Townsend to Missoula, MT

Thursday we left Townsend for a short 36 mile ride to Helena. We were all looking forward to this short day which included getting to sleep in until 7 or 7:30. The church in Townsend made us a magnificent breakfast of pancakes and sausage. There were numerous comments about how glad we were that it was a short ride because we all felt like we had too much in our stomaches as we headed out about 9. I rode sweep with Michael. As sweeps, we were to keep everyone in front of us, and if we got to a rest stop or the end without everyone else going by first, someone was lost. With short mileage, it should have been an easy day. In reality, it was a hard slog into a strong headwind. Whether at the front of the pack or the back, it was a hard ride and I averaged a whopping 10.4 mph. The only pictures I took were at the one rest stop of the day.

I missed seeing the event of the day. Michael and I did see a couple of deer bound across the road, but we didn't see one that collided with a car quite close to a couple of our riders. We are thankful for that, but it was a rather traumatic event for those who saw it or were hit by small pieces of plastic from the car.

Once we had arrived in Helena, Brett bought a kite and throughly enjoyed flying it in the church parking lot in the evening. Helena is a beautiful little city spread out across a broad valley. I climbed up the hill above the church where we stayed and found a place to get a panoramic view.

Friday morning, we were treated to a hot breakfast of bacon and eggs. By the time that was ready, I had helped my chore team load the trailer. Lightweight sleeping mats and sleeping bags go in the back, the heavy bags over the axel and after breakfast the tubs of food and coolers are loaded in the front. As we worked, we enjoyed the early morning sun on Mount Helena.

Our ride on Friday from Helena to Deer Lodge took us over the Continental Divide. While it may not have been the most climbing we will do in a day, we did reach our highest point in elevation at just over 6300 ft. To get to that point we had a 6 mile climb. We had about 8 miles of warm up before the climb started in earnest.

Fairly early on in the climb, I passed John, who normally powers away from me on the climbs. He told me later, that he felt like his legs couldn't turn until I came by him and he was able to grab my wheel and settle into a faster cadence. Together we climbed to the top, stopping only briefly at a scenic outlook, which was definitely worth the stop.

Back on our bikes, I struggled to get going again. It was very windy and the closer we got to the top, the stronger it became -- and the colder it got. The first rest stop was at the top of the hill and I was eager to put my jacket on and we huddled on the downwind side of the trailer as we ate. The much-looked-forward-to downhill was work as we headed into the wind. I needed a firm grip on the handlebars to make sure the bike stayed upright in the gusts of wind. Gravity however did help and I hit the top speed of 29.1 mph. In the next section, John and I gained some companions and we settled into a reasonable paceline so we could get a break from the wind. It seemed the further we got into the valley the more beautiful it became and just before the second rest stop, we caught a glimpse of bigger mountains in the distance.

Eventually our route turned south and we had our first tailwind of the past two days. It was wonderful to feel like we were hardly working and look down and see we were going 17 mph.

We were well taken care of in Deer Lodge. Theresa, from the Presbyterian church, organized everything for us. We stayed in a Catholic school, ate a wonderful supper at the Assembly of God church that consisted of pork loin, baked potatoes, and a wonderful assortment of potluck dishes which had been brought by members of several churches. We got our 3rd hot breakfast in a row when the Lutherans fixed several egg bakes, biscuits and gravy, and some fruit.

Saturday morning dawned crisp and "chilly" according to one local. It was downright COLD to those in our group from the south. Joe, from Florida, doesn't own any cooler weather cycling gear so his only defense against the just above 40˚ temps was a long sleeved shirt. Almost everyone else in our group donned leg warmers, arm warmers and jackets. We even had our regular morning route meeting and devotions inside. Actually getting out on the road and cycling along with the early morning sun helped warm our bodies and the air.

Our 85.3 mile trip to Missoula was pretty much downhill all the way. There were a few bumps in the road just to keep us honest, but for the most part we flew along without too much effort. Actually, I didn't know how fast we were going. I went to reset my odometer and it refused to respond, so I had nothing to go on but the sensations of my legs and the speed of those around me. It was nice to have only a light breeze and we all made good time. Monica was excited to have set a new record for her average speed.

Our home for the weekend is the gym of a Catholic school. Other than not having much of a kitchen, it's been a great location, about a mile from the center of town. One of the first things we noticed in Missoula was all the bikes. They seem to be everywhere and there are numerous bike paths and bike lanes. Adventure Cycling has its headquarters here and most of their routes go through Missoula so we saw self-supported cyclists making their way through town.

This morning a group of us walked about 1.5 miles to Sovereign Hope church. I got there a few minutes after the rest of the group and the greeter handed me a bulletin and pointed me in the direction of the others. He must have thought that we were together since we were all wearing the same orange t-shirt. After the service we were invited to the all-church picnic at the park and we were told the bring the whole group. About half of us got on our bikes rode about 4 miles to join them. It was an enjoyable afternoon getting to know some of the people of the area. Once again, we enjoyed the generosity of God's people.

Week 5 of my trip will take us into Idaho with stops in Superior MT, Kellogg, St Marries, and Lewiston ID. We've been told the best climbing is yet to come, and we have two build days as well. So far I've ridden 1666.7 miles with around 123 hours and 40 minutes of saddle time.