The World’s Only Corn Palace lay beckoning at our ending destination today. So I loaded up on corn chips and rode a nice tailwind for 73 miles to the town of Mitchell, South Dakota.

That’s fellow rider Wally in the photo with me. The Corn Place 2019 salute to military theme was perfectly appropriate for Wally, a retired military veteran who served in Afghanistan and the Persian Gulf. After the photo, we crossed the street to an ice cream shop, dodging the 100+ degree heat index. It was a hot and humid ride into Mitchell – I was wondering if those corn murals might start exploding into popcorn.

The Mitchell Corn Palace is actually an operational arena for all sorts of events – from theater to concerts to sports (home of the Mitchell Kernels). The constantly changing corn theme also makes it a tourist destination, attracting 500,000 people annually. Ingenious.

On the way, I passed through the town of Pukwana – home of lawnmower races every Friday and Saturday night. The race track happens to be right next to the Puk-U bar. Like many odd-ball sporting events, my guess is this one started at the bar… “I’ll bet you a beer my new lawnmower is faster than yours”.

This part of South Dakota has been decimated with heavy rains and flooding this year. Standing water covers many low spots, and whole fields of crops have been laid waste by excess moisture. Frogs seem to enjoy the wetness – except for those unfortunate ones who venture onto the hot road. And for the cows – swimming!

Tomorrow marks the final leg of this 2019 segment. Could be an adventurous wrap-up, as the forecast calls for thunderstorms. Stay tuned.

~Dan

A hot and humid 73 miles into the town of Chamberlain. I recall doing a similar late July ride across Iowa where a favorite saying was “It’s not the heat, it’s the stupidity”. A high dewpoint made for some foggy glasses. Thankfully, morning clouds kept temperatures somewhat tolerable.

Most of the day was spent on an old, little used highway that runs between train tracks and interstate. Quiet and peaceful. Green and wet from heavy spring snow and rain. Some singing birds and an occasional rumble of farm machinery.

Vivian, Presho, Kennebec, Reliance and Oacoma were named places on the way. Some towns only have a building or two – some occupied, some abandoned, and some you just can’t tell.

Eventually, the turning wheels came upon a wide Missouri river and our destination town of Chamberlain across an old steel bridge.

Fried chicken and pot roast for dinner at the Anchor Grille & Shipwreck Lounge where Margie has been serving hungry cyclists since 2001. She is a favorite regular stop on the yearly tour, and most of us will be stopping in for breakfast tomorrow morning to fuel up for another day of riding.

~Dan

A memorable 100 mile day. A morning ride through the other-worldly Badlands National Park. And an afternoon celebration and photo-op at the halfway point on this coast-to-coast trip.

Pictures capture only a slight sense of magnitude of Badlands Park. An otherwise open grass prairie suddenly has it’s underbelly exposed in layers of geologic rock strata and spires. A windy road magically weaves a path over awesome vistas, then descends through rocky canyons that you can almost reach out and touch. One of the best bike rides I’ve ever experienced, and certainly a highlight of the tour.

Even some bighorn sheep were enjoying the morning views.

Reluctantly bidding adieu to the Badlands, the second half of today’s ride was a straight easterly shot over rolling South Dakota hills. Rollers after rollers. And then more rollers. Until suddenly, between two hills, I triumphantly came upon the halfway point of this cycling journey from Oregon to New Hampshire. Time for a little celebration:

A strong crosswind from the south eventually turned somewhat favorable for the final 20 miles into the metropolis of Murdo (population 452). A friendly hearty dinner at the Murdo Drive-in, and it’s back in the saddle tomorrow. Oh, and we lost an hour crossing into the Central time zone today. I better get some rest!

~Dan