Day 9 and 10 Fun and Hills 6-23/24-18

On day 9, Addy and I spent some time at Six Flags, just outside of St. Louis.  It was great to relax, have some fun, and rest my legs a bit, although I have no doubt we still walked several miles.  If you have a chance, you MUST ride the "Dragon's Wing" ride.  Essentially it's a cable hooked to your harness, and then they hoist you a couple of hundred feet into the air.  After a pause at the top, which allows you to question your sanity, they call out "3, 2, 1, FLY," and you pull a ripcord, which sends you free-falling toward the Earth at approximately 25,000 mph.  Just as your impending doom approaches at light speed, the cable catches, and sends you swinging out over the mere mortals walking on the ground.  I realize this description fails to live up to the actual event, but please try it if you enjoy the feeling of free fall, certain death, and then relief/joy of "flight".  Thanks for talking me into it Addy!

Miles today:  0

Total miles on the bike:  383.2

Day 10 Stanton to Lebanon, AKA Holy Hills Batman!!!!

This was the longest ride I have ever done in my life (126 miles, beating my previous record of 117 miles).  It was also the most I have ever had to climb (6,401 feet).  Put those two things together, and it makes for a very long day in the saddle, with plenty of suffering.  I am now convinced there aren't ANY flat roads in the entire state of Missouri.  I was either chugging uphill in the lowest gear on my bike at 7-10 mph, or flying downhill at speeds up to 39 mph.  Luckily, the weather was decent, with overcast skies/light rain for the majority of the day.  

I had the chance to see some pretty cool stuff along the way, with a ton of murals on the walls in Cuba, MO (AKA mural city, USA), the world's (second) biggest rocking chair, which measured in at 44 feet, and the city of Uranus, MO.  There was a billboard, which I failed to take a picture of because I was in the middle of an excruciating climb, that said something to the effect of "Everyone knows the best fudge comes from Uranus."  I spent the rest of the day laughing at the creativity of this sign (because I have the mind of a 6 year old boy).  

Miles for the day:  126.3

Calories burned (according to Strava) for the day:  5,275

Total miles on the bike:  509.5 (Wahoo, over 500!)