Heat

The prediction was for a day in the low 80s, followed today by a hotter one. I was a bit surprsed when I went outside first thing yesterday that I didn't want any extra layers. It was nice not to worry about cold. It took us a while to get started. We were 5 miles out on the unpaved road with many cattleguards so we rode in the car to the main road. It took two shifts to get all of us and all The bikes out so it was 10:30 when we actually hopped on the bikes & rolled out.

The first thing we encountered was a cattle guard. Then one more. There were cows on the road between them. The cows are surprisingly nervous about bikes. Even when they are safely behind their fences and at some distance they watch us anxiously until one or two of us pass, then they turn & run for safer ground. The pattern is more complex when they are right in front of you. They have to decide which way is safer. Democracy in action? They headed in two directions, then reconvened to vote, and most of them changed sides. And headed in both directions, but many of them in a different direction than they had first chosen.

The rest of the ride to our appointed lunch spot was quick and easy. Rolling hills but more down than up, so we got there fast. Nice scenery, very little traffic. Ben was out in front & had a close encounter with a doe & fawn, but he braked in time to get a good look.

I started feeling the heat a bit as we stood around eating. There was no place to pull over in shade. When we set out I was really slow and a bit worried. If that was the effect of 80 degrees, how would hotter days be? There are bound to be some. Our afternoon route was very flat, too. No effort required.

About five miles out, Bruce began to have trouble with his tire rubbing against the brake. We found some shade & stopped to look it over. Fortunately, the wheel was fine. Unfortunately, the tire was not. It had a big bulge on one spot. I hoped it would be caused by the tube. No such luck. He tried a new tube & nothing changed. So lucky we still have our friendly support! He pumped up to a lower pressure & loosened the brakes a bit & we rode the couple of miles that remained to our next planned meeting with Ben in the car. Bruce then took the car to the next town large enough to have a bike shop and got two new tires.

The rest of us kept pedaling. About 20 miles to go. I felt better after sitting in the shade while we figured out the tire thing, but I was also happy to have something I never thought I would want: a headwind. A slightly cool breeze, maybe 5 mph. I turned around & rode back at one point. Kitty was a bit behind & I just wanted to be sure all was well. As soon as I turned, it felt about ten degrees hotter. We really took our time and made a couple of stops in shady spots. There weren't many.

We finally arrived in Forsyth and headed straight for the Dairy Queen. We sat happily absorbing lemonade, iced tea, ice cream - almost everything looked good - and set out for our B&B. It was across the train tracks. The gate went down just as we got to it, so we got one more chance to stand in the sun as a very long train ambled by. We could see the bank sign that showed time and temperature. It was 95.

A change of plans:
We will definitely head for Bismarck instead of Minot. The place we were to stay in Minot is flooded out and sone roads are closed. I will send itinerary changes out in the next day or so.

Miles Tuesday: 51
Total so far: 1366