Day 29

Chillicothe, MO to Kirksville, MO -- 75 miles --- Today's update is going to be boring if you're not a cyclist. Today it was all about the ride and it was amazing!!! This was the hilliest of all the days on the tour. Our leader told us there were exactly 148 hills (and not little ones either) from Brookfield, the 25-mile point, to the finish. I think I counted 149 actually (joke, of course.) If you like to climb hills over and over and over and over, this is the ride for you. Take state highway 11N out of Brookfield and stay on until you come to Highway 63 and on into Kirksville. I felt better today than I have the whole trip. I felt strong, light, confident and at the risk of sounding really corny, "one with the bike." It was very challenging but everything just clicked for me today. Not that this is a race by any means, but it was a personal challenge for me today to do my best and I think I did the best I could possibly do. I averaged 16 mph and was the third person into the hotel out of 44 of us. Laura, the strongest female in the group by far, finished only 10 minutes before me so I felt very good about that. I needed a day like this to spur me on. The group is getting into a funk, it seems. We're with the same people for breakfast, lunch and dinner and we're running out of things to talk about! I'm very thankful I have a room to myself where I can get away from everyone and just be quiet and relax. Tomorrow we ride 75 miles and cross the Mississippi River into Quincy, IL. From here on out, we'll only be in each remaining state about 3 nights. I have a feeling this is going to be over before we know it. That will be a good and a bad thing as we will have to return to the real world where the most important things to us won't be which direction the wind is blowing and the weather forecast for the day!