Hello Bud!

Rode to Durand this afternoon with Bike man. Started out mostly cloudy and then the blue sky opened up. As I was riding today, I realized that I've put in about 109 miles this week. High five me! I know, I know, that's not really a lot of miles when I look at how much Harry Legge's, Amy, Lynne and Mr. DavieGie ride, but that's pretty good for me and my little country life. Oh, by the way, we treated Bud to a little DQ in Durand! Poor Bud, he hasn't been out on the bike much this summer.

It was toasty warm today, so by the time we reach DQ, I need a shoe break. When Bike man and I take our bike trips, this is one of my favorite things to do....take my bike shoes off and cool the socks. Seriously, it helps recharge the energy. Just so you know, we made the wrong choice today by eating chicken strips, and french fries. Bike man also drank a chocolate malt and I drank a coke. Wrong, wrong, wrong! Both of us had a gut aches over the next 20 miles back to Menomonie. Geez, I should have known better. Live and learn!

This is a view of Durand and heading back towards Menomonie. It's paved for the next seven miles towards the Chippewa River.

Just outside of Menomonie you can see the UW-Stout clock tower. By the time I reached this point coming back from Durand, my legs were feeling it. Good riding day today. 44 miles

Down Time is Good

Wow, what happened to the cooler temperatures? Storms to the north, storms to the south and storms to the east. Just a warm and humid night for Tainter Lake.

Hot humid weather......so back to the pigtails for me! I'm not into hair fads, just the basics! It's all about staying cool.

No bike ride tonight since Bike man spent all day lake monitoring and came home pooped. A quiet night just listening to the crickets.....that's my recharge for a new day tomorrow.

Roadie Ride

This afternoon was a roadie ride.....that means Ruby and Lemond got a workout. Road the Tainter Lake route with a head wind the first half, and a nice tail wind to end the ride. Very humid, but the air temperature was perfect.

The Caladiums growing in our pots are so colorful and so beautiful.

It was nice to ride close to home tonight, and it was also nice to have a riding partner. Enjoyed the sights, smells and the quietness of the country roads. I know the days are limited now for warm cozy rides, so I will enjoy every moment I'm on the bike. 20 miles

Baby Girl

I'm a cat person, but somehow I've fallen in love with a dog named Jerney....(A.K.A. baby girl). Every time I visit my daughter and her housemate, I also get to see my favorite canine. I love her little licks! Australian Shepard's are very intelligent and a very guarding-type dogs. I just wish I could teach my cat to play with Jerney, but not sure that's going to happen.

Couldn't ride tonight, but hoping to ride later in the week with Bike man. More rain predicted in the next couple days....yikes. Is that really possible?

Applications Are Being Accepted

The Tainterturtles exclusive cycling club containing one turtle and one donkey is now accepting applications to join. Hurry, time is limited! Please fill out the application above and send to:

Tainterturtles
c/o Ms Turtle
Brown Log #1
Tainter Lake, WI 12345

PS. We will consider out-of-state residents

Watch Out

Who's more excited, Kim or me? On a whim, I decided to take the day off from work and go ride with my buddy. Geez, that's two days in a row that I did something spontaneous. Could it be that I'm approaching the big 50 soon and I'm subconsciously trying to prove myself??? Ohhhhhh, who knows, but I'm going with it. It was a gorgeous day.

I asked Kim if she was up for Durand today, and of course she said you bet! Despite biking in a wind tunnel south along the river, we worked hard and kept a constant pace. Wind gusts must have been around 25 mph or so. Chit chatting became difficult as the wind muffled our hearing. I'm not complaining however, because the stiff breeze kept us cooled off as we cranked on.

We rode through the village of Durand to find a cafe to get a bite to eat before heading back, but no such luck. Well, unless you wanted to go sit in a bar.....no thanks. Yup, we headed back to our favorite spot, the sweet DQ. No ice cream this time, just a turkey club sandwich and a coke...a chili dog for Kim and a Moolatte.

I really expected to see high water today, and that's exactly what we saw when we crossed the Chippewa River bridge. No sandbar, but yes, we did see not very smart people swimming in the water. Way up to the right of this photo is where we saw a group of people swimming. Why do people do that? Why do they chance it with the water current so swift....why?

Look at the force of that water, swirling and moving powerfully. It almost made my stomach turn standing on that long bridge and feeling the gusty winds. It was a very overwhelming feeling....stuff like that scares me.

It was a good ride back with the wind pushing behind us, but both Kim and I got smoked by a woman on a road bike. I reassured Kim not too feel bad because that woman only road about 18 miles and we rode 43 miles today.......high five me!

Side note: pizza tonight @ Milano's in Menomonie with the Son and Trish. Good thing I worked up an appetite.

Guess Who We Met Today?

We had the pleasure to meet up with Tom (a.k.a. Hairy Legg's) late this afternoon in Minneapolis. What a treat! Becca, Chris, Artena and I headed out on the Minnehaha Parkway and met up with Tom. It was nice chatting along the way and taking in the beautiful sites of the trail and the lakes.....wow, Minneapolis is really beautiful! Sorry you couldn't join us Amy, but let's shoot for the fall.

After getting back to Artena's house, we hopped in the car and drove over to DQ for ice cream. From there we headed over to a park/field near the airport so we could fly Artena's kite. What a blast, however, the Son tormented me with an out-of-control kite coming right for me. Why do my kids do that kind of stuff to me? Geez.

One of our stops getting into the Cities was the Northern Brewer so the Son could pick up some brewing supplies. Trisha was along for this day trip as well, but had a ticket to see Wicked tonight at the Orpheum Theater.

And where is Bike man? Off to Northern Wisconsin for a workshop on micro vertebrates......you know, studying about little bugs in the water. Too bad he missed a good trail ride today.