Fire, Fire

The map is updated again, except for a town or two I couldn't remember off hand.  I now have less than a week to go.  My final ride day is set for Thursday, where I will be riding up to Paddock Lane Elementary, greeted by the kids, who will then host a Q&A.  I am excited for the end and can't believe it is so close. 

Today I completed what may be my last century ride for the trip.  I went 105 miles.  It was a fairly level ride and about a third of it was on trails, which made it nice.  The ride could've been shorter had I not take the trails, but then I would have been on busier St Louis area highways.  I rode a portion of the Lewis and Clark trail again, as well as the Missouri River Trail.  I crossed into Missouri where the two Great Rivers converge.  I then shortly had a flat due to road debris, which was highly prevalent on the Missouri side at the beginning.  It slowly went away the further into the state I rode.  

Yesterday I rode about 95 miles to Carlyle Lake, the biggest lake in Illinois.  I rode there from Red Hills State Park, the highest point between St Louis and Cincinnati - 900ft.  The night at Red Hills ended up being free because the camp host was never on duty when I went there.  I even waited for over an hour one time.  

Tonight I tried to wash my clothes.  I put them in the washer and then went to do other things.  I came back a half hour later and found the washing machine smoking and not spinning.  I wrung my clothes out and threw them in the dryer.  They appeared to be rinsed, just not spun dry.  I then waited for a half hour for the washer to stop smoking and borrowed a fan to air out the place.  The people running the place were no help.  Oh well, nothing burned down and my clothes seem to be clean enough.