Day 22- (72 Miles) Monday, July 9, 2007- Hot Springs, SD to Rapid City, SDWhat a day! We talked our way out of a thunderstorm. Rode an incredible variety of scenery. Climbed nearly 6,000'. And saw two of the wonders of North America. Plus, my group- The Three D's (Brett, Jen and Russell- all from Delaware-and that's Brett below pointing at towards the Crazy Horse Memorial, making Jen cuh-razee in the process!!) and I got into the hotel by about 2:30, so I'll get a few hours to tend to
things domestic- like watchin' the clothes go round and that sort of thing.This morning I beat my 4:30 AM wake up call by about 20 minutes, so I was up and at 'em early. I wandered thru the lobby and asked the hotelier what time breakfast was (knowing it was supposed to start at 6:00), and she asked "when would you like it" (good answer!). I said, "5:30 would be great"-
knowing that I'd have 30 minutes before the ABB herd would start grazing in that direction. Worked perfectly- I got first crack at the food and was immensely satisfied with myself. However, looking outside, I noticed that it was raining lightly. After much hand ringing about raincoats yes/raincoats no, I decided to pack a coat on my camelback. That was all it took to send the rain running for the hills. We got exactly zero rain, though the bikes and the backs of our jerseys would be unable to back that story up- they were a mess.
Nonetheless, we departed Hot Springs (actually a neat little town with a downtown area that actually had some character) under clearing skies and very mild temps, albeit a trifle humid (remember- I know humid). The scenery today was varied- from Wind Cave National Park- a buffalo and prairie dog sanctuary, to The Crazy Horse Memorial,
to the climb through the incredible rock formations leading up to Mount Rushmore and then to the descent into Rapid City and the start of the "real South Dakota" and the plains.Today's ride was our second or third biggest climbing day (after Teton Pass and The Continental Divide), however, the climbing was spaced throughout the day, so we took many little bites, instead of one or two big boy hauls. The one exception to that was the climb up to Mount Rushmore,
which was nearly 10 miles, with grades between 5-10% and it really got my heart pumping. Still, there were no heroic efforts required- just kept the cranks spinning and soon enough, we were over the top. In terms of numbers, we started the day at 3,250', climbed to nearly 6,000' by mile 35 or so, then gave it all back by mile 72, finishing at 3,220. Naturally, there were a few bumps along the way that made life, shall we say, interesting as we pedaled along.
Many remarked today at the drama in the climb to Mount Rushmore. It was really spectacular. As many times as I've driven through Rapid City en route to Montana, I can't believe that I've never been to Mount Rushmore. It is a special place and it's in a magnificent setting.
Everywhere there are huge rock outcroppings that are a blank canvas for sculptors who think big, such as Gutzon Borglum, who masterminded the creation at Mount Rushmore.Tomorrow will be an easy day- just 57 miles and only 1300' of climbing. We'll load after 8:00 AM, so it's a sleep-in opportunity. We were advised to rest as much as we can, because we have a couple of brute days after that- century pluses and some climbing to boot.
Tonight we had a thunderstorm come through while we were in rap (discussion of tomorrows ride) that started a fire outside Rapid City. The smoke and flames were visible from our hotel. I heard on TV this morning that there are wildfires going in 14 states now. I think this global warming thing is really under control, don't you? Anyway, supposed to be cooler tomorrow with 30 MPH tailwinds. Could be a hairy ride. Time to get supine (horizontal). Ciao, baby.
