Day 92-St. John to Valparaiso (27 Miles)

Today would be the first day in a very long time (since Twin Falls, ID) that I wouldn't run with the stroller. I normally will pass on an opportunity to run without it, but I was still in the Chicago suburbs with high traffic roads and small shoulders. I figured I would be running in the grass ditch a lot today, something I couldn't do with the stroller.

When I filled my Camelbak with water I learned that some magic friction in the cart had completely ruined the bite valve and that water would freely flow from it. I was pretty adamant that I could fix it with duct tape (which kind of worked) but my aunt was insistent on getting a new one at Wal-Mart. After acquiring this, and some more supplies, we drove the route I was about to run more or less back to my starting point. I got out of the car and bid my aunt goodbye as she returned back home to Milwaukee. It was amazing being able to see family once more on this trip.

After getting a taste of relaxation yesterday, today was just about getting done. It at first felt super weird running without the cart. I could swing my arms! I quickly got used to it and continued down the roads that you could tell were once country roads but now were the veins that pumped the subdivision residents to the arterial roads. As expected, there was a lot of jumping into the ditch and playing chicken trying to cross busy roads. It felt nice to be able to make cuts in my shoes for the first time in forever. It was impossible to imagine having the stroller as a companion for the day.

I got back to the motel room dead tired and just crashed for a nap. After taking a shower, I didn't do very much until watching my Beavs get whupped by USC. There went the perfect season.

The giant Virgin Mary at the Shrine of Christ's Passion

Day 91-Frankfort to St. John, IN (25 Miles)

At 9 am Kristy stopped by Teresa and Tom's to pick me up for breakfast with Corey at Kup of Joe. It was a great way to start the day and I was loaded up with more than enough fuel to get me past the state line. After breakfast and getting ready for the run I said goodbye to Kristy and Teresa at the barkery. I was lucky to have had Kristy and Corey stop for me in Iowa which led to an awesome couple of days in Frankfort.

I jumped back on the Old Plank Trail to its end at Western Avenue where I started following the treasure map given to me yesterday to Indiana. Other than one unavoidable hairy intersection, the route proved to be money and took me all of the way to State Line Road. Unlike any of the other state lines I have crossed, there was no fancy sign welcoming me to my new home for the next few days. The only way to know I was in a new state is that the asphalt got significantly rougher.

As I continued east I could see my aunt Christie from Milwaukee heading towards me in her car. We loaded the cart into her car at a farm house that sold fresh eggs just short of White Oak Road. This would be the starting point for tomorrow. We drove back into Illinois to cross back into Indiana on Highway 30 hoping this highway would have the big Indiana sign to get my picture by. Luckily, there was one.

We survived the Friday afternoon traffic from Chicago to Valparaiso and got to the Best Western Hotel where I would be staying the next three nights. After dinner at Applebee's we got back to the room and relaxed. Only one more day of running until I'd get a whole day to rest!

Indiana!

Day 90-Channahon to Frankfort (21 Miles)

After milking the 11am checkout time and devouring a burrito for breakfast/lunch, I walked to the junction of the Illinois-Michigan Canal trail that would take me into Joliet. The trail of crushed limestone was infinetley more relaxing than the congested roads that ran parallel to it and it was hard to envision a major US city being just outside the confines of this little forest that was really starting to change into its fall colors.

For a few miles back in civilization in the huge suburb of Joliet I proved to be quite the sight through the neighborhoods as I was stopped several times by people curious as to what I was doing. I worked my way to the start of the 20-mile long Old Plank Road Trail that would take me right into downtown Frankfort where I would be meeting Kristy at the Chew On This Dog Barkery.

I had met Kristy about two weeks earlier outside of Holstein, IA on the shoulder of Highway 20. Her and Corey were driving back home from South Dakota and pulled a U-ie on the highway to see what I was all about. They offered me a place to stay in Frankfort, which at the time I thought would be too far north for me, but here I was.

Near Frankfort two touring cyclists, the first I've seen since Nebraska, passed me on the trail on their way back from Iowa to Crown Point Indiana. After talking awhile, I figured they would be a great resource to figure out how to get out of Illinois once the bike path inevitably ended tomorrow. Andy, a pilot with American Airlines, pulled out a handwritten yellow piece of paper with biking directions from Crown Point to the trail head. If I followed it backwards I would be golden. It had been just 15 minutes earlier during a break that I realized getting out of the state was going to be a nightmare with the seemingly unavoidable high traffic roads. 

After meeting up with Kristy at Chew On This, she directed me to the owner's house just a couple of blocks away where I could shower and stay in a guest bedroom. I walked to Teresa's house where I was greeted by her and her two dogs. When I got cleaned up and smelled halfway decent we went on a tour of the town stopping back in at barkery and at the Old Plank Trail Tavern.

We joined back up with Corey and Kristy, Teresa's husband Tom and more friends at the Dancing Marlin, an amazing seafood restaurant owned by Teresa and Tom. We finished the evening here with dueling pianos and a spectacular menu.

Quite a bit nicer than any road I've been on

Day 89-Sandwich to Channahon (36 Miles)

After receiving a signed Illinois license plate from the DeWitts and a bracelet in Sandwich Indians colors (my favorite Orange and Black) from the Andersons, it was time for everyone to leave for school, either as students or teachers. After packing up my cart, I said goodbye to my two wonderful host families and started walking towards the edge of town relieved that I was only going to be doing a short 30 miles today.

I managed to stick to country roads still as I inched closer and closer to the monstrous Chicago suburbs. The trade-off from corn and bean fields to subdivisions wasn't half bad as decent sidewalks appeared without many curb drops for driveways. Even getting to US Highway 52 wasn't miserable as the busy road had a very good sidewalk. I quickly realized that the this city was too large to pitch a tent and decided to splurge on another cheap motel.

With the remaining battery on my phone I looked up ways to get across the interstate. Highway 52's overpass was not an option at all as there was no sidewalk or shoulder and the volume of traffic was the highest I've seen on any road for this entire run. The only options were one mile north, which looked to have no shoulder/sidewalk on just as busy a road, or six miles south on the Illinois Michigan Canal Trail. Six miles was a long ways, especially since the motel I wanted to stay in was less than a half mile away, but fortunately there was a cheap motel in that area as well.

After walking to erase one of the miles I had run, I turned south on River Road and got the additional torture over with before checking into the Manor Motel. The new stroller didn't fit into the doorway of my room and, unlike the previous one, taking the wheels off doesn't reduced the width. I ended up having to take the handlebar off and dragging it through the door on its side. It wasn't pretty but it worked and finally let me relax for the evening.

Suburbia rising up from the corn fields

Day 88-Sublette to Sandwich (40 Miles)

After breakfast and bidding the wonderful Gunderson home goodbye, I loaded the cart back into the Suburban and rode back to my starting point in Sublette with Tyler. I was fortunate to be taken in by such a great family that was willing to go out of their way to help a stranger.

I knew running from Sublette instead of just east of Amboy would be a mileage waster, but there was nothing much I could do about it. I have to start a day where I left the day before. I just considered myself lucky that I would get to run on peaceful country roads.

I got my first detour at a bridge that was out on a county road. Without internet on my phone, I called my brother Hudson back home to route me around the mess. Although there was a shorter route that would only add two miles, I decided to take the detour that would add three in order to get lunch at the cafe in Earlville. This meal gave me the strength to finish the day feeling pretty good. I didn't realize I had run 40 miles until I mapped it out for this blog.

After giving Doug DeWitt a call, I walked past the extensive Sandwich Fairgrounds to the DeWitt home. My uncle Jason got in contact with this family about helping me out on my run and I found myself in a little streak of great luck. Doug was at work as a PE teacher when I got into town, but I enjoyed a great dinner with his wife, Heather, and three kids.

At 7:30 we went to the Anderson's home next door to celebrate Chad and Sharon's son's birthday. Doug joined us for the birthday party here as we ate cake and ice-cream. Chad and Sharon offered me the guest apartment they have in the basement for me to stay in for the night which I graciously accepted. It was awesome seeing next door neighbors that were such great friends.

Home of one of the oldest continuous county fairs in the US

Day 87-Rock Falls to Sublette (35 Miles)

Starting off on Highway 30 out of Rock Falls I noticed three tire tracks in the gravel ahead of me, surely from my fellow cross country traveler. Maybe today would be the day I caught up to him. My time on the busy highway with little shoulder was short lived as I turned south onto county and township roads to reach Sublette. Illinois' roads aren't quite laid out in the perfect section grid like Iowa, but there are a lot more paved ones.

After taking a break with the road commissioner of Harmon, who was at work smoothing out an approach to a bridge, I continued through the paved corn maze to County Road 12 which took me into Sublette. While waiting for Tyler to come pick me up, I talked to a county sheriff who informed me of a stroller pusher nearby on Chicago Rd. outside of Amboy. Looking at my map, I realized that this would have been a much better way to get to Sandwich tomorrow. 

My uncle Jason had called Tyler Gunderson, the bishop of his ward, about potentially helping me out on my run. Lucky for me, he was willing to pick me up and haul my cart back to his home in Sterling after his work as an orthopedic surgeon. We arrived to his wonderful home where I met his wife Sherry and three of his four daughters. 

While enjoying dessert of cookie brownies after a great dinner of lasagna stew, the aunt and uncle of the ward's current missionaries arrived to the Gunderson's home to drop off a care package for their nephew. Another small world event occurred as the aunt was from Cranbrook, British Columbia, just a few miles from my grandparents in Creston. The Rennaker name sounded familiar to her. She had also seen me back on the winding Highway 136 outside of Goose Lake, IA.

After the eventful evening I slept like a baby in the guest room with a long day of running ahead of me tomorrow.

The new cart ready to conquer

Day 86-Rest in Rock Falls

After breakfast in the hotel restaurant I gathered up my laundry and head to the classy laundromat across the highway. For the half hour my clothes were in the washer we went back to Wal-Mart to return the radio and get some new flip-flops as my $4 pair from the Grocery Outlet in Ontario, OR finally gave out. The dryers at the laundromat were free and miraculously dried my clothes completely in seven minutes.

We piled the clothes into the car and drove back towards Clinton to see the Mississippi River again. After stopping in the town of Morrison and the locks outside of Clinton, we kept heading north to cross on Highway 64. The Mississippi reminded me of the Everglades at this crossing as it had a very swampy feel. We passed through the town of Mt. Carroll before heading back south to Sterling.

Returning to Rock Falls, we stopped for lunch at Culver's again before saying goodbye. It was amazing to get to see family again and the day provided a great pick-me-up for the rest of the trip.

The rest of the day was spent relaxing in bed, icing my Achilles, and trying to determine my route through Illinois. Route planning is a lot harder of a challenge now that there are so many options.

One of the several cool houses in Morrison

Day 85-Clinton to Rock Falls, IL (30 Miles)

I set an alarm to hit the road early in order to meet up with Kristi, Shale, Zari and Anika at the Days Inn in Rock Falls 30 miles down the road at a decent time. They were driving down from Milwaukee to see me for the weekend. After a breakfast at McDonalds I walked back to the Highway 136 crossing of the Mississippi River into the state of Illinois. I extended the walk through the river town of Fulton before starting the run towards Highway 30-letting my imagination run wild about what the shoulder was gonna be like.

I arrived to 30 and had a "meh" reaction to the shoulder. The pavement was just wide enough to fit my cart-which was on its last day-without a rumble strip. Not as good as Wyoming and Nebraska but infinteley better than most of my running on Highway 20 in Iowa. From the 136-30 junction I ran into the town of Morrison where the main street was blocked off for the annual "Paint the Town" festival where people paint store windows and small squares on the road on Main street. Me with my stroller was quite the attraction at the festival as several people had claimed to see me on TV last night. Here were some more rumors of another trans-continent traveler walking a stroller on Highway 30 who is just a few miles ahead of me doing it in support of veteran's healthcare.

After a lunch at Casey's I turned off onto a country road that locals told me would take me right into Sterling. A few miles in the skies suddenly darkened and torrents of rain came down. Rain during 81 degree weather was somewhat refreshing until the cracks of lightning at my back. I decided to ask for shelter at the nearest porch of a farm house. I knocked on Mary's door and she let me into her home as staying on the porch would result in me catching a cold.

About a half hour later and after her son came to visit, I continued to finish the run into Sterling. The last few miles were on busier state highways, but I eventually made it into town and walked to Rock Springs on the bridge over the Rock River. The small "towns" as I go east are getting quite large as the combined population of the area was about 25,000.

Arriving at the Days Inn, with a milkshake from Burger King in hand, I saw my aunt Kristi and cousin Zari at the front door. After big hugs, my uncle Shale and other cousin Anika came out to greet me as well. They had brought down a new stroller from a bike shop in Milwaukee after a state-wide search by Kristi and mom after learning of my cart woes. It is great having this type of support when my current cart was hanging by a thread and ready to strand me on the side of the road at any moment.

We had dinner at Culver's to give me a little taste of Wisconsin and made a trip to Wal-Mart for a supply run. I didn't need much, especially in the interest of cutting some weight, but invested in a little radio for the road. It ended up not being able to pick up a station and put in the "to be returned" pile. After the spending the evening visiting I spent until well after midnight following the Beavers game as they beat San Diego State. Still undefeated!

Sun rising over the Mississippi

Day 84-Maquoketa to Clinton (35 Miles)

After Sara and Matt left to work at their respective schools, I hung around a little bit longer to put new tires on the cart and cut some weight in the hope that it would help my situation with the looming breakdown. The long overdue major weight cut was all of the water I am carrying. I cut two gallons from my stash as I am no longer in the middle of nowhere and will have several chances a day to refill from here on out.

I started running on Highway 64 after walking down the main drag of town. I couldn't wait to turn south to face the winds on the county road as the shoulder of this highway was miserable. Not wanting to subject the fragile front wheel to the rumble strip, I ran while popping a wheelie for pretty much the entire stretch. The curb on the side of the highway made matters even worse. During the rough ride one of the C-clamps fell off without me knowing and I thought I was completely screwed for the day.

After some field adjustments I got the cart to not high center when on pavement with only one of the clamps-which I managed to get on tight enough so that it didn't fall off the rest of the day. Because of the gravel shoulder, I would run in the lane of on-coming traffic until a car came and wheelie run on the shoulder until it passed. I had to listen for cars very closely on the the winding Highway 136.

Really tired and drained for energy about 15 miles into the run, at 2 pm, I recuperated at the CharVegas grill in Charlotte (not pronounced the same way as the city in North Carolina). I couldn't finish my burger and fries and had to get a to-go box for the first time all trip. I learned here that there have been sightings of a fellow stroller pusher on Highway 30 in Clinton earlier today. He may be the same guy I heard of in Correctionville on Highway 20.

I continued down the highway that followed the ridgeline with more and more wheelies as the traffic picked up as I got close to Clinton. To add to my frustrations, my left Achilles really started to bother me and caused me to take more frequent rests. This was just a grind it out day that needed to get finished.

Starting walking at Highway 67, I realized that this was by far the biggest city I've been in where I didn't have any plans for where to stay during the night. Walking through a town filled with cars with Iowa and Illinois plates and catching my reflection in store windows as a bearded man pushing a stroller while eating a half eaten burger out of a to-go box looking for a place to sleep, I realized I am a long ways from home.

Even though I was tempted to cross the Mississippi into Illinois when I went to see if the path was wide enough to fit my cart-it was-I decided to camp out in the RV park on the Iowa side of the river. After talking to a guy who has been camping here all summer, showering, and getting a dinner of McDonald's I set up my tent in the 8 pm darkness and fell asleep in anticipation of a short 30 miles tomorrow into a new state.

Fit with a foot to spare

Day 83-Monticello to Maquoketa (35 Miles)

When I woke up Tyler had left for work and Jayme was leaving the driveway for her job as a vet in town. I cooked some eggs, got my laundry and head out for the long run to Maquoketa. They had left me with a note wishing me well and a new blanket to keep warm while camping during the cold. Walking to the edge of town I noticed the cart had a wicked veer to the right.

Someone in a bar on the western side of Iowa told me I'd think I was in the Rockies when I got to the eastern part of the state. I wouldn't go that far by any means, but there were some good hills that burned in the legs more so than anywhere since western Wyoming. The road seemed to stay high on a ridge and drop down to cross the small creeks and rivers that carved through the land. At the small town of Canton I stopped in a '50's themed diner on the Maquoketa River before climbing the hill that took me back up the spine.

Throughout the run the C-clamps that held the front wheel steady would fall off. I soon realized they were a neccessity as without them the frame would bend enough so the bottom of the cart would high-center. It was not looking good and I was hoping against hope that I wouldn't have a more severe breakdown that stranded me. It's pretty hard to see this cart making it all of the way to the ocean.

When I got to the main street of Maquoketa I gave my host for the night, Sara, a call. Sara is the niece of the Onnen's next door neighbor, Carole, in Grundy Center. She is also the XC coach of the high school and they were having a team dinner for their meet tomorrow in Cascade. Sara wanted me to tell my story to the team of five girls and 13 boys.

After dinner, we watched football with her boyfriend, Matt, who is a teacher in the nearby town of Preston. He played college baseball and we got to talking about a documentary he had just seen on the Portland Mavericks-a team from my hometown in the 70's that I had never even heard of before. We put it on Netflix after Sara went to bed and I learned all about the independent team that Kurt Russell played for and his father managed. It's pretty crazy you can learn something new about where you're from 2,000 miles away from home.

Running on the ridgeline

Day 82-Coggon to Monticello (22 Miles)

Knowing Tyler and Jayme wouldn't be getting off of work until 4:30 and that Monticello was about 20 miles from Coggon, I slept in very late and was in no hurry at all to pack my stuff up and leave. Last night had been the coldest of the trip and I had to wake up to add another layer of clothes. At about 11 I left Buffalo Creek and walked through town before starting running on the shoulder of a busy state highway.

As I was turning off onto the county road that would take me straight to Monticello I noticed yet another road closed sign. I came to find that this was an overlay for three miles and was told to travel north a section and run on the Linn-Delaware county line for a few miles. Not too disheartened since it was a short day I followed the detour on the gravel road. The dust from the farm trucks made it pretty tough to breathe and I had to stop running several times because it took a few seconds for the road to appear ahead.

Turning back onto the county road I continued my misadventures as a giant angry dog crossed over the road and was blocking my path. After about five minutes of yelling over his barking I took a beef stick Janelle had given me and tossed it as far as I could back in his yard. It worked like magic! Scarier yet, however, was realizing the left side of the aluminum frame of the cart was now cracking just as bad as its counterpart that we "repaired" in Knierim. I made some field adjustments and wrapped it in duct tape. I did it more so to not be able to see the crack anymore and go with the ignorance is bliss strategy.

I eventually got to Tyler and Jayme's in Monticello where Tyler and I worked on repairing the cart with duct tape and C-clamps. Matt and JD from Sioux City hooked us up with the Pizza Ranch in town where we had dinner. A visit to the Eagle's Club, a happening place on Wednesday night, followed. Back at home, my wood design class came in handy as I helped calculate whether they could remove a column when they finish a section of their basement. I had to be the bearer of bad news that they couldn't.

Abandoned Country Church

Day 81-La Porte City to Coggon (35 Miles)

The cold temperatures actually proved to be pretty comfortable as I was plenty warm throughout the night. The only thing that kept me from sleeping completely like a rock were the loud yelps of a pack of coyotes nearby. I slept in until 9 am and didn't leave the park until just after 10.

I learned from the other campers yesterday that I wouldn't have to return to La Porte City to cross the river on a county road as the Cedar Valley Nature Trail had a crossing right by the park. Better yet, it took me all of the way to the town of Brandon which was on my path. After walking to the Cedar River and admiring its size I started running on the crushed limestone trail that goes all of the way to Cedar Rapids. Despite it not being nearly as well taken care of as the Pioneer Trail, it was very nice to run in a gauntlet of trees once again.

Getting back to the originally planned route in Brandon I took county roads through the towns of Walker and Troy Mills before reaching Buffalo Creek Park just west of Coggon. The campground wasn't near as nice as the one last night, but it had a shelter and a good place to get into Buffalo Creek. For the first time in what seems like two weeks, it was actually warm enough to go for a swim. I imagine the high was near 70 and there wasn't a cloud in the sky all day.

After learning the only semi-restaurant in town was the Casey's gas station from some other campers setting up their site, I decided that this would have to do for dinner. I walked through the small town before settling on two slices of pizza, two donuts, and two Arizona Arnold Palmers-the dinner of champions. It started getting dark and cold on the walk back to Buffalo Creek at only 7:30. Summer is definitely over.

The Cedar River

Day 80-Grundy Center to La Porte City (35 Miles)

While eating breakfast after sleeping in until 9 am, I noticed grey dreary skies. Being comfortable in the Onnen home I decided to wait it out a bit. Prolonging the inevitable lasted until about noon before I got the cart all packed up with the parting gifts Janelle gave me which included a TON of food, and a new can of pepper spray. Saying goodbye to Todd, Janelle and Nichole was tough, but I could only stay for so long.

I walked to Grundy Center and through downtown before starting running. I jumped back onto the Pioneer Trail after a mile and let it take me through Morrison into the town of Reinbeck. The run just kind of trudged on from there as I got into the center of La Porte City.

For a split second entering town I got a good internet signal on my phone. Turning on my Pandora radio station the first song to come on was Chelsea Dagger-the terrible song the Chicago Blackhawks play when they score a goal. The fact that I was in Black Hawk County made matters even worse. Illinois, home of the Cubs, Bears, and Blackhawks (three of the worst sports franchises outside of the ducks) is getting close I suppose.

In town I learned that the closest legitimate camp site was McFarlane Park, 2.5 miles east of town. I reluctantly started walking over there, figuring I would have to walk back the next day to get on the county road that would take me over the Cedar River. I realized how much longer walking takes than running as the trek took me about an hour. It was well worth it, however, as the park had an amazing shelter to make camp in and showers.

As I returned from the showers I passed by a group from Cedar Rapids with three RVs who were sitting around a campfire that had a flame of several colors. They offered me company and beef stew with cornbread and pumpkin bars. It was a million times better than the ravioli with hot sauce I had been trying to work up an appetite for. As everyone started to get ready for bed, I head back to the shelter to prepare myself for the 38 degree night.

Finishing up the day in time for this

Day 79-Rest in Grundy Center

After two mornings of waking up early 7:30 was as late as I slept in without an alarm. I had breakfast with Todd and Janelle before they left for church. I tried to get some writing done while they were gone, but mostly ended up dozing off in front of the tv with two large dogs on my lap.

Soon after Todd and Janelle got home, their other daughter Jayme and her husband Tyler stopped by for a huge lunch on their way back home to Monticello. They offered me a place to stay there in a few nights which weighed pretty heavily on my route planning for the next week. I now have it penciled in that I will cross the Mississippi in Clinton instead of the closer Dubuque.

Before the Packers kicked off, Todd, Janelle, Sammy and I went on a driving tour of Grundy Center to see the city and where each of them grew up. The town is still alive and well and hasn't seen a population drop like many of the towns I've been through on this run. There weren't too many vacant buildings, although there were many homes for sale. I'm amazed that out here you can buy a pretty nice house for only $50,000. The same house would go for at least triple that in Portland.

After the Packers win and a dinner of Casey's pizza we watched 60 Minutes and the end of the Miss America pageant-which is obviously rigged since Ms. New York has won three years in a row. Everyone in the house, but me, had to go to work tomorrow (unless running counts as work) so we called it a night pretty early.

Grundy County Courthouse

Day 78-Owasa to Grundy Center (26 Miles)

I got up pretty early in order to get the run done in time for the Iowa State-Iowa Cy-Hawk game at 2:30. After a big breakfast Janelle, Todd, Sammy and I drove back to Owasa where they dropped me off to start the marathon to their home in Grundy Center. It was quite a bit warmer than the overnight low of 34 but still in the mid-40s.

This was perhaps one of the best days of running of the entire trip. I maybe saw 20 cars the whole day, didn't get a drop of rain, and had sunny skies and cool temperatures. I stopped at the gas station in Steamboat Rock for some food and later had to jump on the Pioneer Trail, a very well taken care of rails-to-trails trail, to get around a bridge that was out in the town of Holland. I finished, visited with the Onnen's neighbor Carol for a bit, showered, and left for Todd's brother's garage in town to watch the game.

The group of Hawkeyes fans were in pretty good spirits until they blew a lead and lost to the Cyclones on a last second field goal. After hanging around a bit after the game, we returned home to watch more college football for the rest of the evening. I would get to continue relaxing tomorrow as Todd and Janelle generously offered me a rest day at their home.

Day 77-Webster City to Owasa (33 Miles)

Today got off to an early start as I drove with Sandy from the farm to town in time for her to get to school. I bid her farewell then stayed in the gas station to try and wait out the pouring rain. I had both of my jackets and pants on as the temperature was only 43 degrees.

It didn't look like the rain was going to stop anytime soon, so I decided to hit the county roads and get the run to Owasa done. Just a few miles out of town I was stopped by yet another cop, this time the Hardin County Sheriff. I hadn't been stopped by any authorities on my entire run until Iowa. Here I have been stopped three times in the past four days.

After talking to a few farmers along the way, I stopped at the Flying J travel stop off of the interstate for a bigger lunch at Subway. It was pretty cool to get another realization of how far east I was as travelling north on this interstate would take you to Minneapolis.

I jumped back on to D-25 only to soon be warned that the road was closed in five miles and that I should turn back onto 20 for a detour. Not wanting to do that at all, since 20 was now essentially an interstate, I flagged down a pickup truck to ask what the closure was all about. He told me that a stream crossing was out down the road and I should be able to get around the fencing with my cart with no problems. I took his word and continued on. The only hard part about crossing the construction zone was getting a friendly yellow lab to stay home as he followed me around the fence.

Getting close to Owasa I gave Todd Onnen from Grundy Center a call. He is a business partner of a friend of my aunt's in Utah and offered me a place to stay in Grundy Center. When I asked him whether or not he knew if there was a city park in Owasa to camp in, he offered to come pick me up in the town of 43 and drive me back to his place. I took him up on his offer as camping in near freezing temperatures while already wet in a city park didn't sound too fun.

After getting situated a bit in his home, I met his wife Janelle, daughter Nicole and their dog Sammy. We enjoyed a big dinner and went over to Todd's brother who was hosting a Cy-Hawk pregame get-together in his garage for the big game in Iowa City tomorrow.

Corn for as far as the eye can see

Day 76-Knierim to Webster City (34 Miles)

Leaving the Nelsen's home to 45 degree temperatures, I put on my rain jacket to start the day for the first time in a long while. Ben left on a school bus and Kim and Jeff both left for work well before I departed so I locked up the house on my way out. The high winds from the north had some bite to them as they came in from my left side as I proceed east on D26.

Jumping back onto highway 20 after ten miles of nice county roads, I had two cars stop me on the way to Webster City. The first was Jeff on his way to Webster City from Fort Dodge for his job at Iowa Central Community College. He wanted to check up on the repairs we made yesterday. The frame repairs were holding up fine, although the cart now had a slight veer to the right that I would have to work on. A few miles after leaving Jeff I was stopped by a Webster City police officer who was responding to a call someone had put in about me. Apparently a man pushing a baby down the shoulder of a major highway is worthy of calling 911.

After a dinner at McDonalds, I walked through the old neighborhoods of Webster City to the Riverside Park on the Boone River near downtown to set up camp. I had seen online that there was a city campground in this park which would work perfectly for the night. I was disappointed to find a sign that the campground was permanently closed and even more disheartened that the park was now nothing more than a grass field.

I decided to head to the Briggs Woods campground on a bike path, despite it being a few miles away. Just about a quarter mile down the path I ran into Sandy walking her dog Tucker. After talking a bit about what I was doing she asked, "would you be opposed to staying in a house?" I wasn't at all.

We walked about a half mile to her truck, loaded my cart into the back and head to Casey's general store to get a post-walk soda and beef stick for Tucker. Before getting back to her house we checked on their cows a few miles from home. After checking the weather forecast for tonight and tomorrow I became even more appreciative that I ran into someone so generous to take in a stranger to avoid the cold and wet. After a long day today and a somewhat early start to tomorrow, we spent the evening relaxing and getting to bed pretty early. I slept in her daughter's old room, who now lives in Florida, that was stocked full of huge trophies from 4-H and county fairs.

If it were any warmer the Boone River would have been awesome for swimming

Day 75-Sac City to Knierim (29 Miles)

Lucky for me, the storm that was warned of last night stayed south and hammered Omaha and Des Moines. I left the Sac City Motel to gray skies and cold temperatures that were below 50 degrees. After a mile east on the old 20 I turned back to the busier highway and faced the winds that were bringing the cold from the north.

I continued down the highway appalled at the number of dead frogs on the shoulder of the road. During two rest stops at section boundaries I talked to the farmers who lived down the road I was stopped at. Both wished me well on my trip and told me they'd pray for me. After a stop on Quinton Rd.-the worst road in the whole state (named after my brother)-Lindy from Sioux City stopped me on her way home from Ft. Dodge. It was awesome getting to see her once again on the side of a busy highway! We noticed the cars all magically seemed able to move over a lane now that I was with a lady in an Army uniform. I bid my final goodbye to Lindy and continued east.

Kim, who I met yesterday, would be home at 6:30 from her job as the librarian at the Sac City library, so I had about an hour to kill in town before she got home. I decided to head to local bar where a good chunk of the town's population was located for the evening. After a can of Coke, which the bartender generously gave me on the house, a lady there gave me ten dollars to spend on a meal. Since I would be eating with the Nelsens in just a bit, she said I could use it for a meal down the road. It was here that I learned the Iowa State Cyclones would be playing the Iowa Hawkeyes on Saturday when a guy with a Hawkeye hat refused to sit on the only seat available at the bar, an I-State stool. I left the bar and headed a block over to Kim's house at 6:30.

When wheeling the cart into the garage Kim's husband, Jeff, noticed that part of the aluminum frame connecting the front tire to the cart was cracked almost all of the way through. A very similar looking fracture decommissioned the first cart in Twin Falls and it was a pretty scary discovery. Using a good amount of duct tape and some iron braces we made the frame a lot sturdier. These are the type of fixes that last either ten minutes or ten years according to Jeff. I'm hoping we can split the difference and have it last only one and a half more months.

After the repairs I enjoyed a great evening with Kim and Jeff, and their kids Ben and Emma. Sleeping on their couch was amazing and the small heater running to keep the living room warm was a constant reminder of how lucky I was to be indoors during this crummy weather.

Duct tape can fix anything

Day 74-Holstein to Sac City (33 Miles)

I woke to the sound of a vacuum cleaner as the custodian of the church started his work for the morning. As I packed up to leave for the morning, the church's Bible study let me have cookies and muffins for breakfast. I bid them, the church staff, and Pastor Benson farewell and thanked them for their amazing hospitality. I met up with Jim who brought me an Iowa license plate along with tomatoes, carrots, and some other vegetable I can't remember the name of but was really good. I bid Jim farewell and continued the trek east. 

I jumped onto Highway 20 where I'd spend the majority of my day. I was told that the shoulder got significantly better at the town of Early 20 miles down the road. It was this glimmer of hope that fueled me for the start of my day as I reluctantly trudged across the gravel. Pretty soon the traffic thinned out enough so that I could run in the lane for some pretty good chunks of distance.

As I got to Early, the shoulder widened as promised. Approaching the on-ramp from Highway 71 a policemen sounded his siren at me and motioned for me to stop. After realizing I didn't have a baby he let me continue racing a storm front to Sac City. Even without this delay, I wouldn't have even come close to beating the storm as the the rains started about five minutes afterwards. Nothing can come easy in Iowa. Just when the paved shoulder gave me a glimpse of smooth sailing I got completely soaked. It reminded me of home in Oregon as it was a constant rain without any lightning. That doesn't mean I enjoyed it. 

I turned off Highway 20 and ran the final three miles to the Sac City Motel. My mom offered to put me up in one for the evening after seeing the tornado and flood warnings for the night. The owner, Sky, gave me a large map of Iowa that showed all of the paved roads. I desperately needed this since the internet-which has been my map-does not work on my phone in this state. 

I finished the evening before the major upcoming storm at Hutch's diner. I talked with a guy from England who was visiting his home in the area that he had bought on eBay awhile ago. When I got back to my room, I got a call from Sky at the office telling me someone was at the front desk to see me. Kim, from the Lions Club that had just had a meeting at the diner, wanted to meet me and offered me a ride around a bridge that is out on the old Highway 20. I politely declined as I was going to head back to the new 20 to run to Knierim. She was from Knierim, a town of 50, and offered me a place to stay tomorrow night. She also said she could try to get places for me to stay for the rest of the state.

What the sky looks like a few hours before a tornado and flash flood warning

Day 73-Moville to Holstein (29 Miles-Ran 33)

There was nothing that occurred to sugarcoat for this blog today until about 6:15 pm. Today was miserable and took just about everything I could give to get done.

The sound of thunder woke me up in the morning as its boom dominated the noise of the fan on high speed I had running for white noise. As the hail pelted the roof I figured myself to be pretty lucky so long as it passed before I had to leave in a couple of hours.

With cloudy skies, I head down the Moville frontage road to its end before crossing Highway 20 to take a county road to Correctionville. For about two miles it was fantastic! There was no shoulder, but no cars passed me in any direction during that time. As the main road turned south, the connector I needed to take kept east and was no longer paved. In fact, I soon found the road was made of pudding as my cart sunk down about half the width of the tires. It didn't taste nearly as good as pudding I later found out as I slipped trying to get it unstuck. Covered in mud, I returned to erase the progress I had made. Four miles run and I hadn't covered an inch.

The great joke turned even worse as a hail-storm with ridiculous headwind started right as I got back to the highway. I wanted to return to the motel and spend another night, but decided to grit my teeth and close my eyes to run blindly down the gravel shoulder to protect them from hailstones. Iowans on the highway stayed true to their usual form by not changing lanes and provided more water for my shower. At least I had Gatorade waiting for me at my first rest a couple miles down the road-oh wait never mind, I left them in the mini-fridge in the motel.

I turned onto old Highway 20 which went much better than its newer brethren. I stopped into lunch at Correctionville, where I had planned to stay the night before, and had a waitress who told me in all seriousness, "I don't know, get a map" when asked about directions. The day just trudged on through the rolling hills that drained about every ounce of energy I had left in me. I could tell I needed food, but I had no appetite at all. The only break I really took was talking to Tom, a local who was building a deck for his brother's house.

I got back on Highway 20, ready to be done for the day. I noticed milepost 44 which was extremely disheartening. I had only traveled 25 highway miles despite feeling I had run 50. I had run a few more than these 25, and I figured the extra distance to run the county roads was well worth the savings of sticking to the washed out gravel of the shoulder. I still had at least three miles to go until Holstein.

At 6:00 I left my stuff in the city park and ventured out to downtown in hope of finding a motel. There was no way I had the energy to camp after such a miserable day. At 6:15, not having any luck with my search, I asked a group of three heading to their American Legion meeting where I could find one. The nearest one was 12 miles away, but they might be able to help me through their church. They took me in to their potluck where I enjoyed an amazing dinner. I also learned that the highway has a significantly better shoulder about 20 miles away for the rest of the state. After dinner, Jim drove me around town a bit before taking me to the St. Paul Lutheran Church where Pastor Benson unlocked the door and showed me the lounge I would be staying in for the evening.

Despite the day being absolutely miserable, the kindness and generosity of strangers made it one I will remember as a trying time with a great ending. Seeds of doubt were planted in my head early in the day as even I couldn't convince myself that this was fun anymore. Things always kind of have a funny way of working out in the end.

Day 72-Sioux City, IA to Moville (19 Miles)

Waking up after a late night, we loaded up on McDonald's breakfast and doughnuts brought to us by JD, who also left me with a feast's worth of Gatorade and Pop-Tarts. I got the cart all loaded up and put it into the back of Matt's pickup to be driven to the Hard Rock Hotel just on the other side of the bridge from Nebraska. I had run about 7 miles extra when I ventured to South Dakota two days ago, but the Hard Rock was on my path and it was the closest point to where I was headed. After a tour of the casino, which has only been open for a month, I had to say some of the hardest goodbyes of this entire trip to Matt, Lindy, Cash, Casen and their friend Jenni. They showed me amazing hospitality and generosity and it was going to be difficult to leave the good times I had with them to go camp in a city park by myself.

The run started off terrifyingly as I crossed the highway bridge over the Floyd River. There was a sidewalk, but it was out at the start of the bridge meaning I would have to run in a lane of traffic. I don't think there have been a faster 400 meters in this trip as I needed to get off soon. I was able to work around side roads for awhile, but they included monstrous hills that were so steep I couldn't run all of the way up them with my cart. I didn't expect many hills here in Iowa, but here they stood as giants. I hadn't seen much bigger ones since Western Wyoming.

It soon became clear that I wasn't in Nebraska anymore as I got back to Highway 20. Instead of this cute little two lane highway with a very wide shoulder, I was on a four-lane divided highway with a gravel shoulder that was pretty badly eroded from rain. Where in the rest of the country, so far, about 90 percent of cars change lanes when they have the chance to do so to give me room, about 90 percent of Iowans stay the course.

I hadn't prepared myself nearly enough mentally to take on the task the day required of me. I was bummed out about leaving the Marcheses, was running on a crappy road and by the time I got to Moville, just didn't have anything left in the tank. I didn't have near enough energy to continue to Correctionville and I really didn't have enough energy to set up camp. I decided to seek a motel.

I checked into the Motel 20 that sold sleep according to the sign. I was greeted by Yolanda who very generously gave me seven dollars to go get dinner at the Pavillion in the main part of town. I left to eat after a shower, but couldn't find any restaurant downtown. I ended up eating at the Subway right next to the motel.

I returned to Yolanda to give her the seven dollars back since she gave it to me to eat at a certain place and I failed her because I didn't listen to her directions well enough. She told me I could keep the money and use it for a meal down the road. We got to talking a lot about her life and moving to Moville from Norway, where she worked in a lab for oil drilling, just a few years ago. It was amazing to hear the spiritual enlightenment she has had over the years. Most inspiring, however, was listening to her talk about her battle with cancer and her current treatments of chemotherapy, which she had a session of tomorrow morning. The bravery and courage she demonstrated and the way she is mentally and spiritually handling a terminal illness that is giving her a 50 percent chance of living is something that will give me great strength during this run. We left after a long conversation, and she left me with a book she had recently written and had published called "Embracing Forgiveness"

I returned to my room after the wonderful conversation, did my normal nighttime hotel room tradition of turning up the fan, and promptly fell asleep. I was glad I was too tired to continue to Correctionville so that I could meet such a great person.

The Marcheses with a creepy homeless guy

Day 71-Rest in North Sioux City

We started the rest day with a big breakfast and left for the boat pretty early to try and catch the start of the Husker game at the Bambooze river bar on the Big Sioux River. We piled into their boat docked at the marina on the Missouri River and traveled upstream to our stop.

During the third quarter with the Huskers up by ten, we went upstream on the Missouri several miles to the next bar to catch the end of the game. By the time we got there the Huskers were in a tie game with a couple minutes left against FCS McNeese State. Anxious times to say the least. The Huskers won on a near last second play and gave the bar a collective sigh of relief. 

We floated back down the Missouri back to the Bambooze where we stayed for awhile. At this time Coby, Matt and I got the idea to jump off of a bridge that supported pipes crossing the Big Sioux. After using the boat depth checker to find it was 16 ft deep under the bridge, we climbed onto the bridge that looked about ready to fall over any minute and jumped. It was pretty close to being the tallest thing I have ever jumped off of. 

The rest of the night took us to Jolly Rodgers, a night-time float on the Missouri through downtown Sioux City, and to JD's driveway for a bonfire. I caught the end of the Oregon State game at the last stop well after midnight as they were playing in Hawaii. I was running on fumes after a long day and night, and slept like a rock on their coach when we got home.

Sioux City over the Missouri River

Day 70-Jackson to North Sioux City, SD (16 Miles)

I set out knowing that today was going to be the shortest of the trip. I intended for this to be a somewhat rest day since I had no rest days planned in the future and this would be the fifth day of running since O'Neill. I told my host Matt, who I had met in Bassett about a week prior, that I would be in town at noon.

I got onto the highway and got the short run over with. Crossing into Iowa, I knew I would only be in the state for a short while as I head west to South Dakota. I jumped on a bike path, proceeded to get a little lost, but eventually got to North South City. Upon arriving there, I decided to check Matt's address, something I never did as I only typed in the city name. When realized I overshot his house by a long ways (he lived close to the Missouri River) I gave him a call and he came and picked me up in his pickup truck. The truck was from the construction company he owns out of Lincoln, Nebraska called Dynamic.

After a shower and load of laundry we head down to the marina where we stopped for lunch at Bev's and got onto his boat for a quick tour of the Missouri and Big Sioux Rivers. Using his depth finder, we checked the depth under all of the bridges we crossed to see if jumping them was possible. Our tour would be a short one because of plans set up by his wife Lindy, who I had also met in Bassett.

Showing up fashionably late, we arrived at the Pizza Ranch, owned by Matt and Lindy's friend JD who played quarterback for USC, and in the pros for nine years. He is now the coach of the Sioux City Bandits, the local Arena League team. I noticed the name "Holden" on the reader-board at a quick glance before realizing it said "Congrats Holden, Halfway Across the USA." Lindy was there to meet us with the local news and gave me an Army Strong t-shirt that said "Welcome Holden 1/2 Way Point Sioux City, IA. She also presented me with a small clock with an engraving that said "First college, then the world." It was an amazing gesture that I will remember for the rest of my life. I had never shown up to anywhere with so much fanfare on this trip.

After dinner, we returned to their home where I met their two boys Cash and Casen. As Matt and Lindy were getting ready for our trip to Omaha, we played football with the Bandits ball given to me by JD in the front yard. After saying goodbye to the kids, who were pretty sad to see us go, we headed down to the Funny Bone comedy club to see Jo Coy in Omaha about 90 miles, or three days, south.

We got back home from the show at about 2:30 am. With the plans Matt was telling me for tomorrow and ending this late, a rest day was in order for tomorrow. I crashed in a spider man bed.

My new Army Strong T-Shirt from Lindy

Day 69-Belden to Jackson (37 Miles)

Packing up my stuff in the morning in the city park, Ken Hintz stopped by to make conversation. We talked a lot about the area, my trip, and Cornhusker football. When he found out about me going to high school with Ndamukong Suh, he offered to meet me at the cafe with an extra trading card he had from Suh's senior year.

We got to cafe and talked about coins (I learned that nowhere on a penny does it say the word penny) and my plans for the day ahead. I told him I'd have to take the detour because I didn't know if I could get around the bridge that was out and that I'd hate to run all of the way to it just to be turned around. He told me he would give me a ride to the bridge on his way to setting up flags. Ken had set up a beautiful memorial on the side of Highway 20 just a mile outside of town honoring all of the Nebraskan soldiers that have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. The memorial is complete with a board with names, a picture of the state with crosses, and small flags that Ken puts back up regularly after they are blown over in the wind. Before going back to town I got permission from the foreman to cross the temporarily work bridge they had built.

Relieved that I would get Highway 20 to myself for at least six miles, I trekked on to Laurel. This town had recently been the target of a tornado that made national news I saw just before I left on this run. The damage was on the outskirts of town, but it was very clear to see its path. Unlike most tornadoes, this one was very slow moving and stood in the same place for an hour and twenty minutes.

There wasn't much in the 30 miles between Laurel and Jackon. I ran it on a stomachache after eating one too many ice cream sandwiches at the gas station in Laurel. After climbing and descending the desolate rolling hills, encountering a parked trailer with some not too kind words about Obama, and surviving a rush of traffic towards the end, I got to Jackson where I had a quick meal at the gas station. When asked where I could pitch a tent in town, she told me it would be okay to pitch one in the gas station's lawn.

Before heading to the bar, I did a quick walk around the Irish town and discovered the shelter in the city park was pretty much like staying indoors. I would make my move from the gas station to the park at halftime of the Packers game. I got into the bar just in the nick of time to catch the opening kickoff.

After leaving the bar to spend my last night in Nebraska, I ran back to the shelter to avoid the lightning storm that was headed my way. Only in Orchard had I seen lightning illuminate the sky as it did tonight and it was fresh in my mind what that night did to me. I had a much better shelter this time and slept off my sorrows of the Packers getting crushed by the Seahawks.

Ken Hintz and the roadside memorial