Day 26--Chamberlain, SD to Mitchell, SD

Day 26—July 14, 2006—Chamberlain, SD to Mitchell, SD—70 miles—980’ climb

We all rode to breakfast at the Anchor Grill in downtown Chamberlain (see photo below). After a hearty breakfast, we took to the road, circling the block to avoid riding up a one-way street the wrong way, and then climbing out of town for 2 miles. Basically that was the end of the climbing for the day.

Breakfast bicycle line-up at the Anchor

As predicted, today was a “recovery” day—payback for the previous two tough days when riders faced the 3-Hs: Heat, Hills, & Headwinds. The route was undemanding, wind was negligible, and we left Chamberlain early enough to take advantage of the cool early morning hours. For the first 36 miles we were on CR 34. I think that only six vehicles passed me (in either direction) for that entire period.

Christine set up the SS today at a little store and motel, ca. 1960, in White Lake at mile 36. Most riders, like me, did not hang around the SS too long. We’d been scorched the two previous days and our memories were still fresh. Heat wienie that I am, I booked it to avoid being out in the heat of the day. The Wolfpack (Ben, Ron, Peter, Peter, & Ilka) hunted me down twice, catching me the first time at about mile 12 and the second time after the SS at about mile 50.

Today the roadside scenery was corn fields, sunflower fields, one with blooming sunflowers all facing the east sunrise, and fields of hay and wheat. Occasional farms and big interesting farmhouses, too. We’re finally into the crop-growing areas, though the state is in a terrible drought. Severe enough that farmers are selling their cattle because they can’t feed and water them. One farmer that Tim talked to said that they’d had little winter snowfall and only 2 inches of rain for the year.

When riders got to “a-maize-ing” Mitchell, SD, a little corn crazy prairie town (its radio call letters are KORN), they visited the world's one-and-only Corn Palace. The citizens of Mitchell built the first Corn Palace in 1892 when some of the early settlers decided to put some of their harvest on rather than in the concrete reinforced building with its dome and four turrets. Every spring following that, the exterior of the building is completely covered with thousands of bushels of native South Dakota corn, grain, and grasses arranged into large murals. Each color of corn (and they use 11 different color varieties) is grown in separate fields so it won’t cross-pollinate. The Corn Palace serves as a tourist draw, as a huge auditorium for touring celebrities, as a sports arena for the various Kernels teams, and as the locus of Corn Palace Week, the high water mark of Mitchell’s yearly social calendar. Corn Palace Week marks the end of the harvest—and the beginning of planning for next year’s Palace theme. Last year’s theme was “Life on the Farm,” this year’s is “Salute to Rodeo 2006.” (The big Corn Palace Week rodeo is tonight and several riders are going.)

This evening we said good-bye to eight riders whom we will really miss. Our Swiss father/son pair, Franz & Benedikt Roessler; our Maineiacs, Tim & Kathryn Tolford, who plan on being at NH’s Rye Beach in four weeks for the wheel dipping ceremony; one of our two recumbent riders, Mike Warmbier;  Joyce Marino who plans to rejoin the group for the last three days; Dale Crockatt, who plans on finishing his cross country route; and Dave O’Dell whose wife Jill will meet riders for the third year in a row at the Rochester SS with cheesecake.

Tune in again tomorrow and see how the day goes. I know that riders are a bit road weary and really looking forward to their day off.

OVERHEARD ON THE ROAD TODAY:

*   “I feel as though I’ve been roasting on a spit.” 

*  “I don’t have enough saliva to spit.”

*   “Thank you for this great short day with no headwinds!”

SHOW & TELL: Sarah Reported seeing a flock of wild turkeys and their chicks; many of us saw pheasants flying across the road, walking in the fields, or as roadkill; Abe reported that the rumor that he doesn’t know butt butter from sunscreen is (almost) totally false.