Week 4 training 190 miles 528 miles to go.

 

 

 

Most of the week was perfect for biking and I managed to get in a few miles when the weather was so grand.  Sunday rode alone and biked 27 miles. Monday I rode 33miles with Robert Fortner to Lowell on roads that had a few hills that required lots shifting down to go up the hills and shifting up to go down the hills.  Great training.  On Tuesday I biked 35 miles with Jan Quist and biked a road I had never ridden before (Parmalee near Middleville).  We had a very delightful ride as the hills were such that when we went down at sufficient speed we could almost make it to the top of the next hill without shifting down too much.  It helped that we had a slight wind on our backs.  The magnolias, red buds, and dogwoods were still in bloom. Just beautiful. On Wednesday I biked with Phil and Jan Quist to Holland to see the tulips and to check out the route we would be biking from Hope to Calvin on August 3rd.  We found a new bike trail that is not yet on the area bike maps.  It is a beautiful easy ride along bike trails through some great countryside. At the end of the ride saw 2 teams of horse plowing a field.  One team was driven by a woman.  A delightful scene.

On Saturday the weather was very different than earlier in the week and not the nicest for biking. I biked 46 Miles In Kalamazoo with Henry DeVries one of the chaplains for the tour. It was very cloudy, breezy and cold.  When I was eating lunch the sign at the bank said 42 degrees. My toes were frozen.  I should have worn my bike booties for my feet. Driving back home to Grand Rapids it started to rain very hard.  I was thankful I had finished early and thought of all the cyclists still out biking in the cold rain.  When I got home I took a hot shower and a long nap. Thinking about the ride this summer I realized I would not the pleasure of coming home to a soft warm bed after a tough day biking.

I also thought about why and for whom I am biking and am reminded that the poor do not have the options I do and may live in wet cold conditions with no thought of a nice warm shower and warm bed to enjoy.  I am blessed and pray our bike tour can make the difference in the lives of a few people.  For those of you following the tour, I hope you will continue to support the efforts to raise funds for poverty and to pray for the many people who need our support.  Thanks We are blessed.

/Dogwood in bloom

woman driving a team of horses plowing the field