July 19, 2009 KILLDEER, ND - Three states down, three more to go. I've been on the road since June 25 (started in Seattle, WA) and have collected over 1,420 miles. The distance per day is primarily determined by how far each larger city is from the next. Large city is defined as one with a grocery store, public library, and church; the last two qualifications mean access to Internet and a normally a safe place to stay. Actually Mother Nature has a lot to do with daily mileage as I'm not fond of bicycling in the rain and headwinds can make 50 miles seem like 100. July 16, 2009  CIRCLE, MT - 70 miles Jordan, Montana to Circle.  Lots of up down and pretty steep hills. There are many references to the Lewis and Clark trail and Sakakawea Lake; it's Indian but I'm not sure what it means. There was some construction as crews were blacktopping a 140-yard segment. Stopped to chat with the traffic control guy. When I told him my concerns about snakes, he said the worst area was up about two miles, where the snakes would probably jump out at me. Stopped at the VFW in Circle to mingle and Charlie, 70, was the lonely guy who quickly bought me a beer and bent my ear.  Charlie wore a crisp, white long sleeved shirt, cowboy boots and black hat and a voice box. He was drinking Crown Royal on the rocks.  Married twice, Charlie had five boys and ran the annual rodeo in Richey, Montana about 30 miles east of Circle. Charlie wanted me to come home with him.  He said it would be ok with his wife. He also wanted me to stay three days and attend his rodeo. "We'll make a big deal out of you if you stay," he said ordering me another drink. I hashed over the snake issue with Charlie. "Best thing you can do is get yourself a lariat." I told him it would take me forever to learn to lasso a rattlesnake. Charlie looked at me blankly and said in a gentle, no-nonsense, mechanical voice, "You don't rope the snake, you whap it with the lariat and then step on the head with the heel of your boot." I had to remember to close my mouth because it was hanging wide open, like a trout.  "You can also string your lariat around your tent and that's supposed to keep snakes away," he said about the versatile rope. The best rope I had was attached to a tampon and I asked Charlie if putting those end-to-end would work.  He had no response; just ordered us two more drinks. OFTEN ADOPTED... There have been a number of instances where people have welcomed me into their homes to shower and stay the night. Leaving Sandpoint, Idaho I ran into heavy storms about 20 miles out of town and raced to hideout in a wayside bathroom. My head was sticking out the bathroom door, monitoring the storm and gasping for a clean breath of air when Jackie and Stan pulled up. The pair were headed to Sandpoint for a day of shopping. They lived 70 miles southeast and said since I was going past their lake home, why didn't I just stop and stay the night. I normally call my brother to make him aware of my accommodations. "So let me get this straight," said my brother who wears a homemade shirt that reads: I like to go to Wal-Mart and judge people. "You agreed to stay and they were going to town for supplies. So they would be able to get fresh rope and sedatives," he said pretending to sneeze and say Ed Gein at the same time. "You forgot the duct tape," I reminded him.  I had a good feeling about the couple; they were retired, genuinely nice and had a basset hound in the front seat. Bassett hounds, as we all know, are the ambassadors of peace.  SIDNEY, MONTANA... Leaving Sidney this morning and hoping to cross into North Dakota before noon.  Stopped at the M&M Cafe to grab a quick coffee and chat with the locals. 

There were two tables full of ranchers hashing over the latest warm weather and wheat prices. Common themes were seed or farm impliment hats, whiskers, flannel shirts and suspenders. \