DAY 41

ROUTE:Marysville,OH to Wooster,OH	DISTANCE:104 miles	WINDS:Slightly tail
WEATHER:Beeootiful! Sunny and 79 degrees	TERRAIN:Farmland	CLIMBING:3780 feet

Friday, July 16th. Well, all kinds of weirdness happened today. Breakfast this morning was at the Waffle House and may have been an omen. I sat at a table with Ken S., John W., and Michael U. and we were the second table to put in our orders. We watched table after table get served before us, and the waitress finally came over to ask what we needed. Duh...food? Our order was on a pad in her pocket. :( We ended up getting our plates just as everyone else was leaving. Good ol' Joe waited on us, and the five of us headed out about 7:30. About a quarter-mile down the road, I realized that my computer wasn't working, and stopped to check the magnet connection. Something seemed strange about my wheel...it was on backwards....I had been sabotaged in the parking lot! I'm sure my NMBHS buddies will be glad to know that practical jokes are alive and well on the Cross Country Challenge! A quick wheel flip and I was back in business, but payback is coming! Then the worst thing happened....Dale, a really strong rider that I've mentioned before, got sideswiped by a car, crashed, and broke his collarbone. The car's rear view mirror hit his left elbow and spun his handlebars, sending him into the tall weeds on the side of the road. Dale doesn't seem to think the driver even knew he/she had hit him. Luckily, he doesn't have any road rash, and said he might even try to ride a few miles tomorrow. Dale earned the Chicken Award tonight at route rap, but methinks he earned it the hard way! We riders are always careful on the road, but I think we were all even more so after that news! The mileage was the same, but today's ride was quite a bit different from yesterday's. I can sum up that difference in one word: HILLS. We had already been told that the climb today would equal about 3780 feet, but the first 50 miles were fairly easy. Alas, that wouldn't be the case for long. At about mile 70, we suddenly came across some of the steepest grades we've seen in a long time...and they came one after the other. Grrrr. At the lunch stop, Michelle mentioned something about climbing "the wall"...good thing they didn't mention "the wall" last night at route rap or none of us would've slept well! We scaled a few hills after lunch (lunch lasted too long because we were watching Lance on TV!), but still made it to the hotel by 4:15. We have a couple of neat things in the works...a dinner cruise when we're in Syracuse and dinner for riders and family/friends on the 27th at a "lobstah" restaurant. So hard to believe that this trip will soon be winding down. Tomorrow we ride 94 miles to Niles,OH, and the forecast is for scattered thunderstorms with a high of 74. Yikes. Could be a l-o-n-g day on the bike! Thanks for checking in!

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