By riding so much yesterday, I had a much shorter ride today. There is supposed to be headwinds, mostly in the 8-10 mph range, but they, for the most part were not direct headwinds. My goal, was to camp in a little town called Hazelton, 50-some miles away. Again, there would be no services along the way, so I would have to pack lunch, snacks and extra water. 

At breakfast, a fellow recommended a place up the street for sandwiches. It was called the Butcher Block. Actually it was a full butcher shop, open at 7:30 AM, which also does some sandwiches. I ordered one. The employees there were fun, and one man said that he was an expert on guessing one's weight. After walking around me, he wrote something down and asked me what I actually do weigh. Truthfully, I did not know. When I left home, I weighed 195, but I have burned more calories than I have eaten. I guessed 190. He had written down 192-196. Not bad. It was great fun and a good send off for my ride.

Shortly after, I stopped by a convenience store and picked up two Danishes for snacks.

The country around here is very pretty. Lots of cultivated fields and pasture. The map showed a plethora of lakes all over the place, but you couldn't see them from the road. Lots of hills, but only a dozen or so held a candle to the 65 hills on June 18th.

Contemplating today's ride, I was feeling pretty good about it. Much slower speed because of the headwind, but good overall. Taking a lunch break, I discovered another town 26 miles further that had motels. I don't mind tenting, but, in this case, I probably would be stuck in Hazelton for two days because of 20+ mph headwinds anticipated tomorrow, while enduring 90+ degree weather. Rather than make a decision, I thought it prudent to see what the body felt like when I got to Hazelton. That makes sense doesn't it?

Long before I got to Hazelton, I was worn out. No motel for me tonight. Finally, 54 miles later, I arrived in town, out of water. I felt like i had ridden an 84 mile ride. Drinking fluids, however, made me feel much better. For some reason, however, I just didn't feel good about staying in Hazelton.

So I took off for the next town, Napoleon, 26 miles away.  Most of it had some headwind, but not direct. I prayed for the strength to do this, and suddenly felt invigorated. Figuring it was going to take me 3 hours, I realized that water and Powerade would be insufficient by themselves. Stopping for a moment I moved all readily available food up to mypockets. I  was going to experiment with eating on the go! I suppose the experiment was a success, but that did not mean it went well. Nevertheless, I finished off my beef sandwich, ate the last of the danishes, and polished off an old banana that I found at the bottom of the bag. When I arrived in Napoleon, 2 hours and 40 minutes later, all the drinking containers were empty again.

My plan, upon arrival was to wait out the 20+ man headwinds tomorrow. Looking at the map, however, it is now only 35-36 miles to the next stop. If I start early, the headwinds are less formidable. Maybe I will try that. We will find out in the morning.