Day 36
Day By Day Notes From The Road
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This document updated Wednesday, August 6th, 2004
La Porte to Kendallville Indiana - 88 Miles
By Erwin:
Today felt like the beginning of the end - in a good way. The ride was easy, over flat lands, with a tailwind and through Amish country. The atmosphere among all the riders was great! It was one of the best days of the ride so far.
Two aspects made today's ride one of the best. First, we rode with a large group of people close together and we found ourselves in different pace-line combinations throughout the day. Our cameramen, Mark and his son Sam, made circles around us, pulling up beside us to get the best shots from the side. The atmosphere was very relaxed.
Second, we made some really nice stops and got to know the Amish and Mennonite people living in northern Indiana. After about 40 miles, we stopped at am Amish bakery and had some excellent apple fritters and cinnamon rolls. Then, while we were flying in a pace line of 6, we almost missed an Mennonite lady, her daughter and grand-children. She was sitting by the side of the road with home-baked cookies, milk and ice-water, specially for us! Very nice!
Later, we came through the town of Topeka, Indiana, a very charming town where many Amish live. We stopped at a restaurant where many of the Amish horse carriages were tied up, while their owners were eating inside. Inside, we had some of the best pie ever (I had to try the Dutch Apple pie, but the "Fresh Peach and Cream Cheese" pie was special.
Later still, we ran into another Amish lady, who had also come out to cheer us on. Other years, she had also received the Big Riders with food and other treats, but unfortunately, she had been unable to find out on time what day we were coming. She gave us her address and we promised to write her a letter to inform her when next year's rider will be coming through her town.
Tomorrow should be another pretty manageable day; only 70 miles and probably a tail wind. Also, the route is supposed to be very flat - the flattest of the ride.
By Lucija:
Today was the first time on this trip when I did not want the day to be over when I pulled into our campsite. Despite the 90 miles of biking, I wanted the day to go on! I think the big difference between today and other days is that we had numerous chances throughout the day to interact with people along the route. It was really fun to chat with the Mennonite and Amish people and get a glimpse into their lifestyle. In return, it was really neat to see the interest they took in our voyage, and the unquestionable generosity with which they welcomed us with homemade cookies and spare batteries for our cameras. The biggest surprise for me today was that these small pockets of communities have managed to retain their German heritage. For example, the children of the last Amish lady with whom we spoke did not yet know how to speak English. The little boy (aged 4) and his sister (age 6) spoke a dialect of German to each other. Every time a new cyclist approached us, the little girl would announce "dort kommt noch ein!". In her light blue dress, sky blue eyes, and blond hair pulled up in a bonnet, she looked like a little angel. I wish I had taken her photo to share with you.
The only downside to biking through Amish communities is that the nutritional value of our meals drops severely - the stuff they make is just too good to pass up! Today's ride included: A stop at a Mennonite bakery at mile 40 for an apple fritter and a maple cinnamon roll. Yum. A cookie at the surprise rest stop at mile 50. A cherry pie with ice cream at Tiffany's restaurant (see below) at mile 70. Not too bad, eh?
Photos:
Our first surprise of the day. A rest stop (cookies, milk, and ice water) by a Mennonite lady and her grandchildren.
The parking lot outside of Tiffany's restaurant. We added our bikes to the mixture of cars, horses and buggies before jumping inside for homemade pies and ice cream.