I got up and did my laundry at the motel at 6:00am, then went over for breakfast. I spent several hours getting this blog caught up and just relaxing at the motel. Ollie's son Jake arrived in town around noon to join us for the rest of the ride to the Oregon coast. He's going to ride his father's bike in memory/tribute to Ollie. Jake owns and operates a bike shop in northern California, so he's a skilled and knowledgeable bike mechanice. We all went to lunch with Jake downtown.
In the afternoon I went with Paul and Greg to buy groceries for our cooking day on Friday in Prairie City. Back at the motel Nicole had come up with a run-off event to break the tie between Ubald and Simon in the TransAm Olympics. She borrowed two very small girls bikes from the local thrift shop. They weren't completely functional when she got them, but Jake helped get them in working order.
Before dinner Nicole laid out an obstacle course in the motel parking lot and Ubald and Simon raced the little bikes. Ubald proved the better cyclist in a close, spirited contest and was declared the winner of the TransAm Olympics.
After that was settled we all went to the Bull Ridge Brewpub downtown for dinner. They were offering a special of braised beef short ribs, mashed potatoes and green beans all local raised/grown. It was an excellent meal.
So it was a nice, relaxing layover day to get ready for the final push to the Oregon coast. Pacific Ocean, here we come!
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| Ubald celebrates his win in the TransAm Olympic bike race run-off. |
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| Baker City Hall - classic building built in 1903. |
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| Jake kisses the elk on display at our dinner restaurant, Bull Ridge Brewpub. |
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| Neat Hot Rod seen on the street in downtown Baker CIty. |
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| The Geiser Grand, a classic old hotel in the center of Baker City. |
Mike,
ReplyDeleteThat is amazing that Jake is able to join
you ALL for the ride to the coast. I'm sure it
will be an emotional ride for him especially
being on his father's bike. I can't even imagine ALL of the emotions which everyone is going to be experiencing that last few hundred yards before you do the final dip of your tires into the Pacific Ocean. Gods speed to you all! Stay safe and I am really enjoying the blog and TRULLY appreciate the Hours which you are putting into keeping it updated!