Day 14 -- Snaking along the Snake

July 3, 2005

ROUTE: Blackfoot to Idaho Falls. ID         
DISTANCE:  34 tiny miles    
WINDS: 10 to 15 out of the SW

WEATHER: Sunny and mild                  

TERRAIN: Flat along the Snake River     

TOTAL CLIMBING: 500 feet perhaps?

RIDE OVERVIEW: After a great breakfast catered by the same group who catered our dinner last night, riders left Blackfoot and headed for Idaho Falls, a bustling little city nestled among the Rocky Mountains and sitting astride the Snake River. In fact, the short route today followed the Snake for most of its length--the route's length, that is, not the Snake's. (The Snake is the main tributary of the Columbia River and is 1,670 miles long.) Idaho Falls, originally a fording point over the Snake River was first settled by Mormons, but it owes its existence to the River and the railroad.  It was and still is a resting place for travelers on their way to other places such as Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, Targhee, Sun Valley, Craters of the Moon, the Sawtooths, and Jackson Hole, our destination tomorrow.

Our route today took us through field after field of potatoes and sugar beets. Most of the fields have an irrigation ditch running alongside of them from which water is siphoned onto the crops. Crops are also watered with gigantic motor-driven irrigators that roll slowly across the fields and look, to me, like prehistoric dinosaur skeletons.

I drove SAG today, so set up the SS alongside a small (closed) corner store across the street from a church. After the first riders were in, a red Jimmy appeared in a cloud of dust. Turned out to be the pastor of the church, inviting all the cyclists to attend services and telling all to come as they were . . . they could wear their "uniforms" in the sanctuary. Don't know whether any riders took him up on the offer and don't even know the denomination of the church. I meant to drive down the street to read its sign, but forgot.

The SS was a lavish one as we had three large trays of cookies left over from last night's dinner and a large tray of fruit (strawberries, red and green grapes, pineapple, cantaloupe, muskmelon, watermelon), plus some of the yogurt left over from Josh's SS the day before. I was having a hard time hanging on to my 5-star rating. Josh is a tough competitor. He served trail mix, watermelon, yogurt, and peanut butter and bagels on our 112-mile day. But, the caterer's leftovers helped me hold on to my title--as did my artful table decoration, a Pepsi bottle of native grasses.

There were a lot of turns on the route today as it snaked along the Snake River. PT was feeling punk and riding with me today. The two of us missed three different turns and had to backtrack to catch them. We weren't the only ones who had dismapia: Matt lured Photographer Paul into riding to Johnston with him for a photo shoot near the town sign (Matt's last name is Johnston). He told Paul it was only a mile or so off route. Turned out to be a 12-mile round trip. The two appeared at the SS just as I was packing up. When they left the stop they continued straight rather than taking the right at the corner. I showed them the "error of their ways." As they got back to the corner, they told me they were just testing me. Uh huh. Then we had wandering Aldo. Stephanie--the nanny for Aldo's daughter's two boys, Brennen and Reese--and I got almost simultaneous calls telling us that Aldo and Theresa had taken a wrong turn and were off route and almost to the hotel via Hwy 91. This is the second time Aldo has misread the route sheet. Between Mountain Home and Twin Falls, Aldo somehow got on the Interstate and was picked up and transported to the hotel. His nickname now is "Where's [W]Aldo?"

At one point early in the route, I came around a corner and encountered a large limb and a lot of branches in the road-- probably blown down by last night's wind storm.  I stopped the van, put on the flashers, and got out to do some road work. Stephanie and the boys were following me and they stopped too. Stephanie and I did a little road work. She said that this was one of the reasons she preferred running to cycling. Had she been running she would have just run over it, but road bikes couldn't. We also decided that our jobs included all sorts of unknowns.

Well it's getting late and tomorrow will really test my resolve and muscle, so I must close and get to bed. I am riding Sweep over Teton Pass and into Jackson. Tomorrow will also be our last day in Idaho. We will cross the state line into Wyoming on our ride up the mountain. It will be a tough day with our steepest climb on the trip . . . no late breakfast tomorrow.  I think several are worried about the climbs tomorrow (moi included), but Mike tells me that as ride leader, he's more worried about the descents. Tune in tomorrow and see how we do.  See you then.

HEARD ON THE ROAD TODAY: 

• "That was a world class breakfast. That catering group sure was fine!"
• "Love these laid-back days."  
• "I got irrigated today and it felt good."
• "50 is the new 30."
• "I think you've got it all wrong. Getting lost is one of the best parts of cycling. You get to see the unexpected and meet some interesting people."
• Jill: "What are some of the things to consider when buying a new bike?"
  Josh, our Ace Mechanic: "Color."
  "I've been looking for an orange bike because I like the Dukes of Hazard."
• "I find that to talk to an equal, I have to talk to myself."
• "Mike M mentioned to Mike & Karen McG and several others that last year we were going to have a Fourth of July Bike decorating contest and someone raised their hand and asked: "What's the theme?" Mike got a chuckle out of that, but as he was leaving, he heard Mike McG ask Karen "What is the theme this year?"

PHOTOS OF THE DAY:

These two abandoned water bottles were all that remained at
the hotel this morning after luggage was loaded and riders had left.
Not to worry, their owner eventually claimed them.

Can you hear me now?  . . . Can you hear me now?

At the SS, Cookie Monsters make short work of the three
 platters of cookies left over from our catered dinner last night.

Where's Aldo? Can you find Aldo in this picture? Mike found him
on the route long enough to take this photo but  then Aldo (and
his daughter, Theresa) once again took the "creative" route to the hotel.

Riders rejoiced when they entered Idaho Falls and passed this sign
 . . . and this Bud's made from genuine Idaho barley.
Riders have new found respect for those fields they've 
been riding past for days..

Many of the riders sacked out in the lobby or viewed a ride slide show while waiting for their rooms to be made up.