dirt road – One Wheel Man

Day 10

Today’s going to be a good day. Why? Because 10 is my favorite number!

I left Jefferson City at 8:30am. Because Helena is Montana’s capital (and also because they were doing construction on a bridge and there was no way I was going to cross that) I decided to go a highway route again. Only to find that they were working on that too; it was a dirt road. A kind worker told me the way wasn’t paved the rest of the way. (Note to self: I’ve really got to study the map better and plan my routes on paved roads.) Luckily that cross-section met up with Interstate 15 just down the road, and it was passed the construction, so I hopped back on it.

After Helena is uphill. Really, it was a mountain. It got hot real fast. The red rock scenery (picture on left) with a nearby creek made up for it. I rode the whole way up! (picture on right with mountain behind) Afterwards, I thought to myself, “I made it up a really big mountain. I am really proud of myself. I didn’t think I was going to make it. One pedal at a time. I think that’s how life is sometimes.” I think I’m much more prepared for the coast to coast trip. However, on that note, again, I must have a brake for that trip. Period.

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I made it to Wolf Creek, Montana before 3:30pm. Good timing. I’ve noticed that I haven’t had to ride in the evening yet due to not meeting at least 50 miles a day. Tomorrow is supposed to have scattered thunderstorms, so we’ll see what happens with that tomorrow. Hopefully, it’s not a day 1 repeat!

Day 10 EU red rock Day 10 river

Day 10 Stats:

Started at 8:30am in Jefferson City, MT

Ended at 3:20pm in Wolf Creek, MT

5 hours of riding

52.5 miles

Random Fact:

Unicycling all started when James Stanley invented a bicycle in 1866, called the Penny Farthing. It’s that big wheel with a tiny wheel behind, pretty much a unicycle in training!

Day 8

I usually have to stop for about an hour to eat lunch and we stopped about 30 miles from where we were staying, so I decided to have my wife stay at the motel while I rode back to that spot and she could pick me up there and I could eat on the way back and save time. I started at 7:10am in Dillon, Montana. However, as soon as I got to the dirt road again, it was jamming up my knees. You can’t really have that as a long distance cyclist. So after 14 miles, I turned around and went back, meeting my wife at the motel instead. I still got my miles in, but less driving.

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While I was gone, my wife contacted the person about current cycling laws on highways and interstates. They simply told her that all roads are open to cyclists! Yay! This means I don’t have to ride on dirt roads anymore! Miracle!

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(left: Lewis and Clark named this Beaverhead; right: does this picture make my butt look big?)

After lunch, I kept going, on a paved highway. I was going so fast! I averaged about 11.8 miles per hour when usually I get between 9 and 10. I also did 66 miles! That’s a personal record! Wow. I got to Silver Star, Montana at 3:20pm. It’s a tiny town, but a good stopping point for the day.

Day 8 speed limit IMG_20160621_151217517

(left: this is actually on a highway….; right: welcome to Silver Star, MT)

We seem to be getting a little ahead of schedule, so we decided not to stay in the motel in Dillon and we were lucky to find a lady on Airbnb in Butte that could take us for the night. Today has certainly been another day full of miracles.

Day 8 couple bridge

Day 8 big tire 4

(top: wife and I in the sunglasses we bought for our wedding; bottom: I wish my tire were that big!)

Day 8 Stats:

Started at 7:10am in Dillon, MT

Rode toward yesterday’s ending point and back through Dillon and on.

Ended at 3:20pm in Silver Star, MT

7.5 hours of riding

66 miles (Personal Record!)

Random Fact:

Unicycle seats are not comfortable, but they’re not too bad either. It helps having padded cycling shorts. 🙂

Day 7

After a day of rest, it’s time to go again! Big thanks to the Nielsens for letting us stay as if it were our own home over the weekend! We had to drive about an hour to get to our starting destination. I started just north of where we stopped Saturday because that road was not very safe due to soft dirt roads and gravel (as if you were off-roading which a 36-inch unicycle is not made for). Today’s ride began in Spencer, Idaho, about 8:10am.

My wife drove ahead to see if there was going to be more of those kinds of roads…there were, but they didn’t appear as dangerous to her. She found a part where it said the road was closed ahead because a bridge was out. Luckily she went and found that it was recently driveable again and I had the okay to ride across. Whew!

After getting into Montana (sorry, no state border picture from the route I took this time), we couldn’t find the road to take for a while due to being out of cell service. We weren’t sure which way to go. After seeing several trucks and cars only go down one road, we followed. It was so bad! So hilly, dirt-y, rocky, etc. Boy, was it tiring and my knees hurt from all the impact.

One cool thing was seeing an owl flying around in bright daylight. Beautiful bird.

Towards the end of my ride, my knees were giving out and the dirt and rocks were not level that I came a little too forward, having my pedals whack me in the back of my legs as I “walked off” Uni, twice. Ouch!

Just as I reached 52 miles, I had for sure had enough of that road for the day (wishing for forever). 4pm and in the middle of nowhere, we had to drive about 35 miles on the same terrible road to get to Dillon, Montana.

We found a motel, instead of camping, since my body was more tired and worn than expected. When we went out to dinner at a restaurant called the 4B’s, they had a map of Montana posted. There are a lot of dirt roads on our path! Oh no! We were studying it when this kind couple came out and gave us their own copy of the map! It was so helpful! We even read on the 2009 map that cyclists could ride on interstates in non-urban areas. We’ll call tomorrow to confirm, but man, am I hoping that hasn’t changed! I could really use a smooth ride on paved roads. Lots of Montana to go!

Due to the tedious roads, pictures weren’t really taken today. Here’re a few pictures from along our path.

Day 7 scenery (L)

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Day 7 scenery (R)

Day 7 Stats:

Started at 8:10am in Spencer, ID

Ended at 4pm in the middle of nowhere, east of Lima, 34 miles Southeast of Dillon, MT

6.5 hours of riding time

52 miles

Random Fact:

The One Wheel Man decided to do a long distance trip shortly after he bought his 36-inch unicycle (2 years ago) when he did his first long (49 miles).

Day 6

The beautiful day began with moving tables for the garage/yard sale our friends were having. Then back to Idaho Falls, Idaho where I began my ride at 8:00am. It was going great! And then about 30 miles out the highway turned into a dirt road and my wheel kept flipping under me. Don’t worry, Uni and I are just fine and kept going.

Day 6 blown over

We ate at a taco truck in Hamer, Idaho. So good! Homemade tortillas and everything! I love Mexican food.

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There was even a wild(?) white turkey across the street! It seemed as though he wanted to keep looking at himself in the glass doors. Haha! In the picture it’s running away from me on the left…the tree is blocking its head. Sorry.

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Later, the wind picked up hardcore and I was on a loose gravel road. It was no fun. There were tons of cows, though. And anytime I tried to get close to them, they’d run away! I ended the day in Dubois, Idaho after about 58 miles at 3:30pm. Whew! Not too far from Montana now!

Day 6 cows

Day 6 cow run

Day 6 Stats:

Started at 8:00am in Idaho Falls, ID

Ended at 3:30pm in Dubois, ID

6 hours of riding

58 miles

Random Fact:

The One Wheel Man bought his 36-inch unicycle on KSL from a man for just $70 back in 2014. It needed a lot of fixing up (i.e. pedal fell off while riding it). But it was the best $70 spent!