Riding Day 44 - July 24th, 2019
Start: Eau Claire, WI
End: Chetek, WI
Miles: 49.2
Feet climbing per mile: 26
Record of today’s ride: https://ridewithgps.com/trips/37690970
Today was to be shorter than usual with only 49 miles, but I was to be riding with my nephew Chris who had told me the longest ride he had ever done, about a week ago, was 14 miles. We got started just before 10:00, much later than my usual time. For the beginning of our ride we abandoned the route I had created because it included a bike trail which I suspected to be not paved. Google Maps driving directions avoiding highways (i.e., avoiding interstate highways) got us safely out of town on four-lane roads with usable shoulders.
Riding with Chris meant I did not follow my usual practice of riding just below the level I felt I could sustain indefinitely. Sometimes I found this frustrating, showing me just how much I like to ride fast. Eventually I relaxed into the easier pace of the day.
Before we had ridden half our route, maybe at about 20 miles, Chris said he thought he might not make it all the way to Chetek. I told him we could go at whatever pace he needed and rest whenever he needed. I also told him ice cream and coffee (he had said he needed coffee which he had forgotten to have at home) awaited us in Bloomer.
In Bloomer, at about 29 miles along our route, is the Farmhouse Cafe. When I was in Chetek last August I rode 40 miles to and from this cafe where I told people working there of my plan to return next summer as part of my 4000-mile trip. Today I was looking forward to keeping my promise. As we entered Bloomer I recognized Main Street and was able to find the cafe without assistance of my phone.
When we entered the cafe I announced (grandiose, right?) that I had been there last year and had said that I would return this year. One of the women working there said she remembered me. Chris ordered a coffee, sandwich, and bowl of soup while I asked for a bowl with two scoops of Zanzibar chocolate ice cream. I then had a second bowl with two more scoops, and when Chris ordered a bowl, I had a third. This was the first chocolate ice cream I’ve had in a long time, and it was dark and rich the way I like it. The charge of $5 for my three bowls must have reflected a 4000-mile discount.
Chris said he was refreshed after leaving the cafe, but again expressed doubt that he could make it all the way to Chetek. At about mile 33 we stopped and discussed how we would proceed. I told Chris I thought he could ride the remaining 16 miles and maybe it would be easiest if I were to go ahead and he were to ride at his own pace, resting whenever he wanted. We almost did that but then Chris called my brother Greg who was in Chetek to ask for a ride. Before leaving I congratulated Chis for completing the longest ride of his life. We later realized that his previously longest ride he thought was 14 miles was only about 8 miles.
I rode the final 16 miles to Chetek as fast as I could. How interesting it was to ride into Chetek thinking that I had come here many times but never by bike. As I made the turn where County Road D heads east along the cemetery, I wished that my father could be waiting to greet me when I finished. I then remembered he was buried in that cemetery. He died in 2006 and would be 97 if he were still alive.
I continued to ride as fast as I could for the final mile and a half. Even with a headwind, I completed the final 16 miles in just an hour.
End: Chetek, WI
Miles: 49.2
Feet climbing per mile: 26
Record of today’s ride: https://ridewithgps.com/trips/37690970
Today was to be shorter than usual with only 49 miles, but I was to be riding with my nephew Chris who had told me the longest ride he had ever done, about a week ago, was 14 miles. We got started just before 10:00, much later than my usual time. For the beginning of our ride we abandoned the route I had created because it included a bike trail which I suspected to be not paved. Google Maps driving directions avoiding highways (i.e., avoiding interstate highways) got us safely out of town on four-lane roads with usable shoulders.
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Where I’ll be swimming during my rest days in Chetek
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Riding with Chris meant I did not follow my usual practice of riding just below the level I felt I could sustain indefinitely. Sometimes I found this frustrating, showing me just how much I like to ride fast. Eventually I relaxed into the easier pace of the day.
Before we had ridden half our route, maybe at about 20 miles, Chris said he thought he might not make it all the way to Chetek. I told him we could go at whatever pace he needed and rest whenever he needed. I also told him ice cream and coffee (he had said he needed coffee which he had forgotten to have at home) awaited us in Bloomer.
In Bloomer, at about 29 miles along our route, is the Farmhouse Cafe. When I was in Chetek last August I rode 40 miles to and from this cafe where I told people working there of my plan to return next summer as part of my 4000-mile trip. Today I was looking forward to keeping my promise. As we entered Bloomer I recognized Main Street and was able to find the cafe without assistance of my phone.
When we entered the cafe I announced (grandiose, right?) that I had been there last year and had said that I would return this year. One of the women working there said she remembered me. Chris ordered a coffee, sandwich, and bowl of soup while I asked for a bowl with two scoops of Zanzibar chocolate ice cream. I then had a second bowl with two more scoops, and when Chris ordered a bowl, I had a third. This was the first chocolate ice cream I’ve had in a long time, and it was dark and rich the way I like it. The charge of $5 for my three bowls must have reflected a 4000-mile discount.
Chris said he was refreshed after leaving the cafe, but again expressed doubt that he could make it all the way to Chetek. At about mile 33 we stopped and discussed how we would proceed. I told Chris I thought he could ride the remaining 16 miles and maybe it would be easiest if I were to go ahead and he were to ride at his own pace, resting whenever he wanted. We almost did that but then Chris called my brother Greg who was in Chetek to ask for a ride. Before leaving I congratulated Chis for completing the longest ride of his life. We later realized that his previously longest ride he thought was 14 miles was only about 8 miles.
I rode the final 16 miles to Chetek as fast as I could. How interesting it was to ride into Chetek thinking that I had come here many times but never by bike. As I made the turn where County Road D heads east along the cemetery, I wished that my father could be waiting to greet me when I finished. I then remembered he was buried in that cemetery. He died in 2006 and would be 97 if he were still alive.
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| Leon Link |
I continued to ride as fast as I could for the final mile and a half. Even with a headwind, I completed the final 16 miles in just an hour.
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