Update #16 - May 07, 2005
Granite City, IL - 4774.2 miles (7638.7 kms.)

The new recumbent is really great. I still cannot believe that I've got it. The ride is so much better. Being that the recumbent is a little longer, I've been able to adjust the seat so that I can fully extend my legs on the downstrokes. Because of this I have more power and speed. I made 91 miles in under 8 hours and I took most of the hills in my high gears instead of getting down into my "Granny gears" or walking up the grades like I had to with the old recumbent. Also, I've had no muscle or joint pain.

The ride down the Mississippi River went okay. I took the bike routes. Most of the time I was up on top of the levee looking down either at the Mississippi River or the ship canal.

I'll be here in Granite City, IL for a few more days. I've visiting some close friends who I've known for 12 years. Pastor Ed has recently retired from the Nazerene Church after 50 years of ministry. He and his wife retired here in Granite City to be close to of their daughters who has some health issues.

From Granite City, I'll be backtracking a little bit to Alton, IL and then I'll cross the Mississippi River across the new bridge into Missouri. I'm planning to ride up to the Dakotas. This had been my plan back in April but I headed east when I got into Eastern Nebraska because of the cold weather.

I'll be riding through Iowa again on the way to Brookings, S. Dakota. Along the way in Iowa, I'll make a stop in Zearing, Iowa (in the Boone area). I'm planning to visit a pastor that I tried to visit in the Texas Panhandle. He had recently moved back to Iowa and he started at a new church in Zearing the first of this month.

From Brookings, S.D., I'll be riding north to the Canadian Border and then turning east for the ride through Northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the Upper Pensinsula of Michigan. After Michigan, I've got some planned stops in Ohio.

I'll try and post and update as often as I can if my plans change.