June 18, 2003 Today was wonderful as we made our way from Chamberlain to Pierre, SD (BTW, the locals pronounce the name of their state capital, peer.) We had no mechanical problems of note, and the Team felt really strong after a rest day in Chamberlain. The bike is currently at the bike shop in Pierre getting some TLC (The bike shop is the Pedal and Paddle, and is owned by Jim Dial). When we broke the spoke the other day, Ron was not happy with the trueness of the wheel. In addition, the shifting had become a little sloppy. We felt it best to use some professional assistance, since it was available. As we left Chamberlain, we were faced by two of our best friends: a long climb and Mr. Headwind. The climb was gentle, but long, and as we reached the top, we stopped to enjoy the view behind us. It was spectacular to see Chamberlain and the Lake lighted by the morning sun. We were awed by the view, but little did we know that just ahead was something even better. The descent after our climb was very nice, smooth and long. We enjoyed it very much, but what blew us away was the view of the river. All the way down the hill we were able to enjoy the river and surrounds. It was just wonderful scenery - some of the best we have had since the Ohio River. We returned to regular climbing today. These were rollers, but the long, fairly gentle kind that seem to take forever to both climb and descend. They were spaced in such a way that that they broke up the ride, and made it just that much better. It seemed that we would climb up onto a plateau, stay on the level for a short while and then do a descent. We are not geologists, but suspect that these rollers were created by ancient rivers. They were fun! At 36 miles, we reached Mack's Corner and a sign that said, "No service for 46 miles." We filled our water bottles, took on some spare water for emergencies and set out to complete the ride. We had averaged 11 mph because of Mr. Headwind, but we threw him a curve, and made a left hand turn that made him take care of us. We averaged over 17 the rest of the way - with some climbing. They are doing a lot of work on bridges in this area, so we were stopped once, and had to observe stop signs two other times in the last 50 miles. While we were stopped, we talk with some locals. One was a guy who is a farmer (Looked to be about 30) and his farmer brother. It was neat to see some young people interested in growing our food. We also talked with the car ahead - they had three Chihuahuas and five people on board - that was interesting. We passed through an Indian Reservation today (The Crow ? Sioux), and saw lots of what appeared to be very large farms. The interesting part of it was that there were few houses and out buildings - we were in the middle of nowhere! The country was beautiful, however, and there were uncountable herds of cattle and a few buffalo. Our arrival in Pierre was interesting. There was little in the way of "outskirts" - we were just riding along, and suddenly here was a town. This is the capital of South Dakota, and one would expect some big buildings and the like. However, it looks like a cow town - which it really is. It is fairly prosperous, and tends to capture a feeling of the old west. We had little trouble getting around and finding the bike shop. The weather today was spectacular. The temperature, when we were stopped out on the highway, was 84, and the winds kept us cool when we were working hard (There are two nice things about headwinds - if they don't kill you, they make you stronger, and they keep you cool when it is hot!). The sun was out all day, and we were out of our warmers by 8:00 am. It is time to catch up with L&C. They arrived in Pierre on September 24, 1804, and almost stepped in a big pile of dodo! Their famous meeting with the Teton Sioux took place here, and it was the first time they were seriously threatened by the Indians. The Sioux would not let go of Clark's boat, so Clark drew his sword, and Lewis and the rest of the Corps quickly went to arms. This could have been the end of the expedition, since the Indians vastly outnumbered the Corps, if the parties had not taken the high road, and decided to try to get along. We hope we have many more days like today! Ron ...Note from LaValle Last night we stayed at the Best Western in Chamberlain. The complimentary breakfast was disappointing - a choice of toast or donuts. The other guests were a definite plus. Betty had driven from Illinois and had brought 22 boxes of books to the Indian School just north of town. The school sits on a former college campus and benefits from donations such as the one from Betty. She had gotten the books from the Catholic school that had closed near her home. Another young man was there with his father and they were going to North Dakota to mountain bike. As we left town, a deer stood on a point overlooking the river and turned to look at us before he made his descent - quite majestic! Today was also the first day for a magpie on this trip. And I also saw a Canadian flag - another first! When we reached Mac's Corner, Maytag, the dog, greeted us. She really liked to be petted and would have loved to have gone in the store. She was definitely on restriction. Jim Dial owns the Pedal and Paddle where we had the bike looked at today. He graduated from high school in Marin County and remembers Santa Rosa from 1981! I told him he wouldn't recognize it now. Later in the evening when we came back for the bike and to have dinner we were stopped by Chris Mullen from Fairfax, VA. He and two of his friends had left Washington, DC on May 7 and had done a similar route as ours although they didn't follow the Ohio. Later we met Dave when we were eating at La Minestra (the best food since lunch in Omaha). Also, I've only done the photos for today. I'll try to do June 15 tomorrow evening. Betty from Illinois Maytag - Mac's Corner's resident dog Jim Dial - Pedal and Paddle owner La Minestra - excellent Italian food Chris Mullen from Fairfax, VA Dave from Florida