Iowa

I got into Iowa and took a picture of my bike and BOB at the "Welcome to Iowa" sign. BOB said this was his first time ever in Iowa, but that he knew he'd be a better trailer for the experience of being in Iowa. I will try and post the picture this weekend. I've had probably more e-mails asking about BOB and wanting pictures than on any other single thing about the trip (well, except maybe for those girls in thong bikinis on each page of the site. People really seem to like them...can't understand why...). BOB, it stands for Beast of Burden, was manufactured in San Luis Obispo. He is a very cool trailer. He does get a little pushy on the downhill, and if you stand up to pedal you had better stay straight over the handlebars because the slighest leaning to left or right, and BOB can have you in the ditch in a flash. I am pulling a guesstimated 60 pounds with BOB, and now am approaching 500 miles with him tagging along. To me the BOB is a superior design. Tonite I'm in Harlan, Iowa. I arrived here in 90 degree heat about three this afternoon. I evidentally surprised the desk clerk at the motel, since she forgot to put her teeth in and was barefoot. And between she and her husband, the desk clerk was the "looker" in the family. If the Adams Family ever returns to TV, I know where they can find Lurch. But the bed is comfy, the water hot, and the TV works, so those are the motel essentials after a day of riding. The phone system doesn't seem to be able to interface with AOL, so I will file this tomorrow nite from on down the road. Jan is on the road from Denver and should get to Harlan late tonite. Miles ridden today 66...total trip miles 2190.

Jan arrived in Harlan late last night, so I travelled Bob-less today. Easy 50 mile ride from Harlan to Guthrie Center. Jan caught up with me in Guthrie for lunch. After leaving Guthrie Center, I ran into my first case of anti-bicycle road rage. Jan had gone on ahead, and I was rolling between Guthrie Center and Panora on shoulderless Highway 44. A black pickup doing at least 60 tried to squeeze between me and an oncoming 18-wheeler. When he got through, he pulled onto the gravel shoulder with the truck sliding sideways. He jumped out of the truck waving his fist and screaming, "I want a piece of you, mother f----r!" I moved to the other lane and kept going. He jumped in the truck and came after me, and for 10-15 seconds, rode alongside screaming at me. Then he went ahead and over the hill. I was worried he was waiting for me, but turned out he wasn't. I called Jan who came and picked me up. Like I've mentioned a million times before, once again, my angel of mercy came to the rescue. We drove into Panora, two miles away, and saw a sign for Lake Panorama National Golf Course, so we played golf. Winds on the golf course were up to 50 mph, so golf was dicey, but the course was beautiful. We are staying at Lake Panorama tonight and will head on to Boone tomorrow. There was just a little too much excitement on the Geezerpalooza tour today. Miles ridden today 50...total trip miles 2240.

May 31, '03 - Panora to Boone

It was another BOB-less day thanks to Jan who transported my stuff to Boone and good thing she did. I had a headwind the whole way. After so many close calls on the shoulderless roads of the Hawkeye State Jan charted a route on county hardtops and that worked very well. So I've been to Yale (Iowa), Dawson, Rippey, Moingona and all sorts of other Iowa metropolis'. I rolled into Boone 61 miles after starting and stopped by the Eastern Star home where Jan had lunch with her mom. We stayed at Jan's aunt, Helen Johnson, who along with her husband Vernon were nice enough to take us in. All the motels in Boone were full because of the stock car races being Saturday night. Stock cars are a very, very big deal in Boone. Jan's Mom put together a family dinner at the Tic-Toc in downtown Boone so it was great to see everyone. I hooked up with Gere in Boone and he has decided to head for the Appalachian Mts. and finish his trip somewhere on the Virginia shore. Tomorrow I head for Marshalltown. Jan will stay with her mom in Boone until Tuesday a.m. and then head for Decorah, Iowa and a visit with her life-long friend Kay McGrew. She will re-join me Thursday night in Muscatine and then Friday it is on to Illinois. Miles ridden today 61...total trip miles 2301.

June 1, '03 Boone to Marshalltown

Thanks you Johnson's for the great breakfast. They were up at 6 to feed me. Vernon said he had been retired for over 20 years but, "you just can't take the farm out of the boy." He's up everyday at that hour. Today was a very short but interesting ride. It was a quiet Sunday morning so BOB and I wandered around the campus of Iowa State University. There are a couple of buildings still there from when I was a student, but my old classrooms are not in the majority. I rode up the Ash Avenue hill, not nearly as steep as I remembered it but then maybe I was short of breath back then because I was a smoker, and the Delta Sig house is still there. I suppose that could change since they are not allowed any new pledges for a couple of years due to some un-authorized activities in Manhattan, Kansas. Anyway I rolled on through Ames and then took the original US 30 east. There has been a new 30 put in a couple of miles to the south and the original 30 is now a county road. Back in my college days, before I-80 and I-35 when I went home to Cambridge we took Highway 30 east. I usually rode with Roger Morrison who was from Cornell, Illinois approximately 75 miles east of Cambridge. So today I rode through Nevada, which any Iowan knows is pronounced with a long A like Ada, Oklahoma. Iowans are such a giggle when people mis-prounce the name of a town like Nevada or Des Moines which is Dee Moine with no s involved. But they are guilty of the same transgression to the opposite when they go to Chicago and talk about the suburb of Dee Plane, which is really Des Plaines and the s is pronounced in both words. After Nevada the road headed east until it reached Colo and then moved on until it curved into State Center "The Rose Capitol of Iowa". No roses today, but the peonies and iris were certainly in bloom. After State Center in the middle of farm country, I ran into a golf course. Since I had BOB which meant I had my clubs I thought I would stop and play nine, but they were booked until 2:30. I hit some balls at the driving range, but it was starting to cloud up so I decided to go on to Marshalltown. When I went to dinner, it was spitting rain, and tomorrow there is a 50% chance of precipitation. Tomorrow I will continue to duplicate the old ride to Illinois as I will take E64 and E66 to Belle Plain and then 212 to Marengo. We used to think of it as that damn curvy, swervy road over to US 6, but now it is a "scenic roadway". When I was in school we used to think Iowa had the worst roads in the nation. Of course to us the nation was from Chicago to Omaha and Minneapolis to Kansas City. But roadwise nothing has changed. Still no shoulders. I hope to end tomorrow in the Amana Colonies and play their highly rated golf course. Miles ridden today 55...total trip miles 2356.

John Denver wrote and sang, "Some days are diamonds, some days are stones" and today was pure granite. Up in Marshalltown at five to be on the road at 6:30. Then BOB decided he wouldn't hook up with the bicycle. I pleaded, pushed, cursed, begged, pulled and tugged but BOB would not hook up. I kept reminding myself, "Don't force it, you'll break something. You always do." The Marshalltown phone book listed one bike shop, Mike's Bike and Fitness. He opened at nine but he could get me in. By then it had started to rain. I unpacked my stuff from BOB and left it in the motel room. I could hook BOB on one side and he would pull that way empty, so I rode through the rain three miles to downtown Marshalltown and Mike's. Big Mike, he had to go 300 pounds, said he didn't know a lot about BOB but he thought the hook up was bent. So he pushed, tugged and then hit it with a hammer. It was a rubber hammer but how come, "If it won't fit, force it" seems to work for other folks. Big Mike said that was not a permanent fix so don't unhook your BOB until you get to a dealer who handles them and that would be in Iowa City. So in the rain I road back to the motel and loaded my stuff on BOB. I got a cup of coffee in the motel lobby and a fellow noticed my bike outside and said if I was thinking about US 30 I should think again. I told him I was going east about seven miles to Legrand and then heading south and east. He said the 18 wheelers were really kicking up a spray from the rain and there was no shoulder the six miles before Legrand. So I picked an alternate route but checked 30 as I rode over and he was right. I travelled south a ways, and then headed east. After 14 or so miles, I turned north on State Highway 141...when I had a flat. Of course it was the back tire. I had to remove BOB to get the tire off. Lots of 18 wheelers roared past sending rain every direction, but I did get the tire changed. BOB wasn't so easy. He did not want to go back on. The rain continued. I thought I would have to call Jan in Boone (75 miles away) to come and get me. It made me so made I kicked BOB, and sure enough he slipped on the bike frame. It was now one in the afternoon and I, soaked to the bone, and made no progress whatsoever. I took a county road 15 miles west to Tama, Iowa. I stopped at a gas station to ask the best way to go for a motel. The guy asked which direction I was going, I said East to Amana, and he said to go two miles out of town to the Foley Motel, which was right on the way. It continued to rain. The Foley Motel was right on the way. It was also closed. So I turned around and headed back into Tama. I stopped at a convenience store to get new directions and a bite to eat. As I was getting off the bike, my foot slipped and in putting my other foot down I stuck that foot into the spokes of my back wheel. I had to take my shoe off to get said foot out of the Mavic spokes. I got new directions and was told to go to Toledo, Iowa which was five miles to the North, on US 30. Are you getting the picture? I had a sandwich and needed to use the rest room. As I turned on the light it burned out. Finally I got to the Days Inn in Toledo. As I turned in, I looked up to see a road sign saying, "Marshalltown 20 miles". I had averaged a little over two miles per hour for the day. So tomorrow I am going to try and make Iowa City, 90 miles away, and get the bike into a shop. It is not shifting well after my changing the tire. If I do as well tomorrow it will only take me four days to get to Iowa City. Miles ridden today 40. Miles gained 20...total trip miles 2376.

Last night, exhausted from my 20 mile gain of yesterday, I fell asleep at 7:30 p.m. Therefore, this morning I was up and wide awake at 4:30 and on the road at 6. Today was the start of my 6th week on Geezerpalooza with the trip scheduled to end a month from today. Just the thought of it ending makes me sad. Today I started the day on the Lincoln Highway, US 30, and ended it on the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, US 6. Yes kids there was a time when highways were named as well as numbered. I took the suggested scenic roadway along the Iowa River from Tama to Belle Plaine and on to Marengo. What a wonderful, traffic-less ride it was. I enjoyed a wonderful Iowa type breakfast at Momma Di's Lincoln Cafe in Belle Plaine where the TV was going on and on about the Vail sinkhole but nowhere did they say where the sinkhole was located on I-70. After Marengo I joined US 6 through the Amana Colonies and rolled into Coralville, Iowa just after one in the afternoon. The folks at RacquetMasters Bike and Exercise were nice enough to take both the bike and BOB in this afternoon. They will be ready tomorrow afternoon when my golf game is complete. The manager here at the Red Roof Inn in Coralville was nice enough to haul the bike, BOB and me to the bike shop. It would have been a 15 minute ride over and an hour walk back. I really appreciated his courtesy and would like to say if you are ever in the Iowa City area give the Red Roof Inn your business because on a scale of one to 10 when it comes to customer service they are at least a 47. Tomorrow is the first day off since Casper, Wyoming and I suppose it is needed but I really feel like riding. The bike and particularly BOB have other ideas. The bike needed a physical and a new chain. BOB needed a severe talking too. He has been rather balky the past two days and did not respond well to physical punishment what with Mike the bike shop guy hitting him with a rubber hammer in Marshalltown and me kicking him yesterday. BOB is due for some orthodontia as his teeth he uses to grab on to the bike are out of line. My position is that BOB has been out of line for at least the last three days. My daughter Krista says I am getting as bad talking to BOB0 as Tom Hanks was talking to his volleyball in the movies. Miles ridden today 78...total trip miles 2454.

June 4, '03 - A Day Off in Iowa City

It was a chance to sleep in...a fat chance. The family in the room next door were up and going at 5:30 a.m. I mean really going. The rugrats and ankle biters were in mid-day form, so I got an early start on the day. Red Roof dropped me off at Finkbine Golf Course, one of my favorite courses in Iowa, and I practically had the whole course to myself. Finkbine, where they played the Big 10 championship two weeks ago, is right on the west edge of the Iowa U campus. It was built in the twenties and is a graceful layout with trees everywhere. There are four tee boxes at every hole, with the tips playing 7,000 yards. I played the yellow tees at 6560 and still failed to shoot my handicap. Finkbine is a beautiful, tough, old course. I walked and the green fee was $30. If you are ever rolling through eastern Iowa on I-80 or taking the Avenue of the Saints between St. Paul and St. Louis, you'll find Finkbine 10 minutes from either Interstate. It's a great golfing experience. Thanks to the folks at Racquetmasters Health and Bikes for the quick turnaround on my bike and BOB. BOB hooks up easily now, so I don't know whether it was the orthodontia or if an intervention took place, but BOB was a good little guy on the test ride through Iowa City. I had a latte at the Java House, dinner tonight will be at Mondo's, and I'll see Jan tomorrow night in Muscatine. I expressed the opinion that I wouldn't have to deal with BOB anymore after tomorrow and Jan said she is still trying to find another place to dump me. This, friends, does not sound promising for either BOB or yours truly. Miles ridden today nada...total trip miles 2454.

The final day in Iowa was an easy day. First a food review. Last night I went to one of my favorites, Mondo's in Coralville, Iowa. Mondo's started in downtown Iowa City, they're still there, and you'll also find them in West Des Moines. Mondo's is styled in much the same way as The Denver Chophouse and I am a big fan of the Chophouse. Heavy furniture, substantial eating utensils and well prepared "real" food are the staples. I had a Christopher Merlot, slightly overpriced but at Mondo's they pour a 6 oz glass of wine so one glass will get you through the meal. With those itty bitty wine servings l always feel like I am audtioning for the Ray Milland role in "The Lost Weekend" (how's that for an ancient movie reference). I ordered the wood broiled pork chops and they were cooked to perfection, the veggies were just right, cooked but still crispy, and the mashies had corn in them which is the way Larry Feather said Mid-Western mashies are best. When I placed my fork in the mashed potatoes I am sorry to say it crashed to the plate. So Mondo's failed the mashed potato test and the Denver Chop House still reigns as the mashed potato king. However Jan and Krista could show the Chop House a thing or two about perfection in mashed potatoes.
Stopped at the Java House in downtown Iowa City for one last latte and hit the road. Three hours later I was in Muscatine. However I had no knowledge where the motels were, they weren't where I was, and after stumbling around Muscatine for an hour or so I wound up at the Econo-Lodge. I should have taken longer. This is not exactly the top of the line. Or middle. I think if you negotiate you can get a tattoo as part of the room tariff. Miles today 41...total trip miles 2495. Tomorrow it is on to Illinois.


				*Pedal N Putt* *Iowa*



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