Sunday, July 30, 2023
Day 58
Rest Day in Davenport, Iowa
We eased into the morning with breakfast at the hotel. The second cup of coffee, lingering just a bit longer…all special treats we’ve learned to enjoy on our rest day.
While doing laundry, I encountered another rider staying in the hotel before returning home. This was his and his wife’s first RAGBRAI and sadly, he said their last. The heat and distances were too brutal. The final few days of RAGBRAI, several first timers were saying the same thing. One and done. It truly was the hardest we’ve ridden and we were fortunate to have been well trained and acclimated. I’m not sure how we would have felt had this one of the other years when we hadn’t had as much seat time.
The morning was spent reorganizing our gear. We stuffed everything from the duffles back into the panniers yesterday rather Helter skelter.
By 1, it was time for lunch. The closest food was the gas station.
There we met Ellen Ellen Watermelon. She just finished RAGBRAI as well and headed to see her uncle who was dying. We spent 30 minutes sharing stories and parted with hugs and good wishes. While I’m not sure we’ll ever cross paths again, the time we spent was special and we’ll always remember her cheerful and genuine spirit. Such a beautiful person!
Later that day, we reflected on the past week’s experiences. Oftentimes, people would ask “Where are you from?” and we wondered if saying we were from California instead of Illinois, would they think of us differently? Do we think of others differently after learning they are from one place or another? Or in Drew’s case, from many places.
Last year, I spoke with someone whose perception of California was sunny beaches, Disneyland, Hollywood and Beverly Hills. Yes. California has all that but the world’s view has certainly been shaped by the media. So very interesting.
As the day winds down, I check in to Facebook and see one post that speaks to me…about Grit. I think of the people who told me I couldn’t do this or that. I chose not to believe them. The experiences, people, memories resulting from ‘pushing through’ are immeasurable. I say a prayer for them, that some day they will realize the endless potential in themselves. Oh, what you don’t know until you try.