My friend Johanna had given me the streamers and cow horn for a bachelorette gift last summer. I did want to use them at some point, they're lots of fun! So, I saved them for the tour de kota. I wasn't going to break any speed records. I didn't care how silly it looked. It was fun, and lots of people commented on them while they rode by. Some said surely they were increasing my drag. I said no, they're acting like propellers. :DAnyway, on with the show. Tour de Kota Day One.
Overall the day went without incident. Saturday Nick camped with me. It stormed and I woke up periodically through the night and worried what the morning would bring. Plus I was cold.
The alarm did go off, much too early. Compared to a lot of people, I am a morning person. Still, getting going between 5:00 and 5:30 a.m. is tough, even in the best of circumstances. I was trying to move along with some consistancy without sidetracking myself.
A KDLT guy came through the camp, camera and tripod in tow. He was asking around if anyone would like to be interviewed. It hadn't been my intention, but whenever I try to take the passive aggressive route at a story I find that it is tough to win someone over. So, I volunteered. It didn't take very long, but it through me off a little. He asked me what my name was. I said Melissa Hamersma. Oops. Nick was right there. Technically it kind of is my name. But saying Melissa Sievers would've been much more appropriate. It was kind of funny. I corrected myself and hoped that my brain would wake up. I never did see that segment. Mom said that they just used a snippet, which is what I figured. I saw that he got several other people to chat with him too. So, that's good.
It seems like day one is about reconnecting with people that you knew from past rides. Everyone is excited to get on the road, but is super friendly and really chatty. A guy taking down his tent, near ours, had asked if this was my first tour. I said it's hopefully my first full one. I had planned to do it last year, but crashed on day 3 and broke my collarbone. He exclaimed, "That was you!" Word had spread through the campground last year. Lots of stories spread like wildfire as people compare notes at the end of the day.
And, it's a lot of fun to people watch. Near our tent there was another guy taking his down. Meanwhile he was having a morning smoke. Interesting. Smoking isn't so much my thing, but I guess if that's what gets him down the road, so be it. I tried to get a picture of him at a rest stop a few times, having a smoke. But, the zoom on my camera didn't work and I didn't really want to offend him.
Cycling Cathy and I did get going after a few quick 'This is us before we started' pictures and goodbyes. There wasn't really any wind. We made decent time for me over the 70 miles. Though it still took awhile for my head to get in the game. When we'd get into a stop I'd put my glasses up on top of my head. Then when it was time to go, I'd forget to put them back on my eyes and would try to put my helmet on. Oops. It took a bit to get into a rhythm. I'm very glad that Cathy was understanding and not in too big of a hurry. :D
Later on down the road Jim caught us. He'd seen us leave Salem as he pulled in, so he made it a mini-goal to catch us. So, the three of us finished the last 15 miles or so. I'm not sure of the exact distance.
I camped with Cathy with the Shuttle Guy group that night. Thanks again! It seems like a fairly decent way to go. I never mind setting the tent up, but taking it down in the morning and trying to fold everything up kind of sucks. If I ever did RAGBRAI, I'd probably splurge and go with them. They were a good group of people over there.
Maui Showers were nice. I'd never used them before. Not as good as a shower at home, but definately better than a locker room.
Note to Culvers: Don't tear down your stand until after dinner. Sometimes people really do want ice cream, just maybe not *IMMEDIATELY* before dinner. That was a huge bummer to finish dinner and still be a little hungry and looking for dessert, with ice cream in mind. If you run out, just go and get some more.
71.82 miles, 13.6 mph Avg, 5:17:16 ride time, though we got in around 1:30 p.m. after starting at 6:30 a.m.
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