PALM XXXI

2011 Ride

This year we had one of the wettest (and coolest) springs ever in Michigan and some of us (Judy and I) didn't get a lot of training in because of the weather. Little did we know that the weather was supposed to get us ready for this year's PALM. We had 841 participants this year, the most we've had since PALM had two routes. We did a northern route which usually means smaller schools. We were worried about long meal lines and maybe running out of food. But our site people (PALM and school staff both) were up to the challenge. I can tell you though that bicyclists from Iowa can really eat a lot of tacos.

Judy and I got off to a slow start Sunday on the ride to Hesperia. We handled the late registration and we were the last people out of the parking lot. We were very grateful for the PALM markings on the road. It was humid, a little warm but we had some sun. If we could have seen the future we would have been more grateful even if we did have a head wind. The first day was hilly. Well, the first 2 1/2 days were hilly especially if you were from SE Michigan. We were told that we could avoid a 3 mile hill if we ducked onto the Hart - Montague trail as a detour. We did and it was gorgeous: woods and benches with no traffic and no head wind. Hesperia had the only cold shower on PALM this year. But it was really cold: you were chilled as you walked toward it. Sunday was my longest ride of the year and I was asleep by 8:30.

We got an earlier start on Monday: 8:30. The hills were not as long as they were on Sunday, just more of them. Eventually we got into a rhythm of racing downhill so that we didn't have to work as much uphill. It was cloudy when we started in the morning. When we stopped for lunch in Bitely it started to pour so we had a long lunch. The rain started and stopped all afternoon. It was raining at the watermelon stop (so no watermelon for us), but by the time we got to Big Rapids, it stopped. Since they had unloaded the luggage into the school and the band shell, our bags were dry. We had ice cream and looked at the statues of bulldogs (for Ferris State) in Big Rapids.

On Tuesday it was a race to pack up before the rain started. We didn't quite make it: it sprinkled on our tent so we packed it damp and felt bad. But after we loaded our luggage it started raining harder so we felt better. The rain stopped by the time we ate breakfast and got on the road to Clare. We saw rivers on this year's PALM (eg. the Pere Marquette) but Tuesday we saw the only inland lakes this year, notably Chippewa Lake. We finally were able to eat watermelon (and a great sandwich) at Barrytown. And the road flattened out. All and all a great day.

We did laundry in Clare. By the time we got back and ate dinner, it started to rain hard. When the rain let up a bit I checked the tent. I hadn't staked the rain fly properly so one side of the tent and its sleeping bag were soaked. I spread some garbage bags on the sleeping bag and slept on top of them using towels for a blanket. Damp, but I could sleep. It rained so hard overnight (not to mention the thunder and lightning) that the noise woke me up. But the no more water in the tent.

It stopped raining by the time we got up, but we had to pack up everything wet. We found out that wet luggage is a lot heaver than dry luggage. The first 30 miles from Clare to Bay City we were on the Pere Marquette bike path. It was flat and had no cars, both of which were welcome. We passed by restaurants, museums, wildflowers, and restrooms. The bike path ended at the Tridge in downtown Midland. We missed the Farmer's Market but there were plenty of places to eat. The day we passed thru Midland they were doing a Homeland Security exercise, a simulated attack on Dow. Another PALM first. A 15 minute squall blew through but we were warned by a State Police car and took cover in a garage of a house where no one was home. We were uncomfortable but dry. As we continued the ride, we saw other PALM riders coming out of their shelters. One was a machine shop that had 30 riders in it. Once again, the luggage was unloaded into the school at Bay City so it wasn't any wetter than when we loaded it in the morning. In all, the luggage was unloaded into schools 5 times: a new record for PALM. It was amazing how quickly the tent and rain fly dried out even though the sky was overcast. We hung our wet sleeping bag to dry in the school along with everyone else's. It dried out enough to use.

We had pack up and start riding in a light rain the next two days but since I learned my lesson about the rain fly the tent was dry inside. The temperature was warm enough so you weren't chilled. The ride to Bad Axe was our longest day so starting out in the rain was discouraging but it ended soon enough. We went right through downtown Bay City (a little unnerving) but soon we were out in the country. Now everything was flat. You could see wheat, sugar beets, soy beans, corn fields all the way to the horizon. You could also see where the rain was, how it was moving and where it would intersect the route. We weaved our way down Young Ditch Road, a road even worse than those in Monroe County. But it had no traffic because how could any car could make it through? We had a great lunch in Owendale put on by a church group and, after 7 miles on Van Dyke, we were in Bad Axe.

The Thursday meeting paid tribute to Kevin Degen whose trike was a fixture on many bike rides in Michigan including PALM. A PALM Lifetime Achievement award was presented to his family, many of whom were on the ride, more of whom came for the night.

The ride to Harbor Beach started in the rain. If you weren't discouraged and rode the full route you went by a wind farm. The blades of the windmills are huge and make an ominous low whooshing sound, perfect for a Hitchcock movie. PALM ends with a parade of the riders wearing this year's PALM shirt. By the time it started, the rain had stopped and there was a little sun. Even after the hills, the rain, and the French toast we had every day for breakfast, how sad we were that PALM was over for another year.

Pictures from PALM 2011

This is a link to all of Dotties 740 official PALM photos. You can view them using the thumbnails or view them as a slideshow. Enjoy.

Ellie Knesper sent us this link to her PALM 2011 photos. She is the one who answers all your PALM questions, either by phone or by email.

Pam Teunissen sent us a diary of her, her husband Tony, and Button the poodle on this year's PALM.

Gregory McGrath sent us a Smilebox of his wife on this year's PALM. The music is "Keep on the Sunny Side", a Carter Family song and very appropriate this year.

Ron Gombar sent us a picture diary of this year's PALM.

Thomas Bauman sent us a picture diary of he and Elizabeth on this year's PALM.

If you have memories, highlights, pictures, blogs, comments etc. that you would like to share, please send them to me and I'll add them to the web site.