2017 Kevin and I ride across Wisconsin

The adventure started (not counting a couple of years of talking about it and a few months planning) about 5:45 am on June 14.  We started at the Illinois / Wisconsin state line where the Badger State Trail begins.  We planned on traveling light with minimal clothes and supplies knowing we would have opportunities to resupply along the way.  Also staying at motels during the trip eliminated the need for a lot of stuff to be carried.  Kevin had a Trek 7.5 hybrid bike and I was riding my Trek CrossRip 2.  Our first challenge started when Kevin realized he forgot to grab his water bottles from the freezer before they left from home.  So – we decided to share the water I had until Madison Wisconsin where he would buy replacements – It was 70 and clear – a great start.

After a time of prayer, we started on the trail at a relaxed pace, about 10mph just to get the legs warmed up.  It was easy going on the crushed limestone and we weren’t in a hurry as the plan was for about 115 miles and included navigation through Madison and Portage Wisconsin. Goal was to spend the night at Westfield. We have ridden these trails so often that it just felt like a normal Saturday ride.  We picked up the pace to about 12mph after an hour which was our planned cruising speed. This wasn’t a sprint but more of an endurance ride. Once in Madison, we hopped on the Canonball trail to the Capitial City trail and took our first long break at Panera in Fitchburg.  We had planned to get off the bikes every 2 hours minimum for 15 minutes and then about 45 minutes after the 4^th hour for an extended break and refuel.  We ate well at Panera having just finished our first 42 miles.    The next stop was to a bike shop to get water bottles and water. From there we connected to local trails and hopped on Portage Road.  This started the move from trails to back country roads, which would be the remainder of the day. 

As we headed out of the metro area we realized the heat really jumped up. It was reading 95-101 degrees due to the sun reflecting up from the blacktop – and no shade in sight! We were blessed with a nice tailwind that helped to keep the effort and body temps a bit lower. What I love about the midwest where we live – it only took a few miles and we went from urban to the middle of nowhere just looking at the beautiful farms of southern Wisconsin.   Hardly a car was in sight.  Our speed picked up quickly to the 16-18 mph range and we enjoyed some very long gradual downhill runs that allowed us to coast and save energy.  Energy we would need for some unplanned sprinting a couple hours later…

One remarkable road we found was Dunning Road – which had some of our first real hills, but also beautiful scenery.  Ponds, fields, trees, etc.  Our biggest challenge however, quickly became water.  We were going through our reserves much quicker than planned with the heat. So we just kept tabs on that, as we didn’t want to get behind the hydration needs of our body.  We knew we had a long three days – so staying fed and watered properly were going to be critical so that we could perform each day. 

As we continued closer to Portage, we started to see dark clouds on the horizon and checked the radar.  Yep – the promised afternoon storms were on the way and headed for us.  This was going to require us to push harder to make it to shelter.  Which meant we definitely needed to resupply with water quickly and hit the gas. Had about 15 miles to go before we had shelter and our midday stop planned for Portage Wi.

As we rounded a corner discussing what to do – we saw an older man weeding a large garden in his front yard.  We stopped and he (Don) let us fill up from his hose.  It was a great treat of fresh, cold well water.    We chatted for a bit and learned he was 77 and loved gardening.  He was a bit amazed that we were trying to ride the entire state in 3 days, but wished us well.  We couldn’t stay long as the storm was rapidly approaching on the western horizon. So with renewed energy and more than a bit of anticipated fear of the black skies, we pushed on.

As with many hot summer day storms – the rain started first and felt great.  After being on the hot blacktop without shade for hours – it cooled us down and gave us much needed refreshment.  We knew we were close to Portage, we also knew the storm looked severe so we rode as fast as we could to get to shelter.  At the outskirts of Portage we saw a small gas station and made it just as the first deluge hit.  A tremendous downpour that immediately flooded the parking lot.  We took the time to get snacks and more water and checked the radar again.  There were two bands of storms coming, the first that we were experiencing were much smaller than the big one coming And the radar showed it was going to be severe. 

We checked the map, looked at the radar, and then had to make a quick decision. Stand at the gas station for a couple hours or try to make a place to sit and rest.  The rain from the first band had slowed to a sprinkle.  We found Dairy Queen 2 miles down the road and quickly decided to mount up and sprint to the DQ.  Radar showed we had about 15 minutes before the big wave came.  After both nearly wiping out crossing some wet train tracks – we were peddling hard and fast as the rain started to pick up again.  Then the temperature dropped… and I mean dropped like 30 degrees in a couple seconds. The wind swirled the previously blessing of a south wind was now also hitting from the west, then the north, then south, then west. Heads were down and I lead the way as we peddled hard.  About 200 yards from the DQ, I was hit with a huge gust from the North, which took my speed from the 17-18 mph range to about 8 mph instantly.  It was like hitting a wall.  Then it hit from the side which was an additional motivation to get to shelter soon as it tried to push me over.  At this point, I was ready to duck into a car dealership that was close or the other gas station right before the DQ.  So I again accelerated hard.  Kevin was about 25 yards behind me.  Looking in my mirror, he was also head down plowing forward as hard as possible.  And then it hit…..  A gust came from my left (West) that hit me and blew me straight off the road into the ditch.  It was so quick that I only remember the force of the wind and then sliding in the grass to a stop.  It was so quick and strong there wasn’t even time to react. Fortunately the grass was wet and it was on a small hill so there was no damage to my body or bike. What a demonstration of the power of wind!!! One second you are riding about 15+ mph and the next second you are on the ground.  Kevin didn’t see me fall, but came up and asked what happened.  He was far enough back that he didn’t get hit by the gust.  We quickly got back on the bikes and sprinted to the DQ. The adrenaline was really pumping at this time!  I wasn’t interested in getting blown over onto pavement which would have been MUCH more painful. 

Fortunately, we made the DQ without incident. We grabbed some food, rested and check maps. Once it started to clear we mounted up and headed North again. It was then we realized we were just grazed by a major straight line wind event that hit the town. Trees were down, fences blown over and several buildings were damaged.  Had we been a little further down the road with that hit – not sure we would have avoided injury.

The rest of the ride was pretty and mostly on quiet roads.  The only challenge I faced was getting a sour stomach after having too much sugar as part of my refueling at the DQ.  It made the last 15 miles not as fun as the first 100.  We arrived in Westfield about 6:30 pm.  Tired and ready for a big supper.  We checked into the motel, showered and went to a local restaurant in town for a celebratory meal.  Bed time came early as we closed the books on Day 1.

Day 2 started with a big pancake breakfast. We then headed out of town and about 30 minutes later we found ourselves on a secluded road.  Trees, deer, turkeys, streams, woods, and picturesque farms.  We found an awesome field of wildflowers that required us to stop and take pictures.  We continued to ride for about an hour and then hit the flat lands of central Wisconsin.  Basically the roads were flat, straight, and between some big farms.  While the scenery wasn’t great – we picked up speed and covered a lot of miles.  Unfortunately – I missed a turn in the directions and we found ourselves on a gravel road.  Looking at the map we would have to do 5 miles of gravel continuing on straight north, go back 3 miles to where I missed the road, or improvise.  We improvised…   took a short  ride down a gravel side road, found a paved county road and rode to the town of Bancroft.  At Bancroft we found a gas station, got snacks and cooled off a bit.  Temperatures were 100+ at this point of the day and shade was non-existent.  At the gas station we met a local character having some coffee with a friend.  We asked how many miles to Plover/Stevens Point from there, he guessed 30+ miles.  Having had just checked the maps it looked like 19, so we were a bit concerned for his accuracy.  When we said, “can’t be 30” he said “well how far do you want it to be!” which gave us a chuckle and one of our lines that was often repeated for the rest of the ride.  We got some directions and headed off after chatting with the “old man from Bancroft”.   Unfortunately – the directions he gave ALSO included gravel.  So, again, we improvised and actually found our way back to the original route. We were pretty well baked at this point and after about 12 miles we found a gravel bike trail the Tomorrow River State trail, which led us into Plover.  After some navigation on city roads we found ourselves another Panera and spent an hour eating and enjoying the air conditioning.  And ate we did!    We were 56 miles into day two with at total of 175 miles completed since the ride began.  So the bodies were looking for lots more calories and fluids.  But the inevitable came – time to head out and push for Wausau, the hotel, and the hot tub that awaited us.  However our desire to make good time was foiled. The town had been struck with a major storm 3 days earlier and several of the bike paths were under construction.  So… detours, reroutes, closed trails, more detours….   Until finally – we found our exit out of the city and started North again.  We spent over an hour going 6 miles – so that wasn’t our most productive time for sure!   Once on the open road – we felt good again, still over 95 degrees, but we were making progress.  even in hill country.  Lots of ups and downs!   Which is where another of our phrases developed…  “I’ve got some good news (down hill) and some bad news (bigger up hill on the horizon).  And it seemed that the ups were more plentiful than the downs.  We were definitely gaining elevation.   We made a quick stop at a local country pub for some AC and some water.  We both also had a Pepsi for some added calories.  As we approached the Kronenwetter/Schofield/Wausau area we had our first close call with a vehicle.  Some folks just think its ok to squeeze between the biker and an oncoming car at 50+mph.  The truck was about 2 feet away from Kevin, which was a scary thing.  Then within a few hundred yards a car decided to pass us on a blind curve.  Seems like the folks around that area were in too much of a hurry.  We survived both incidents and made our way onto the bike paths headed toward our destination.  We arrived at the hotel, took showers and then hit the hot tub.  It was a nice way to relax at the end of day 2.  Our support crew (wives) showed up with fresh clothes and supplies for day 3.  We all had dinner together, organized our cue sheets for next day and passed out for the night. 

Day 3 started slow as the bodies were tired from 220 miles ridden in two days and lots of heat.  The plan was to take it easy for the first hour of riding to get warmed up and then make our dash for the Michigan state line.  We quickly found the escape route out of Wausau.  We knew we would have about 10 miles on a busy road – but it was the best option unless we wanted to add about 12 miles of additional hilly miles.  The wake up call started about 15 minutes into the ride as we hit a hill the locals call “steepie”.  A hill that people don’t drive down in the winter because of the possibility of not stopping at the bottom and numerous roll over accidents.  We started up the hill but quickly were forced to do the walk of shame… With tire legs the risk of cramps so early in the day was too big to ignore. There were 120 more miles to go for the day. This was the only part of the entire trip we walked…   So day 3 started with several challenges.  Including coasting 35+mph down hills with trucks rolling past on some busy roads.  It was at this point we wish we had a different route.  Traffic was not being bike friendly.  Fortunately there was a construction zone that slowed down traffic and gave us a reprieve.  Finally we got to Merrill and knew we were done with the busy roads for the day.  Merrill started to smell and look like the North woods! We even had a great ride along the Wisconsin River as we approached Tomahawk.  After a nice lunch at a local café and re-supplied with food/drink.  Since I had had a bad stomach for the latter parts of Day 1 / Day 2.  I tried a different fueling strategy.  No sugars, only breads.  I was trying to figure out what my body wanted late in a big exercise day (8+ hours).  I had a similar problem when running my first Ultra Marathon where I got sick about mile 33 – so I was hoping my hunch on the sugar was right.  Only time would tell…. I grabbed some muffins and hoped for the best

Upon leaving Tomahawk we planned on riding the Hiawatha state trail to connect us to the county roads we were looking for.  The trail was gravel/sand.  While being pretty it wasn’t the easiest to ride.  So we jumped off as soon as we could and hit the roads again – right about the time rain clouds developed.  Sure – the weather forecast said it was a 7% chance of rain.  We hit the 7%.  But – neither of us complained – it made the day cooler and the rain wasn’t too bad.   Turns out it was another blessing that helped us reach the finish line.   After navigating the country roads we make it to Lake Tomahawk and then St. Germain where we met up with our wives again.  At this point we had 90 miles in for the day and 30 to go.  We reloaded food/water, took some pictures and found a short cut using local roads that would save some time.  From here on out – the roads were largely empty and totally beautiful.  The rain subsided and the scenery was awesome as we came upon small lakes/ponds/streams in the woods.  30 miles to go and 2 ½ hours until sunset. We pushed on and actually had our fastest pace during our final segment of the ride.  In general we averaged 12 mph up to this point.  Obviously higher on the roads and much slower in town / on the big hills.  This last segment we flirted with 13 mph and still had significant hills.  But it didn’t really matter – we knew that barring some mechanical issue – we would make it.  The change in my refueling strategy worked like a charm.  Breads and some fresh fruit!    I was able to figure out that late in a big day of exercise too much refined sugar was a bad thing for me.  I was feeling great and the legs were strong!

The wives went ahead to the ending place on Thousand Island Lakes Road – where it crossed from Wisconsin into Michigan.  We took the final down hill at full speed down and climbed the other side to the top for the finish, crossed the state line and we had made it.  Melanie and Kathi were there to take pictures and give hugs….  Along with 1 million billion mosquitos…..  We quickly loaded bikes while swatting bugs and headed to town for a celebratory dinner. 

We ended up riding 338 miles in three days.  Had one big storm, a few hours of rain, about 5000 feet of elevation gain and 4100 feet of descent.  One bike crash (me with the wind) and 2 vehicular near misses.  One hill walked and several neat people met along the way. 2 days of 90-100 heat, two re-routes due to missed roads.  It was about 27 hours of actual riding time with a final composite average of 12.5 mph.  We definitely owe big thank you to our wives who helped us throughout the trip.  Also a big shout-out to Kevin my riding partner.  He did an amazing job on the ride! So our first cross state was in the books – and we started planning for some more adventures on the way home!