I saw this written on a sign in South Dakota and it fits my South Dakota experience.
Rapid City to Kadoka- 101 miles: This was an amazing day. We traveled through the Bad Lands of South Dakota and it was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen. I was very happy to be on a bike because I don’t think I would have appreciated the scenery as much had I been in a car. It was a nice day out and I biked very leisurely with plenty of stops because I was enjoying the Bad Lands so much. I really don’t know how to describe them well so I would suggest googling some images. We made it into Kadoka where we were welcomed in the town park by the mayor. He had several other titles including Postal Office worker, general store manager, Pastor, restaurant owner, parole officer, electrician and plumber. Ok I’m making up some of those titles but I wouldn’t doubt if he did do most of those jobs because the town was pretty tiny. While we were eating dinner in the local restaurant, the sherrif came to the park to watch our bikes in case an hooligans messed with them while we were eating.
Kadoka to PIerre: We reached the Missouri River!!!! We are officially in the Mid-East and no longer in the Mid West. This was my first real experience with the prairies and I guess I have a pretty good idea of what they look like after 95 miles. Of course I had a good idea of what they look like after 4 miles and nothing really changed until we got to Pierre….but hey its all part of the experience. There is a saying amoung the Big Riders “EFI” “Every… Inch” meaning every peddle of every mile counts. The second part of the day went by really quickly because I rode with a big group into the capital and we got there by 1:15pm. We showered at a local motel and it was amazing!! We had fresh, big, white towels, hot water with good pressure and privacy to change. Afterwards I lay on one of the beds and watched TV for a couple of hours while other people used the bathroom to shower and felt incredibly refreshed by dinner. It was a $12 night which means our ride leader gave us $12 and we could spend it wherever, so Catie and I went to a local bar and got humungo buffalo burgers and onion rings. It was a day to remember and I realized that South Dakota maybe wasn’t that bad afterall.
Pierre to Miller, SD-72 miles: I was wrong. It is that bad. This was one of the toughest days on the ride for me so far because I was pretty tired from the 197 miles that I had ridden the previous two days and I was almost immediately greeted with a stiff headwind when I got on my bike in the morning. The headwind lasted all day. There were no hills to climb, no trees to look at, no animals to spot besides the dead ones on the road and hardly any towns to stop in. This is where the “good people” part comes in. Rachel told Catie and I some riddles she had heard and we spent a good 20 miles solving them. Later in the afternoon we pace-lined to break up the wind and were able to finish the last 25 miles in record time. That night we had dinner at the local restaurant again and then stayed out to celebrate Chad (from Nebraska)’s birthday. It was tons of fun and although I wasn’t in bed until 11:30 it was completely worth it. Oh, I’ve also forgotten to mention that as the ride has progressed I have been going to bed much later because I am not nearly as tired. Its great because it allows for extra time to hang out and get to know the other riders better.
Miller to DeSmet: 75.5 miles- The scenery was exactly the same as the day before. In fact, I might have ridden in the opposite direction and not even noticed had I not been guided by other riders. I heard over camp breakfast that the wind was supposed to shift in the afternoon and become a headwind so I was determined to get in as many miles as possible before that happened. Simon had a similar mindset and we pushed off of camp at a steady 17 mph. It was a beautiful morning and I did enjoy this part of the prairie because it was cool outside and the sun was rising over the horizon as we peddled on. We maintained the speed all day with a long lunch at the halfway point. We made it exactly halfway across the country!!!! With an extra burst of adreneline after the last sag stop, Simon and I made it into camp second. I was there by 1:00pm and used the rest of the afternoon to do some laundry, walk around the town and take a nap. It turns out that DeSmet, SD is the home of Laura Ingalls Wilder who wrote “Little House on the Prairie”. I think I will have a greater appreciation for those books from here on out.
