I'm glad I was inside last night because at about 3 a.m., a thunderstorm rolled through. It rained on and off from then until about 8 a.m. I rode in the rain to Walnut Grove, about 9 miles.
Below are some pics of Walnut Grove.
I bought a dozen eggs last night since I had access to a kitchen, and this morning I ate 6 of them. Left the rest in the refrigerator for the next cyclist.
In Walnut Grove, I stopped by Chuck Dinesty Cafe for coffee and 3 pancakes. I always drink decaf, but they didn't have decaf, so I'm drinking caffeinated. Hopefully, that will energize me up some of these Missouri hills.
Near Fair Grove, I passed this race track. There is going to be some fun had at the track tonight. I'm glad I'm not camping anywhere close to this place. This is one hobby that I bet gives chiropractors lots of business.
Some scenery pics.
By the time I made it to Marshfield, the rain, hills, and wind had pretty much zapped me of my eggs, pancakes, and caffeine. I stopped by Subway and got a foot long veggie delight sandwich, ate half of it, and saved the other half for later.
About 26 miles and 3 hours later, I made it to a Dollar General in Hartville, where I scarfed down the other half of my sandwich, a bag of chips, and some peanuts and M&M's. I was still about 40 miles from Houston, my planned stop for the night. I was determined to make it there in spite of the slow travel because of the wind and hills, and knew it could easily be 9 p.m. or later by the time I got there.
About 11 miles from Houston, I tried to call the police department to see if there is a place in town where cyclist can pitch a tent overnight. I got no answer so I decided to ride on into town.
A short distance later, I passed a Conservation Area and the sign on trees beside the road read "Welcome, Enjoy Your Visit." I took that as my sign to stop and camp there. I figured sleeping in the woods would be much better than sleeping in a park in the middle of town. I just have to watch out for ticks on me.
Total miles today: 102.8
Sounds like a rough day. It sure would have been an experience of a lifetime to go to the Hillbilly Speedway. Do you think they serve beer there?😂
ReplyDeleteIt hurt my ears just thinking of the noise on race day.
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