To the land of many waters and wineries! Hot Hot Hot!
Early this morning we were blessed with a light rain shower. This cooled the roads for us and left a partly cloudy sky to block our nemesis, the Sun. The pattern of the last several day has been to get an early start in the cooler mornings, cover most of the miles and then swelter towards the end as the sky clears and our nemesis, the Sun, returns. Today was a shorter ride and not too much sustained climbing. We encountered lots of “rollers” through wheat fields as far as the eye can see, even good eyes. After a very nice (and leisurely on my part) picnic in the shaded town park we slow rolled it into the welcoming environs of Walla Walla. As you recall this is the center of some pretty good wine country as well as Whitman College. I had time to walk the town a little bit and am happy to.report that it is a vibrant place and well worth a visit. This isn’t just because it has lots of wine tasting rooms. It also has a bike shop! Some are on the search for a Garmin Varia . Its a clever little device that doubles as a bicycle tail light and is also able to detect rear approaching vehicles and probably low flying planes. Several of us arrived with them and some of those that didn’t would also like to add this additional layer of situation awareness.
I need to relate an event that actually occurred yesterday but must be told as it is the story of the trip to date. At our lunch stop in a shaded area next to an ever present Sinclair station we met a local man who at a single glance one would type cast as a motorcycle enthusiast. One would be correct in this assumption. He was accompanied by rider Greg, who by the way can spin a good story. Our biker wanted to see what kind of people would actually attempt to cycle across the country under their own power (a reasonable ask for sure). The funny part is how our motorcycle man met Greg. It wasn’t at the counter in the Sinclair station. Rather it was in the men’s room. Bear with me here but here is some background: We endurance cyclists spend a lot of time on the seat with our own seats. Because of this we are at constant war with chafing and even ulcerations of this most sensitive area. One of our defenses is the use of a lanolin based substance often referred to as “Butt Butter” New Zealanders refer to it as “Sweet Cheeks”. Now back to the story. As one can imagine the “Butt Butter” needs to be applied in a private area. To apply it in a public area would certainly send a powerful message and perhaps even end in arrest. Greg wisely chose to use the Sinclair men’s room to apply his salve but unfortunately the single stall was occupied. He reasonably assumed that the stall was occupied by one of us Men of Lycra because well it is a very small town and at the moment we collectively represented about half of the town’s population. To be polite however he announced that “I’m applying my Butter to your know where just like we all do”. Well I’m sure you can guess who emerged from the stall just as Greg was applying the cream. Awkward moment. Greg however somehow made our motorcyclist see the humor in the situation and brought him out to meet the crew.
Now we have entered our second state. Only thirteen more to go! Just over one hundred mies but a reasonable elevation change at 4859 feet. With any luck I will be writing to you from the thriving metropolis of Lewiston, Idaho tomorrow.
| Distance (miles) | Elevation climbed | calories burned |
|---|---|---|
| 454 | 21,449 | 15,650 |
| Fitness | Fatigue | Form | TSS Today |
|---|---|---|---|
| 92 | 156 | -61 | 187 |
One response to Walla Walla”
Susan Baird says:
August 23 , 2022 at 4:11 pm
Love all of your pictures, stories and reading about your adventure! Thinking about you every day! Be safe! Love you!
Wanderings 