Biking to Bob

There was a big storm overnight and we have tornados to the west in Kansas so I kept the rain covers on my panniers yesterday. I set off with the guys at about 8ish in the morning and made some good pace through to Farmington. I lost the others along this stretch as I had my iPod on when they shouted ahead about an attractive vineyard stop! This was probably fortuitous as I am trying not to drink until June and wine tasting would be tempting.

The iPod is proving a good companion on this trip although I am just about out of podcasts to listen to. I had downloaded about 12 weeks of Radio 4's 'Start The Week' 'From Our Correspondent' and The Bottom Line' and these have been better than music to occupy me. In terms of tunes, Counting Crows, Dave Matthews Band and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, have done me well in terms of authentic Americana.

At Farmington I spotted a potential short cut on the map that was able to cut 5 miles off the day, skipping the town of Bismarck. Scarily as I headed onto this road I glimpsed a bear just by the side of the verge in some bushes which was strange given the relatively urban setting!

Hills made up the rest of the day with a tough rollercoaster effect tiring my knees with each climb. By late afternoon I rolled into the town of Centreville and grabbed an ice cream. The lady in the shop said that the city park wasnt worth going to for camping and she suggested trying a park in front of the court house.



Over there I saw a tent was already up and met Bob from Indiana a fellow cyclist. Bob joined the route back at Cave in Rock, Illinois and is taking a career break after ten years with 'zIp Cycles' who have just been bought by Sram. Bob's expertise is building wheels so I pray I bump into him if I break a spoke since he makes 27 high performance wheels a day!! Larry and Julie rolled in an hour or so later and we all grabbed some supper from the local eatery before bed.
The pic is of a horsey who I stopped and fed grass to for a while near Coffman.