What a difference a day makes!
111 miles from Guymon to Enid Oklahoma, but a very enjoyable ride it was. As opposed to the main roads filled with trucks, barren landscape and strong headwinds of yesterday, we spent the day on back roads with very little wind to speak of. In addition, we all quietly decided to ride together today. While it may have been a bit slower going than usual, it really was a lot of fun to keep the group together. Poor William flatted three times and now has the trip record with seven to date.
For the first time, my legs actually felt really stiff when I woke up this morning, so a more casual pace was just what the doctor ordered. The landscape remained flat, but there was just a lot more to see. The weather threatened early, but started to cooperate more as the day wore on. Dinner was at the "Rib Crib" across the street. Any hopes of a glass of wine were shattered early when we were informed that, on Sundays, Oklahoma law prohibits the sale of any alcohol other than 3.2% beer (ie. Bud). You can't have one decent beer or a glass of wine, but you can drink all the Bud or Miller you want! To make matters worse, I'm missing a friend's birthday party (Happy Birthday Mike!) where my favorite dish (tahdiq) will be consumed with many glasses of great wine. Ah well, who said life had to be fair.
Unfortunately, Brian (one of yesterday's casualties) continued to feel awful, and he and Diana ended up hiring a taxi to take them to Enid. A day riding in the support van would not have helped Brian in the slightest. Hopefully they can both rejoin us in the morning.
After three consecutive 100+ mile days, tomorrow is a relatively short 70 mile run, so we're actually going to sleep in a bit and leave around 8:30.
It's all good, Austin, I missed Mike's birthday as well - and my recent cravings for Persian are increasingly getting worse.
ReplyDeleteWe'll have to make-up for our loss over the holidays.