just down the street. It was an Italian place that was usually not open except on weekends. They were going to be open at 5pm but Daryl et. al had talked their way in a little early and had been siting drinking wine. I was extremely hungry but knew by the time we found someplace else to eat the pasta bar in this place would be started. I'm also not fond of pasta! But I felt like spending time with them was more important that having the food I would prefer. I just hoped for good meatballs! (= They weren't! lol And I wouldn't call myself a picky eater. I just wasn't thrilled with the place. Daryl and Jeanie had deemed themselves hosts and servers for the evening. So they were seating people, getting water, pouring drinks, etc. I couldn't tell if the owners were thankful or irritated. But that was their deal! lol When they finally opened the pasta bar, it was a mad dash! Great salad! Great sauces... the clam sauce was really good. But the meatballs and sausage weren't great. Didn't matter, I was hungry and this was food! More wine, more people joined our group, good conversation, great energy. It was fun! We sat for a little while and then needed to walk around some. Lorrie and I paid then headed out into the heat again. We ended up at Pamida where we got mosquito nets for our boundary waters trip and I got a tarp to cover our stuff in case it continued to rain through the night. Then we sat in the outdoor area on a porch swing for at least 30 minutes. I might have actually dozed off for a few minutes. lol It felt good to be in there. Then we needed some fresh air so out we went. Fergus Falls was hosting a street dance in our honor that night. But before that the teams on TRAM had contests for best song, best t-shirt, etc. So they had those competitions and results before anything else. We watched that for a little while then started walking around again. There was also a concert in town that Heidi and Tim had gone to in an old theatre. Prudence Johnson was playing. I had no idea who she was but Daryl went berserk when he realized she was in town. So off we went to the theater. We ran in and asked if we'd missed her and they said to hurry and go in. She came out just then. It was good. A combination of oldies, jazz, and blues. I was falling asleep though. So after the intermission we decided to leave. We found out later that the others had to pay $12 to get in! I probably would have stayed awake if I'd paid that! lol We jumped on one of the buses provided by the city to get us back to the park and headed to our tent. I covered everything up with the tarp and off to bed we went. It was nice because we could still hear the music being played down at the dance. Our last night on the ride! Weird! Just when we were starting to get the hang of things!

TRAM (Day 3 - July 25, 2007)

Park Rapids, MN to Wadena, MN

Distance = 53.28
Time = 3.54.47

Max speed = 30.5
Average speed = 13.0 mph

Well our time of not taking down the tent was over! Got up around 5am and started packing things up. We're starting to get our system down pretty well. We went back to The Great Northern Cafe again for breakfast. It was fast, close, and the food was good. Jan ordered French toast that ended up being an entire, long-cut, half of a French bread. Holy crap that looked good... and huge! Wish I had seen that before. But I stuck with my eggs... minus the weird looking ham steaks from yesterday! (= Lorrie and I took off with Tim and Heidi. We rode through a residential area for awhile trying to avoid crossing a very busy street with gravel that was under construction. We asked a construction worker at some point if we were going the right direction and he pointed us onward. It finally paid off and we were back on track. Those two took off and we rode on. Daryl had decided to go balls to the walls with Bill so they were off and running I'm sure. I didn't know where Jan, Brian, or Jeanie were but Jan and Brian had left earlier than anyone. Brian had to go to a memorial service and was also trying to do multiple 100-mile rides so he was often off doing his own thing. So we rode. And it was HOT... again. That's becoming a theme eh? I find that I don't mind the heat so much. But it was also windy. That, as I wrote along time ago, I have made friends with. Wind is there, I am there, we can co-exist. But it's hard! Somewhere along the way, we were climbing and these 3 guys came along and passed us. But then they seemed to slow down. Do I hooked onto their back and tried to communicate Lorrie to jump on my wheel. She did and we got a nice little ride into the first rest stop! It's amazing how much easier it is to peddle while drafting! And I did need a bit of a rest by that time. We pulled into the first stop just as Daryl was coming out. It looked very small and he said it was a madhouse. We agreed that we should just push onto the second rest stop and avoid this crowd. So off into the wind we went! The photo is of us not long after leaving that first rest stop. We rode awhile not talking or anything but just hanging out in the wind. Eventually we got onto the wheels of a man and his son. It's interesting how that happens. They too were passing on a hill and then slowed down so I caught them. And then they were going the same speed we had been going. My theory is that their egos made them pass us and then they were stuck in front. HA! Sometimes it's good to be a woman. Well, most of the time! Anyway, that's just a theory. We hung with them for quite awhile. Then we got to a hill and they slowed way down. So I went on and Lorrie stayed back with them. I found out later that she started talking to them and they had done this ride a long time ago when the son was really young. So now that he is older, in his 20s or so, they decided to do it again. I thought that was really cool! I rode with an older gentleman for a little while and then he got behind a long line of about 10 people riding together. They all kept braking and being weird so I pulled out ahead of them. They all passed me again and did the same weird stuff so I got in front again. Strange! I passed a very small woman who jumped on my wheel and said the wind was killing her. So I dragged her most of the way to the rest stop. But there was a hill right before the rest stop so I had to speed up to climb that. (= But she got in okay. I figured it was the least I could do after having my butt hauled all over the Minnesota countryside. Lorrie showed up a few minutes later and we ran into Daryl who had cracked from Bill's pace. He hung out with us for a little while giving Lorrie a massage. That ended up being a pretty long rest stop. There was a long line for the toilet and it was a hike to get there. The rest stop was on someone's farm. They had set up a big tent and were selling food... including rhubharb slushies or something like that. Daryl said he wanted to ride with us for awhile so we started to take off. I forgot my water bottle by the toilets so I went back to grab it. Then off we went. A bit down the road, I told them to go ahead while I stopped to photograph some scenery.... and my finger! It really is gorgeous farmland. I think you can still see that! lol In my defense, this camera is one of those disposables. But really, I should be smart enough to avoid my own finger! lol ANYWAY! Back on the bike and riding into the wind to catch up to those two. Daryl dragged us for a few moments and then took off on his own. So we just did our thing. Lorrie took the lead for a little bit to give me a break in the wind. She hadn't done that before so it was nice of her and good lesson for her. She laughed because she had no idea how much work I'd been doing on all those windy training rides. Well now she knows and now she gets to take her turn! (= What's funny is that when she gets in front of me, I have a difficult time keeping up with her. She doesn't believe me when I tell her that. But her legs are WAY strong! We worked our way through the route and got to Wadena without issue. However, we did ride on a trail that seemed like it took forever. It felt at first like we were almost there. And then it just kept going and going and going. Then we turned a corner and BAM... there it was! lol Relief! The park was big but we found our group pretty quickly. Bill had been there awhile and said he'd picked up a ton of goose shit in our area but there was probably more. So I started picking it up too. GROSS! lol We went and got our stuff from the trucks, which seemed to just be arriving for some reason. So we had to drag it all across the field. Not a biggie. Same routine with the tent, showering, etc. All I can say was that it was sweltering out. We were so desperate to get somewhere cool, it was crazy. Everyone was in but Jeanie so we waited for her while getting organized. She finally showed up and said she'd had a flat right after the first rest stop and then had ridden on the rim back to the stop. Daryl told me to slap her! lol Wadena was a little further from the park so we had to take a bus into town. Bill had showered but was already getting soaked in sweat because of the heat. And of course the school bus had no air. Can I emphasize the heat any more?? Got into town and b-lined it for a local watering hole. We at what I thought was dinner but it was only about 2pm so it turned out to be lunch I guess. I told you, time was difficult to keep track of! I should wear a watch I guess. At some point we realized the Tour de France was on the tv in the bar area and it was a major climb. So a few of us grabbed our salads and stood in there to watch. Lots of drama going on in that race this year with the leader being kicked out for doping. Seems like there were a few people kicked out. That done, we sat down to eat. It was still so hot no one wanted to go outside. So we moved from the dining area to the bar area and a few of them resumed their drinking. Lorrie and I went down the street to a coffee house with numerous computers which was geared toward teenagers. We waited for a free computer for a little while then I asked how we could sign up for one. The barista asked a couple of kids to give theirs up while they were playing a game. They were very cool about it. We checked our email and messed around some. We checked the weather and it was in the 100 degree range. See? I was not exaggerating! And we shared an coffee smoothie. Yummmm! They closed at 5pm but the barista said we could stay while he was cleaning, which I was thought was exceptionally nice! We went back over to the bar eventually and they were still drinking away. There was a movie theatre across the street so we went and saw a movie around 7pm. Ahh 2 hours of coolness! We saw Chuck and Dave. Tim and Heidi went to see Harry Potter and while we were sitting there, Brian and Jan came into our theatre too. Ha! We're so smart! The movie was not very good... but that didn't really matter! (= Afterwards, we got a ride back to the park with Brian and Jan since Brian still had his van. The first photo below is me and Lorrie outside the theater. The other is Brian, Jan, and my damn finger outside the theatre! lol By this time it had only slightly cooled off. I figured we'd head back to the park, see what the others were up to and then head off to bed. When we got there, we were walking past the entertainment stage and there everyone but Heidi and Tim were. Dancing and jumping around to the music. So we stopped and watched. Looked like they were having a pretty good time. They must have found an liquor store in town too. Although I think they were selling beer at the concession stand as well. We did finally get up and dance some too. Okay... a lot. We were more sweaty after that than after riding all day! lol And the mosquitos were just loving me! I still don't know what it is about me this year or in this location that they love so much. Whatever it is, I hate it! It's crazy-making to itch so much! I had benadryl with me all the time and was constantly applying it. Around 10pm the band was done playing, it was dark, and we headed for bed. Lorrie still had to pump up the air mattress and we were totally disorganized. That was hard in the dark... especially knowing there was goose shit still around. But we finally got to bed. And were miserable! lol It was almost funny. We just laid there sweating and moaning. I think I know why some people are drinking so much! It helps them sleep in the heat! lol No, this night was just particularly bad because we'd been dancing around and it was hotter than most nights. But we slept. Or so it seems! Turns out it was 105 degrees this day!! I'm *not* a whiner! lol