The time off, that I used to rest in Tipp City, was wonderful. My relatives Tom and Anne Rettig, were the consummate hosts. Besides eating at several great restaur ants, they also helped me take care of some unfinished business: a haircut (it has been growing for over 60 days), a bike tune up, laundry, etc.

Interestingly, I weighed myself when I arrived. 185 pounds. About ten less than when I started. The next morning, I weighed myself aga in: 190 pounds. What? I knew I ate a big dinner last night, but not that big! Anne probably hit the market when she reminded me of all the liquids that I drank. Most of te gain was likely the fluids.

My niece, Emily Kregor, and her family, husband Jon and their 7 and 5 year olds, Isaac and Luke, came up from Cincinnati to visit yesterday. This is a BIG deal, not only because I dearly wanted to see them, but I had originally planned to ride to Cincinnati, and spend an extra day there. By them coming to the Rettig's house in Tipp City, they shaved three days off of my trip, a precious gift when I am anxious to see Karen again. Their visit was very pleasant, and the kids were so cute and well behaved. 

The local newscasts are all a twitter over this heat wave that has settled in for a couple of days. Rarely do they broadcast the temperature. Instead they talk about the heat index, a combination of temperature and humidity. The higher the humidity, the higher the heat index. All the forecasters were speaking about the heat index being over 100. Events were being cancelled.

I was scratching my head. Having grown up in Indiana with this weather, I did not think it was a big deal to have hot weather. Even my 2008 bicycle trip, during its last 30 days, rarely had a high temperature daily of less than 90 degrees. 

So today, I slathered on the sunblock, loaded up with water and Gatorade (and food that Anne provided), and set out for Marysville, Ohio. The first 8-10 miles were on a bike trail. The rest were lower traffic roads. The area is very pretty, whether in town or in the country.

Lunch was a nice town called Urbana, 35-40 miles into the ride. Besides drinking multiple glasses of tea, I added more sun block. By the time I left town after lunch, I probably had  asked 10-12 people for help with directions, either to verify that I was indeed on track, or else because I didn't have a clue. People are always willing to help.

The afternoon was just like the morning except that the traffic was lighter still. When you are riding a bicycle, the air moves past the body, thus providing some cooling. It is sort of like having a fan on you. So even though a bicycler is generating heat, the rider tends to be cooler than if they were standing still. The difference, however, is that the bicycler has to hydrate far more than normal. In my case I hydrate a lot, and continue at dinner, and in the motel room until bedtime.

After 68 miles, I reached my motel in Marysville. What a terrific day! A fantastic breakfast and send-off by Tom and Anne. They even drove up, and found me, to make sure I was okay, and gave me a cold water. A great route, scenic, safe, polite drivers. It made the day seem to go quickly.

Tomorrow will, hopefully, be more of the same (except for the send-off☺). The ever present question is where will I worship? It seems that the Lord always has something in mind.

Blessings. 

With joy, I received the news, while researching the distance to today's ride, that it would only be around 45 miles. My destination, Tipp City, is the hometown of my cousin, Anne Rettig and her husband, Tom. I was excited to see them.

With a major heat wave coming in, and possible thunderstorms later, it seemed like a good idea to get out early. The route suggested by Anne was mostly on country roads and looked like a good one.

The first road, Hwy 121 was my least favorite because, while quite pretty, it was a twisty, turning road that obscured me from drivers approaching from the rear. There were no problems, but I was glad to transfer onto roads that were straighter, with broad curves, allowing excellent visibility for those behind me.

Nonetheless, using my mirrors, I tracked the traffic coming up behind. Once, while climbing a hill, I noted a big truck coming up behind. When it suddenly started decelerating, I looked forward and saw a other semi truck coming towards us. I rolled off the road onto the grass, and let both vehicles pass, without having to deal with me.

Vehicles, often, will accommodate one another. More than once an approaching vehicle has its right tires off the road, in order to give a passing truck more room to get past me. Of course, there have also been times when the passing vehicle has forced the oncoming vehicle off the road, but you can tell when it is voluntary versus involuntary.

I have had several dogs take umbrage with my riding in front of their property. Today, however, was the first time one was seriously angry. It gave chase, and it's growling got closer and closer until it was almost to my seat. I could hear it but not see it. I tried a trick that another rider shared when we were riding in Minnesota. I grabbed my water bottle with my left hand, pushed it under my right arm, pointing it at where the dog seemed be, and gave the bottle a squeeze. Liquid shot out in the dog's direction. I don't know if I hit the dog or not, but one moment there was all this racket, and then everything went completely silent. The dog had stopped, and never resumed it's chase. 

This countryside is very pretty, with most people, farmers primarily, keeping their places manicured. It reminded me if Iowa and eastern Illinois.

Before noon, I pulled into the driveway of Tom and Annes' house. There will be another rest day here. My niece, on Friday, is bringing up her famiiy up from Cincinnati. It will be the first time I will have met her children. It should be fun.

On Saturday, I depart for Pennsylvania, and the hardest part of the trip in eastern United States, maybe of the whole trip. It will start by getting hilly. When I get into the Appalachians, the riding will be tough, with steeper climbs than I have had to face in the west. It is not the heights of the mountain tain, but the steepness of the climb that is concerning. In 2008, this was the only section where I had to get off the bike and walk for a while.

Unfortunately, the heat wave will still be in force for a couple of more days, with the heat index being over 100. On Saturday, it is, at the same time supposed to be raining. I thought rain was supposed to bring temperatures down, but, apparently, not in this case. 

On the up side, I will also be seeing a number of family members during game the last 2 weeks of the trip. I thank God that He had gotten me here safely.  

For the last two days, I have had the pleasure of staying at the home of Stu Rhodes and Dee Taylor, in Indianapolis. They have taken good care of me, and I felt rested for today's ride to Richmond, Indiana.

Two things of special note happened: First, I was able to get a replacement pair of glasses made. Dr. Jim Schrader emailed my lense prescription to the company in Indy, so that was a big relief.

Secondly, a group of my fraternity brothers gathered Tuesday evening, using my visit as a pretext to see each other. It was great to see everyone again, and to catch up on each others' lives.

Today's trip seemed fairly simple once I got out of Indianapolis. Highway 40 went directly from Indianapolis to Richmond. Stu did a good job of putting together an exit route. I left Stu and Dee at 7:45 AM. Two hours and 15 miles later, I found myself finally out of the city.

Highway 40 was a major east/west four lane highway once. Then Interstate 70 was built, and most of the traffic shifted there. I was told that it had nice 8' shoulders, and it did for a short while, but then went back to the typical 1-2 foot shoulders I have ever seen so much in this state. However, with 4 lanes of traffic, and the fact that there was not a lot of people using this highway, the narrow shoulders did not matter.

I did run out of water, so sure was I that the next little town would have a convenience store. Rather than ride to the another town, I stopped by a lady that was mowing her yard, and asked if I could fill up my water bottle from an outside spigot. She took the bottle and filled it up indoors. When she returned with it, I drank half of it before I was out of town. At the next town, I purchased two bottles of Powerade, one for immediate use, one as a spare.

The most challenging part of the day happened when I arrived at Richmond. I deliberately booked a motel room on the east side of town, because it was near the highway I would be taking into Ohio in the morning. The ride through Richmond was congested, with no extra space for bicycles. Several times when traffic started to pile up behind me, I pulled off the road, or onto the sidewalk, to let the lane clear.

Finally, over nine hours, and 81 miles, after leaving this morning, I checked into my motel. It ended up being over 20 miles more than I originally expected, but I suppose if you add in the 15 miles to get out of Indy, and the long ride through Richmond, the difference could be explained.

Tomorrow, Ohio.

Blessings to you all. 

Only two more days of riding, then a day of rest! Or, wait a minute, was it one more day of riding, and two day's of rest? It was supposed to be the former, but ended up being the latter. Here is how it happened.

One thing I knew for sure, I needed to bicycle my way out of Monticello. It is a hub for vacationers because of the lakes there, so traffic, in July, is higher than normal. This being a Sunday, traffic should be at a weekly low if I leave early Sunday morning. My goal was to be a good 20 miles out of Monticello before 9 AM. My intended terminus was Frankfort, iN, a mere 38 miles down the road. If things still looked good, I might shoot to Lebanon, IN, another 15 or 20 miles. This all was to prepare me for the jump into Indianapolis on Monday morning. 

There were two challenges to this approach: First of all, even the roads out of town were terrible for bicyclers. No shoulder to ride on, too much traffic. Secondly, I wished to worship somewhere. My thought was to find a church service as i worked my way south. 

On the road before 7 AM, a quick bite at McDonalds, and off I went. There had been talk of several storm fronts coming through this area in the next couple of days, but there was no sign of inclement weather. My, this strategy of starting early Sunday was paying off. There was a little traffic, but very little.

I came across several churches that had potential, but they either were not going to start for quite a while, or, just the opposite, they were too far into their service. I kept pedaling. 

About 10 miles out of Frnkfort, I saw a country church ahead on my right. It was the Pleasant View Presbyterian Church. The service was in progress, but I found an empty pew, pulled out my notepad for note taking, and settled in to hear what God might have for me. The sermon was about prayer, and how it brings us into a special relationship with God.

Afterward, I chatted with a number of kind folks (I was in bicycling clothes, the same ones that I had ridden 79 miles in yesterday, so you might imagine how I smelled), and the last group of folks asked me to join them for lunch. I accepted. This family, spanning several generations, were the nicest, kindest folks, and made me feel welcome, indeed.

Several things popped up that gave me directions as to where to stay. Firstly, there was a low traffic road near Frankfort that helped me decide to stay in Frankfort, not Lebanon that night. Then a text came from Stu Rhodes, with whom I would be staying Monday and Tuesday nights. He suggested that it was okay to ride in to Indy today if I wished to avoid some of the projected storm activity.

By the time, we returned to the church (my bike was locked inside), dark threatening clouds were forming. So I took off fast (for me) to Frankfort. And that is when the whole direction of the day changed.

I decided to ride all the way into Indianapolis, forgoing Frankfort. It looked like I would miss the storm, which one could see, in the distance, was dropping rain. I found the low traffic road, and pedaled on.

About five miles onto this road, and 11 miles out of Frankfort, the thunderstorm found me and started raining a good hard rain, typical of the midwest. For several miles I pondered whether lightning would strike a bicycler rather than all of the metal granaries I was passing. My glasses were coated with rain, and I was unable to see approaching rear traffic, little though there was. However without the glasses, I could see the mirrors fine. I doubt that drivers approaching would expect to see a bicycler on this road in the middle of a rainstorm, and I wanted to be ready to take preventive action if they didn't. Putting my eyeglasses in my coat pocket, I pedaled on, thinking that I was an idiot for not staying in Frankfort. 

Finally, the rain started to slow down, and eventually stopped. My next problem to solve involved food and water. The large lunch was burned up, and the body was screaming for food. I stopped and ate the last two snacks, granola bars. My water suppy was also close to empty. A small town called Sheridan had a convenience store. Problem solved. 

My goal was to reach a rail-trail called the Monan Trail. It would take me right into Indy, within a mile of Stu's house. At this point, I was pooping out. I knew I had 50-60 miles today, and a long journey still to go. Stopping to check my map, I discovered that my prescription eyeglasses has fallen out of my pocket. All I had left was my new sunglasses with the bifocals on the top.

Eventually, by God's grace, I found the trail. Asking a couple how far it was to Butler University (near where Stu lives), I was told it was an hour by car. Oh, Lord be with me.

The trail, called the Monon Trail was a good one. Aside from being level, and beautiful, the vegetation shielded me from the headwind I had been fighting all day.

The secret to maximizing distance while minimizing effort is much easier to do on a paved trail like this. You just have enough pressure on the pedals to keep you going, and it feels like you are gliding, especially without the headwind. Ironically, it had not rained on the trail, the sun was out, all my travails today had seemed a distant memory

Sometime after 7 PM, and 89 miles after I started this morning, I pulled into Stu Rhodes's house. A long day. A long week, 392 miles in five days. I am ready for rest.

 The last several days have wonderful examples of God's providence. Whether it was protection from traffic and weather, or meeting wonderful people, I am thankful for His grace towards someone who is undeserving, me.

The weather reports kept changing about today. A few days ago, they were forecasting storms. Each day the forecast improved until it ended being a very nice, not too hot, day.

 I figured out how to avoid US 24 last night, with help from the man at the front desk of my motel. For the first half of the day, I would go south for a mile, then turn east on a quiet farm road. For a break, I would turn back to the north when a town appeared. Same thing for lunch.

Leaving early again, I was on a peaceful road by 7:30 AM. It was not always paved, but that was okay. Very few cars passed me all day, maybe a dozen, maybe two dozen.

Researching routes after lunch, I discovered a Walmart close by. I was almost out of sunblock, and I had misplaced my lip block, so Walmart helped on both accounts.

Today was one of those slow days. With a slight headwind, it seemed like I was not making the progress I should. Despite the cooler temperatures (in the low 80s), I was going through a serious amount of fluids. I was tiring.

Of the 79 miles logged today, at least 15 miles were looking for a side road, or getting to the side road.

Two important things happened today: First of all, I entered Indiana, leaving Illinois behind after only a 3 night stay. Secondly, I entered a new time zone. For the rest of the trip, I will be 3 hours behind the west coast. 

Even though I tried to stay off of US 24, I still probably rode on it for 10 miles or so. I am used to being on the road with cars and trucks, but I feel really at risk by riding on this particular highway. So tomorrow, Sunday morning, I want to leave town early before traffic starts moving.

I also want to find a church to stop and worship at. We'll let God decide where that will be.  

Two more days of riding, then a day of rest.

May the peace of the Lord be with you. 

Since I was going to end the day in Gilman, IL, the exact mileage was a bit unclear. Gilman was not a part of the route covered by the bicycle maps. It certainly appeared to be close to 80 miles, which is more than I like, but certainly could do if I had to. The weather looked to be perfect, the terrain was fairly flat, so it would just be a matter of time.

The last 10 miles were to be an experiment. They would be on US 24, a former major highway before the interstates were built. This is the highway that goes directly to the next day's destination. If it is reasonable, in other words have decent shoulders to separate me from the traffic. then I would like to use it on Saturday.

Today is my last day for a while using the bicycle maps, but they should take me all day until the last hour or so.

Or so I thought. They didn't take me 200 yards. I was sure that I was on the route until I noticed a town coming up that was not on the map. Yep, I screwed up again. The nice thing about Illinois (and I think Indiana) is that most of the roads go north/south or east/west. Since the road I was on was headed south, and the general direction for the day was southeast, I just continued south until I found a good road heading east, and hopped on it. 

It worked to perfection. An early start guaranteed a reasonable arrival time at my motel destination. I just needed to keep track of what towns were coming up, in order to replenish liquids, eat, etc. At lunch everyone in the restaurant was entertained by a car, on the property next door, that drove out of the car wash, then turned our direction and ran over a retaining wall. It's front was flush with the ground, but the rear was sticking up in the air. A tow truck arrived as I was leaving.

On the way out of town, I stopped at a shop to make sure I was still on the correct highway. The proprietor assured me I was. Upon on hearing where I was going tomorrow, he urged me to stay off of US 24. 

Finally, around 2 PM, I pulled onto US 24. It was awful. Like other roads that day, it was a two lane road, but it was much busier than the back roads I had been using, and the road was in poor condition. There was a one foot shoulder, and in the middle of it was a rumble strip, so I had no choice but to ride in the traffic lane.

I will try to find a quieter parallel road for tomorrow. Today's trip was 78 miles. Tomorrow will likely be similar, if not longer. The key difference is the change in the weather. The next several days will be cloudy with possible storms on Sunday and Monday.

Back home again, in Indiana....tomorrow. 

Since I was going to end the day in Gilman, IL, the exact mileage was a bit unclear. Gilman was not a part of the route covered by the bicycle maps. It certainly appeared to be close to 80 miles, which is more than I like, but certainly could do if I had to. The weather looked to be perfect, the terrain was fairly flat, so it would just be a matter of time.

The last 10 miles were to be an experiment. They would be on US 24, a former major highway before the interstates were built. This is the highway that goes directly to the next day's destination. If it is reasonable, in other words have decent shoulders to separate me from the traffic. then I would like to use it on Saturday.

Today is my last day for a while using the bicycle maps, but they should take me all day until the last hour or so.

Or so I thought. They didn't take me 200 yards. I was sure that I was on the route until I noticed a town coming up that was not on the map. Yep, I screwed up again. The nice thing about Illinois (and I think Indiana) is that most of the roads go north/south or east/west. Since the road I was on was headed south, and the general direction for the day was southeast, I just continued south until I found a good road heading east, and hopped on it. 

It worked to perfection. An early start guaranteed a reasonable arrival time at my motel destination. I just needed to keep track of what towns were coming up, in order to replenish liquids, eat, etc. At lunch everyone in the restaurant was entertained by a car, on the property next door, that drove out of the car wash, then turned our direction and ran over a retaining wall. It's front was flush with the ground, but the rear was sticking up in the air. A tow truck arrived as I was leaving.

On the way out of town, I stopped at a shop to make sure I was still on the correct highway. The proprietor assured me I was. Upon on hearing where I was going tomorrow, he urged me to stay off of US 24. 

Finally, around 2 PM, I pulled onto US 24. It was awful. Like other roads that day, it was a two lane road, but it was much busier than the back roads I had been using, and the road was in poor condition. There was a one foot shoulder, and in the middle of it was a rumble strip, so I had no choice but to ride in the traffic lane.

I will try to find a quieter parallel road for tomorrow. Today's trip was 78 miles. Tomorrow will likely be similar, if not longer. The key difference is the change in the weather. The next several days will be cloudy with possible storms on Sunday and Monday.

Back home again, in Indiana....tomorrow. 

Yesterday's storm seemed intense, but comparing it to the one a week earlier in Red Wing, MN, which spawned 3 tornados, the debris which I rode around and through the next day, it seemed fierce but quite as bad. At least there were no tornados, but I was surprised to turn on the news and hear of all the damage. Caught on a bicycle, in that type of storm, one has to find cover and wait it out.

The weatherman was practically giddy in describing how pleasant today and tomorrow were to be. Cooler temperatures, less humidity, etc. Well, it is true that the temperature high was four degrees less than yesterday, but that doesn't feel much better.

Without the concerns today that I potentially faced yesterday, I took my time and started a little later, around 7:45 AM. The roads chosen for the route today were good: smooth surfaces and low traffic.

My only problem was a result in the numbering system for the roads, combined with poor signage. Once I had to knock on several doors before someone answered. I explained that I thought I missed a turn on my way to Osceola. She replied "This is Osceola." Her directions then helped me keep moving.

In mid-day, I crossed over the Illinois River, which was much larger than I expected. It seemed 2/3 the size of the Mississippi. Fortunately, there was not too much traffic at the time because I am very slow on the first half, and vehicles behind me were reluctant to try to pass on the two lane bridge.

After 45 days on the road, I have probably been passed by 15,000 to 20,000 vehicles, and the most dangerous thing I witness is when drivers behind me try to pass me as oncoming traffic approaches. I have seen several close calls, but nothing that put me in any danger. It made me, in my mind, go through potential triage situations, in the event that a collision occurs.

Today's route was 63 miles, and went very smoothly. Tomorrow I will be on the bicycle map for most of the day, then I will be free lancing, map wise, until I head south near Philadelphia.

May the peace of the Lord be with you. 

It is 4 PM, as I write this journal. I have been in my motel room in Kewanee, Illinois for a half hour, and as I look out at the trees being whipped around and sheets upon sheets of rain falling, I think "Except for the grace of God, I would be out there in that mess."

There were two major concerns for today's ride: First I wanted to make it across the bridge over the Mississippi River alive. Secondly, there was supposed to be a severe thunderstorm coming through in the afternoon. Could I get to Kewanee before it does?

Getting up at 5 AM, I had devotions and prayer, packed everything up, and was eating breakfast a little after 6 AM. The forecast was clouds, so I did not put on sunblock at the motel, but did apply it at the restaurant, since clouds in the blue sky, were few and far between.

Stopped by a convenience store for extra water, snacks and an Illinois road map (a brilliant idea from Karen), then set off for the bridge. The road I was on was a main thoroughfare, but traffic was light that early. Before 7 AM, I was across the bridge, pedalling through Illinois. Except for a big hill at the beginning, the terrain was relatively flat. In addition, the southerly wind was coming a bit from the west side, giving me a modest boost at times.

For once, the route chosen was excellent. Good roads, Little traffic. Because of the early start, decent terrain and modest tailwind, it certainly looked like I was going to be in Kewanee long before the thunderstorm would hit. Short breaks, quick lunch, and then back to pedalling.

All day long I wondered if I would get to my motel room before the storm. A week earlier, I was in my motel room seconds before the heavens opened up. Today, however, while the clouds were accumulating, they seemed pretty docile. Maybe the storm, if there was to be one, would hit later in the evening. Even when arriving in Kewanee, it did not look like anything even approaching the status of a thunderstorm was on the horizon. The only clue I received was a couple of isolated raindrops as I pulled into the motel. Within ten or fifteen minutes, the storm hit with all its fury.

Today's trip logged in at 81 miles. To get into a motel room by 3 PM, was testimony to the early start, good riding conditions, and God's Providence, in reverse order.

For the next several days, the weather is projected to be nice. I get to meet, tomorrow, one of the Illinois Red Cross volunteers that I served with while on deployment in New Jersey a few years back.

I am in amazement at how wonderful God's grace is especially since it is undeserved. 

Tomorrow is the big push east. First thing in the morning, I cross the bridge over the Mississippi River, and enter Illinois. Initially, I will be following the bicycling maps, but after a couple of days, I will be free lancing until I get past Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. From there I pick up the Atlantic Coast Trail maps, and they will take me near Raleigh, my final destination.

Yesterday, I felt tired. Why would that be? It was a shorter day. Was it the heat? Headwind? Accumulated fatigue? I do not know, but it will be interesting to see how tomorrow feels.

The weather tomorrow is going to be lousy. It will likely rain at different times, but the temperatures is still expected to reach 86 degrees. A major thunderstom is anticipated later in the afternoon so it would be nice if I get to Kewanee before it does. But it is over 70  miles so that may not be possible. 

UNUSUAL EQUIPMENT: The most unusual piece of equipment on this trip is my  sunglasses. Fellow Rotarian, Dr. Jim Schrader, made an unusual pair that were specially constructed for this bike. In a recumbent, the rider leans way back, sort of like in a reclining chair. The problem is that with my bifocals, this means that I am looking through the reading portion of my lenses. In the new pair, the bifocals are on the top of the lense, not the bottom.

ACHES AND PAINS: Aside from general fatigue, I have had few problems. The chafing that I experienced on the inside of one leg, went away when I applied vasaline. The only nagging problem happened the last time I camped, in North Dakota. Somehow, I pinched a nerve to my right arm, that has been painful at times, but not, ironically when I am pedalling. At first, I could hardly sit still,  and sleeping was very uncomfortable. Another Rotarian friend, Betsy Baker, a physical therapist, (and the PT to the US Ski Team) gave me some exercises to help.  The biggest difference, however, was the hot day that I left the Minneapolis area. The heat seemed to lessen the inflation in the nerve. It is not gone, but I sleep better, and it rarely affects me off the bike.

43 days since leaving Everett. I will be glad when I see Karen again.

Blessings to you all.