PYTHAGOREAN DAY
We got a late start as we had to bike 2.5 miles the wrong way to get breakfast, but it was good. Left the B& B around 9.
We had a good ride in tbe morning, mostly on bike trails to Holland, MI where we had a wonderful lunch, followed by ice cream, with Doug’s high school biology teacher and his wife, Bruce and Carol. A little misty rain in the AM, but not enough to be a bother. Holland is a dutch community and grows lots tulips.
The afternoon was a different story. We headed SSE on RT 40. It was miserable; heavy traffic, not great shoulder, didn’t feel particularly safe, so we bailed onto side roads. The side roads all run E-W or N-S, section roads.
Pythagarus kicked in (A squared + B squared = C squared). 3-4-5 right triangle, more or less. Now we are doing the 3 and 4 sides, adding about 40% to the remaining trip length. (check my math please). East first, then south. To add to the insult there was a good easterly, about 10 mph. Finally we turned south - dirt roads again, and rolling hills! AAARRRGGGG!
I would show you pictures of lonely dirt and asphalt roads but I think by now you have the idea. We did have some nice views however.
Crops of the day: corn, soybean, wheat, blueberries. Other sites for the day: a few chicken (egg) farms, a coal fired power plant, turkeys and deer.
We arrived at Doug’s sister’s and brother-in-law’s, Wendy & Malcolm, house around 6. This is the same house that Doug was brought up in, though it has been expanded. Most of the whole gang is here, including grandchildren, lots of activity. Dinner followed by a run to the local ice cream stand!
By the numbers:
Dist - 74.2 miles
Elev Gain - 1,663 ft
Elev Loss - 1,447 ft
Moving time 6 hrs +/-
I was never any good at math but it sounds like your calculations are right- that is- you weren’t travelling in a straight line! At least you guys are getting your ice cream fix - did you load up on frozen custard in Wisco? So cool that you were at Doug’s ancestral home! Tim
ReplyDeleteGreat to see Doug and you in his native land
ReplyDeleteI really like your beard/ face
Who is the tall bearded guy next to Gus Schwab?
ReplyDeleteIce cream & tulips can't be all bad. I remember riding to Holland on a bike trail, then following a county road called A2 to South Haven, where we had a two day layover. In two or three spots we added an extra day off, so that if we fell behind, we could avoid having to reschedule hotel reservations for the rest of the trip to Virginia. We had 39 hotel reservations, although we had to change a few for various reasons (bad location, access to food, etc.). We managed to stay on schedule, however. You are, too, which is amazing. We thought it was for us, too. (I am referring to the Fargo - Virginia ride 3 of us did in 2016.) We followed the Adventure Cycle Lake Michigan coast route into Indiana.
ReplyDeleteOf course, you have connections and visits to make. It seems sometimes that your tour is a series of reunions, which is better than a series of Days Inns or seedy motels-- Moldy Marvin's Cozy Haven, or whatever. May your zigzags end in a nice flat rural road with lots of soybeans to see.