Day 25 Colby Kanas to Norton, Kanas

At last night peloton, we were reminded to sign in. If anyone did not sign in they would be assigned to the sweep team for breakfast the next morning.  This afternoon, I noticed everyone checking themselves in.  We have an attendance sheet to ensure everyone is accounted for everyday.  We can not leave an rider or volunteer behind. 

Work up this morning thinking I was late at 639 which is what my clock said and I had changed the time to central time.  When I was the only one in the restroom I wondered and I checked my phone time and it was only 540 instead of 640.  Since we are on central time we have changed times for breakfast 7-8 and supper to 6. It was nice to have it light a little longer last night as it was still light at 930. This morning, it was just getting light after 6 AM.

I headed out by myself at 707 at 64 degrees temperature. At mile 6 Hennie and Harry Drost from Prince Edward Island and Rick DeJonge from Ontario invited me to ride with them.  It was a great ride even though we had a strong wind from the south so we rode in a double peloton. Sometimes we had a tailwind so we sailed along.  At mile 70 my average was 18.4mph.  We rode through some beautiful country. We saw crops of corn, soybeans and wheat.  All these fields seemed to be irrigated.  I believe the water comes from the underground Ogalalla Aquifer that lies under a very large area from South Dakota, Nebraska, Western part of Iowa and into Kanas. You could see that the area we were biking though seemed more prosperous with neat homes and farms scattered along the countryside.  It was an enjoyable day.
When we turn at mile 70 to head south toward the Prairie Dog State Park we had a huge headwind. I had a hard time getting my speed up to 10mph. My average speed dropped to 17.9 mph for the day, which is my fastest time ever.
When we arrived in camp, we noticed the restrooms a distance from our campsite. There is a large reservoir here and some people are swimming in the lake.  Others are taking a shower at the campsite. The wind is still insistent and ever present.  We can not seem to get away from the wind at our campsite.
Right now I am at Macdonald's hoping to upload to my blog. It is cool and no wind. What a relief.
The last couple of days we have had no spills or injuries.  Thank God for that.  We have had too many major issues from my perspective more than the 2005 and 2008 tours combined.  Hopefully, we do not have any more major challenges on this tour. Cyclists have handled the adversity we faced very well and have gone with the flow.  I am thankful that the spirit and enthusiasm is as high as it is considering all the adjustment and changes. We are a very resilient group. 

cyclists riding in a peloton with sun casting their shadows on the road.

People have been asking about my hand and it is still bothering me so I wear my removable cast everyday to ensure I do not injure it further.  I am getting a very weird looking tan line on my right arm.