Day 8: Squeaks Are Bad

I was fortunate that it didn't rain on me last night, but I didn't sleep well because of the fireworks that went on until well after I stopped looking at my phone (0100). I was not so fortunate this morning, however, because the rain started right as I was leaving Watertown at 0530, and, of course, I didn't have on my gear 😭.

None of the gas stations were open yet, so I dashed under an overhang at a closed business to avoid a soaking. I organized my stuff, got my bags covered and my rain gear out, then crossed the street to McDonalds at 0600 when the lobby opened.

I really dislike starting out in the rain. Really. Really. Dislike 🤬. So it took an hour for me to leave the shelter of Mickey D's. About 30 minutes later, even my t-shirt was wet. Have I told you that HD rain gear sucks?

Anyway, I made it about 130 miles to only two stops and wanted to get gas before I got any more remote. I found a little gas station / grocery store / casino in the little town of Ipswich [just like England!] that had a place to sit and drink coffee and eat North Dakota crack. You know, Dots Pretzels 🤣. So that's what I did for about another hour. Again, it was very hard to get moving again, but I finally did.

I continued on towards Bismarck, ND, but just a few minutes later I pulled over. One HD and one Tour of Honor stop was not worth 150 miles, so I did a u-turn and headed back East before turning almost due North in Aberdeen [just like Scotland!] to Jamestown [just like...um...!].

Torrential storms the whole way. Dark, cold, and wet. Deer grazing by the road. Roads still covered in sand and grit from the winter. In fact, I almost lost my front wheel on a turn when I hit a patch of grit I didn't see because of the rain on the inside of my face shield. It was enough to make me squeak. When something goes wrong, I start with a squeak . If it progresses into something terribly wrong, I yell. If it progresses further and it hurts, I scream. Not a wimpy, girly scream, but a high pitched gutteral scream of anger usually in the shape of "Fuck". That's me. Anyway, the little slip was only squeak worthy. But the whole morning was fucking exhausting.

By the time I got 120 miles to Jamestown, right at 1200, I was ready to quit for the day. Instead, I decided to push another 100 to Fargo.

I-94, 75 mph speed limit, downpours I could barely see through, semis blowing by me at 80, cars blowing by me at 90, and little ol' me going 60 with my little ol' hazards furiously blinking their little ol' hearts out.

By the time I got to Fargo, I was shivering and half asleep, so I called it quits. I cashed in some hotel points because it's supposed to rain all night and, after today, I just couldn't deal with camping in the rain. I'm not whining, just expressing my feelings 🤣.

Now I'm at Buffalo Wild Wings having a beer and trying not to fall asleep until I get back to my room.

Miles: 401.4 and only 4 stops 😭Read more