Today was designated as our "rest day". This was our flattest ride so far with a tail wind and total climb of less than 600 feet. We had actually hoped to ride a few miles into tomorrow’s route, but an unexpected trip to a car dealership to address a "check engine" light took our
support away for the afternoon. We decided to stop when we got to Idaho Falls for a total ride of just over 66 miles for the day. The weather was relatively cool again 58 – 78 degrees. We ran into two riders who were riding across the country – going east to west – against the weather. One guy started on the east coast and the other joined later and was stopping in Boise ID. They were doing their ride unsupported, which meant they we carrying about 40 pounds of gear. The guy started on the east coast had been riding for 37 days. They said they ran into some strong head winds in Wyoming that made progress slow. This should mean we will have tail winds…I sure hope so.
We reached Idaho Falls by 1:00 PM even though we were late getting started again since we had to travel back 40 miles to the previous days finish point. There were no great sights on this route until we arrived at the hotel where there was a water fall on the Snake River (total drop of approximately 10 to 20 feet), quite impressive.
Matt's bike was having problems shifting, he thought from the tail light incident. Larry found a bike shop in Idaho Falls and called ahead to secure a time for our bikes to
be serviced. When we arrived in Idaho Falls, we headed to Bill’s Bike Shop to have them take a look at our bikes. When we arrived they moved our bikes to the front of the line. They didn’t find any problem with my bike and Matt’s was shifting like new within a short time.
The service to the support vehicle took all afternoon, so Matt and I headed to the hotel. Just a couple blocks from the hotel we found a micro brewery and took the opportunity to sample a couple of their best and grab a meal. It was right across the street from the water fall so we spent an hour or so enjoying the weather and the sight.
Larry reached the hotel by 6:30 PM, the support vehicle ready to take on the rest of the trip. We used the rest of the day to take a nap, do laundry, clean the bikes and grab another meal…we have two big climbs back to back starting tomorrow. Hopefully the weather will hold and the only force of nature we will battle is gravity.
I took a commanding lead in the flat tire competition as I started the morning with a flat before we even left the hotel and had another one about 10 miles from the end of today’s ride. Matt – 2 flats/1 tire; Gary - 4 flats/1 tire.
