We enjoyed a good breakfast (including homemade strawberry jam) at the Johnson house. We then planned our route, packed our bags, and shoved off.
The ride from Sidney to Tabor was what you would expect, hilly and beautiful. Trees lined the fairly smooth and guiding roads of mother Iowa. The 12-15 miles were long rollers, hard for me, but eaten up by my teammates. They were strong all day and helped me along. In Tabor we had another slice of heaven (Casey's Pizza) and some Gatorades. I think we averaged about a gallon of Gatorade a day, plus countless water bottles of water. They were G2 so they were healthy...right.
From Tabor we ventured to Malvern. As has been commonplace with the trip, there was a nice steep hill heading into town. As John repeatedly said all trip, "We have to earn it (each town)." He was right on every time. We again took a rest at a Casey's. No slice of heaven, rather a few Gatorades and Peanut M&M's. We ran into several guys working construction and a local who asked us about the trip. How hot has it been? Why did you ride that far? Where are you headed? It has not been a bore or a nuisance to answer any of these questions. It actually is a good conversation starter, and it seems people are actually caring, as well as impressed. As we left the Casey's and rode past Ian's local swimming pool, we climbed yet another hill to head towards Blue Grass road to cut out some hills and mileage to get to Emerson. We started climbing and riding. Once we got to the intersection we found out that the road/bridge is out. Just our luck. Ian had no idea, and how could any of us. We even asked the cashier at Casey's- good joke m'am. We reverted course and headed back out of town towards Emerson.
The next 12 or some miles were just like the first 15 with the exception of the last like 2. Ian kept telling me it was the last hill. Liar. I was pretty quiet on the way into Emerson. A) My bike was making some crazy noise and B) I was frustrated with how my body felt. I just couldn't get my legs going, it felt like anytime my calf or quad would cramp. (Next time I'm blood doping). Regardless of my weakness, we made it to Emerson and Ian's families house. I promptly un-clipped my shoes, took of my helmet, threw it by a bush, and laid down in the shade. Ian and John made fun of me and even took some pictures. I didn't care I felt terrible and it was over.
Everyone was kind of in awe that we had finally done it. Jared's dad, Vaughn, came over and chatted with us. Such a cool, nice guy. We (mostly Ian as John had also joined me in laying in the shade) talked to him about the ride, the upcoming Ragbrai, and other BS. He told us to get in the house and get cooled down. We lugged all the gear in and showered up. Ian's sister Carly brought us some lasagna and garlic bread. Muy magnific! It hit the spot. Now we are just lounging and being sore.
We have finally completed stage one of the journey. It wasn't easy by any means, and looking back at the last 800 miles or so, it hasn't really hit any of us what we just did. The days really blended together. It was hard for us to recount when things happened or in what city. I suppose that happens when you get on your bike at 9 and finally get done around 7-8ish. I tried my best to recount the things that happened in this blog by the end of the day, but I don't know if I did it the proper justice. The rides probably weren't that bad, the people probably nicer, and the terrain more complexly beautiful then my small vocabulary can handle. I did notice throughout these last 10 (or however many) days I tended to use the word "beautiful" frequently. I thought about it for like 10 miles today. I think the word beautiful is the best I could do because it's something that people can relate to. It's a word that let's you be the artist of the painting in your head. I think what I saw and tried to translate to you via these typed words is less important than your interpretation of what we actually saw. Through our voyage we let you into the world we encountered and you supported us through your texts, posts, calls, prayers, thoughts, and vibes. It was really a unique and moving experience.
Enough of the deep, mushy stuff and onto the rest of the show.
Quote/Dialogue of the Day:
Kellen: "Ian what are you going to do when you finally get some Iowa sweet corn?"
Ian: "Probably have a nocturnal emission."
Kellen: "HAHAH (laugh and nearly fall of bike, twice)
Ian Fredrick Hembry's Travel Tip of the Day:
"The Loess Hills are beautiful, but the most important word in that name is hills."
John Cernohous's Word of Wisdom:
"I'm going to Des Moines.":
Five Things I Learned Today:
1) Kellen needs at least 12 hours of sleep to not be a crab ass - Ian. (False, I just don't need 1500+ feet of climbing in like 35 miles)
2) John and Ian calculate that we burned roughly 5,000 calories per day. Think about them apples. Hello Big Macs, Whoppers, and Blooming Onions!
3) Ian finds Casey's pizza as deliciously sinful as he remembered.
4) I learned that as you go north from Texas in July, in 2012 that it actually gets hotter. Today topped 106 in SW IA.
5) We were reminded rather quickly at the end of our journey that we truly missed Iowa hospitality. There's nothing like it!
Tune in tomorrow as we post our inaugural JIK (John, Ian, Kellen) Cavalcade Endeavor Awards. It will be sure to highlight the best and the worst of our journey. We may even lift the curtain on the hairy situation that occurred on Day 1's ride.
No riding tomorrow so Ian and I will be working diligently with John (via text/phone) to get the awards posted as soon as possible. We may even field a question and answer session! Joking, I doubt anyone has any questions after reading this. But call me maybe.
Until tomorrow,
KRS
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