Day 34 Montevideo, MN to Hutchinson, MN

Last night, when we got the route sheet for today, we were all pleased to see that the route was almost completely flat!  There was less than 800 feet of elevation gain over 85 miles.  Sounds perfect.

On paper, that is.

Add in heat, wind, and humidity, and it's not so great.  Today was another tough ride, mostly because of those three factors I just mentioned, plus there wasn't a whole lot to look at, other than corn, soybeans, and hay.  

Mornings are good.  It was still relatively cool (if 75º at 7:00 am is cool), and I really like riding through small towns.  They're full of nice old houses and big shade trees.  This is Clara City, MN.

Sometimes, you just have to take a "selfie."

I like this red house and barn that I saw on the way to Danube, MN.

Olivia, MN, where we had our lunch stop, is the Corn Capital!  First, lutefisk.  Now, corn.  What will we see tomorrow?

Here are a couple more scenes on the way to Hutchinson.

This was another day that I would've loved to been able to stop at a convenience store, Dairy Queen, hardware store . . . any place that might have something cool.  Unfortunately, there was nothing on the way to the school, and I was not about to add any more miles to my day.  Fortunately, one of my coworkers, Susie Mongrain, has a good friend who lives in Hutchinson, and Sharon and her husband brought me some cold drinks and snacks.  That was so thoughtful!

Sadly, this is the last day for two riders who started with us in Everett.  Jack, from OH, and Terry, from IN, are brothers-in-law (and really nice guys) who rode with us for five weeks and are now leaving Cycle America to do RAGBRAI.  They will be missed.  Wishing you tail winds, guys!