RAGBRAI... (Part 7)

DAY 6 (Friday) - Independence to Dyersville 66.11 miles
Well, this morning was a tad different. I didn't wake until 4AM this time. Must have been because of the storm and the fact that there weren't any bands playing near the campground or people yakking it up outside of my tent; it could also be because of the drugs I took too. However, I was still able to get everything stowed away and ready for the road by 4:30AM. Phil and Steve didn't make it up in time, they must have had a tad too much to drink the prior evening.

Tom and I headed on out. The evenings rain had made the air very axenic and my sinuses remained clear. Though I don't think my head stayed very clear. We missed the turn north in Winthrop. We were about 2 miles down the road when we saw another rider heading towards us. It was Jack the mountain goat, he said that the turn was back the way we came. So we turned around and headed back. Tom and I found the turn buck Jack kept going. We thought he was just going to the Kwiki mart and didn't bother correcting him.

There were many more people out early in the morning than usual. We passed through Lamont without incident. When we arrived in Dundee we got lost again. Apparently, we were supposed to ride into town and loop back the way we came. The signs were not up at this time so we kept going. There were a couple of nice hills that got our speeds up to over 40 mph. Tom wanted to stop because he thought we were heading in the wrong direction so we started looking at the maps. Unfortunately the roads themselves were not marked so we were guessing what road we were on. Jack and another rider come down the hill and join us. We decided to ride the 2 miles back to Dundee and see where we went wrong. The fun part was having to climb back up those hills. This is where I started calling Jack, the mountain goat. That 64 year young man flew up those hills in his highest gear while everyone else was wishing they had a granny gear. Sure hope I am in that good of shape when I am that old.

We arrived back in Dundee and they had the signs up. We were supposed to loop back through the entrance into Dundee and out back on another road. With a quiet gggrrrr we got back on track. There were finally some hills this last half of the route. Now there were hills before, but these were definitely a little more significant and I was able to work on my major weakness, climbing.

Arriving in Dyersville was nice. It is another one of those quaint little towns you read about or see in movies. We found the local diner that was serving breakfast and treated ourselves to some nutrients. Afterward we decided to find the campsite. There were a number of people rolling into town at this time, it definitely looked like people were leaving earlier than they were at the beginning.

The campsite was found, tents were pitched, and showers were taken. I decided to go walking around town and see what there was in the way of food for lunch and dinner. The Basilica of St. Francis Xavier was an amazing looking church. It's hard to believe something that large would be in such a small town as Dyersville. They were also offering an $8 all-you-can eat spaghetti feed for dinner.

Then while passing through downtown I came across a place called Chad's Pizza. They were open for 24 hours for RAGBRAI, with a pizza buffet until 3AM and a breakfast buffet afterward. Pizza was sounding rather good to me so I thought I would check it out. They had menus on all the tables and looking at the menus it looked like even this place was having a hurricane sale too. The cheapest thing on the menu was 12 smacks and that was for a small pizza. I asked the waitress the cost of the buffet and she told me, "12 dollars". She must have seen the cringe on my face and added, "and that also includes a fountain drink", as if this would justify the cost to me. I then proceeded to ask her, "Does it also include a tube of KY?" I don't think she understood, so I decided to find some place else for lunch.

I went to the far south side of town and found a few other places to eat. One of the called Country Junction, a place similar to a Cracker Barrel. I decided to eat there since the prices were unaltered. It was terrible, the food was over cooked, and bland. After leaving I headed back into town and found the library. This was a really nice library. I even picked up the new Bourne book, went over to the kids section, found a makeshift pillow and started reading. When I fell asleep I have no clue but it was good. The librarian was going around waking up everyone and telling them that the library was closing in ten minutes. Dang.

It was time for dinner anyway, so I thought I would try the spaghetti feed at the church. They had the whole thing down to a science. The line moved very quickly and there was a lot of food. They even had meatballs in the sauce, as well as cookies and pies for desert, garlic bread, salad, lemonade, tea, and water. And they weren't skimpy on initial portioning either. Ran into a couple of people I met earlier in the week and sat with them and chowed. I could have gone back for more food but the initial portion was plenty for me.

Outside I saw someone with Power Cranks on their bike. I had a good talk to the gentleman about them and he even let me take his bike for a spin to see what I thought of the cranks. It was not easy, and I can see how they can help a person improve their pedaling skills. It has been decided, I want a set.

In case someone doesn't know, Dyersville is the home of the "Field of Dreams". The location where the Kevin Costner movie was filmed. I am not a baseball fan, never really like the sport; so I didn't go see the fabled field. There were a few people in camp that had gone to see it and they said they enjoyed it.

Everyone was saying their goodbyes to newly made friends since tomorrow was the last leg of the tour and everyone would be going home. The evening was calling to everyone who were hesitant to let the moment end.

Tomorrow...the final leg, some big climbs, a big downhill, best breakfast, a long wait.