As of last night, the forecast did not look good for today, and we both wanted an excuse to stay with the Lantz’s for an extra day. The thought of snuggling up on their couch with their weighted blanket and watching Hoosiers sounded extremely appealing. Against our snow day-like prayers, it was completely dry when we woke up. We packed up our belongings, made some sandwiches for the road, and began an 82-mile journey on a 70-degree day with our raincoats ready. The quiet Indiana roads have really been a highlight because we can go fast but also feel incredibly safe.
We took few breaks and hit the ground running (riding?) for the first 20 miles that featured road and trail riding. My legs were a little tired and knees were sensitive to start the day, but I did not know whether that was due to the weather or the jump shots we put up yesterday. And indeed, the weather caught up to us. In the late morning, the rain began and was on and off until the end of our ride. Thank goodness for my new, sporty, orange raincoat! We also were hit with some headwinds mid-ride, which made me fear that we would never get to our destination.
Noblesville, Frankfort, Kirklin, and other towns fell into the rearview, and we had our sights set on West Lafayette. I stayed motivated by singing some old classics: Leader Of The Pack by the Shangri-Las and There But for the Grace of God Go I by Machine. My mom introduced these songs to me ages ago, and they have been a staple of every long car ride since I can remember. Music has been pivotal to my day-to-day enjoyment of this journey. Charlie can attest that I am almost always singing, especially when the ride gets rough.
We finally pulled up to West Lafayette, the home of the Boilermakers, around 6 o’clock. Our host, Ethan, gave us tour of Purdue’s campus. We were so impressed by the size of the Mackey Arena and the simple sophistication of the campus. We ate Chipotle for dinner, which was fitting as Charlie and I have been rapping the Chipotle line in THat Part by ScHoolboy Q since the GAP Trail. Charlie spent the rest of the night playing chess with Ethan (I wish I was good enough at chess to partake). I used the evening to facetime friends who I have not spoken to in TOO LONG!
The weather tomorrow looks rainier than today, so we might start later in the day. We will be sticking to quiet roads and seeing lots of cows, horses, and corn fields. Today we saw a llama, which we thought was a bit random but cool. We are trying to reach Chicago by Friday with about 135 miles remaining. We have two solid rides ahead of us, but neither of us can complain about the roads or the warm weather. Another day, another dollar.
- Maddie
Total miles: 947.4
Hinge success stories: 2
Queen of cheesy mantras, cheesy music.....😘