Sunday, June 25, 2017 Day 7 Across America North
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Beautiful ride from Baker City to Ontario, OR over 85.3 miles of rolling terrain and lots of farmingfields. Another day of clear skies, open roads and adventure for 4+ hours! I road with my room mate, Bill Kwalik, for about 5 miles and then bid good morning to my team mates on the way out of Baker City and through Harrington and up the only real climb of the day.
Our route paralleled I-84 most of the way and there were some wonderful downhills on US Rt 30E. Smooth pavement and little to no wind. There were also about 4.2 miles on I-84 itself, but the shoulder was about 12 meet wide with a "rumble strip" down the middle. America By Bicycle obtains permission for us to ride on the interstate shoulders for certain parts of the ride where there is no alternative route nearby. There was very little traffic this morning and I was able to avoid the many pieces of small steel wires left behind by trucks with blown tires and steel belted radial tires. Bottom line: this is very safe riding, but the darn steel wires are often impossible to see on the black asphalt while traveling 20 mph. While I had no flat tires today, I know that missing all the wires in the days ahead will be a challenge.
The last third of the ride was along the beautiful Snake River and was downhill most of the way. The wind was a little squirrelly along the straight path, sometimes pushing me along and minutes later, hitting me in the face. By the time I finished, the temps were around 90 degrees and I was had arrived in the Mountain Time Zone.
No photos for today, but take a look at Dirk Lohry's YouTube link from yesterday--https://youtu.be/NQekK_lf56I
Two of our riders, Tom and Phil, both 60+ participants, are doing the ride together after meeting one another as room mates at Oberlin College many years ago. Suffice it to say, one was city mouse and the other was country mouse and yet they became close as room mates and life long friends. While both have stayed healthy and fit over their post-collegiate years, each has learned to cycle over the last few years: Whit, over the last 5 years, and Tom over the last 6 months! These great guys are rocking and rolling and having a blast every day, conquering their mental and physical fears in public! Enjoy!
Stay healthy,
Steve
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posted by Steve King at 4:07 PM
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