Time: 2h39m27s
Distance: 67.19km
Avg Spd: 25.3km/hr
Climbing: 344m
Saturday was an easy ride into Grand Rapids. We spent lots of time on the bike paths, and there were tons of people. I would guess we doubled our rider count for the day with new riders joining and locals coming out for a one-day ride opportunity.
Lunch was offered at Calvin CRC in GR about 2km from the Calvin College Campus. There were so many extra people they ran out of food and had to order in pizza from a local joint to make sure everyone was fed.
After lunch, we met in the parking lot to roll in a big group to the grand entry at Calvin.
Saturday meant the end of the ride for one-week riders (aka "weeklings"), including Jason and Kyle... we got a group shot on campus before they took off. There was also a special race that took place around the Calvin campus that you might be able to find evidence of if you are proficient with Facebook, but I didn't manage to get pictures of. There's also a portion of it on YouTube...
The reception at Calvin was quite warm... each floor of the dorms had a kitchen that was well-stocked with homemade baking and fresh peaches!
I lucked out again and got a dorm room to myself, so will enjoy three straight nights of solitary sleeping in a real bed... it's a beautiful thing!
This weekend was incredibly relaxing. After the 'grand entry', we've had free time pretty much all weekend. We hit up the local bike shop where Karel bought a wheelset, and other people stocked up on a few necessities and replaced broken things. I bought two packs of GU Recovery drink to see if that helps bring my legs back into business.
Brandon is friends with the resident RD of the dorms we are staying in, and he hooked us up with a projector and sound system, so we relaxed in style last night watching a "Quicksilver" and "Sky Fall." I only made it through the first movie (an '80s cycling movie that was beyond cheesy) before retiring to bed. Tonight "Chicken Run" is the movie of choice, and there's a good group of people enjoying the clay-mation satire.
Today (Sunday) I opted not to go to one of about twenty local CRC churches, and took the bike for a short spin around GR, checking out Gaslight Village and East Village. I was hoping to find a coffee shop or bakery to relax at for a bit, but everything was closed, so I kept moving.
Lunch today came again from Calvin CRC. I surfed the web and napped until 4:30 when we had our big celebration service at the arena. All the cyclists entered the arena together, then worshipped with about three-hundred locals.
Another 36 riders joined the tour today, and the gear truck is packed! I think all the shelves have been spoken for at this point. It's getting tough to recognize everyone, and I've almost (but not quite) given up on learning everyone's names.
Think that's it for now... gonna finish up the movie and get a good night sleep in a real bed.
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