So close, but not today

7-19-10 Day 44: Shelby, Montana to Cut Bank, Montana: 24 miles in 2:15 hours all on Rt. 2 West.

My today was somewhat humbling. Sometimes the math just says it all: 2 days and 190 miles of hills and headwinds/tailwinds = dead legs. So I got on the road today thinking that at the very least, I could bag it in Cut Bank and make it a really easy day….OR I could do 71 miles to the foot of the mts at East Glacier. Man, was it cold – 52 degrees, and the weather just looked totally ominous, with these gnarly thunder clouds to the north and big curtains of rain falling across the northern landscape. Weather report called for morning thunder storms and winds out of the north/northwest at 10-20 mph.

Now it was dead calm when I started, but damn, the rain lighening off to my right just scary as hell looking out there in the middle of the plains with just nothing but me and the road. Noted that when I got going my legs were just so heavy and lethargic that it was just killer to go up the long gradual climbs. Out of the saddle felt horrible. And then with all those storms just kind of banging away off to the north, that kind of had me riding with a heightened sense of need. Just didn’t want to get caught in a storm with temps of 52-56 degrees. That could spell hypothermia. So despite the heavy legs I just had to keep a good rhythm to at least Cut Bank to try to beat the storms.

So I kind of struggled on with my eyes on those storms, like 3-4 of them out to the north and one off to the south. West, well that seemed to be the only open spot in the sky. Kind of gave me hope that I could traverse the storms and keep rolling west into good weather. But about an hour in I saw something on the western horizon. At first I thought it was the mountains I was seeing in the distance. But as I got up atop on one of the higher rollers I saw the real picture – this big, massive, menacing looking wall of black moving towards me. And that’s about the time the wind just picked up out of nowhere. Like bang, headwind. And within a few minutes I had gone from 11 mph to 7 mph, just like trying to bust through a wall of wind. It was the storm approaching, and I had about 8 miles to go to get to Cut Bank. That’s about the time I started looking at place for shelter – anything. But there was just nothing. I was out in the middle of the plains.

So I just had to try to keep it rolling and hope like hell I could make it to Cut Bank. The front brought in some cooer air with those winds, in addition to a slight misting. I though I was pretty much SOL at that point but the on coming traffic was not wet or using their windshield wipers. And then it looked as if I was riding through this massive grey fog bank….and way up ahead I could see Cut Bank. So I just tried like heck to keep some power on the pedals. I finally made it to the point to where I was passing an old barn here and there, and then finally a few business establishments, and then a sign that advertised Mickey D’s as being 5 miles away. By that time it looked like I was going to make it without getting dumped on.

Made it into town and pedaled to the Mickey D’s as a safe haven from the weather, which still looked pretty threatening. Got a hot coffee and a couple of McSomething’s. Hung for about an hour and by that time I just decided to bag it, as the wind had picked up even more, yet the weather looked like it could clear. But riding 47 miles into a 15-20 mph headwind just was not in my legs today. I went and found a place to stay and returned for some more coffee, and more McSomething’s seeing that they wouldn’t have a efficiency ready till like 11 AM – 12 PM. That’s when I met fellow cross country rider Arron, biking west to east coming from Seattle.

He and his bud, Phil, have been three weeks on the road, having just crossed the mts and today entered the plains. They’re kind of doing the gig that Ryan and I did last year where we were camping most of the way and doing on the thin – just bagging it out in the middle of nowhere at times. They’re both new to cycling, and Phil, well, he just quit smoking. But be damned if they didn’t make it across the mountains. Kudos to them for their guts and perseverance. Arron was riding ahead of Phil, as Arron got up first and had to bivy last night without a sleeping bag – the wind blew it away! It stormed like hell last night and the wind picked up to pretty intense velocities.

So Arron and I talked for a bit and sipped coffee. He was telling me about some people he had met in the mts doing the cross country thing, but they would occasionally hitch hike or throw their bikes on a bus and skip hard sections. The way he described it was pretty funny, like he just couldn’t believe that people would do that, him not even really being a cyclist. Actually I feel the same way as him. It’s a matter of you cheating yourself. Cheat……..NEVER! That means having to start over to not break the thread. Stop and bag the day, rest, relax, stand still, sit in a field…but don’t break the thread, don’t quit!! Arron will make it. He’s got a good attitude. Arron is also self-employed like me, and a computer IT guy who also works while on the road as I do. His bud Phil came in about an hour later. Phil seems like a hardy, pretty funny dude, a guy like I said who just quit smoking due to riding across the country – cross country riding and smoking do not mix. Now Arron had made some kind of deal at the place I’m staying at to shower in a shower room, so they headed over there after checking a local sporting goods place for a sleeping bag replacement. No go there – nothing but heavy, bulky junk. I had to wait outside the motel because my little room wasn’t ready yet, or I’ve had had them shower there.

Now something happened where the morning person at the motel had given Arron the ok to take a quick shower, but the new shift an hour later said no. But Arron somehow went in and showered nonetheless. Phil? They told him no and he kind of just left pissed off, not wanting to do the stealth deal that Arron did. Tell you what, I’m just too old to put up with trying to travel like that. It’s just a total pain in the ass – an aggravation on a daily basis. Like last night they slept in these old grain silos that had tears in the sides so they could get in. They’re probably 20 years younger than me, so that helps doing something like this on the skinny. So they took off and headed east to Shelby or Chester. At least they have a hardy tailwind with them. Good luck guys and email me your progress – be safe.

So I got in my room and got set up and then went to Pizza Hut for the salad buffet. Then came back here and have been working ever since. The weather has indeed taken a turn for the worse and now it’s raining pretty good outside. You can see the storms out here coming in from just massive miles away, so it’s pretty cool looking out the window and seeing these things rolling in from the north.

Tell you what though, when I get up from my chair my legs are just so stiff and tired. Man, I really need some legs for the next 12 days, as that’s what I think it will take me to get to Seattle. I’m going to shoot for East Glacier at the very least tomorrow, 47 miles away, and Essex at the best, probably another 25 miles west. Essex is just over the first mt pass. Again, weather will pretty much control my day – be it long or be it short. I’d kind of like to do smaller chunks across the rest of Montana so I can stop more often and take pictures. Then in Washington, I’ll get it cranked back up again in mileage for the finish.

Hoping for fresh legs and a good day tomorrow. All the best…..Pete