On Saturday I checked into the TDK registration booth around 4:00pm and it was like a family reunion with lots of hellos and hugs. First person I see is Teresa from the Argus and she has her baby boy with her, he is a cutie and growing fast! Next I checked in with the ShuttleGuy camping service and find all the regulars are back. After dropping off my bags, my husband and I were off to Tea for a wedding reception. We got back to the TDK start point a little after 9:00pm and it was very quiet, all the tents were set up and people were calling it an early night. Melissa and her husband had just set up camp. Melissa and I decided we would leave the next morning by 6:30am. A few rain showers rolled through during the night and I thought for sure we would be riding in rain on Sunday but luckily it only rained during the night. We managed to leave Sunday morning around 6:30am even with Melissa's unexpected TV interview! (Did anyone see the piece KDLT aired on Saturday at 5pm and 10pm?)
On the road, there were more TDK family to meet and greet and the miles went by fast. The rest stops were all great, especially Salem, where it seemed they went all out to welcome bikers to their town. At that rest stop I ran into Marilyn and we talked about RAGBRAI. We will both be riding with our daughters on that ride - another exciting event to look forward to this summer!
Not too far past Salem, Jim caught up with us. I've ridden a lot of miles with Jim on the past two TDK's. When he pulled up along side me, I asked, "is that Jim?" I was rather shocked because his voice didn't sound the same as I remembered. But after all, Jim rode his first TDK in 2006 when he was only 14 years old, he has since grown leap and bounds. The cool thing about biking is that it is an activity that brings people of all ages together who share a common passion.
The three of us pulled into Mitchell with plenty of time to kick back and find yet more TDK family to get caught up with.
I'm so fortunate to have in addition to my own wonderful family, a great TDK family!
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