The longest day

September 20, 2023

Day 14: Virginia to Duluth

THIS IS THE DAY that's had me concerned since A D first shared the routes for the tour. What climbing there is will be gentle, and mostly in the first ten or eleven miles. There's a five or six hundred foot plunge to Lake Superior over the last two or three miles. Everything in between is essentially flat. So, what's the big deal?

It's 71 miles with a headwind the entire way, that's what.

The last time I rode anything like that distance was 14 months ago, on an extraordinary day in Montana. I'm not at all certain how I'll respond to this challenge, but there's really no alternative. Needs must, and all that.

On the plus side, we're due to have the warmest day of the tour, topping out in the upper 70s, so we don't need to worry about being cold. Add to that brilliant blue skies, eliminating any threat of rain. On the debit side of the ledger, we're riding more-or-less due south all day, meaning we'll be slugging into a 10-15 mph headwind for the entire ride.

That's touring, of course, just like the inevitable wettings we all endure from time to time. It's the challenging days that make the glorious days so much the sweeter. And they make for better stories, once they're over. But they're tough to endure as they happen.

Endure we did, however, and everyone made it in alright although we are all tired. So, the rest of this story will consist of scenes from the road.