STUBBORN W AND BEE STINGS

 A dozen riders showed up Wednesday at Casey's for another one of our Wednesday night rides.  This one turned out to be more of an adventure, but everything turned out ok.  Arriving at Casey's on trikes were Chuck (not Chuckles), Roger & Sue, Meryle & Mary, Wayne & Sandy, and Irv.  Sporting bikes were Dee, Terry (newbie), Howard, and Bob.  It was a warm, humid evening, but a good night for a ride.

DEE WITH THE SOON TO BE "STUBBORN" W

THE TRIKERS CONVERSE

IRV & TERRY (NEWBIE)

WAYNE & SANDY AFTER FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL BUSSING

HOWARD GIVING THE SCOOP ABOUT THE CITY CLUB

My route for the evening was to use Bear Creek Road, Locust Road, Pole Line Road and Madison Road for most of the way over to near Cresco and back.  Because of the days getting shorter, the routes also need to be shortened up.  We passed through Waukon and onto HWY 76 heading north before we turned west onto Bear Creek Road.  Fortunately because of the angle of the sun, we were able to ride westward without the sun directly in our eyes.  We followed BC over to Locust Road and turned south on into Decorah.  There the plan was to turn onto College Drive and pick up Pole Line Road in town.  However, even this early in the ride, some plans had to change.  

We discovered that repairs were being done to Pole Line there in town, so we took  the detour that kept us on College Drive and eventually onto HWY 52 south.  That part of College Drive could certainly use some smoothing out!

We took 52 down to Pole Line Road and turned west again.  This stretch of county road has been recently upgraded, so we had a smooth, scenic ride over to HWY 9 just outside of Cresco.  Turning east on 9, we rode on into Ridgeway for a break at the Engen Express convenience store there.

SO FAR, SO GOOD

EVERYONE FINDS A PARKING SPOT

WE FIND OUT MARY WAS STUNG BY A BEE ON HER HAND

After out rest stop, the plan was to take Madison Road just outside of Ridgeway west on into Decorah.  However when Terry, Irv, and I arrived at the Madison Road turn off, no one else was following us.  We waited for a while, and then decided to go back and see what the problem was.  When we got back to Ridgeway, we saw Dee's bike parked next to the convenience store and saw Chuck and her motoring back together on his trike.  We just decided to take HWY 9 east on into Waukon from there, since we assumed that's what the rest of the group had done.

When we got back to Waukon, we stopped at Lid's for eats, since the City Club was closed for the week.  We found the rest of the group waiting for us there and told us that Dee's bike wouldn't start back in Ridgeway.  I guess we can only assume that the "W" liked Ridgeway better than Postville!

By the time we got to Lid's, it was close to 8 PM and that's when they are supposed to close.  However, they were very accommodating and said they would serve us anyway.  The tenderloin I had was delicious!  Thanks to Lid's!  We'll be back.

After eating at Lid's, I got a call from Dee saying they made it back home ok and were going to return to Ridgeway the next day to try to coax the stubborn "W" back home.  My guess is that it's her battery.

Even after a detour, a bee sting, a bike stalling, and a restaurant being nearly closed, we all arrived back safely and for the most part enjoyed another Wednesday night venture.  Hopefully the bee sting heals and the "W" finds it's way back home.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Next Wednesday night is September 1st.  Where the hell did summer go?!  The plan is to ride through Elgin and Cleremont.  We may not stop for a break since it's getting dark sooner all the time now.  I plan to pass out the route and agenda sheets for the Couples' Trip then.

Labor Day is Monday and that means it's time for our annual "Double Dip" Ice Cream Run where we ride to a spot out of town for a dip and back to Homestead Dairy in Waukon for another dip. We will leave Casey's at 1PM that afternoon.  I will pass out any of the Couples' Trip sheets to those who didn't get them on Wednesday.  Everyone is welcome!

September 11th and 12th is the Couples' Trip.  We have 8 couples on board.  We may have room for another couple or two, so if you are still interested, let Bob know ASAP.