My First Century

I bike to go places. When not biking for transportation, even my recreational riding has a destination - a park for a picnic, a campground for the night, a brunch spot - even if it may just seem like an excuse to bike somewhere. 

After several years of touring, I finally had a reason to bike 100 miles in a day. In planning a bike trip from Madison to Rock Island State Park (off the tip of Door County), Peter and I decided to camp the first night north of Milwaukee.

On a fully loaded touring bike, with hands numb from gripping the handlebars and a big desire to get out of the saddle, I joined the Century Club sometime near midnight and somewhere just south of Cedarburg. 

Instead of staying up to celebrate, as soon as we got the tent set up and my sleeping bag unrolled, I went to bed. In the morning, we had coffee and a typical, yet delicious, breakfast at a main street cafe in Port Washington. Recharged, I was ready to complete the additional 80 miles up to Two Rivers, where we would rest for a day before continuing north along the Lake Michigan coastline. 

Guerrilla campsite off the bike trail