Life is a journey, not always happy or sad but always interesting. Join me as we travel the winding road via this blog, on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/user/mabryatpinnacol), and on Instagram (@davidmabry).
I’m a little remiss (late, truth be told) in getting this post out but I’ve been putting together the video for our MUP 2022 ride which you can watch below. When last we talked we had made the trek from Munising to Manistique (why do so many Michigan towns start with the letter “T”? - Marquette, Munising, Manistique, Mackinaw City, Mackinac Island?) where we had been greeted by the beautiful East Breakwater Lighthouse completed in 1916. The next morning we rolled on out toward the small (very, very small) community of Chatham some 60+ miles away. Chatham was our only stop away from the shore and was also the only town (hamlet?) that didn’t offer weary cyclists showers after completing their rides in the sometimes sweltering humidity that makes up a wonderful summer day in the Michigan sun. Although, according to one of the signs in Chatham, one business could wash both your laundry and your car at
the same location, but for folks looking for a long-awaited scrub-a-dub there was none to be found. What to do when that luxurious stream of hot water is missing from the hygiene equation? Well, American Ingenuity to the rescue of course with a novel product called - I kid you not - a Crud Cloth - that purports to actually provide a waterless shower… and actually delivers on that promise.
Apart from shower woes Chatham is actually a lovely little town (hamlet?) that still manages to have one of the best ice cream shops in the UNIVERSE. Granted, ANY ice cream would taste wonderful after turning the pedals for some 4 hours, but still, Kudos to Mama Cow’s to opening on a day they normally would be closed (not a lot of traffic in Chatham mid-week) to serve up scoops (One? Two? Three?) along with pulled pork sandwiches to fill the mouths of hungry cyclists. And yeah, its hard to bellyache about the lack of running water when said belly is satisfyingly full (stuffed) of such tasty treats.
Sadly, the next morning would be last of this year’s ride and would return us to our starting point in Marquette. Still, surprises awaited including a section of the route that turned to dirt and featured a little hike-a-bike which is something most road cyclists dread. For Colorado boys (and girls) like me hike-a-bike is nothing new. Heck, some of my mountain bike jaunts feature far more of the hike part than the bike part so trudging along on a dirt roadway pushing an expensive two-wheeled machine designed to take you anywhere is nothing new.
Soon cyclists found themselves back on the lakeshore path on which we had left Marquette just days earlier. They sun was shining, temps were in the 70’s, humidity was in the 90’s, and since all the Crud Cloths were used back in Chatham, we were all looking forward to the magnificence of the Superior Dome’s locker rooms and shower facilities awaiting us at the finish. The Superior Dome is the indoor stadium of Northern Michigan University (I had never heard of N.M.U. before doing the ride) and the folks of Michigan didn’t spare any expense in making sure the students of the far North got the very best facilities money could buy. So thank you Michigan taxpayers, your efforts were much appreciated nby some very hot, sweaty, and stinky cyclists rolling back into town.
A special Thank You is also due to our Tour Director Neal without whom we literally would have been lost, the fewer than normal but still wonderful volunteers who took immaculate care of us at every turn, the League of Michigan Bicyclists for doing rides like this in the first place, and last but certainly not least the host communities of Marquette, Munising, Manistique, and Chatham for putting up with us during our stays with you. Many of the folks up this way seem to still be trying to wrap their heads around why anyone would voluntarily climb aboard a tiny saddle and pedal hundreds of miles up hill and over dale in the heat of summer. The answer is simple - we may be willing to hike-a-bike in the middle of July but I for one am not coming back to do it again (lovely as it may be) in the middle of January.
Here’s the video of our two-wheeled travels. May it give you some sense of what MUP 2022 was like. It may not get you off the couch, but if it does anything it will make you appreciate hot, steamy water all the more. Now, where’s that ice cream scoop?
The road to Manistique, Michigan is for the most part a serene stretch of backcountry roads. There's the requisite climb out of Munising but we had already conquered that on prior days forays so it wasn't much of a wake-up call even at the crack of dawn when most of the bike tribe set out from camp for the 65 mile jaunt from Lake Superior to the shores of Lake Michigan. After the first climb the route profile showed a mostly downhill grade most of the way which was music to our ears. Downhill grades and tailwinds are two things you won't hear cyclists complain about.
Sandy, rocky, gravely road surface on the other hand is the kind of stuff that haunts bicyclists dreams and on this day there was some of that and it caught up with a couple of folks who felt the effects of gravity and poor traction. Couple of trips to the hospital, some stitches, some broken (collar) bones, some of that famous road rash (cyclist or not, you haven't lived until you have experienced the joy of road rash) and you have a tour director's worst nightmare. Tour Directors spend an inordinate amount of time planning routes and trying their best to keep us safe but still accidents happen. The good news was that no one was hurt too seriously and all the riders who were injured continued on the ride though their view of the rest of the trip was from inside a SAG vehicle (SAG vehicles drive along the course and help stranded cyclists to the next town if they can't continue).
One of those injured was a study in courage named Fran. Fran is 75 years young and up until the trip to Manistique was doing quite fine, thank you, making her way on down the highways of Northern Michigan. So a tumble off the rocky shoulder of a road was not going to knock Fran out of the Tour. And neither were 12 stitches to her chin, a large hematoma on her arm, and a goodly dose of miscellaneous road rash to boot. She's quite a character even when not injured (as are many of the folks who bike tour which is part of the fun of doing these rides) and her mishap didn't cause her to miss a step. Of course, when we heard about her crash and ambulance trip to the E.R. the real question was how was her bike - skin and bones generally heal, but not so much a bent and cracked two-wheeled steed. Fortunately, apart from some road rash of it's own, her bike survived and will be ready and waiting for Fran to start riding again once her doctor gives her the all clear.
The crack of dawn means the Tour Director has already been up for hours
A Tour Director's job during the actual Tour involves thousands of details, long hours, sleepless nights, and as mentioned above the nagging worry that someone under their care for the week will get hurt. This being the first Tour since the start of the pandemic, COVID was also lurking in the background. Four vaccinations were required of all participants, and according to Neal (our T.D. for this ride) only one rider ended up getting tested during the ride, and the test turned up negative. That's a good thing because there were very few masks being worn. This Tour was Neal's first foray into the Directing side and he did a remarkable job having to overcome all sorts of hurdles leading up to the ride and then some more during it. He'll also be directing the Michigander and Shoreline West tours (also put on by the League of Michigan Bicyclists) in the next month or so so his work is really just ramping up.
Marking the route every day is just one of the things volunteers do
Volunteers for the MUP Ride were a little scarce but the ones there were did an admirable job from route marking, luggage truck duties, SAG support and all the other behind the scenes work that takes place to make a successful tour.
We've got two more legs to go - one from Manistique to the little town of Chatham, and then from Chatham back to Marquette completing our loop through the U.P. (Upper Peninsula). Hopefully the accidents that did happen will serve as a reminder to all of us to be careful out on the roadways. The generally quiet roads of Michigan certainly don't need the sound of sirens and the whirl of flashing lights disturbing the quiet tranquility of peaceful summer days spent turning the pedals.
By this time in a Tour everyone's getting a little tired as well as a little hungrier by the time dinner rolls around at 5:30. The same caterer who was used pre-COVID is back for this ride and she and her crew know how to set a table full of good eats and lots of treats. Pro tip when cycle touring: don't be late or you'll have one empty plate as the food doesn't last for long against the onslaught of a couple of hundred ravenous riders. All the meat and potato options are there but vegetarians aren't left out either. Once all that
Working hard at not working - post-ride/pre-dinner
wonderful sustenance has been partaken of, most evenings there is a Ride Meeting where the Tour Director gives updates on everything from the weather to road conditions. Then for most of us it's a slow mosey back to our tents to relax before hitting the sack and dream of tomorrow's adventure.
The average age of bike tourer's is sadly getting older with each passing year and the two-year COVID hiatus didn't help. Unfortunately, the younger generation doesn't seem inclined to fill the ranks as older cyclists bow out of active touring. Who knows if bike touring will survive into the future. Maybe the kids and grandkids of our children will rediscover the joy that comes with wheeling down the road of a summer's day. To them we'll bequeath the still undiscovered backroads and less traveled lanes of America. But best not wait too long. Nothing lasts forever.
After leaving Marquette, Michigan the cycling tribe meandered its way to the lovely town of Munising nestled into a beautiful harbor along Lake Superior. Lake Superior, the largest of America's Great Lakes, is the world's largest freshwater lake by volume and the largest by surface area. It also holds 10%m of all the world's surface fresh water which to a sun-soaked boy from the drought stricken State of Colorado is pretty impressive.
Dome Sweet Dome
Its also extremely cold. The water a tad bit more than the air. O.K., I'm teasing (sorta) about the air, but the water temps are in the high forty degree range which means if you nip in you'll likely nip right back out. Not a lot of surface contact sports up this way. I almost had brought the SUP's (stand-up paddleboards) along on this trip thinking mistakenly what a pleasure it would be to paddle serenely along the calm shores while basking in the summer sun. Not so much. The cold of the lake has a cooling effect on the air temps and along with the higher humidity 60-70 degrees can feel downright cold. Most everybody is wearing a jacket or sweatshirt when near the water. Oh, and throw in a stiff breeze as we've had occasionally (makes the cycling really fun!) and its almost time to break out the gloves and tokes (that's Canadian for stocking cap since we're only about 150 miles away from the Great White North).
Grand Island Lighthouse
So what do people do for fun when the water is more suitable for cooling a beverage than cooling you? Boating! Kayaking! Taking scenic lake cruises. We partook of the latter not just once but twice while we were here. One afternoon after riding we took a jet boat tour around Grand Island which is sitting about two miles offshore in front of me as I write this. Said jet boats are really fast and capable of all sorts of hair-raising but exhilarating maneuvers designed to wow the unsuspecting passengers as well as soak them from head to toe in the aforementioned frigid waters of Lake Superior. The next day, after finally drying out, we decided on something a little more sedate. Pictured Rocks National Shoreline Park is just a couple of miles away via tour boat and treats the visitor to miles and miles of scenic cliffs colored in a myriad of shades due to minerals seeping through the rocks. Along the way you'll see formations such as Miners Castle and Battleship Row along with hundreds of kayaks bobbing in the swells on what passes for a calm day up here. If we had more time we'd have done the kayak thing as well but today we're off to the Town of Manistique known for an almost two mile-long boardwalk, the nearby Kitch-Iti-Kipi Big Springs featuring yet more ice-cold water, and for cycling fans the Haywire Grade Trail which was Michigan's first Rails-to-Trails conversion when the old railroad line shut down more than 50 years ago.
Speaking of cycling, we've had some rain and inclement weather. The day of the century ride we woke to drizzle and cloudy skies but still 60 intrepid riders braved the elements and rode the out and back 100 mile course from Munising to Grand Marais. My beloved and I opted for something somewhat shorter in length but rest assured it gave us an ample sampling of the liquid sunshine.
some idiot out having fun
Bike tours are fun because, uh, cyclists are out having fun. Pretty simple stuff really. Give us two wheels and somewhere pleasant to ride to and we're a pretty happy bunch. Now, between point A and point B there may be some small amount of grumbling ("Who put this hill here?", "When's the sun going to come out?", "Where's the next rest stop?", "How far is the next town anyway?") but that all evaporates just past the top of the hill when you can stop pedaling and yell "Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" all the way to the bottom before starting up the inevitable next climb where the grumbling starts anew. Give and Take, Yin and Yang, Hot and Cold, Dry and Wet. Words to live by atop a bicycle saddle.
The road that beckons is a tad hot and sweaty given the 90 degree heat and almost corresponding level of humidity. This Colorado boy can deal with one but not both of those things so I'm sitting in the Superior Dome at Northern Michigan University in beautiful Marquette, Michigan which is the first host town of the MUP (Michigan Upper Peninsula) bicycle ride. This morning we rode out toward Big Bay on an out and back course of rolling hills, frolicking winds, minimal traffic (at least on the way out) and a course that took us around Presque Island before meandering along the lakeshore toward our turn-around point.
We arrived yesterday around noontime and stopped at Subway to sample their new menu (what was really wrong with the old one?) before checking in at the aforementioned Superior Dome. There are about 250 riders on this cycling extravaganza put on by the League of Michigan Bicyclists which is somewhat similar to Bicycle Colorado back home in terms of advocating for safer places to ride our two-wheeled contraptions.
We all assembled in the cool air-conditioned Dome last evening for the prerequisite rider meeting where they cover all the necessary minutiae that goes along with events such as this. I mentioned in my last blog that we had originally signed up to do this ride in 2020 but it was cancelled not once, but twice, due to COVID. We had done their Shoreline West ride and had so much fun we decided to try this one which takes place in - you guessed it - Michigan's northern Upper Peninsula which apparently is as uncrowded and wild as Michigan gets.
Last night we had an unexpected treat before hitting the pillow. Right outside the Superior Dome there was an evening concert featuring the Marquette Symphony Orchestra. They were remarkably good and it was great to see all the locals out supporting the local arts.
There's a new event manager for the MUP this year. He's a young guy who's probably half the age of the demographic of the riders who I'd hazard a guess all have a Medicare card in their wallet or purse. Apparently he was hired in part to bring the ride organization into the 21st century and God love him he's giving it his best shot. In the two years since the last running of bike events such as this a lot has changed which caught me a little by surprise. Technology has reared its big ugly head and we no longer get things like paper maps for the routes. Instead we've all loaded an app called Ride With GPS which has the routes available to view on our handy-dandy phones. Heck, it even provides turn-by-turn audio directions. Now, I geek out on tech with the best of them (I even brought my drone with me to shoot some aerial shots) but I come on rides like this to specifically get away from my phone for a week, not to be glued to it in case I miss a turn. Thankfully they still mark the route with orange paint telling us which way to go but I fear even those days are numbered. And hey, I didn't get lost once today (I know - it was out and back so its rather hard to lose your way but if anyone can do it...)
Another change is the number of E-bikes (motorcycles in my pea brain) on the ride. At the rider meeting there was considerable discussion about whether there would be recharging stations for the E-bike batteries out on the course. And the answer was yes! So just like at home I can be working my butt off climbing some of the challenging hills, thinking I'm rockin' it a la Tour De France, when up from behind comes one of those Medicare card wielding folks as cool as a cucumber, smiling an waving as they fly by leaving me in their E-bike dust.
Something else that I've never seen on a ride is in the camping amenities. For years now you've been able to hire a company to put up your tent, blow up your inflatable mattress, and even place a comfy folding chair to fit your screaming backside post-ride, all without you lifting a finger. Granted it will cost you a pretty penny because these companies aren't doing this out of the goodness of their heart but still, for those so inclined it does represent bike glamping at its finest. What's new is that there are special areas set aside for those using CPAP machines to help them breath while sleeping. Hopefully you don't know this, but these machines can be a little loud and tend to keep one's sleeping partner (let alone the entire rest of the campground) from getting the requisite zzzz's ahead of the next day's ride. I think this is great and kudos to folks needing these devices for simply being able and willing to do bicycle tours and we all deserve a good night's sleep which is what I'm looking forward to right after dinner which starts in just a couple of minutes. So I guess I'd better sign off for now. Sleep tight!
Well here I am typing this blog as I sit in a La Quinta hotel room in Appleton, Wisconsin. What's a Colorado boy doing in the not-so-wilds of Wisconsin? Why, heading to a bike ride of course. The Michigan Upper Peninsula (MUP Ride for short) ride put on by the League of Michigan Bicyclists. We had signed up for this ride in 2020 but thanks to a pesky certain bug called COVID it was postponed for two years so here we are.
Traveling has sure changed to my way of thinking. Spontaneity is out the window and my lovely wife has proven her point - if you haven't made reservations months ahead of time you can just about fuhgeddaboudit as everything from rooms to activities seems to be full up. America has the No Vacancy sign hung up in more ways than one.
Traffic has rebounded that's for sure. Omaha, Nebraska, Des Moines, Iowa, Madison, Wisconsin have all gone big city in terms of crowded highways even in the middle of the day. And that's despite record-high gas prices. We left Denver after filling up at $4.59/gallon, tanked up again in Kearney, Nebraska at $4.64, then again in West Omaha this morning at $4.39. God help us when $4.39 a gallon seems like a bargain.
The last two days have most prominently featured the weather as in precipitation, as in rain falling from the sky in such prodigious quantities that its almost biblical. My vehicle has those newfangled wipers that sense when it starts to rain and then automatically adjust the pace according to how hard the liquid sunshine is falling. Yesterday and today we had periods where the wipers were going so fast I expected they'd fly off the windshield. Didn't know they could go so fast to appear as just a blur. I mean, it was raining so hard people were actually SLOWING down and turning their flashers on. When does that ever happen?
We had spent the 4th of July up in Leadville and I admit to being a little biased. Nothing like a little out of state travel to make one appreciate what a wonderful place Colorado is. Even though it was a tad bit soggy up in the mountains over the long holiday weekend it was nothing compared to the scuba lessons I've been taking in Nebraska, Iowa, and Wisconsin. Got a chance on the 4th to get up early enough to mosey into town and see what was shaking in Leadville festivity-wise. Got there right at the tail end of the 5k run which saved me from having to make up an excuse for not donning my running shoes and joining in. Actually, not owning running shoes is probably the only excuse I needed but it was great to cheer on the several hundred intrepid souls who braved the early start and high altitude to literally strut their stuff in as pretty a setting as one could wish for for a brisk jog.
After the assorted runners, walkers, canine companions, and even a burro or two sprinted down the main drag it was time for the real fun to start. What's the 4th of July without a small town Parade? From local businesses (Cannabis and Liquor featured prominently) to folks running for political office, it was a slice of Americana tucked into a piece of High Country Heaven wrapped up in the space of about an hour. You can see the highlights in the short video below:
Wasn't until after the fact that we realized as we stood and cheered the Parade participants on this glorious sunny Summer day in Colorado that a thousand miles eastward other fellow Americans were running for their lives to escape the bullets hurtling down upon them unleashed by a twenty-one year old sniper reigning terror on another small town Parade from his rooftop perch. Seven weren't fortunate enough to escape with their lives.
Back at the Leadville Parade the last participants walked by. They held signs protesting the recent overturning of Roe. I guess losing one's rights does not a great Independence Day make but in hindsight its perhaps better than being shot at.
