Day 13: The Incredible Flatness of Being

Day 13 marked our first real day on the Great Plains. After a great breakfast at the Methodist Church (Thank you!) we headed east, and it became clear very soon that the spectacular scenery of the past 12 days were behind us, and the Big Fix's challenge would become mental as well as physical. We passed through several small towns, including two where we were treated to lunch (Sugar City) and a rest stop (Haswell).
We also saw one of the nicest outhouses anywhere--part of the "Prairie Horizons Trail," a bike route through the prairie. Check out the photos.
Today was also the first opportunity in some time to get the entire Big Fix crew together in a paceline. We were joined on the ride by pastors Steve and Gary, who rode with us and who were both trying out their first 100-mile rides. With the assistance of all the BF riders (except Mojo, whose inner muse said "sprint!"), they made it to Eads--sore, but with their first centuries.
Arriving in Eads, we showered at the fairgrounds and then had dinner provided by members of Gary's church--sloppy joes, chips, and lots of cake and ice cream for dessert.
After dinner, we watched a huge thunderhead develop to the southeast; it was gone the next morning.
The Hard As Nails award went to Ricky G, who has truly been HAN since the beginning of the ride. The SAG award--in this case, "Solo And Gone" went to Mojo, in recognition of his 100-mile breakaway effort.
Four riders--Greg, Ricky, Mojo, and Eric--remained "EFI" after today's ride.