Today is a rest day on the Tour de France, so I decided to adopt the idea for Day Three. We had another 73 miles (turned into new a new personal best of 76 for me) and I rode it like it was a rest day.
I was tired and little sore but once I got rolling I felt good and I was able to ride with team Lizard Kings at 16 miles an hour for over 5 miles! I stopped at the first town stop and dropped my bike and messed up my gears. So I waited at one of the bike mechanic tents to get it fixed. Just like the pros, my bike got a quickie tune-up.
I had a couple of leads on dentists to glue the crown back on my molar. It came off on Sunday when I was eating some Power Beans by Jelly Belly. I have been chasing after dentists since then. I kept getting answering machines saying they were closed for RAGBRAI or turn downs. My cousin Sandy found a dentist in Webster City. He was working the Rotary breakfast burrito booth but he was willing to meet in Webster City. Dr. Leo Moriarty did a great job and he did not charge me for it.
I gave myself permission to stop as often as I wanted and to eat all of the good things in my path, including rhubarb pie and ice cream, Beekman’s ice cream, and corn on the cob. I also got a massage at the Alden stop.
I had my first RAGBRAI heartbreak. I rode with Tony from Chicago and we had a great conversation. And stopped at Beekman’s for ice cream. We met Terese from Cresco, IA and if we all lived in one place we could be friends. Instead we all climbed on our bikes said so long and rolled on at different speeds. I may never see them again.
It was a long day… 6 hours of riding over 11 hours. Cousin Sandy met John and I and we went to the beautiful Eldora town square for dinner and people watching. We are staying at another friend of a team member and sitting in our circle of chaire there are both fireflies and bats overhead. We can hear the country band downtown and it is a nice atmosphere.
When you see the Verizon service map and it is almost solid red, well rural Iowa is one of the white spots. And when you add 15,000 people trying to make calls and upload data, the internet connection is rubbish. I have tried to upload my photos and I am having technical difficulties. Since it is a rest day I will publish without photos and call it a day.
(photo loaded next day)
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