RAGBRAI 2017 – Update 5

Here we are on Day 4 of RAGBRAI. Three more to go!

We fully expected to wake to rain or a storm throughout the night, but even though neither one of us slept soundly, we woke to everything dry at 4:40am. Yeah, 4:40 in the morning is just plain craziness! We were on the road by 6.

The weather radar showed a big red, yellow, green blob heading straight for us. Our full intention was to get as many miles behind us before the rain hit.

We made it to Rockford. And, wouldn’t you know, we parked the bike near the Rockford Fire Station, and felt a few sprinkles… and then arrived the rain. We’re currently tucked in safe and dry in the fire station. (I could take a siesta here on this hard metal chair even though it’s still morning.)

Our favorite stop so far was Swaledale. We know the mayor of this adorable town and enjoyed breakfast from the Methodist Church.

But, I confess, this morning wasn’t an easy one to keep a good attitude. I was reminded that Wednesday of RAGBRAI is the day I typically get grumpy. I fought it as long as I could until Cartersville. Bill and I prefer different speeds in our cadences (how fast we pedal). He prefers his faster and I prefer slower. Maybe that’s because my legs are longer. I don’t know.

But, on a tandem, we have to spin at the same speed which is controlled by the person up front (the Captain… a.k.a. Bill). This morning my legs were spinning way too fast. I’m sure I looked like the Road Runner on the back of our tandem. Spinning like that with no resistance (at least for me) causes friction in places where you don’t want friction.

I was not happy. No, this wasn’t Bill’s fault, but I acted as if it was. After cooling down and applying chamois cream (and apologizing), our happy returned.

So now, we wait for the big red, yellow, green blob to pass. We have 15 miles to go of our 56 today. (Let’s hope the chamois cream keeps working!) Tonight we’re staying in Charles City, hopefully not in the rain.

I’ll check in again!

Julie