Day 3 - Tuesday, July 22, 1997 - Creston to Des Moines- 71 miles and 2,434 ft. of climbing.

Conditions- Hazy to Clear- Hot and Humid- Winds- Light. Terrain- More Hills!

The Superior Hawgs were indeed named because the bus coach was manufactured by the Superior company and less painting would be required, but the club is indeed Superior in many ways. The main way is the skill of our fearless leader, Larry Baker who can pick the perfect campsite and maneuver the bus in place with a very low level of daily damage. In our campsite last night, we were able to get some pics of the Hawgs and of the secretary of the Hawgs, Mary and her friend, Joanie. In the morning, Norm captured an eerie fog welcoming in the day.

Today's hills went from steep, constant, and relentless, to a situation of rolling in the morning. We were able to push real hard on the downhills for momentum and get a 40 MPH steam going then fly up the next hill. It was fun.

Our first town was Lorimor, where I was privileged to meet the secretary of the Air Force, Dr. Sheila Widnall. She is appointed by the President, and heads all the operations of the US Air Force, a delightful lady. Also in town, we met one of the most amusing teams I have experienced, Team Mickey. Listen to a sound clip of these crazy folks!

Our Next town was Winterset, in Madison County. Winterset is the place where "The Bridges of Madison County, starring Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep, and also the Dick Van Dyke movie, "Cold Turkey." Winterset is also the birthplace of Marion Morrison, also known as John Wayne. (A Norm running picture)

As we entered Madison County, the terrain changed abruptly. The treeless cornfields gave way to a very hilly, wooded area which reminded me of the Texas Hill Country area around Austin. In town, there were some really fun festivities. In how many Iowa towns have you seen canoe races down the main street? The entertainment on the courthouse lawn was a 3 generation ensemble The grandmother was Daisy Dell Benge, husband Eddie, and their grandson, Kirk Hanson. Here's a sound clip of Kirk's performance with his grandparents. Here's Mike Plance with his squirting pig nose!

Here are some scenes of the "Bridges of Madison County" taken from town and the surrounding area. First is Norm's picture of the Northside Cafe, where the tryst between Francesca and Murray began, then the courthouse, then the service station, and finally Cedar Bridge. Here's another shot of the bridge. Later down the road, was Francesca's house. This required about a two mile detour. Not many of you took that, did you? Norm did. He said the hills weren't tough at all, since he did it several days later by car! Here's the house with Murray's Chevy pickup in the yard. Wonder what's going on in there?

Today we got our first "taste" of gravel for the year.

Here's a recumbent with a roof!

Almost in DesMoines, after a very memorable hill, we met some more very pleasant members of the Air Force team.

DesMoines and our campground is "interesting", to say the least! We are camping in an old military encampment next to the zoo. Norm got some shots of the Auschweitz of Des Moines. The smokestacks surely passed all EPA guidelines. And here is a picture of us lounging around in our beautiful campground. The showers were vertical 4X4's with plywood covering from knees to necks right by the exhibition area. Norm got some shower pics, too. It was just too funny! According to Norm, it did have all the comforts of home....well, except a floor, hot water, walls, and a ceiling. Here's a shower spy! And a closeup! It was the first time I've ever had a shower and a tan simultaneously!

Great Thanks to- Simpson College, Indianola, Iowa for letting us use their facilities for uploading today's page.