Days 14-18: 341 miles

Sorry it's been so long since we posted any updates. The days were tedious this week, and the heat was insufferable. But we made it to West Chester, Iowa--a day early! Here are some highlights from this leg of the journey:

Day 14: 106 long, HOT miles. We left Ryan and Sarah's house, stocked with Kashi goodness. Illinois is pretty flat, but 95-100 degree weather (with a heat index over 100) can make the flattest territory seem hillacious. That night, we camped in the city park in Gilman, Illinois. The folks at the grocery helped us get the okay on pitching tents next to the ball field, and Tim (who works at the park) came through with some much-needed moral support. After some mac 'n' cheese bites, we rode down to the local DQ, where Freda and Lisa got some cool treats and i had a second dinner. There we met a woman who was so moved by the sight of us--you can go ahead and interpret this as you so choose--that she decided to give us $20. We had not informed her that we were fundraising; she simply felt that we needed the money. After she went into DQ, we considered our appearances as well as marveled at the many colors of this woman's hair. By the way, Lisa had been wearing her bike helmet the entire time.

Day 15: Another hot day (94 miles). We ended up at my Uncle Steve's and Aunt Anne's amazing log cabin in Maquon. (see pictures.) Staying there for the night made everything SO much better. They even gave us hugs upon arrival--sweat and all! We got to shower, sleep inside AND have dinner at my cousin's restaurant. Thanks to all of you for making us so comfortable. My grandma and Aunt Diane came down from Galesburg to have dinner with us, and it was really great to see them. Thanks, too, to Emily and Zach for sharing their flip books, stories, and TV room/basement with us. And to my other cousins for making the drive to see us.

(oh yeah, and to my aunt and uncle, for mailing my wallet to me after I forgot it there. Oops.)

Day 16: The heat continued. And, unfortunately, the suffering returned. I started pouting at about mile 25, because I'd realized that I'd left my wallet behind. Plus I almost ran over a guy coming out of the gas station. Yikes. But my troubles were miniscule compared to what Freda faced. You should know that Freda only has tire problems as we approach our daily destination. On this particular day, we realized--at mile 48 out of 60--that Freda's rear tire had a rather large hole in it. Because the hole hadn't gone through to the tube, we wisely decided to test the strength of aforementioned tube (which, by the way, a bike guy swore was basically indestructable) by riding the rest of the way to Burlington, Iowa. Three miles east of the Mississippi river, on a busy state highway/truck route, Freda's tire exploded and she lost control of the bike. Luckily, traffic stopped for her, and we managed to get her bike off of the road. Thankfully, the folks at the Burlington bike shop (Bickel's) picked her up and then fixed her bike. We made it as far as the gate at the Burlington water park--a.k.a. "Fun City"--but couldn't muster the energy to face the teenagers inside. So we just sat and ate nachos on the sidewalk.
Our day was made infinitely better as soon as the Bickel's van dropped us off at Dori's house. We got to have tacos and hang out with her sons, Lukey and Brett. They even let us try their slip 'n' slide. The temperature in the house was PERFECT (for me), and the TV/People magazines really hit the spot. Thanks so so much, Dori and kids, for brightening our day.

Day 17 and 18: 67 miles + a rest day in WEST CHESTER!!!

Things cooled off a bit today, and we didn't have as far to go. So life was nice. We arrived in West Chester, where we immediately consumed about 5 pounds of fresh fruit and veggies. Lots of rest and revelry followed. We were treated with homemade ice cream, various grilled meats, potato salad, beer, cheese/meat dip, and dumplings. Today, we took the convertable over to the Kolona cheese factory and picked up some squeaky cheese curds. Yum!

Tomorrow the adventure really begins. There will be no more rest days with family--no more safety stops. It's the rockies and the west coast...or bust! Be patient with our blog updates; my computer is not really functioning, and we don't know where we'll have internet access. News to come as soon as possible.