Days 49 and 50 Restful Respite

Gregory, Bill and Sam share some downtime as they learn about sharks on the National Geographic website. Gregory is holding the Nerf rifle he found early that day at a garage sale.

Date: Sept. 6 and 7, 2009

From: Dilllon, CO

To: Dilllon, CO

Route: Hwy 9 South

Passes:

Miles: 0 miles

Top Speed on this trip: 49.2 mph

Weather: Sunny

License Plates Collected: 5 Montana plates, 8 Wyoming plates (2 motorcycle) and 1 Idaho plate (found in WY), 2 Colorado plates

As tandem cyclists themselves, Bill and Barb, have anticipated just what we needed to revive and rejuvenate ourselves for the next leg of our journey. They started yesterday with getting us connected with the stores we’d need to stock up on parts and supplies and Barb made lasagna and homemade cinnamon swirl bread! This ultimately became this decadent French toast that we topped with pecans, fresh juicy peaches and bananas! Yum! Barb even sterilized our water bottles! They definitely needed it after almost 50 days on the road.

Gregory hit it off with their 8-year old grandson Sam and has been having some much needed playtime with someone his age. We joined the family for Sunday service at their Rocky Mountain Bible Church with their welcoming congregation of locals as well as SRs (seasonal residents). With the holiday weekend they noted that many locals had left town while the tourists flocked here to enjoy this beautiful area. We especially enjoyed the sharing by a gentleman who grew up in this area as the son of a miner and eventually ended up in France where he met his wife and ministered overseas. They also had a guest pastor from Spain who is a missionary here with his family and expressed his gratitude to the congregation for their love and support. His message of giving to one another unconditionally was fitting as we sat next to this amazingly generous and giving couple that opened their home and hearts to us. After only a short time we know we will remain friends for years to come.

Gregory went to Sunday school with Sam and Caleb and then to a garage sale where they found some fun toys and books while Mike and I canvassed the area for a saddle, bike shorts and tights. We rejoined the congregation for communion and a potluck gathering. We shared fabulous food and conversation and met another avid tandem couple Sandy and Bob. They too are home schooling their children and have found it a good fit with their lifestyle here in the mountains of Colorado. Both of their teenagers are ski racers and spend their afternoons on the slopes.

Bill and Barb watched Sam and Gregory while Mike and I had a relaxing afternoon picking up my new saddle and replenishing our essentials as well as checking out the Pearl Izumi Outlet. I picked up some Pearl Izumi Pro Shorts that will hopefully provide more airflow and comfort than the current Pearl Izumi Ultrasensors I’ve been riding. The Pro Shorts have a denser and more contoured chamois than the Ultrasensors. Mike also got another pair of Pearl Izumi Microsensor Shorts that he favors and a new pair of tights. (One morning Mike put his older Descente tights on backwards and rode like that for a while. He split the seam and had a hole up front for a couple of days until I could pick up a sewing kit. I stitched them up but he was definitely due for a new pair.) He tried to start off the tour with 15-year old SIDI shoes (replaced in Missoula) and equally aged tights but it just goes to show that it is wise to start a tour with good equipment.

On Monday, at REI in Denver, we returned broken Sporks, a defective headlamp and a fancy SPF50 mesh shirt for Gregory that snagged easily and looked a mess after only the first week of our tour. He lives in his bike jerseys and T-shirts mostly anyhow. The long-sleeved Capiliene we bought for Gregory at the Dillon, Montana Patagonia Outlet has been perfect for cooler mornings and evenings. We were psyched to get it for $9 when they are usually $29.

Bill and Barb graciously let us use their car for our trip to Denver and it was so nice to have the opportunity to make our returns and get our needed supplies. Mike also picked up a new Terry Liberator Y Saddle at Performance for a great price and Gregory got some new gloves. I picked up some ASSOS Chamois Cream at REI that was highly recommended by our friend Dave who has been looking out for my best interests. Thanks Dave! Apparently, this is a product Lance uses so it must be good! I just have to be careful to keep it away from delicate areas because it contains Menthol!

As we drove back to Dillon from Denver I felt a bit more relaxed. All of my days out on the open road and in small towns make going to a large city a bit claustrophobic. We were also glad we were not headed into Denver as the traffic on the opposite side of the highway was bumper to bumper as the vacationers made their way home. Tonight I cooked my famous Pesto Pasta for our host and hostess and we had a quiet evening visiting and sharing stories of the road. Tomorrow is Gregory’s birthday and we are not sure what our plan is just yet but he has decided he’d like to stay put one more day and tackle Hoosier Pass (11, 542’ and the highest pass on the TransAmerica Bike Route) on Wednesday. He’s looking forward to having Sam over tomorrow night and celebrating his birthday one more time.