Day 27 - Beloit to Abilene: Advent of the Sketchbot 5000

Distance: 433,488 ft (82.1 mi)

All right kids, I have a real computer now so I can type like I really mean it. Hooray!

We rolled out of Beloit shortly before 9am, and after AT LEAST 1.5 arduous miles, we took a break at a gas station featuring really cheap breakfast sandwiches. Yes. We then rolled onward toward the Hwy 36 and 81 intersection, where we once again came upon Drew & Jeremy, the cyclists we saw the other day! We teamed up into the mighty yet ever controversial
five-man slipstream for the next 15 miles to our next turnoff. We stopped under an overpass in true hobo fashion and shared some stories for a bit, then cried for several fortnights and parted ways.
We turned south on 81 and moved toward Minneapolis (boy were WE ever lost) but luckily figured our way toward Bennington. We had to turn on a "county road" which might have been just dandy for a car but for bikes was more like riding an insane massage chair on the railroad tracks. Still, we finally made it to the beautiful little town only to find all our chances of food were closed on Mondays. TYPICAL. So we settled at the city park where we polished off the food we had (James and Aaron were all right, but I only had a 1 pound block of cheddar cheese). It wasn't that bad though, the cheese had melted into a fine fondue consistency and was quite a delicacy. However, the real charm of Bennington was its COMMUNITY POOL!
Aaron and I eagerly forked over the best $2 we have ever spent, and we totally hit that pool up! We felt only slightly awkward because everyone there was either under 9 or over 35, besides the lifeguards, but we went into Sketchbot 5000 mode and stopped caring. The pool unbelievably refreshing, but more importantly, we totally showed up those kids with our diving board techniques, they had no chance. Leaving the pool with refreshed bodies and spirits and supercharged egos, we gave a happy goodbye to Bennington.
The afternoon was less exciting until we landed in Abilene, but let me tell you, it was HOT. And really really really humid. To achieve this sensation you should: A) Submerge yourself in a nasty hot tub. B) Use a Ham and Cheese Hot Pocket as a snorkel. That ought to do it. Anyway, Abilene. Originally, we intended to go another 17 miles, but we had to buy groceries first so we wouldn't starve. However, Zeus had other plans. After exiting the store with a giant loaf of cheese bread, two cans of ravioli, a pound of strawberries and a zillion Little Debbie Star Crunches, I noticed the sky had darkened. A lot. Then rain started to fall. A lot. So we took refuge in a gas station to wait it out, but the lightning refused to let up. We soon decided that 17 miles in that weather would be catastrophic, so we instead rode several blocks to a park in a residential area.
There were 2 picnic shelters, but unfortunately the better of the two was occupied by a young couple very clearly in the process of breaking up. (Call me heartless, but it's pretty funny when you're not involved) So we commandeered the other area, and ate our dinners while watching the lightning and commenting of the painful process occurring in the other shelter. (A tornado watch is perfect weather to break off a relationship in, don't you think?) We thoroughly enjoyed each for around 3 hours (seriously), and hit the hay for our early rise the next day.
BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE!
We woke in the middle of the night to a coyote stepping to us all hard-like. That wasn't fly so we told it to git. I was half asleep during this altercation, but it mostly consisted of James hissing and hollering at the animal while it stood there, probably as confused as I was. I'm pretty sure there was a wrestling match in there but I've been known to not be fully aware of the world when I wake up suddenly. Haha.

Well, that about sums up Day XXVII,