Day 21. New Salem to Hazleton, ND

The rains did actually come in the night at New Salem.  So as it turns out, it was a good plan to get the cheap motel.  

I walked to the Sunset Inn, a small cafe, to have breakfast. It was a pretty full house as several of the folks that run the combines were there for a leisurely breakfast, as was I. The combiners did not seem to be bothered by the rain, and almost grateful for the morning off. Several of them I had seen from the night before at the same place. Wild Bill, as he introduced himself, was a retired farmer who had gotten bored and went back to running a combine.  He explained how he had been doing that since he was 12 years old. I got a quick lesson in the finer points, including the almost lazy efficiencies of the GPS navigation that drove these huge machines. Wild Bill was very colorful in his descriptions of his work, as well as his two knee replacement surgeries. --- as I am sure you can imagine.  

Eventually the rain weakens and I leave in full rain gear toward Bismarck, which is my lunch destination. The rain subsides a bit, and frankly I do not mind riding in it. The overcast and drizzle filters the sun like an elongated morning. In my eyes, it accentuates the contrast of the golden wheat, the deeper green corn stalks and the brilliant yellow flowers. I actually enjoy it. 

The wind is the problem. It is in my face for most of the early ride and at this point you just figure you have to deal with the 14 MPH winds all day. If only it were that easy. As the sun started the break through and the rains subsided, the winds worsened. As I am approaching Bismarck, the gusts are 30-40MPH.  At two different points, the gusts were so bad in the uphill that they nearly knocked me over and I had to stop my bike.  On one particular downhill, there was a truck warning for steep grade. I was hoping to catch some relief, but at some point was coasting down that hill at 9MPH. The wind, it can certainly be a fickle friend. On this day it was an impish bully.  

Before the day started, I had hoped to make it to Bismarck by 10 and to take a break to investigate the capital of North Dakota. As it turned out, it was after 1pm when I arrived.  Nevertheless, I did have a great lunch at Revas Pitch, a soccer themed hamburger joint.  The options were wide and varied and I spiced mine up pretty good with hot peppers and sauce,  it was delicious.  I found it interesting that the owner, who was working the kitchen, had been at the last two World Cups.  Much respect.  When I say I found it interesting, that is code for envious, an ugly emotion.   

After enough time avoiding the wind, I reluctantly decided that I had to just put my head down and handle it.  

On the way out of town, my brother Blake had located a Scheel's Sporting Goods that I could get my spare tube for my travels. He has been doing the heavy lifting on the logistics and finding services, hotels for this trip. It has been invaluable. He has saved be from destruction more than once.  

As I climb out of Bismarck, there are several steep grades that are all...all...all....into the wind. Relief is on the way, however as the winds do indeed lighten and settle about 12-14MPH.  Later in the ride the wind does start shifting to slightly SW crosswinds, which was considerably better, helpful.  

The high winds are not without their benefits. The birds often struggle as well, but in doing so, often fly close to the bike until they give up and swoop past like a dart.   
As I reach near the end of the route, I have to turn 13 miles into the wind again for the finish of what turns out to be an 80 mile day.  At the corner there is a cyclist who is riding a tandem bike.....alone. As I round the corner, I pull up next to Gary and inquire about his choice of bikes. Gary's wife passed away last year and he is riding this trip in her honor. Gary and I finish the route together, enjoying the ability to draft off each other of the last stint. 

We are late getting into Hazelton and the sun is going down and casting long shadows over the fields and the road. Along the way, the wind slowly eases and a Hawk joins us for about 200 yards, flying along gracefully to our left.  

When we arrive in the city park in Hazelton, there are four other cyclist already there. Beth and John are from the UK and are on their way to Vancouver to live for a while. As John said, "we will figure it out when we get there, I suppose". Jodee and Heather are from Boston headed to Astoria. They are all headed West. We spend some time sharing intel on the rides that each of us will have in the coming days, places to stay and not to stay, etc.

After dinner and camp setup it was time to retire to our tents, predictions are for several waves of thunderstorms through the night. As such, we all take special care to make sure everything is secure.   
Looking forward to the short ride to the Gackle in the morning.