Day 11-16 Philipsburg, MT - Jackson Hole, WY

Day 11 June 21st Missoula, MT – Philipsburg, MT

After a few day of rest on the knee, I hopped on the bike for an 80-mile ride to Philipsburg. My knee bothered me a little but not enough to get me off the bike. It was another beautiful ride with lots of incredible Montana scenery around us. Once again, we enjoyed more mountains, flowing rivers and lots of blue sky. We arrived in Philipsburg and showered up at the local High School where we would be spending the night.

We had a few hours so most of the guys passed out. Around 5, we left to have a lasagna dinner provided by the local Rotary Club. It was a great meal and my first time to have Huckleberry Lemonade. Very tasty! We then went to a building that was under construction. It turns out that the Rotary Club was in the process of raising money and building an ice rink complex. It was really cool especially for such a small town. The Rotary Club than bought us ice cream at the local ice cream and soda shop. It was a fun small town Montana experience.

Day 12 June 22nd Philipsburg, MT – Butte, MT

It was another long day on the bike with the odometer reading 77 miles when we pulled into Butte, MT. My knee felt better much better today than it has in a while. I’ve really tried to stretch and ice it as much as possible. We stayed in one of the nicest YMCA’s I’ve ever seen. It had a really nice indoor pool and hot tub that we definitely took advantage of. Some of the guys found themselves in line with the little kids waiting for the pool slide. That night we went to a local park and had a friendship visit with a local organization. Many of the participants were members of the Special Olympics as well. We enjoyed a nice fried chicken dinner, which always tastes good after a long day of riding. I got to hang out with a 70-year-old gentleman named John. John couldn’t communicate very well and he couldn’t see more than 2 feet in front of his face but we had a good time. We talked about Country Music and Bingo: two of his favorite things. It was another rewarding friendship visit and successful day.

Day 13 June 23rd Butte, MT – Bozeman, MT

Today was what we call a “Century Day.” (Over 100 Miles) It was another beautiful ride through Montana. I got 40 miles in and felt my knee start to tweak a little. I had to throw my bike on the van and be an encourager at crew stops for the rest of the day. I probably could have kept going and pushed through it but I have a lot of riding ahead of me and it wasn’t worth it. I was so proud of our team though. Only a few other guys “racked” and most of the team finished the 105 miles. We showered up at Bozeman High School and headed to a neat organization for dinner. It wasn’t a friendship visit but we still went to the facilities of Eagle Mount for dinner. (Real hamburgers, fresh fruit and fresh salad. It was glorious!) Eagle Mount is an organization that is known for their therapeutic activities. Some of the programs they do are; adaptable skiing, horseback riding, horticulture, cycling, golf, etc. They had 20 horses, indoor horse arena, green house, and world-class pool. All facilities were 100% accessible for people with disabilities. It was really cool to see such a thriving organization providing wonderful opportunities for people with disabilities.

Day 14 June 24th Bozeman, MT – West Yellowstone, MT

Do to some bad roads, our 90 mile day turned into a 50 mile day. It was glorious news. We drove in the vans to first 40 miles and got dropped off in Big Sky, Montana. From there it was a gorgeous ride along a river and through the canyons of the mountains. My knee felt good today and allowed me to go the whole way. Upon arrival, we didn’t have anything scheduled for the rest of the day so a lot of guys caught a nap and enjoyed the little town of West Yellowstone. I threw some more ice on the knee, wrote some letters and called it a night.

Day 15 June 25th West Yellowstone, MT – West Thumb, WY

Today we rode though Yellowstone National Park! It was also the start of our 4th state. It was truly amazing and really fun to experience. The park was highly traveled by cars but seeing the park on a bike was much better. We took almost the whole day to ride 50 miles and take in the scenery. I saw two bald eagles, elk, a wolf, and lots of buffalo. It was really beautiful but also crazy to still see the effects of the 1988 fire. After checking into a lodge and eating a buffet dinner, we loaded up the vans and headed back into the park to see Old Faithful go off. That was really crazy to see in person. After seeing smoke come out of a hole for 20 minutes the 60 foot gushing geyser shot out of the grown for one minute. It was pretty cool. Overall, it was a memorable day and another great day on the bike.

Day 16 June 26th West Thumb, WY – Jackson Hole, WY

Today was probably my favorite day of the trip so far. We had a 50-mile ride through Grand Teton National Park. We rode right at the base of the mammoth mountains and found ourselves cruising around 23mph. It was one of the most scenic days so far as well as one of the best on the bike. We arrived in Jackson Hole and had an arrival in the town square where we were met by some loyal supporters and the town mayor. We then got to spend several hours relaxing and swimming at a local resort in Jackson. After that we headed to a ranch outside of Jackson Hole to spend the night and enjoy having the next day off. Tomorrow’s activities on the ranch include fishing, skeet shooting and lots of barbeque. What a great week but I am definitely ready for a day off!

Day 17 June 27th Jackson, WY – Day Off
Today was a great day. We had a phenomenal day off at the Cushman ranch in Driggs, Idaho. The Cushman family owns one of the biggest commercial real estates firms in the world; Cushman-Wakefield. Let’s just say their ranch was really nice. 6 alumni from the University of Colorado chapter hosted us at the ranch and treated us to Fly Fishing, Horseback Riding, Canoeing and Golf. I took the morning to get some things done and get some extra sleep. In the afternoon, I played 9 holes of golf at a local golf course. It was a great change of pace and a perfect way to spend the day off.