mgg ragbrai 2000.07.29 saturday

saturday endgame
show me the road to go home

saturday	sunday	monday	tuesday
wednesday	thursday	friday	saturday


						morning wake up

						Michael adjusts his hat for photo shoot.

						Michael and Josie without headgear

						Josie and Michael without headgear.

						the Kingston food court

						route into kingston

						i'm not certain whether i was shooting the recumbent or the pizza man, but i remember the embarrassment of the cell phone guy was real.

						at a city of Kingston one might expect a reggae band, but this group on the porch was bluegrass band, and pretty tight, too.

						for a tiny town, Kingston had a lot of people stopping. this was the last town before the end of the ride.

						kingston crowd shot

						tandem listens to bluegrass

						this guy had a root beer float. i had to buy one, too.

						i and i drove to kingston, mon. the back roads was all gravel and dust.

						farmland outside Kingston

						i and i had to navigate without GPS, using only a map!

						this lady had a scam where she'd solicit photos from people and then ask for donations for the Cedar Rapids Humane Society. i did ask her for credentials before handing her my $5 bill.

						after examining at the place her dog "Joey" rode, and considering the heat of the day, i began to wonder at the irony.

						i rode the tandem with Deb from Kingston into Burlington.

						team Tropical Fish had been practicing schooling, or keeping together, and so we rode the last hour into town together, as a team.

						Petey with no hands, glad to be back on his own bike.

						we thought this was the home stretch. we were so wrong.

						this hill was steeper than it looks here, or this isn't the hill i recall that thwarted us. we took a right, following another team's signs.

						normally team Rainbow parks by the river. this year they broke tradition, and cost us an extra six miles off route, through regular town streets, and ended us up at a mall.

						rainbow team's scenic route.

						we didn't see Papa John with team rainbow's busses, so we waited in the shade of a semi for him to arrive.

						we waited, and waited, and finally called Papa John, who was down by the river, and very glad to hear from us.

						the trailer with out gear arrived at the mall only an hour after we did.

						we loaded up.

						Josie and Michael had to match up with Pork belly Tours for their ride to Omaha, and so we emptied the van sufficiently for Mark and Don to drive them to the river.

						we had to entertain ourselves in the parking lot for another two hours. food was eaten and much beer was drunk. silliness was perpetrated.

						we looked at the skies.

						Susie saw the Acropolis. Deb saw the Battle of Hastings. Petey saw a royal Dragon with five claws entwined around a throne.

						i saw a horsie and a duckie, but i didn't feel like telling anyone.

						when Mark and Don got back, Don had a rental car. Josie and Michael also had rented a car because Pork Belly had left without them. they had a flight out of Omaha early Sunday (the next morning) and thus wanted to sleep there Saturday night.

						we drove our bikes to the river but UPS station had closed down. Deb and I found a bike shop from Des Moines that took our tandem. by then we didn't care when or how much, we just wanted someone who was capable of shipping it for us. luckily, Bike World thought they were was within budget (but no promises).

						Don packed his bike in his expensive new box while we stood around and heckled him.

						Mark Fish kept saying i should take a picture of the bridge.

						so i did

						each time he asked if i had taken a picture

						i took another picture of the bridge

						here's another

						actually Mark only asked twice. i hope to connect these all together in a panoramic view someday.

						here's a picture of my knee. the button on my camera was flakey and i was testing it. really.

						Nancy was very glad to have the ride over.

						beer is good.

						barge 1

						barge 2

						barge 3

						barge 4

						then Mark wanted a picture at the fountain.

						it took a while to get even four people to line up.

						but eventually they all stood where i could snap them without the porta poddies or the other tourists in the background.

						this was almost good enough, but they weren't singing the Tropical Fish Team Song.

						fish heads, fish heads, rolly-polly fish heads

						fish heads, fish heads,

						eatem up yum!

						ok, maybe Mark asked three times about the bridge.

						Papa John was done.

						Don and Susie were getting along famously even to the end.

						Don was in a good mood. not.

						clean shaven at last.

						not a second too soon, we got into the cars and drove to food.

						it was a deluge. we couldn't see very far at all. i was so glad not to be riding still.

						about two minutes later it was clear again. i had forgotten about Iowa weather. keen.

						a building Deb likes.

						our Fish tail.

						we arrived at Appleby's and were seated immediately

						Josie and Michael were in the next booth, quite by accident.

						photogenic Petey

						Josie and Michael from my seat, beneath the waitress' hands.

						Papa John

						final goodbye

						final final goodbye

						this is the door i slammed on my camera. it had fallen from the front seat into the doorframe during my close. the fact that it exists means my camera still functions.

						Iowa

						more Iowa

						more westbound RAGBRAI commuters on I80

						open road

						the water tower at Adair.

						even more Iowa

						last of Iowa