Day 15: Bismarck to Gackle

After writing the blog last night, I put in some work on Wes' bike before going to bed. The back deurailer cable had snapped inside the shifter in the front. I had to pull out the snapped wire and thread the a new one. All of this work was done in the bathroom as Wes and Will had already fallen asleep.

I arose later that usual this morning because Wes wanted a spare tire and two tubes for the bikes. The shop didn't open until 10am. So I woke up at 9:15, packed the car and drove on over to Epic Sports. There I talked to Jacob who hooked me up with the proper gear. Then, I headed south out of Bismarck and back into the farmland of North Dakota.

Alex

I pull up to Hazelton around 11:30, expecting to see Wes and Will at the gas station convenience store. To my surprise they are not there. I check my phone and I see a text from Wes:  If you see Alex in Hazelton, I told him we would carry his stuff. We are both going to Gackle tonight. Alright, I thought. Cool, I'll just pick up this old guy's stuff from him and head up to find Will and Wes. I walk back into the convenience store looking for a cyclist, but don't see anyone that fits the profile. I get frustrated and just say "Alex" in an inquisitive tone and he looks up.

Pleased to see me, he gets up and introduces himself with a smile. He doesn't have a helmet, bike shorts or shoes on; just a t-shirt, gym shoes and shorts. Alex was also planning on riding the Norther Tier. After a few minutes of conversation, I learned a few things about him:  Alex is from Philadelphia, he's 20 and attends College at William Patterson University in New York. He is a Jazz pianist, but jokes about not having a job after college, and wants to also major in Biology. This trip was somewhat of a casual "sure, whatever, I'll do it". Unlike Will and Wes, he has no car support. All of his gear is in the front and back racks of his bike. Once I took most of his luggage, he was chugging along.

It turns out that Will and Wes were in fact in Hazelton, just not at the gas station. They had gone to Main street for lunch. Not knowing this, I drove 15 miles up the road before turning around, meeting them for a quick stop 8 miles out of town.

At this point in the day, the sun was full blaze. When Wes dismounted his bike and stood on the tar used to patch the cracks in the road. The tar melted onto his cleat and made it impossible to clip into. After 15 minutes, I had worked out enough tar to get the cleat working again. The bikers were back in business and hopped on their bikes after only a slight delay.

18 miles down the road I met for the final checkpoint. Alex stopped by first to collect some more water, stopped to chat a bit and kept going. About 20 minutes later, Wes and Will arrive. Wes had a slow leak he repaired a few miles back, but now they were turning North, which gave them a tail wind. We had initially talked about camping in Gackle, but something had come up. Alex knew somebody in the town that housed bikers who were doing long rides much like ours. Somewhat intrigued, we decided to crash there.

The house was empty when we arrived. Apparently the family had taken a vacation to California, but kept his house open to bikers passing by. The rooms were small, but who could complain? While there were no bees on the premises, it was apparent that he worked for the Singer energy food company, which is quite ironic as the mascot for the company is a bee.

After settling in, I went for my run. I ran on a farm road that went North. The pond I passed was home to a diverse number of birds, including a loon, pelican, arctic turn, and a Furriginous hawk. On my way back, I started to book it, as the sun seemed to be setting faster than I anticipated. By the time I returned to the house, it was 9:30 and the sun had not totally disappeared. After a quick shower, I hit the sack, anticipating an early departure.