Bison Meets Bikers

We turned the corner and two, no three enormous Bison were hanging out in the middle of the road , eyeing us both on our bikes  (we didn’t say anything, couldn’t!) as we both were remembering the Ranger making it clear they really don’t like bikes😳!! They slowly sauntered back into the woods like they owned the place (they do!) just as I was positioning Amy for a family photo op, the last one galloped off so quickly that we were left awestruck with their burst of speed 😬( Amy looked at me like the photo op wasn’t such a smart idea?!). Yesterday we rode the Roosevelt National Park 36 mile loop. Amy wasn’t sure she could do it as there were numerous climbs and once we set out there wasn’t any way to turn back. As you can she see she met this challenge with great  enthusiasm😉 eating energy beans (with caffeine) like they were peanuts😬! I was very proud of her as the ascent or climb was  nearly 3,000 feet in two hours, with a couple of 7-8 grade climbs!  When the beans ran out she assertively said “I’m done “and sent me to retrieve the Tin Can. ( see her blog for her perspective!). Big accomplishment as she finished 3/4 of a difficult but beautiful ride!! I asked if she saw the antelope or the beautiful vistas or those cute prairie dogs??She said no that she was a watching the white stripe on the road wondering  why she had ever agreed to do this! She was pretty sure the prairie dogs were laughing as she went by??

Making memories together!! Our day off here in Medora was terrific , played an interesting golf course , the Bully Pulpit GC  (Teddy Roosevelt made that term famous insisting we support building the Panama Canal). Carved through the Badlands it was scenic and tough but the weather was perfect and doing something other than riding was cathartic⛳️😀.

We are in Dickinson North Dakota this morning (Amy is still sleeping and it’s 8am😉) and having traversed 1,340 miles on my BH bike with only a few hundred to go before we break. The last few days have really become hard ( as Duane Roth said it’s “always hard before it’s easy”) with the constant strong crosswinds, endless rolling highways , sore backside….we are ready to see our family ( who we miss dearly) and sleep in our own beds👍. We look forward to meeting the next Challenged athlete who has received a CAF grant in Fargo. These visits give us great inspiration and sustenance for the soul!

Thanks again for your wonderful comments, encouraging messages and support for CAF!! Five weeks on the road is a long time, with clean laundry and the notion “we are the luckiest people on earth riding our bikes all day” ( thanks Bill Walton😊!) and with Freddy Mercury’s epic song  ” I want to ride my bike” 🎼 humming in our heads ( thanks Danny Wright!) , we pedal on🚴🚴‍♀️!!