Marshfield, Wi to Appleton, Wi

July 12, 2003

Westbound: Chippewa Falls to Marshfield Eastbound: Appleton to Manitowoc

Marshfield to Appleton: A long day with a great stop, nice riding, and a super supper.

I was up early and went to the nearby Hardee’s for a breakfast sandwich. I then got underway toward Steven’s Point. I wanted to stop at the Hostel Shoppe to replace the right mirror broken July 5 on the way to Fargo. I also wanted to talk to them about my seat back. It seemed like the fabric was stretching allowing me to sit further back on the seat pan. Doing so, however, put my flesh atop a rigid edge producing discomfort. I had found that if I used a zip tie to pull on the seatback’s industrial zip ties, I could increase the tension on the seat and protect my tender flesh. It worked but seemed like patchwork or even a kludge.

The ride to Stevens Point was lovely. SR 13 led to U.S. 10. Neither had heavy traffic. I reached the store before noon and presented my list of requests. New mirror? Of course. Seatback? Had I considered the new seatback RANS had just released? Easier to tighten with its straps and a good fit for my Fastbak. Ok. Oh, could you let me use your internet connection while I wait? Let’s see. And so their tech guy massaged my Dell’s Windows XP Pro and established a connection.

After checking email and stuff, I wandered the store. Their inventory is an education. The catalog is accurate, but in person the stuff is even better. The variety of bicycle concepts is staggering. I really lusted over the tandem tricycle.

While I was watching the guys install the new seat back, another customer asked if I had gone through the intersection of 13 and US 10 earlier in the morning. I confessed I had. He’d seen me on his way north, done his errand in Eau Claire, and driven back to Stevens Point. A V-Rex does stand out.

Now I should have been getting lunch and maybe I should have had them look at the rear wheel. By the time I thought about lunch, the work was just about done. They sent me down the street to a nice sandwich place. A little upscale but friendly and tasty.

When I came back, their expert riders convinced me not to take US 10 to Appleton. Instead they routed me south of town and then east on CR B. They also helped the cause by providing a local map to get me to CR B efficiently. Except for the part on a bike path, their route to CR B was good, but it was nice to get out of town and back in the country-side.

When I got to the crossroads of CR B and US 10 at Amherstburg, I was tempted by the shorter highway but less than a quarter mile convinced me that it was neither safe nor even comfortable and I retreated to the County Route they had recommended.

CR B was pleasant and not too busy. Some of it was excellent. It took me through Scandinavia, Ogdensburg, and Manawa (juice stop), and delivered me to SR 54 at Royalton. A left turn and a few miles got me to New London for more juice and a decision. It was around 6pm, a reasonable time to stop. There was a motel just up the road, but I didn’t see any restaurants that attracted me for dinner or breakfast. If I could get to Appleton, then I would have many choices and only a short ride over to Manitowoc for the ferry. If I stayed at New London, I’d have a longer ride to Manitowoc. Fool that I was, I decided to keep going. The standard lie is maybe there will be something along the way if I really need to stop.

The ride to Appleton was pretty nice except I began to lose daylight. Even when I was ready to stop, I saw nothing. Eventually twilight faded and the last 20 minutes were really in the dark. I turned on my blinker on the back but did not have a headlight—another item shipped home from Spokane. Very bad. When I reached the shopping center neighborhood with a host of hostels, I cruised through, basking in the street lights, and chose the Wingate. Soon as I got in the room, I checked the local yellow pages for restaurants and found an Outback across the street and down a block or so. That sounded verrrry good.

I walked over, was promptly seated (it was after 9:30), and was thoroughly fed and watered. Two mugs of beer, a rack of lamb, extras, and a comfortable seat. Best meal of the trip.

107.46 miles in 7:55 on the bike for an average of 13.5 mph.

Back up to: Cambridge to Manitowoc

Westbound: Chippewa Falls to Marshfield Eastbound: Appleton to Manitowoc