Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Nebraska takes the cake

Nebraskans are wonderful. Some of the nicest people I've ever met. Not
the kind of nice you find in the South where people are nice to your
face but then talk behind your back. It's a genuine kindness that
doesn't leave you wondering.
We can't really include IN in the ranks because we stayed with my
sister and she treated us like family; because I am! Kentucky ranks
high... all the encounters we had were generally pleasant and all the
people we stayed with treated us like family (Sue is family, we had
just never met). However, all of our hosts in KY were expecting us.
Nebraska has been welcoming us with open arms on the spot.

We rode 58 miles yesterday to Norfolk, NE and stopped at the last bike
shop for 180 miles till Valentine, NE. We called ahead to let them now
we were coming. By this time, we really needed a shop. One of Lee's
pedals had worn out bearings and my rear wheel was making hideous
sounds I could only drown out with headphones. I was concerned that
riding thru all that water had caused some kind of damage. So we go to
the only shop in town, Cleveland Bike & Sport. Top notch shop, one of
my favorites so far. Best customer service for 2,000+ miles. Turns out
my cassette body was loose, no bueno. Well, 100ish miles later, it's
loose again. I have to make it to Valentine to get to the next shop.
On the bright side, one of the 2 brothers that run the shop brought us
in for the night and sent us off with breakfast in our bellies.

I almost forgot to mention... We had to stay overnight because the
local cycling club just happened to be hosting a crit (type of race)
that night. Lee was ecstatic when he heard. Who says you can't tour
and race at the same time? Lee placed 4th... on a touring bike with
50+ miles on his legs already.

I called the local PD to ask what the camping situation would be
Atkinson. Since the Rec Area is still flooded, they let us camp right
downtown in the city park. After I setup camp, I started walking
towards the Subway. A 100 mile today and tomorrow requires calories,
lots. On my way, I was beckoned over to join a group that was having a
picnic. BBQ meatballs (9 of them), cornbread, fruit salad, chips &
dip, and pumpkin bread was my dinner. They also told me how to hunt
down a cyclist 45 miles up the road if I have bike problems. And
finally, one of them gave me their phone number in case we had any
trouble.

We walked from there to the softball game which was the main
attraction tonight. We met a couple of teenage boys who wouldn't leave
us alone. It's not that the company wasn't welcome, it was just kind
of funny to watch 14-16 year olds get glued to older guys. Golly, it
is tough being that age. Anyhow, while we were at the game, yet
another stranger favor came thru. A man who stopped on the side of the
road to talk to Lee while he waited for me to catch up came to the
game like he said he would. He brought us a cooler with horseradish
cheese and deer jerky Yes Dad, the cheese is amazing. I'm actually
kinda shocked because I'm usually not much for horseradish. All of
this (camping, dinner, softball) took place within 1 city block.

Tues - Norfolk, NE - 58m
Wed - Atkinson, NE - 98m

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Sent from my mobile device

3 comments:

  1. People are nice to you because you have smiles on your faces, spend time with the locals, keep open minds, desire to learn on your journey and are gracious visitors. Keep enjoying the journey!

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  2. It was a great pleasure to meet the two of you even though you didn't eat enough meatballs!
    Our prayers are with you!!!
    Take care, Lynne

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  3. WHAT?? these boys didn't eat enough meatballs!
    I would think they could win a contest.

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