Hot and Humid. At the heat of the day the temperature was 31 feeling like 38! I don't really like heat to this degree. My team had our last day of breakfast prep this morning so we were at it just before 7:30am helping make pancakes, sausage and setting up the serving tables. We were already warm and feeling the humidity by 8:30. We were shuttled to the United Presbyterian Congregational church just before 9. They have a very nice building. It was also warm in there even with all the fans. The songs were all from the blue hymnals and the sermon was based off the wheels of our bikes. The pastor did a good job with his analogy. They provided us with lunch but we had to wait almost an hour until noon so (after seeing in their bulletin an ad for their canasta club) we pulled out a deck of cards and played Up and Down the River! It was a lot of fun. We had some good laughs and the time passed a lot quicker. Lunch was fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, corn and salads, it was delicious. After lunch we caught the shuttle van back to camp where we grabbed our dirty laundry and got on the next available shuttle to Zak's Laundromat and Car wash. A very nice laundromat with fast machines! We were there for a while since there was a lineup, but it had wi-Fi so we updated blogs while waiting. I snacked on some of the siroop waffles from Aunty Margaret, I'd been saving them - they were still soft and chewy!
Before dinner I cleaned my bike chain. We were also blessed with a local mechanic volunteering his time all afternoon to look at anyone's bikes. I had him look at mine because my gears werent shifting smoothly and he tightened my back derailleur and adjusted my front derailleur because it was out of line and rubbing the chain. My bike now rides smooth as a freshly paved road. After Dinner we had our peloton with a very special guest. Clare Elgersma, the lady who was cycling side by side with Clarence Doornbos when they were hit, came and told us about that day and how she and Clarence's family are doing. Please continue to pray for them and also for the 85 year old man who hit them, as he is going through a very trying time as well. She reminded us to be road safe and aware but not to let our worries and fears strangle the passion we have for riding. After our small group, one of my team members came up to me and complimented me on being an excellent leader. He said (paraphrased) Remember what you said at the beginning, how you weren't a great leader, that's not true, you're actually a very gifted leader. That compliment means a lot to me, I am a people pleaser but I also have a hard time accepting compliments. I thanked him for the compliment and then thanked him for being a great part of our team. We have a team that works really well together and are always there ready to work on time. It has been a huge blessing. Onto our 6th Week....
Weekly Totals
810km
37h 6min
22.3km/h
2058m elevation climbing