Being on the western edge of the time zone, it didn’t get dark until after I was asleep. The rain started first.
It started raining at 10 PM and was still r
aining when I woke up at 5. I took down the tent in the rain, packed up in the rain, and rode down to breakfast in the rain.
Breakfast is the only photo I have to upload from the day. It was too wet to take any other pictures.
We rode 103 miles in the rain, the last 50 into a headwind. I would not have made it without the company of Alan from Kirkland, WA and Ed and Ally (a father-daughter team) from New Jersey. I rode with Ed and Ally for much of the day, Alan for part of it, and the four of us together rode into Missoula, after we came upon Alan changing a tire just a few miles out of town.
Ally is a newly-minted RN from Rutgers who decided to go on this trip “before I have to be a grown-up”. I can attest that she is a grown-up, riding relentlessly through a driving rain that left us all coated in grit and soaked.
Ed is a union carpenter. He confessed that he likes to ride in front in order to control the pace so Ally doesn’t leave him behind. Being a good daughter, she waits for him at the top of climbs. She is a mountain goat.
Since I have no photos from today, I’ll add some that wouldn’t upload from Thompson Falls. 
The dam at Thompson Falls
Riding in so much rain sure seems hard Steve. Yikes. Was you tent and sleeping bag dry by night?
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Dry every night! (Except last night (Saturday) when I slept in a dorm. I dried everything out today once the sun came out. Luckily this was a rest day so we had time to dry out and maintain bikes.
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Wow how hard with so much rain. At least you got to ride with other people. How many all together?
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Sorry I didn’t see this sooner. The Spam filter ate it, but gave it back today. 34 total, 22 going coast-to-coast. Week 2 added 3 new riders and 3 left.
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You are doing an amazing job, Steve! Keep going! I’m so impressed–You are beating out the rain, the wind, and the temps! You’re a rock star!!
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Thanks! 8 weeks to go. We senior citizens aren’t all old!
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Our datameister tells me the average temp was 49 degrees. I also see the photo of Alan failed to load, so I’ll add it tomorrow.
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Looks beautiful! I’m glad you’re making friends and seeing beautiful places; you deserve it. I hope the rain stops so you can dry yourself and your bike. This would’ve been a good day for the belt drive so you don’t have to worry about rust!
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I posted a reply but I don’t see it. Internet service is weird on this campus so I’ll avoid reposting it in case the rest of you see it and don’t want it twice.
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