It still feels so surreal that the end point of this trip is becoming more of a reality. But we still have some intense riding days ahead, and a lot more memories and type 2 fun to come. I was shuttled in the van this morning to let the good ol' knees take a rest after a 100°+ weather that inflamed them a ton.
We were staying at the only school in small town Winnett, which awesomely had a usable kitchen. So I went to the general store in town, which surprisingly had quite the selection (but also some steep prices, as it's the one food store within 20 miles), and sautéed up some vegetables and potatoes and had my first cooked meal for myself this whole trip. As much as I'm sad this trip is coming to a close soon, I'm very excited to be back in my apartment kitchen and cooking up a storm. Being away so long has made me realize that cooking is more core to my self care and being than I thought.
Before I knew it the riders were rolling in and in great spirits from what sounded like an amazing ride with some epic downhills, and the cutest abandoned puppies at the lunch stop (NOTE: if anyone is driving through Sand Springs, MT, please check if these pups are still there and adopt them if you can!).
Then it was dinner made by our dinner chore group, since there was no donated meal tonight. They put together an AMAZING thai-style curry with minimum ingredients and it had to be one of the top 5 dinners on this trip. Afterwards we had our weekly team meeting and capped the night off with an event from the day's sweep challenge.
Sweep was Gillian and Masha and they were hosting a Ball – which is a gathering for the LGBTQ community where people perform in different categories, such as voguing or realness, to come together and have a safe space where they can express themselves and be what they can't always freely show to the public as easily. Definitely watch the documentary Paris is Burning if you want to understand the origins and significance of balls. It's a brilliant film that I have so much pride in as a New Yorker and seeing the ballroom scene blossom from the West Village and Harlem.
The performances from our ride groups, each creating their own House (which is standard when performing in a ball to compete under your "team" name), were truly outstanding for most only learning what a Ball was that morning. It hyped everyone up for the night and keep our spirits high for continuing the 6-day ride stretch. Can't wait to see what other crazy nights lie ahead with sweep challenges and having fun in abandoned schools for the summer!
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