Illini 4000

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Day 29: La Crosse to Rochester

Today was an 83.6 mile day into Minnesota. We rode for, Wendy, the sister of one of Sarah’s friends. She passed away from lymphoma this week. She passed very quickly, and we are all thinking about her family.The first forty miles were a breeze today. Literally and figuratively. The second forty, however, were very difficult. The wind really picked up. It can feel demoralizing when you feel like you have to put effort into pedaling downhill. Nonetheless, we finished and rolled into Zumbro Lutheran Church a little later than normal and with a sense of relief.There was a competition today to see what group could take the best picture with the “Welcome to Minnesota” sign. It had great potential, but only 2 groups actually saw the sign. The rest (mine included) blew right past it as they were crossing the bridge. Minnesota needs to up their sign game if you ask me.We succeeded greatly in calling for food donations today. Alison is a great encourager of everyone calling at least one place at every rest stop, and as a result we acquired some Indian food, 5 Pizza Hut pizzas, and 5 dozen donuts from Dunkin Donuts. You read that right, 5 dozen. That’s a lot of donuts to get for free!If our legs don’t need a break tomorrow our stomachs will. Looking forward to our rest day!DR