July 17, 2016
Day 13: Meetings on road
"I was born right down the road on a dairy farm in 1940," Vialis said.
"Really?" I said. "I have two friends who were born on dairy farms, one in Wisconsin and one near Los Angeles. I dont think they had to actually milk the cows though."
"No one milks cows anymore," he said with a laugh while his hands made a cow milking motion. "They just hook up the cows to the machines."
I met Vialis at a gas station on the way to Cassville. He was retired from a job at the university in Madison but came back to the area to retire.
"Its a great place to retire," he said.
When I retire I want someplace a little less stormy, humid and buggy, and then there are the winters, but I didnt say so.
"Where ya headed?" He asked and after the standard trip questions the conversation once again turned to weather.
"Most of the storm blew over last night, but there is a whopper coming through soon." He added.
Sigh
I am getting tired of storms. The funny thing is I didnt even think to check the weather radar on my iphone until this trip. I first noticed it at fireworks show at Park Rapids. It seems everyone in this area has radar on speed dial. I had to figure it out, but now I am one of them.
The radar picture looked terrible but I was sick of waiting. I decided to ride.
The first little town I came to was Bagley. It is cute as a button that seemed to depend on the summer tourist trade though most of the locals winter over.
"I only open a couple days a week in the winter," said the lady who runs the diner that doubles as a bar. "People get really upset if I am not open for Monday night football."
I was sitting at a table absorbing the cool air, drinking a Coke and eating a cup of chilli. I only ordered the chilli because I felt bad for sitting so long. One Coke didnt seem like enough.
After Bagley it was off to Cassville which included a lot of little leg breaker climbs but the good news was the storm had passed to the south. The weather was picture perfect, though a bit muggy. Still, No complaints.
The day ended at a little Cassville campground. I am writing this in my tent since it is kind of buggy out. I can tell already it is going to be an early night.
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Today's ride: 46 miles (74 km)
Total: 809 miles (1,302 km)
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