Leg 3 - The United States of America
Barry chauffeurs us back to Fosston To finish our visit to Chateau Batcheller in style, Barry cooked us a delicious breakfast of steak and eggs. We are pretty sure that this will not be on the counter in any of the continental breakfasts served at our 2 star hotels for the rest of the trip. We are worried that the rest day hangover following the treatment given to us by the Batchellers might just last through much of the rest of the trip.... We are forever grateful to Barry and Julien for this.
We left the house for the 1:45 hour trip back to Fosston at 9AM and were back on the road at 11:02AM. On Tuesday, the Batchellers had picked us up just West of Fosston and there was debate between Barry and Cam as to the distance from Fosston, with Barry suggesting 10 miles, and Cam 4 kms. This was the first time in our working history that Cam was right and Barry was wrong as we measured it at about 4.8 kms.
We left the house for the 1:45 hour trip back to Fosston at 9AM and were back on the road at 11:02AM. On Tuesday, the Batchellers had picked us up just West of Fosston and there was debate between Barry and Cam as to the distance from Fosston, with Barry suggesting 10 miles, and Cam 4 kms. This was the first time in our working history that Cam was right and Barry was wrong as we measured it at about 4.8 kms.
Tweaking the bikes at the Fosston A&W. In Fosston, we stopped for some quick tweaks on the bikes. The guys at Northern Pacific Bicycle Shop in Fargo, ND had given both bikes "performance tune ups" and so they were riding well, but we had to adjust a few things. Cam reflected on the unbudgeted bike repair costs that were accumulating with every trip he made to a bike shop. To date, he has required the following:
- 2 new chains
- 2 new pedals
- 3 new spokes
- 1 new rear tire
- 5 new tubes
- new handelbar tape
- 1 new bottom crank bracket
- 1 new bike computer
Ken, on the other hand has required 1 new tube, new cables, and a new chain. Clearly there is some difference between Ken and Cam that must be behind this distinction. Cam, however, can't put his finger on what that difference might be....?!?!
- 2 new chains
- 2 new pedals
- 3 new spokes
- 1 new rear tire
- 5 new tubes
- new handelbar tape
- 1 new bottom crank bracket
- 1 new bike computer
Ken, on the other hand has required 1 new tube, new cables, and a new chain. Clearly there is some difference between Ken and Cam that must be behind this distinction. Cam, however, can't put his finger on what that difference might be....?!?!
Cam is very happy... Barry had pointed out during breakfast that it looked like a strong wind from the Northwest. We were very glad when we reached the starting point that this wind continued as we set out. To our delight, this wind continued through the day and it looks from the weather forecasts should be around for a few more days! We believe that we paid our dues with difficult winds over most of the riding days since Regina and are clearly due for some tailwinds...
At the 40 km point was a very nice town called Bagley, where we had one of our best lunches of the trip so far. The Coach's Corner Cafe was a throwback to the 1950's - which is when each of the waitresses working the floor must have started working there. This turned out to be an awesome thing, however, as the Special of the Day was straight from Gramma's kitchen - meatballs, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn and toast - all for the tidy sum of $6.25! This was followed by apple crisp with ice cream for $2.25. An amazing lunch to power us the rest of the day, all well within Cam's lunch budget!
At the 40 km point was a very nice town called Bagley, where we had one of our best lunches of the trip so far. The Coach's Corner Cafe was a throwback to the 1950's - which is when each of the waitresses working the floor must have started working there. This turned out to be an awesome thing, however, as the Special of the Day was straight from Gramma's kitchen - meatballs, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn and toast - all for the tidy sum of $6.25! This was followed by apple crisp with ice cream for $2.25. An amazing lunch to power us the rest of the day, all well within Cam's lunch budget!
Paul Bunyan and his Babe We were interested to visit Bemidji, MN the hometown of Joel Otto, a key member of the 1989 Stanley Cup Champion Calgary Flames. Not knowing anything about the town, we thought that there might be a sign announcing that it was his hometown. We quickly noticed, however, that Bemidji is quite a large city and we saw no such sign... We were fortunate, however, to see Paul Bunyan and Babe the Big Blue Ox - symbols of Bemidji created in 1937 by the local rotary club to commemorate the lumberjacking history of the area. We also learned that Lake Bemidji is the headwaters of the Mississippi River which flows out of the south end of the lake.
Arriving at the hotel, just before the rain. Cass Lake, our destination for the night, is located next to an Ojibwe Indian Reservation, and the primary hotel in the area is the Palace Casino Hotel. We arrived about 5PM, just outrunning a major rainstorm that hit shortly after we reached our room. The price was right, particularly after signing up for the casino's "Players Card". The card saved us 20% on the hotel and gave us discounts at the buffet - which turned out to be surprisingly good! We are feeling great - well-rested, well-fed and well-psyched with a few days of tailwinds ahead (knock wood!). An early night to bed, and a short 86 km ride tomorrow, will contribute further to our overall state of wellness!
"This is why we do this" is a phrase that we have both used on our annual bike trips during particularly memorably stretches of riding. The phrase came up again today - and is how we feel as we wind things down today...
"This is why we do this!"
Ride Details:
- Distance: 103.7 kms
- Riding Time: 4 hours, 5 minutes
- Average Speed: 25.4 kms/hour
- Wind: West North West (Strong!)
- Cumulative: 2,891 kms
Tomorrow's Destination: Grand Rapids, MN - 85.9 kms
For more ride details see Strava and for more pictures from today see our Photo Gallery.
"This is why we do this" is a phrase that we have both used on our annual bike trips during particularly memorably stretches of riding. The phrase came up again today - and is how we feel as we wind things down today...
"This is why we do this!"
Ride Details:
- Distance: 103.7 kms
- Riding Time: 4 hours, 5 minutes
- Average Speed: 25.4 kms/hour
- Wind: West North West (Strong!)
- Cumulative: 2,891 kms
Tomorrow's Destination: Grand Rapids, MN - 85.9 kms
For more ride details see Strava and for more pictures from today see our Photo Gallery.
Junedoggle Update:
You might recall that we signed up for a challenge on Strava, a cycling social networking application that we use to map our rides. This challenge is to see who will ride the most distance in the month of June.
We are currently in 3rd place in the Junedoggle Challenge for Canada out of 2,996 participants!
More surprising, for the whole world, we are 21st out of 84,167 participants!
You might recall that we signed up for a challenge on Strava, a cycling social networking application that we use to map our rides. This challenge is to see who will ride the most distance in the month of June.
We are currently in 3rd place in the Junedoggle Challenge for Canada out of 2,996 participants!
More surprising, for the whole world, we are 21st out of 84,167 participants!