An Amazing Acrobatic Feat
But not by the riders…
We decided to get an early start today, both to beat the heat and to finish a little earlier for our trips home; Tony was hoping to make the trip all the way to Duluth to see his daughter before bedtime. At 7:30 am, we were on our bikes on the way to Fountain for a quick pre-breakfast ride. At one point, a frantic chipmunk was very indecisive about moving off the trail as Tony and Dennis approached side-by-side. Ultimately, it chose Tony’s direction, but not quite soon enough. We can only surmise that the chipmunk clipped Tony’s spokes, since it flew high in the air, performed a double backflip, and stuck the landing behind us. Even the Russian judges would have liked that acrobatic feat!
As we neared Fountain, a steady rain started virtually out of nowhere. Looking up, we could see one lonely cloud above us. The refreshing rain continued for several minutes on our trip back to camp. Tony finally felt vindicated for wearing his rain booties for three straight days, explaining that he hates having wet feet while he rides. That makes sense, I thought as I pedaled on with wet squishy shoes and socks.
Doug and Ann had an egg, hash brown, sausage, and cheese scramble waiting for us when we returned. After our quick nourishing breakfast break, we rode to Preston on the Harmony-Preston Trail. The scenery was great, as we rode next to the Root River most of the way. The trail was less than great, however, definitely more cracks and potholes than on the Root River Trail, so we turned back.
We already had more than 25 miles down, so we each embarked on varying out-and-back rides to get our miles done. The rest of our ride was very uneventful; no more flying chipmunks, no pie stops, no road rage at e-bikers! We just logged our miles, finishing by 2:00 pm. We showered, packed, cleaned the RV, and even cleaned the grill. Jay, Doug has challenged you to keep our new grill as clean as you find it! We left before Team 3 arrived, making a traditional stop at Dairy Queen in Chatfield. Another 300 km completed. Thanks to all for the support you’ve given us! Now it’s up to Team 3 to bring the 2023 CEM 900 to a successful conclusion. Good luck!
