Ozarks

It's funny how much we look forward to little things. Five days ago a group of cyclists heading west told us we had to go to Hayes Cafe in Houston and order pancakes. I'm not even particularly fond of pancakes yet they have been on my mind ever since. So of course we started the morning with pancakes and they were well worth the anticipation, one pancake was almost more then I could eat.
Early morning rolling hills gave way to some more serious climbs as the day wore on. One hill in particular will forever be etched in my mind. Right at the moment I glimpsed it I heard the dogs barking. Joe was in the lead and four took off after him. I took a moment to compose myself and then charged towards them, this brave move was before another 12 burst out of the woods. I honestly have no idea what 16 of the most viscous dogs you can imagine are doing in the middle of nowhere, I am pretty sure they must just form packs and pass their days hunting cyclists. Needless to say I was terrified, luckily at some point during the 300ft climb they stopped snapping at my calves. When I reached the top I was trembling with adrenaline and more out of breath then at any other point in the trip. Looking back I surveyed a road strewn with dogs and had the satisfaction that we were better hill climbers then them. One other monster of a hill is worth mentioning, it rose just over 400 feet in .71 miles, very steep.
We ended the day by bathing in a perfectly cold river right outside of town and have just set up our tents on the court lawn. We rode 91 miles today for a total of just over 2,700 miles thus far and are currently in the town of Centerville, Mo.-Lucas

1 comment:

  1. OMG! The dogs are so scary! When I ride in Ohio, I will not take the back roads by myself because of the chasing dogs, but a huge pack of them would be so scary. I am hoping for NO more dog encounters for you guys. Rog says cold here this weekend, wondering what temps you guys are having?

    You are doing great! Still jealous.

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