Day six has come to a close here at BRAN. It was a good day on the gravel route. I think it came out at 58 miles.
Starting in Wayne in the morning, it seemed that even having the benefit of staying in Pork Belly Adventures bunk did not get me out riding faster. Michael said to me later in the day that he kind of preferred the more laid back attitude of gravel riders who seemed to be content to roll with the relaxed pace instead of the more strict “get out early- arrive early road group.
We made our departure later than normal by stopping at the HIS Bakery where we had breakfast. It was delicious and I highly recommend the place
Anyway, the gravel was found and ground. South of Wayne the roads were well packed, fast, and fun. The days course was front loaded with climbs so we were cranking up steeps and blasting down hills all morning
Eventually we would near the town of Pender. Going East here and the gravel was getting a little loose and deep making finding a line a little more difficult. But it wasn’t bad. Jayme had an idea that we could go North a mile and cut off this final four miles of gravel to Pender. He suggested an MMR dirt road which we agreed would be fun. Then it was pavement into Pender and my hope for a stop for rest
Once in town there was some debate within the four man group concerning whether we should eat there or go ten more miles to Bancroft . Nothing was open downtown so eventually the group comprised on going to a local C-Store called “Cubbies”
I got my rest and hot dog with a Diet Coke. Then it was off to Bancroft where we hoped to find better fare ten miles away
Well, Bancroft was kind of a bust. There really wasn’t anything going on there Michael said, “Well, we could go ten more miles to Lyons.”
Okay, what’s up with this “ten more miles “ thing? I made a joke out of it, as if the guys were stringing me along. But in the end, ten more miles was what we had to do So we did it
Lyons, Nebraska. It looked little different than the previous two villages. We once again were left with no open options and were debating our situation when a young Latino man stuck his head out of the door of the Mexican restaurant we were standing in front of and he spoke to us.
He offered us to come inside, sit, and cool down out from under the relentless Sun. It had started off cool, but now it was above ninety degrees
Once inside we found they had ice cream, sherbet, and cold drinks available. So we picked out our selections and sat down to relax and enjoy our treats
In fact, my mango sherbet and strawberry Mexican soda hit the spot. It was just what I needed to carry on
Only this time it was seven miles to the finish in Oakland Nebraska
This would be the last evening the four of us would be together. Saturday BRAN ends at noon and we all go our separate ways Matt Steele, Jayme Frye, and Michael Kolakowski have become quick friends of mine and I felt we all enjoyed each other’s company over the past several days
We ate at a local bar where the staff was clearly overwhelmed. We were a bit disappointed that we couldn’t order off the menu, but prime rib, baked potato, and vegetables make for a worthy substitute.
One more short day to go and this gig is over
Look for one more “Notes From The Tent” Saturday and then next week will be a BRAN photo dump with a few special posts
As always, thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions!
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