We drove to the west side of the state after the reception. Erika, Toby, Tom and Laura had arrived much earlier with the truck and trailer containing the bikes and tents and duffel bags. We could not get a room any place we would consider staying, so we put the back seat down and slept in the car at the campground, not knowing where our tents were set up. That did not work so well. We are way too old to sleep in the car!
Sunday morning over 700 cyclists left on their bikes for the first day of this Pedal Across Lower Michigan ride. I was supposed to be with them, but can't ride with the cast on my hand (camoflaged or not). Here are Laura, Erika, Bill, Toby and Tom. (Tom is my surrogate since it was too late to get a refund).
After they left I met Erika's friend Bryan in Grandville and we moved the truck forward and went to lunch. At the end of the day we all went to Bryan's house as planned, for a wonderful dinner and real beds to sleep in! What a treat that was!
Bryan rigged up a way for Laura to answer all the curious cyclists who asked how she was able to ride all the way across Michigan (she is blind)... Why, with her white cane of course! Now her spare white cane is mounted on the bike for the duration of this ride! Erika, Laura, Tom and Toby got on their bikes Monday morning while Bill and I moved the truck and trailer to Bryan's house, and then I drove Bill with his bike to meet Erika and Laura at a rest stop about 15 miles into the day's ride.
Now, sadly enough, I am home. This ride that I planned 6 months ago will go on without me. But I will be back on the bike this summer! As soon as I got home the bike shop called me and my bike is repaired. It fared much better than me... mostly cosmetic damage to the shifters. Life is good.
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