108 miles to Missoula
Pat Ryan:
It was a dark and stormy night...we heard rain on the motel roof throughout. We awoke to showers and a wet parking lot. We donned rain gear and rode. We completed our second second century in three days.
Today we rode 108 miles from Thompson Falls to Missoula, Montana. Along the way we climbed 3,346 feet. We added three miles to the day when our planned route had a section closed due to wildfires, forcing us to backtrack and reroute. At the time, roughly 25 miles into the ride, three miles didn't seem like much. At mile 105 we really wanted those three miles back.
We finally caught a tailwind today. How exhilarating to finally get some help and roll mile after mile at 20 miles per hour. Sadly, we learned that headwinds and tailwinds have one thing in common-neither last forever. The wind and course both shifted continually, and we never knew what was up next. Weather loomed over us all day; the wet start, strong winds, and dark gray cloud cover had us paying close attention. Many of us changed outer wear several times during the day, trying to stay comfortable as conditions changed. In the end we all felt a sense of accomplishment to reach the finish after so much work the last few days. It is especially meaningful knowing we are working for such worthy causes.
Tomorrow we ride from Missoula to Lincoln Montana. We will cycle 78.1 miles and climb 3,607 feet.
Totals to Date
Miles: 598
Elevation Gain: 23,050
Flat Tires: 11
States crossed: 2
Centuries: 2
