Great Falls to Sidney

Great Falls to Sidney

6-8 – Halfway to Lewistown: With no support vehicle we chose to do half a day’s ride to Stanford and then coming back to Great Falls. Tomorrow we will go on to Lewistown from Stanfrod.
Kristi’s Cookin’: Many thanks to Kristi Milligan and her husband Larry for the great hospitality they showed us over the past couple of days. Kristi is an amazing cook and baker. We really appreciate the load of cookies that Kristi equipped us with for the trip down the road.
Belt – Home of Fine Beers: Belt Montana has two really fine breweries. This is somewhat of an oddity for the size of the town. Our favorite was the Charley Russell Red.
First Ace in the Hole: A little past Belt is the site of the “First Ace in the Hole – Alpha One.” This is where the first nuclear missile was located in Montana. It is very common to see nuclear missile sites in this part of Montana.
Thanks to Jarod: Special Thanks to Jarod Milligan for the use of his truck to shuttle us along today as well as tomorrow.

6-9 – Trade Winds:
Will we ever get there? When we got dropped off today at 1:30 in Stanford we had 45 miles to go to Lewistown. Yesterday’s delightful tailwind had turned into a 20 mile an hour headwind. On our first climb right out of town we were trudging uphill at the breakneck speed of 4.5 miles per hour. A quick check of the math had us pulling into Lewistown at about 11:00 PM. The good news is that the wind switched as did our route. In the end the wind was pushing into Lewistown at 6:00 PM.
What are the chances? Gary left Missoula sometime earlier in the day while we started riding from Stanford at 1:30 PM. At the same time we rode into Lewistown Gary pulled in right behind us just as it started to rain. We could not have timed it better had we tried.
There’s No Place Like Home: Tonight Mackey chose to leave the ride and return home to Lisa and Mary. We will miss Mackey’s humor and warmth. Mackey is not so much leaving the ride as he is going home to his mother, sister and friends.

6-10 – Daisy: Daisy was the
Kozy Korner: This morning we had a great ride with a very favorable wind. After going for 55 miles we stopped in Winnett to have breakfast at the Kozy Korner. It was at the Kozy Korner that we got the heads up about the Taj Mahal.
The Taj Mahal: The Taj Mahal is possibly the world’s most luxurious wayside stop and it’s located in the middle of nowhere. Nowhere is located just east of the Musselshell River on highway 200. There are only private, individual bathrooms that probably get fewer than 10 customers per day. This had to be an earmark for Baucus to Tester. The historical information at the Taj was quite interesting and included reference to Jeremiah Johnson.
Daisy: Tonight we stayed at the town of Sand Springs with Daisy as our hostess. Daisy has run the Sand Springs store since 1956. She is going to retire at the end of the year so she can travel to see her children and grand children in Oklahoma, Wyoming and Montana. When Daisy closes up the Sand Springs store the only establishments that will remain will be a school house that will have two students next year and the post office.
Scrabble Icons: I have only played Scrabble a couple of times in my life. I have nothing against the game it’s just not something I have done much. Tonight I got hooked into a game with two Scrabble aficionados, Gary and Katie. It was like being in the ring with Ali and Frazier. It got so bad that when they talked about the score they would say ‘it’s 102 to 105,” like there were only two players. Did you know that “ex” was a word? I did not and still don’t think it is. My advice to avoid the ultimate in humbling experience, make sure you know who you are playing with when you play Scrabble/
Early to Bed: We went to bed at 7:30. I will probably wake up at 4:30 AM. I like early, but really, 7:30?

6-11 – Circle the Wagons:
False Advertizing: Anyone who tells you that east-central Montana is “flat as a pancake,” as we have been told on several occasions, has never ridden highway 200 on a bicycle. When you top one hill you can sometimes see as many as the next four hills all on the straight line of the highway. It has been a daunting task.
“It’s Huge”: That is what Katie said as we rolled down the hill into Circle. Obviously Circle isn’t very big, but when compared with Winnett, Sand Springs, Mosby (which is best described as a bridge rather than a town, I don’t care what the official state map says) Circle seemd positively urban.
The Kuchen Kitchen: This is the name of a wonderful little bakery that we encountered upon entering Circle. Kathy is the owner and only baker. Kathy is a long time resident of Circle. She has a sophomore son who is the running back on the football team. She also has two daughters, one of whom was on the first state champion basketball team to come out of circle. They won the title in 2007.
Wyatt: On our nightly walk around town we came across Wyatt, a local fourth grader who gave us a guided tour of town. Wyatt was quite a character. After the tour of the school buildings he pointed out the Lutheran Church. He then postulated, “Circle has a lot of churches, more than we need.” There was something in his comment that reminded us of Will Rogers. I think Wyatt has quite a future.
Popcorn Heaven: Wyatt was on his way to the Claret Theater in Circle for the Friday night showing of Shreck III in 3-D. We walked in to look at the renovated theater and were favorably impressed. What impressed me the most was the fact that each customer was able/allowed to put your own butter on the buttered popcorn. Needless to say I bought some and put enough butter on to have the kernels floating in the bag.
“The other guy”: After leaving the theater we headed back to the RV. Along the way we walked by a young man (I’d guess 8 years old) who we said hello to. He was just playing with a bucket in the dirt and said something that we could not make out. I asked him to repeat what he said which was “You’re stupid.” I asked him, “Do you think I’m stupid?” He said, ‘No the other guy.” Gary and I both got a big kick out of that.
Two Centurions: We did over 100 miles each of the last two days. Those would be the first two one hundred mile rides that Katie has ever done and the first two I have done in about 26 years. All in all we seem to be no worse for wear.

6-12- On the Edge:
Early to Rise: We were on the bikes at 6:20 this morning. The motivation was to get to Sidney in time to watch the US – England Soccer (OK, OK, football) match.
Cattle Ac Café: If you are aver in Sidney we highly recommend, just as the locals do, the Cattle ac Café. The meal was great, but the desert was the truly unique aspect of the meal. Have you ever had deep fried cheesecake? Well we have and we highly recommend it.
“Where’s the Tires?” Sidney is not a small town and yet there was only one store that sold bike tires, and none in the size we needed. We are OK for now, but are looking to carry more spares. Based on our route, Fargo on the other side of ND may be our best bet.
So Long Montana: Tomorrow we cross the Yellowstone River and begin our trek across North Dakota.