Day 5: Altoona to Grinell

If you can't take the heat, stay out of the kitchen.  Well, I literally could not take the heat so today I stayed out of the ride.  After two days of heat exhaustion, I needed a day to recover.  It killed me to not be able to ride, but I knew the route was hard and it was going to be hot again.  I didn't want to ruin it for the last couple days.  We had fun in downtown Grinnell just enjoying the Ragbrai experience.  Every town we go to has a party waiting. On the ride into Grinnell, I spent time with John and his wife Sue.  John also has PD and is one of the funniest and most positive people I know as is his wife Sue.
They exemplify the saying "salt of the earth". In the afternoon,  I was able to spend time with my husband, Kathy, and two new friends who also have Parkinsons Disease; Karen, who is an ObGyn in Cleveland, and Glenn, also from Cleveland who was a courtroom litigator.  I'm definitely hanging with the smart crowd.  Both are young onset PDers like myself and it has been so much fun to get to know them.  Strength in numbers.  So even though I didn't get to ride, I still had a great day.  I will be rested and ready to go tomorrow for day 6.

Picture: Iowa has lots of corn fields!!!!

Day 4: Ames to Altoona

Sometimes, as the saying goes, it's better to call sag support than pass out from heat stroke. Today was a hard day. My dry heat body is struggling with the humidity. But hey, I found that cow from the twister movie. Had hard boiled eggs on a stick rubbed in mo'rub and Toms turkey leg (which are much better than the ones in Disneyland). Met some pirates, Arghh. Our jerseys continue to attract attention which is great because we've had great conversations with some really awesome people. The people of Iowa and the people of Ragbrai are so friendly and fun. This is one of the most positive experiences I've ever had (even with the heat issues). Praying for some relief from the heat tomorrow.

Day 3: Carroll to Ames

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Did I mention it was hot.  Thank goodness for the friendly people of Iowa who have water/pb and j/ watermelon/ etc. for sale around every corner.  Pilot Mound had the best pie and the best cooling station and the best welcoming committee.  The town paid for a new fire station with the proceeds from the 1989 Ragbrai and opened up the fire station to Ragbrai riders to cool off and eat some home cooked delights.  Pat took a break today and rode with me.  Oh yea, so did Lance Armstrong.  Apparantly he blew right past me; of course most everyone blows right past me.  But this is not a race, it's a ride (thank goodness or I'd be in trouble).  I made it up twister hill (okay I walked most of the way).  But I was with good company.  Rode through the place where they filmed "Twister".  No flying cows today just heat and humidity.  The picture is of me taking one of the MANY water/cool down breaks of the day.  I am making some great new friends within the Pedaling for Parkinsons group and on the road also.  Lots of people ask about our riding jerseys and want to know more.  I've had some great discussions about the link between cycling and PD while riding through cornfields in Iowa.  Something I never would have dreamed about a year ago.  Up early again tomorrow to try and beat the heat.

Day 2: Atlantic to Carroll (WHO SAID IOWA WAS FLAT)

Not me after today.  Every hill conquered just meant another hilll to conquer.  I'm quite weary of the conquering.  But it was still fun (of course this is Ragbrai after all).  The town of Carroll had a Vegas theme.  Didn't make me miss home.  I'm having too much fun, home can wait.  I get to sleep in an air conditioned room tonight (yippie).  I know that  doesnt seem like a  big deal but TRUST ME it is.  Jay Alberts gave a talk at a local Parkinsons support group; it was great to hear the story behind the story.  Learned some new things about the exercise and Parkinsons Disease.  In so glad I've found the direction I have in regards to managing my PD.  I'm always looking for more information to help me live a more fulfilling life (I guess we're all doing that, no matter our life circumstances),  Off to Ames tomorrow.

Day 1: Glenwood to Atlantic (Here We Go)

I'll have no problem getting up at the crack of dawn to ride, I thought.  I get up early every day.  Oh yea, just remembered,  6:00 Iowa time is 4:00 Vegas time.  Slept longer than I had planned but still got started at a  decent time .  Beating the heat has a whole new meaning in Iowa; it's more like beating the humidity.  I am amazed at the beauty of Iowa.  And it's so true about the cornfields, they are everywhere.  Some highlights of the day; Beekmans ice cream (homemade to perfection), the worlds largest bicycle, riding on back country roads, old farmers who quilt their own clothes, free coke in Atlantic, and most important, making it to Atlantic and TAKING A SHOWER.  Did I mention yet it's really humid here??? It was a great start to a great adventure.  I WILL sleep good tonight (hopefully adjusted to the time zone difference).

Twas the night before Ragbrai

After an uneventful flight to Omaha, we arrived in Glenwood, Iowa Saturday night.
We were welcomed with about a billion percent humidity. I will no longer
complain about the hot weather in Vegas, after all, it is a dry heat.  I
experienced my first tornado/storm siren warning.  We all had to move to a
basement area but it turned out to just be a normal old storm.  Went back outside
to find a stealth bomber flying right over us.  Pretty cool, and in Iowa no
less.  Had a great first day and ready to start riding tomorrow.

Training

Only 12 days, 20 hours, and 12 minutes (as of right now) until the fun begins.  Training has been fun and challenging at the same time.   A few hurdles have been thrown in the way (week off for girl's camp - hiked as  much as I could so I had some exercise).  A "clipping" injury that I won't get into but slowed me down a bit.  My bike is being shipped today,  I miss it already.  Thank goodness for the gym and spin class.  The picture below is of Kathy and I on an early morning ride at Redrock Canyon, my new favorite thing to do.  The earlier the better, it's so beautiful in the morning.