Day 33: State #8 - Illinois!

84.95 mi max 31.0 6:09.04 avg 13.8

The dew fell early this evening. By 9 pm, everything outside was SOAKED. I've brought into my tent my camp towel and all of today's clothes which I tried to wash in the sink. Maybe everything will dry...but I'm not going to hold my breath on it.

Tonight we are staying at a campground called "Outdoor World". Our host, Beth, and her staff donated the space where we are setting up our tents, as well as the food. The perimeter of the grassy space is created by the circular driveway. Putting 30-odd tents in this area is tricky at best - if we weren't close before, we certainly are now. Dinner is, of course, Friday Night Fish Fry. A HUGE thanks to Paula for getting some veggie trays - the only color in our dinner this evening (well, those who didn't abandon FNFF in favor of Blimpie's subs). Outdoor World isn't bad, overall...there's a ginormous pool, and it's quiet. Some riders found solace in the TV and air conditioning of the Indoor World here at Outdoor World.

The humidity has picked up...they even have license plates warning us how it will be. That's got to be a bad sign. I miss the West for that reason alone - I'd rather take 114 in the Badlands instead of 90 deg. and 99% humidity.

I met a guy on a recumbent this morning, Bill Gemplar (although I think I might be mangling his last name). We rode together for about a mile. He said that he was delivering some mail up the hill...had a been a few seconds earlier, I'd have caught him at his other house where he'd have given me orange juice. The amount of kindness in other people is astounding...perhaps it's because we only hear about the bad stuff.

I'm in Illinois now. It seems strange to think of how far I've come. As surreal as Washington, DC was from Seattle, it doesn't seem possible that I've travelled 2200 some-odd miles. I can tell you that I've biked for over a month...or that rest stops are 20-30 miles apart...but really, 2200 miles doesn't have any concrete meaning for me.

I got another flat, courtesy of some nasty Illinois potholes. Dom & rider-Mark (as opposed to staff Mark) helped me this time. And, as usual, I rarely stopped, although I did get the picture of Argyle. Charlie, Dave F & I rode in the last two miles or so together. And Mark & I rode a few miles together - he was taking it easy because of a broken spoke.

I can't wait to see Madison!!!