Chester, MT

Another long day on Route 2.

From mail drop, I spent the evening sprucing up Hugh. I replaced both the front and rear tires and replaced the chain. After so many miles, the chain itself stretches causing damage to the cassette. By the time I was done, Hugh was like a new bike.

Well, within the first few miles of the ride I immediately noticed how difficult it was to pedal. It felt like I was riding through tar. I thought my brakes were rubbing but after pulling over to check, it wasn't them. Since I did so much work on the bike last night, I couldn't tell if it was tires (logical), chain (adjusting to the new length) or myself (eggbake was served this morning). The shoulders were only a little rough and minimal headwind, so it couldn't of been that. Whatever the culprit, it stayed like that the entire day making it a tough and arduous ride. Imagine that you're used to running and then you are thrown in a pool to run; it felt kind of like that today.

It was also a scorcher. At mile 55 Hingham conveniently popped up since I needed to fill up my camelbak and waterbottle. The thermometer outside said it was 97. Most other riders stopped by too to refill and just chatting with others, it seemed that everyone was feeling sluggish. I'm hoping that the heat did it and it's nothing related to my bike.


Today's scenery was farms that went into the distance. It was fields of yellow that stretched to the horizon. At the end, you'd see shadow of mountains, which I'm sure are nothing compared to the Rockies we'll be facing soon. Now, most riders find it monotonous and boring to be riding so long with nothing to look at; I love it. I lose myself looking around. When you're riding alone and there aren't any vehicles around, an overwhelming sense of insignificance washes over you. It's rare to have that much space and openness to yourself, which is why I think I enjoy it.

Today especially, I noticed all the train traffic that passed through. With the space, you get to see the entirety of the loads that they're pulling. They're specks in the horizon moving slowly through the land (though not at all in reality)and kind of look like toys.

My memories of driving down through Illinois and other Midwest states you see flat and farms till the horizon as well, there are still patches of trees and greenery. Here, it's all yellow and feels like a desert. You don't get the feeling of flatness here, vastness is more like it. Though the terrain might look flat, it's deceiving because since you can see so far into the distance, it makes everything look flat despite having long hills or valleys.

I can't get over the heat; today has been our hottest day yet that we've ridden through. Through most of the morning there wasn't even any cloud coverage; we were completely exposed. Having all those acres of farms and vegetation, they are a massive heat trap. At times I felt like like a cyclist and more like a turkey roasting in an oven.

There are four people still left in assasins: Anson, Kathy, Jessie and Bobby. They're all taking it very seriously to the point that they aren't stopping for lunch. They packed their lunches and eating them on the road. Well, the last person that arrives can stop at lunch since they are safe, but that still leaves three others that aren't. I was worried about them hoping that they had enough water to make it through, what reckless game. I'm about to leave the library and go to the church and pin each of them down and pour a bottle of water in their mouth.

The Olympics start today and as a group we're all pumped for it. We don't have much free time, but I know that I'll be sneaking off to bars or any place with a TV to watch what I can.