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Has anyone seen my glasses? September 5, 2008Leave a comment  View More Images I would have to say I have been a very lucky guy. For almost 44 years of my life, I was able to pick up a book and read without the use of glasses. I have a deep appreciation for those that are not fortunate to have 20/20 vision. When you reach your late 40's, the world up close becomes blurry! So, with that said, I still didn't pick up my glasses when looking at a map of the pass between Lincoln and Helena. Fletcher? Sounds like Fletcher! Must be Fletcher. I'll call it Fletcher! What? Flesher? Flesher Pass? Really? "Pumpkin, fetch my glasses! Good dog!" The day started off cold and foggy. Snow on the peaks to the north in the Bob Marshall Wilderness. I rolled out of the campground, fully dressed for the 34 degree temperature. For today's problems, what temperature in degrees Fahrenheit does water freeze? What is that in Celsius? Is there a temperature where Fahrenheit and Celsius are equal? The clouds hung low across the mountains to the south. I had climbed steadily up the day before and only about 1000 vertical feet remained to crest the Continental Divide at Flesher (yes, Flesher) Pass. On the way out of Lincoln a sign caught my attention and I had to do a double take. I turned around and chuckled as I took the picture. "MT Poverty Well Drilling" "Going in the hole is our business" The geniuses on Madison Avenue could not have come up with a better slogan. I'm still chuckling as I type this. I turned the corner from Hwy 200 toward Helena and was met by a brand new asphalt road. Smoothest road I have pedaled yet. I shed some of my clothing in preparation for the climb to the summit. The mountains closed in around me and a small river ran to the right of the road most of the way. I kept looking for elk or moose, but I must be too noisy. I haven't seen anything yet. My folks passed by and tossed a granola bar out of the window. It lodged in my helmet and sent me screaming over the side of the road. Bounding down hundreds of feet to the river below. I gathered what remained of my bike, my good humor and choice words for my loving parents... (just kidding). Actually, it's kind of nice when a car rolls up and someone hands you something to eat and fills your water bottles. I could get used to this. I'm getting spoiled! My folks rolled ahead and would be waiting for me at the top of the pass. The few miles to the top rolled by quickly and I soon found myself on the Continental Divide at Flesher Pass. I was expecting some moving moment, with the clouds parting and sunshine beaming down. Instead, I found the entire collection of Montana's paving trucks and signs lined up awaiting my arrival. Funny, but less than esthetically pleasing! Like a said before, the upside to a hill is that it has a downside. In this case, a HUGE downside! I was going so fast, no one passed me! Not even the logging trucks! The only problem was it gets a bit chilly at the those speeds, so I had to stop for a bit to add a layer over my jacket. I rolled on down the road and eventually broke out into golden hills, leaving the pine forest behind. I stopped at the first store I came to in Canyon Creek. Indy (short for Indiana Jones) met me on the way out of the store. I have no idea where he was when I went in, but he has waiting for a tummy rub on my way out. I asked the owner why he was named Indy. She said it used to be Undy, but didn't think it suited him. I didn't ask why... The road into Helena was mostly downhill, but I found myself fighting a slight headwind. A common theme among cyclists, we can handle hills, because we know when they end. Wind is a different story. It comes from here, shifts to there, blows left, blows right, and occasionally, but not often, from behind! I met Liz Gundersen from the Helena Exploration Works and she provided directions through town so that I could do a short piece for a local TV station and meet some of her staff. I had already traveled 54 miles by this time and still had another 30 to go, so I didn't have a chance to visit long. I appreciated her enthusiasm and hope I can return in the future and spend more time. For the first time on this journey, the wind was howling at my back. I must have picked up a 20-25 knot tailwind and went flying out of town. I think I peaked at 30 mph on level ground! The only thing that slowed me down was a craving for an A&W root beer in a tall frosty mug and to take a picture of The Man Store sign. Beer and bait! I bet they don't have a problem doing inventory... I breezed down Hwy 12 toward Townsend and my folks waiting at a KOA campground. I made one final stop at the Western Store and was informed that the last 5 miles of my ride was all downhill. After a long day in the saddle, I was ready for a break and it is ALWAYS nice when gravity and wind work in your favor! I had a great day. I hope everyone else did too! I am still having issues with the Garmin and tried to use the "every second" recording method so that my route is much more detailed. In the process, the instruction manual said that in this recording mode the memory is only capable of holding about 4.5 hours worth of data before data is overwritten (which happened yesterday). They recommended that you reset the unit before 4.5 hours so that you could retain the data and it would not be overwritten. Well, I did that and poof, I lost the middle leg over Flesher Pass. Gone! In the ether! Disappeared! Darn! I have the before and after legs, but not the middle. I sure am glad that I stuck my Trek computer on at the last minute in Seattle! Tomorrow I will go back to the "Smart Recording" method and deal with the less detailed route recording. 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Oct 9, 2008 12:55 am - tqkwohsc wrote : kmkwftkk http://mzkjvupr.com ufqahpdy xkkomkep
Sep 6, 2008 8:19 pm - John Callaway wrote : John, Looks like you are having a good ride. I hope to see you when you get to OK. What day do you expect to be in Ada? BTW, -40 degrees. I know what you mean about the reading glasses. I had prefect vision until 40+. Have fun.
Sep 5, 2008 10:13 pm - Liz Gundersen wrote : It was great meeting you John - and I'm truly glad you finally got a tail wind. One of the kids at ExplorationWorks asked "Does he do this every year?" What a great idea!! Add a comment: |
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