Meet me in St. Louis
I apologize for the lack of blog posts these past few days. St. Louis certainly kept me busy these past few days. I rode in safely along the Katy Trail and arrived to ballpark No. 12! Busch Stadium, home of the Cardinals. Fun fact: the Brewers’ Bill Hall hit the first home run at the stadium back in 2006.
This All-Star break in St. Louis was great. The much needed rest was wonderful. On top of that, my parents came down from Wisconsin to meet up with me, as well as my cousins, Aunt, and Uncle from Norway who are visiting in the states. It was incredible to see them!
I visited St. Louis on a family vacation when I was younger, so with my cousins I was able to retrace some of the places I checked out as a kid. We hit up the six flags nearby for a day of rollercoasters and amusement rides. I couldn’t entice Johan, the youngest of the three to hop on a rollercoaster, but I did drag Helena and Nelle to hop aboard a wooden rollercoaster with me! They were champs! Johan may not have ridden the rollercoaster, but he did fall in love with the log flume!
I also was able to return to the City Museum. Now it’s hard to describe the City Museum and it’s beauty to anyone who’s never been there. It’s basically a heavenly playground for children with tunnels, caves, slides, and crevices for children to crawl through. It’s pretty much the coolest place ever. I went there on that previous family vacation and loved it. Of course I was afraid it would ruin my memoris of it. I’d be disappointed by it. Boy was I wrong. It was better than I remembered! Johan, dragged me through all the different tunnels. My 22 year old body couldn’t handle the tunnels made for 11 year olds. I figure, when Johan is 22, I’ll drag him back to the City Museum and make him crawl through all the tunnels. Sounds like a fair tradeoff.
I took my bike in for some much needed repairs. With the help of a local bike shop, my bike got a much needed facelift. A new chain, cassette, and tune up all helped prepare my baby for the second half of the trip. The shop did a great job of setting things up nicely. With all the miles I’m putting on the bike, she definitely needs some new parts and different tune ups. It’s a nice set up that will undoubtedly give me a good start to the second half of the trip! I’m now on my third tire on the back wheel. That’s right. I’ve gone through two tires already. Not tubes. Tires. That’s what a lot of riding does.
I attended the Cubs vs. Cardinals game on Friday at Busch Stadium! One of the best rivalries in baseball, in one of the best ballparks in baseball. It can’t get much better than that! I’ve now seen Dodgers and Giants in San Francisco, and Cubs vs. Cardinals in St. Louis. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to see the Red Sox and Yankees match up, but I’ll take two out of three.
I was able to take my Norwegian cousins to their first ever ballgame. Plus, because I was throwing out the first pitch at the game, I got to bring them out on the field. Johan in particular was in awe of the ballpark, it’s massiveness, and the abundance of fans. The girls were mostly just nervous about showing up on the jumbotron at some point during the game, but they too, appreciated the environment surrounding Busch Stadium. `A big thanks to everyone who helped provide tickets for the game. From the ownership group of the Cardinals, to Adam Wainwright, to Joshua with Merryl Lynch. All in all, the Cardinals really rolled out the red carpet for B4B.
My seats for the game were all inclusive which meant I got to eat so many calories for the next day’s ride. I snarfed down burgers, brats, nachos, and pretzels. The waitress knew my story as ‘the biker dude’ and made it her duty to ensure that I was well fed. She kept bringing all sorts of food! By the end of the game, I had trouble buckling up my belt, but I was fueled for the ride!
The game itself was a great one. Low scoring, but both teams had numerous scoring opportunities but couldn’t pull through. Greg Garcia, who caught my first pitch before the game, ended up hitting a game tying pinch hit home run. Oh yeah, it was also his first ever Major League home run! Congrats Greg! You see that? Get involved with B4B and you’ll hit a home run. The Cards ended up winning in extras on a walk off error on a bases loaded ground ball. The home team prevails again!
A big thanks to Dan, who sat with me throughout the game, and was an awesome host for the Cardinals. He showed me around the ballpark, got me food, and allowed me to take in a great game. We talked all about baseball, from Ryan Braun to the hacking scandal with the Cardinals. Not a topic was sparred. We both hate the DH and just appreciate America’s pastime. It’s truly something great. Thanks again Dan!
Today, I headed out towards Miami the next city on the list. It was tough to say goodbye to my family and parents, but at the same time I’m excited to hop back on two wheels. It’s a long leg, 1300 miles, makes it the longest leg of the entire trip. However, due to scheduling I’ve got to pedal my butt off. I’ll have to make it in 12 days. This is the toughest stretch of the trip starting today. This next month will consist of close to 3,000 miles. I’ve dubbed it the month from hell. I don’t have much spare time to help me in case of delays, so I’ve got to stay on schedule. It’ll be tough in some parts, but I’m up for the challenge.
I got 108 miles in the books today. Lock them up. With a nice tailwind from the north all day, it made for some great riding. I know that isn’t necessarily the norm, and I expect the wind to eventually shift to the south, but at least for today, I was able to enjoy some nice riding. My hosts tonight are great. They really know how to cook, and Dale even helped true my rear wheel. He’s had plenty of biking experience which means he’s got plenty of great stories. Hearing the stories of my hosts, is one of my favorite parts of lodging with strangers. It opens your eyes to new adventures and experiences, which is always a major plus.
I want to apologize for the huge amount of typos that more than likely occur throughout these blogposts. I type on a keyboard connected via bluetooth and often lags. Which means my words don’t type out how I would like. On top of that, I’m usually tired. Really tired. So I don’t really reread or proofread my posts. Which means, I just type out what pops into my head. Cookies? Mmmmmm. You get what I mean. This results in not the best grammar or spelling, but it gets the stories across. That’s what the blogposts are meant to do, right?
I’ll keep riding through the humidity and heat to keep on pace with the schedule. I’ll keep blogging for you guys too. Don’t worry. Until next time, just keep pedaling.
Matt