A Quicky

August 10, 2024

I'm still travelling back and forth between Minnesota and Iowa every three to four weeks. I tend to my yard, my bills, and my cycling needs in my home state of Minnesota. I tend to my dad's memory care apartment, my dad's bills, and my dad's medical needs in his home state of Iowa. In between, I look at maps and dream of possible cycling destinations to fit in with my schedule.

Last week, an interesting monologue developed inside my head. The following is an excerpt:

"You know what? It's been a few years since I've done a tour in my former home state of Iowa. Hmm, what's up with that," I wondered, "maybe it's almost time to do another one."

Since I was in wondering mode, I continued my wondering by wondering, "why not do it NEXT WEEK? I have to go down there anyway. Certainly, Iowa is beautiful, right? And it fits in with my recent "Midwest Touring" theme. I have nothing going on for a few days after I take my dad to get a shot in his eyeball. I have nobody to rush home to at this time because The Feeshko is in Spokane to help her siblings settle their mother's estate."

That bit of internal mind play is how I convinced myself to conduct a quicky.

Now, this quicky is not what you might be thinking when you normally hear the word "quicky." This quicky means I'll be riding a quick bike tour for a quick few days, and then it will be over all too quickly.

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A quicky tour like this one would have never entered my mind five years ago when I had no family worries, but more recently I've come to believe quicky bike tours are better than NO bike tours. One must take advantage of every opportunity one gets, mustn't one? That's especially true when that one is ME.

In the further interest of quickiness, I am not going to pack camping, cooking, and insect-repelling supplies for this trip. True, the very idea of not being able to camp in the Church of the Great Outdoors almost makes me want to throw up, but I pride myself on being very adaptable. I've done the credit card style of touring without vomiting in the past (See: A Few Days in a Snow Globe), so I'm pretty sure I can do it again.

At the very least, I look forward to shedding twelve pounds, which is about 1/3 of my normal packing weight for a bike tour. Less encumbered pedaling should ease my no-camping nausea at least a little bit.

I will miss this kind of worship at the Iowa Synod of The Church of the Great Outdoors.

Besides, I've slept in motels several nights in a row on bike tours, EVEN WHEN I WAS CARRYING A TENT. Motels aren't so bad. In fact, sometimes they're an adventure unto themselves. On a few occasions I've stayed in motel rooms that were scarier, sleazier, smellier, less private, and/or less sanitary than my tents have ever been. Sometimes they don't even have a desk for writing in my notebook or strong enough wi-fi to post my braggery on the internet. A desk and wi-fi are often the main reasons I stay in a motel in the first place. I can easily do without the luxuries of a bed or shower.

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Before judging my quicky tour too harshly, check out a few pictures I cherry-picked from my 2018 Iowa bike tour. They provide evidence that Iowa has great cows, horses and architecture. What more can any bike tourist ask for?

I've posted many pictures of cows staring at me in my journals--from all parts of the country--but this might be my favorite.

Iowa horses stare at me too . . . much to my delight.

Blue sky, red barn, green crops, and gray silos--the official colors of the Agricultural Division of the Church of the Great Outdoors.

As great as the Iowa scenery was to the west of my dad's town in 2018, I think it should be even better in the east. In addition to great farmscapes, there will be forests of view-blockers, the City of Dubuque, and the mighty Mississippi River. In addition, there will be a huge nostalgia factor.

To my mind, the nostalgia factor from my college years was a major success in my last tour of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. I will not discount the possibility that to other folks' minds, it was a major failure. That's okay. I get it.

For this tour, the nostalgia factor will go even further back to my formative years (between 4th & 9th grade) when I lived in a small town 26-miles away from the big city of Dubuque. I hope you will tune in to discover what I discover in that area via the seat of my bike.

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Nancy GrahamThis will be great Greg. I know missing staying in the outdoors for your tour may be something you will miss, but for this quickly — it really is about being on your bike for some touring. Have fun and, hopefully good weather.
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4 months ago

Kathleen JonesThis sounds like an eminently workable solution to feeding the need to tour. You may not have thought of this, but I bet it’s not the same as when you were growing up in that part of Iowa. So We will be interested in hearing/seeing your impressions.
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4 months ago

Susan CarpenterCan’t wait!
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4 months ago

Keith KleinHi,
Waiting to see what you find in the Hawkeye state amongst the Iwegians!
Cheers,
Keith
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4 months ago

Gregory GarceauTo Nancy GrahamThank you. Yes, it really is all about being on the bike and having some fun.
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4 months ago

Gregory GarceauTo Kathleen JonesI have no doubt things will be different--maybe even unrecognizable. So, I'm looking forward to seeing and writing about my impressions too.
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4 months ago

Rachael AndersonYou are so creative!
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4 months ago

Emily SharpSometimes a motel tour is needed and it's good to be adaptable... just so you can get time on the bike. I do miss my tent time on those occasions though.

But, gosh, a shower, a place to get all my gear dry, and a pillow for a night, in that order, are the reasons I get a motel or caravan park cabin on occasion while riding. I have so much data on my phone plan and don't post while touring... so I never really think about the wifi aspect.
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4 months ago

Gregory GarceauTo Emily SharpI forgot about the gear-drying feature of a motel room. After rainy days, that's probably more important than the wi-fi, and it DEFINITELY ranks higher than a shower and pillow for me. Come to think of it, another major reason for me to get a motel room is that I like spending a night in the downtowns of large-ish cities when I come across them--Dubuque for instance. Camping opportunities are pretty rare in the inner city.
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4 months ago