Day 18-23 Jackson, WY - Cheyenne, WY

Day 18 June 28th Jackson, WY – Dubois, WY

I woke up this morning and my knee felt like it had regressed. I really though it was getting better until I woke up. I rode 30 miles and had to quit for the rest of the day. It has been a really frustrating injury. I know it’s not anything serious. I’m pretty sure it’s an overuse/tendonitis type of injury. At this point, I made up my mind that I was going to rest it for a few days so I didn’t have to fight through pain the whole summer. I finished the day in the van and we arrived at Dubois High School. We were fed once again by the local Cattlewoman, which means they brought lots of meat and good casseroles. It’s always a treat to be fed by the Cattlewoman.

Day 19 June 29th Dubois, WY – Shoshoni, WY

It was tough waking up this morning and not suiting up with the rest of the guys. I tried to contribute what I could to the team by loading bags into the van and things like that. I hopped into the van and got to spend some good time with one of the crew guys, Alex. Alex is a fun guy who attends the University of Kansas. We had a good time in the van but it’s not the same. It was hard not being out on the bike with the r
est of the team. It was a 100-mile day and we all arrived to Shoshoni around 4:00. We stayed at the Shoshoni Senior Center and were treated very well by some of the lovely senior ladies. It was a pretty chill night to get some rest for another long day tomorrow.

Day 20 June 30th Shoshoni, WY – Casper, WY

Today was another long day for the cyclists. Once again it was not easy being “that guy” that isn’t riding with the team for the long day. The good news is that the ice and IB Profen I’ve been taking is making my knee feel much better. My buddy Alex and I also started developing some skit characters. By the 80-mile crew stop, Coach Jiggins and Coach Bob Coggins were in full effect. I played Bog Coggins who is a long time resident of Canyon, Texas and got kicked in the side of the head by a horse which caused his eyes to go crossed. I figured it was the least I could do to help my team take their minds off of the long day. It went over pretty well. We arrived in Casper and were fed by the local Kiwanis. We had a day off the next day so most of us went to see a late night showing of Wall-e. It was a good time and a great movie. (I recommend it)

Day 21 July 1st Casper, WY Day Off

We had a day off in Casper, Wyoming. We slept in to 10 o’clock and headed to the Casper Boys and Girls Club. We were able to do our puppet show in front of 100 kids or so. We got to hang out with them and eat lunch. It was way fun and exciting to get a taste of what it’s going to be like at my job this fall working with elementary school kids. After the visit, we went back to the high school where we're staying and took some naps. That night we had a friendship visit at a local park with the ARC of Natrona County. We enjoyed some burgers and got to spend some time with people with disabilities. It was also our first sight of rain the whole trip. We went to bed pretty early because tomorrow was going to be the longest day of the trip and I was going to get back on the bike.

Day 22 July 2nd Casper, WY – Wheatland, WY

Today was the longest day of the summer: 115 miles. We left early in the morning and arrived in Wheatland around 4:30. My knee felt great and didn’t hurt the whole day. I made some adjustments on my bike and shoes and I think it made a huge difference. It was definitely a long day though. Although the eastern part of Wyoming is not much too see, it is pretty flat. When we arrived to Wheatland, we had to shower up quickly to head to a local ranch for dinner. Once again, it was the local Cattlewoman’s Association that was feeding us and it was another success. Lot’s of meat and lot’s of food were the perfect ingredients after a long day of burning calories. After that we watched the movie Charlie Marshall and went to bed for a 4:15a.m.wakeup.

Day 23 July 3rd Wheatland, WY – Cheyenne, WY

Today was one of the hardest days of the trip. After the 115-mile day and an early wake up, we didn’t have a lot left in the tank. We also had a 20 mph head wind, which is always deflating to a cyclist. We had a lunch in Cheyenne provided by the Cattlewoman once again. This was the best Cattlewoman meal we’ve had so far. I stuffed my face and all the days’ frustrations happened to go away. That night we had a picnic with the ARC of Laramie County. There was a huge crowd and we were outnumbered 3-1. I sat and talked with a 34 man named Brian. Brian had Down Syndrome and was an extremely gentle, loving guy. I had great conversation with him and his family.