Thanks for sharing that link. I remember reading that post, but now it makes me look forward to the park even more than I did before. I really like bison. When I get there, I hope to out-sensationalize you by a mile.

P.S. I hope that arm gets better quickly.

Sorry, Pope Greg. Please forgive me. I just automatically assumed that Blue Mounds State Park was well known to everyone all around the globe as one of the wonders of the universe, at least after I passed through and wrote about it for an adoring, worldwide audience. (Slightly sensationalized.)

http://bike365.org/bike/20180901/

Blue Mounds State Park! Thanks for stealing my thunder, Bill. LOL

Pipestone National Monument! Thanks for stealing my thunder, Rich. LOL

As always, I appreciate your kindness, Nancy.

Mike, that is an amazing story about your dedication to those Greyhounds. Thank you for sharing it.

George, your description of Tux definitely sounds like a match to Diggity. I never saw his chest that way until you mentioned it. And Diggie (as we call him) is part black lab, but he was officially a Pug-mix, according to the vet. The Pug/Black Lab combination was a source of much fascination and amusement to a lot of our fellow dog walkers.

Hey Bill!
Been catching up with your arm issues cropping up again -- certainly not what needs to be repeated. :(
Best wishes for just a minor reoccurrence this time.

And Blue Mounds State Park in Luverne...with bison. Been there.

Hi Greg,
Back after 50km, as our group gets older we seem to be riding shorter and shorter distances. There is still a Greyhound racing industry in our home state of Victoria and far too many Greys are bred and only a small % come out at the end for adoption. Anyway we found our second last dog, a Grey, at a shelter and adopted her. She must have had a hard life because she was never terribly affectionate. We lost her to renal failure and it was terrible to see her gradually deteriorate. The Vet told us that when she stopped eating that would be the time for her to go.
Anyway I lasted about a month and started looking at the Greyhound specific adoption agencies. After filling out a questionnaire describing our home and circumstances (some Greys get on with children others don't, very few Greys get on with cats) we received a phone call asking if we would like to meet with Dash. This agency places their dogs with foster carers who keep the dogs in their homes showing them mirrors etc house training them and getting them ready for adoption. The dogs come from training kennels and have never been inside a house before.
Because the carer lived locally to us she was able to bring Dash to our home for meet and greet and we decided immediately to go ahead with adoption. We transferred the adoption fee that day to the agencies bank and Dash was home delivered that next day.
Their is a Greyhound walking group that meets monthly and we get at least 40 Greys and their minders turn out each time. There is a facebook page JellsPark Greyhound walks and the members are very supportive, particularly when a dog goes "over the rainbow bridge".
I walk Dash for an hour five days a week and Mary does the other two when I am out riding.

PS: There IS the Pipestone National Monument

"What's there besides corn fields, soybean fields, farm towns, and an endless flatness?"

That sounds kind of familiar! :)

Looking forward to your tour!

Sigh. I feel some of your pain as I know how attached you two were to each other. I have aleady said it, but need to say it again here… you and Diggity were both fortunate to have each other and to share such love. That of course does not make it any easier to lose him at any time. You maintained Diggity’s dignity by letting him go so not to suffer more pain and immobility. Cheers to you Greg. Enjoy a peaceful bike journey with Diggity on your shoulder.

My sincere condolences to you on the loss of Diggity. Our last dog was with us for 14.5 years, and the heartbreak of having to put him down was just so overwhelming that we will probably never adopt another one. It's quite an amazing coincidence, but our last dog looked very much like Diggity. "Tux" (short for Tuxedo) was a black lab-mix with a white chest that made it look like he was wearing a Tuxedo. I truly feel your pain. And a serendipity bike tour may be the perfect way to reflect on the good times you had with Diggity.

Hi Mike,
Interestingly, a couple days ago our next door neighbor suggested taking in rescue dogs as foster parents. That sounded pretty good until I realized where that would go: Before we knew what was happening, we'd fall in love with one or more of them and they'd all be permanent residents in our home.