Quincy, Illinois to Springfield, Illinois 108 miles and 2300 feet of climbing

 

After yesterday's draining ride in the heat, all the talk amongst the riders at dinner last night was about today's 108-mile ride to Springfield, Illinois. Everyone agreed that getting an early start (if allowed by our tour director) would be optimal in order to get in as many miles in the morning as possible. 

Spencer, a doctor from Oregon, pointed out, 

"Even if everything goes right and you average 15 miles an hour, that's like 7 hours of riding, not including breaks!"

I just listened and nodded my head. Riders tend to be concerned about the weather, headwinds, heat, mileage, and how much climbing is involved with each day's ride. They look ahead at what is coming up and fret about what is in store for them in the next few days. 

For some reason, I don't approach my daily ride that way.  In my mind, I'm going to do it no matter what; it might be great, or it might be a gutwrenching struggle; but that is what you sign up for on these trips. I carry a light rain jacket in my jersey pocket in the event of rain, but other than that, I try to take each mile as it comes. The only time that mindset can be an issue is during the long climbs out west. It is nice to know how long a climb is so you can pace yourself physically and mentally. But my Garmin bike computer has a display that shows a graphic of the "fun" that is ahead as you climb.

We were informed yesterday that today's breakfast was not a typical hotel buffet affair but a sit-down breakfast where you order off the menu. It should have been obvious to everyone, including the tour director, that serving 22 people plus the tour staff at 6:15 AM would be problematic if the early group was scheduled to depart at their normal time of 7:00 AM. The food came out very slowly as, obviously, the hotel is short on kitchen staff. Everyone eventually got their food, and it was very good. However, with 108 miles of bike riding ahead of us, you could see that people were anxious. 

After breakfast, as I brought my bags and bike down to the front of the hotel, I saw Peter from the UK asking the tour director if there were any special things he should know about the route today. She quickly said no, and then he was off. No waiting until 7:30. Over the past two days, we could see that Peter, usually a very strong rider, had been struggling with the heat. Evidently, the tour director had also noticed and gave him a pass to leave when he wanted to. 

I didn't hesitate.

"If Peter is leaving, then I'm outta here too. It's 108 miles today, and we need to beat the heat.", I said.

Startled, she said, "Well, then, should I sign you out?"

I said, "Yes, thanks." And I was off.

After that, I think she must have realized that everyone was scrambling to get on the road. So there was no formal "route rap" today. No asking us if we had a song to offer her. No pointing out points of interest. She wasn't able to do her morning presentation because everyone was more interested in getting on the road. 

The route looked very much the same as the beautiful countryside we rode through yesterday, and the day before, only less hilly. As always, I thoroughly enjoyed riding in the early morning air. I caught up with Peter about 5 miles before the first SAG at 33 miles. As is my habit, I kept my SAG stop short. I drank a lot of water, refilled my water bottles, ate a Twinkie, and then headed out again. The second SAG was at 69 miles, with 39 still to go after that. I've noticed that on long mileage days, I mentally take it in 5-mile and 10-mile increments as the miles pass toward the next SAG stop or the hotel.

It seemed as though the farms and fields we rode by today were even more expansive than yesterday, but that may just be because the terrain was flatter. I do remember this route from 2019. 

Because of the long mileage today, my question, as always, was how my stomach would feel after about 70 or 80 miles. Despite a very strong headwind for the last 40 miles, I finished strong, due in no small part to the fact that my stomach behaved. Why? Your guess is as good as mine.

I found out today that Payton, the mechanic who was not around when my bike had major issues, will be leaving the tour in Champagne. That means tomorrow will be his last day with us. The question now becomes, will our tour director be taking on a new mechanic? Or will she be winging it again and going without a real trained mechanic as she did for the first week of the tour when I was left in a lurch? My guess is that because she's probably not willing to pay a qualified mechanic, she will wing it again. But I could be wrong; I hope I am. 

Remember, in the nearly 4 weeks that we have been at this, three different staff members have left. Howie from Paramus, New Jersey, was shown the door on the second day of the tour for some undisclosed infraction.  Then about 10 days later, Gary from Tucson chose to cut his losses and left when we were in Santa Fe. Greg, from, I can't recall where left about a week ago. 

That is Crossroads Adventure Cycling, with emphasis on the word adventure! 

Cue the circus music.....

Stay tuned for our next installment of "Lifestyles of the Rich and Not So Famous- Cycling Edition"