Today's video is inspired from the shelter the Agape House at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Saratoga provided for me during a storm, combined with the work of Dr. Edwin Friedman. I ask: are we the kind of leaders who create calm and a shelter from the storm?
Day 27 was a short day as I gingerly put my improvised repairs back to the test on the road. The pedal assist worked for a few minutes, then failed for good. RIP little motor. I have to move on without you.
With the wind, climbing, and lack of pedal assist, I reflowed my daily plans and dialed back the miles for a few days so I can be sure to make it to a safe destination before nightfall with confidence.
A passenger in a pick-up truck yelled out the window at me today: "Hey, get your flag out the middle of the road." What could I do but chuckle. Unbeknown to me, the crosswind created a measuring stick from my flag to help vehicles give me at least a few feet of space. That's even more critical in a crosswind when gusts cause rapid changes in my riding line. I'm glad the person caught my attention to keep my eye on my flag. It was uprooted and flung from my trailer twice along the way with the extreme dancing around it did today. I recaptured my flag with minimal backtracking.
Saratoga, Wyoming welcomes cyclist in so many ways--from TransAm riders, to Great Divide riders, to the Agape House at St. Barnabas to shelter cyclists and hikers, to the Hobo Hot Springs to soothe sore muscles, to a ministry to help every child in the community to have a bicycle. This cycling art captures the spirit with windmills made from bicycle forks and wheels with stained glass installed between the spokes.
