Cycling Advocates Ride to Pro Walk Pro Bike 2006 |
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| Daily Trip Log | Jack |
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Picture of Vancouver, BC  |
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| from Madison to Delafield, WI | |||
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| Date: 2006-09-10 Distance: 76 Kilometres Cycling Time: 4.21 Hours Average Speed: 17.93 kph |
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| Trip Distance since Leaving Vancouver - 4,081 Kilometres | |||
Thoughts for the Day
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This was the first day of rain, well showery at least. Before departure this morning I checked the weather forecast for the day. One of the maps indicted that this area was just on the top of the rainy parts of the mid-west. Hoping that it would stay that way for the ride duration, we set off. | |
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After an hour the water started to drop from the skies, little at first. After two hours it stopped only to return just after lunch. For the next few days we will not escape more of it. | |
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The strange part was preparing for it after 40 or so days of sun and no rain. Well, it did rain some days during the night or after we had settled into a motel. I think that I have forgotten what I need to do. So, I got a bit wet instead. By morning all should be dry. | ||
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After doing some flat riding out of Monona the hills of the glacial moraines started. Nothing too demanding but a reminder that there are hills to climb on this trip. | |
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After an hour, the trailhead of the Glacial Drumlin State Trail was reached. This is an 80 kilometres trail that will take us into Waukesha tomorrow. | ||
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The trail ran mostly through agriculture lands with an occasional wood along the way. The trees that tend to grow along railway liens unfortunately blocked the view frequently. The gradient was quiet easy. The trail surface was in really good shape, except for three or four places. | |
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The Ironman event was on in Madison today attracting 2,500 participants and who knows how many spectators. So the trail usage was low today. We did encounter one group taking some young females out for a ride. | |
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With respect to the Ironman, as we sat having breakfast this morning one of the competitors came down quite nervous. She was late for the event and was trying to hurry her husband and children into the van to get downtown. All who seemed to want to go at their own pace. | |
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At dinner, our servant, a pharmacy student, told us that she was in training for a shorter Ironman event later this month but had to dropout as the entry fee was too high for her. She and her sister wanted to fid out what it was like in doing such an event. | |
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On of the frustrating things that we have found on this trip is the lack of sidewalks and walking space on highways, especially those that go under Interstate highways. In a democratic world one should have the right to choose which form of transportation one wants to take on any trip. But it seems that frequently that choice was taken away from you, unless you wish to subject yourself as targets for drivers. It seems that here there seems to be powers that are trying to force people into driving. How is that for democracy? How is that for the environment and for personal health? For the two do us, this stinks. | |
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Cycling Facilities
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Cycling into Milwaukee |
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| Cycling into Milwaukee really started in Dodgeville some 200 kilometres to the west. From there, most of the trip was on bike trails with occasional sections on roads. Many of these roads had a low volume of motorized vehicle traffic. Some had paved shoulders. Others did not. Some of the trails were interconnected. Others were not and required some road cycling. | |||
| Today, the trip included the Glacial Drumlin State Trail. | |||
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