July 4th – Malta to Glasgow, MT

July 4^th Statistics – Malta to Glasgow, MT:

• Today’s Biking Distance – 70.0 miles
• Today’s Average Speed – 18.5 mph
• Today Ascent – 1,137 feet
• Today Descent – 1,279 feet
• Today’s Ending Elevation – 2,162 feet
• Total Trip Biking Days – 15
• Total Trip Biking Distance – 1,125.7 miles
• Total Trip Average Biking Distance/Day – 75.0 miles
• Total Trip Ascent – 43,863 feet

Today I broke another personal record – 70 miles at a blistering speed (at least for me) of 18.5 mph.  Thank you Maria (see yesterday’s post).  The weather conditions were perfect – sunny, temperature in the mid 70s, strong breeze keeping me cool.  Even the road conditions (average) did not slow me down.  Hard to imagine, but it seemed like a 1/2 day ride even though it was 70 miles.

Many of the photos from the last two days represent what I saw today as well.  However, at one hilltop I had an unobstructed view to the horizon in every direction – not a single man-made structure (excluding the road) in sight.  The notable item besides the beauty was a train in the far distance traveling east.

Lots of flat tires today (4) – 14 for the group since we began.  Robert and Jim have had 4 flat tires each.  As of today, I am the sole rider who has not had a flat tire – I hope I did not jinx myself by the acknowledgement.

Ted and Kristin – Today I stopped by Hinsdale (population 446) Montana (not Illinois) to watch the local 4th of July festival and parade (the city’s biggest event of the year).  It drew people from the entire county and brought back memories of small town life.

An interesting point about traveling on Route 2 over the last three days – I have been to numerous Montana cities named after famous cities/sites:  Kremlin, Malta, Harlem, Zurich, Dunkirk, Devon, Chester, Joplin, Inverness, Glasgow, Oswego.

Mile 5: Historical Marker – Cattle Brands

Mile 8 – Looking East (note road shoulder and rumble strips – a frustration when the rest of the road shoulder is in bad condition due to debris, cracks, or narrowness).

Mile 8 – Looking west behind me.

Mile 10: Historical Market – Sleeping Buffalo Rock. This photo is not out of focus, it was swinging widely in the wind. No matter how hard I tried I could not photograph the rock from a perspective that showed a sleeping buffalo.

Mile 10: Historical Marker – Cree Crossing swinging in the wind.

Mile 52 – Road ahead (with Jim in the distance).

Mile 65: Historical Marker – Buffalo Country.

Mile 71: End of a long and fast ride.