With Apologies to the Boys of Summer...

Over in France at about this time of year there's a quaint group ride involving about 190 blokes who spend a quiet month taking a scenic pedal around France. Le Tour, as it is referred to rambles up Hill and dale for about 2,000 miles with average mileage of about 100-120 per day. My wife Sophie and I are spending 6 days covering 218 miles and with all due respect to the folks turning the pedals over in France we're perfectly happy with our little jaunt through the Black Hills.

We're back in Custer this afternoon having made it to Deadwood, which is the end of the Mickelson Trail, and then turning around yesterday with a 49 mile day back to Hill City.

Hill City welcomes
you with the
mother of all
benches

The trail definitely is more of a climb heading north so we are enjoying the downhill grades on the return journey. Deadwood is a gambling town, somewhat similar to Colorado's Black Hawk and Central City and the folks up there looked at us as if we were slightly crazy for having ridden non-motorized cycles to their town. Perhaps they know something and Sophie and I really are a little off kilter.

On one of the 18 mile-long climbs going into Deadwood I was passed by my first E-Bike with a little old lady slowly turning the pedals while her steed zoomed up the 3 percent grade at probably 20 mph. I've got to admit that I was a little conflicted. Technically the Mickelson bans all "motorized" vehicles and I'm not aware of a waiver for electric powered vehicles (are golf carts next?) but on the other hand the joys of the trail would likely be impossible for little old ladies, and anyone else, who doesn't have the physical ability to truly pedal the trail under their own power. I know some mountain bike races now have categories for E-Bikes but still it's going to take some getting used to hearing the quiet hum of these bikes blazing past us as they become more and more popular.

Sophie keeps asking me what my favorite thing about the trail is. I can't pick one segment as on each section there are parts that are absolutely wonderful along with a couple of patches that are just long, slow, hot grinds up, and then up some more until we reach the top of the hill. The trail also has a different feel to it heading south than it did north and there's a lot of scenery we hadn't noticed on the way to Deadwood.

As far as we've seen there is only one bike shop along the route. Rabbit Cycles in Hill City is a fully stocked shop run by 5 or 6 ladies (mothers and daughters I'm assuming) and much to my wife's joy they had all sorts of cute Mickelson Trail-inspired clothing and accessories. As if our BOB trailer wasn't heavy enough already we left Rabbit Cycles slightly more loaded than when we arrived. Surprise, surprise...

The long days see us in the saddle by 6 a.m. to beat the heat. And heat there is - talking with one of the South Dakota Parks staff at one of the trailheads he told us he hadn't seen it this hot, for this long, since he's lived here. Thanks much for sharing. Just like the Ride the Fault Line trip we did in June by 9 a.m. our jerseys are soaked through and we're drinking as much fluid as we can to keep up with our A.S.P. (astronomical sweat production). The good news is that with tomorrow's 44 mile ride back to Edgemont, the southern end of the trail, everyone tells us that the temps at that end of the trail are usually about 10 degrees warmer than the northern sections. As always with these rides it will feel weird to be off the bike and behind the steering wheel but certain parts of my anatomy are looking forward to sinking into a plush Toyota seat. The heck with E-Bikes, there's nothing like the quiet rumble of a V-6 engine in an air-conditioned minivan.