Today would be a long drive. We made every attempt to stay under 8 hours riding as it was tough to stay in the saddle for over 6, 7 was hard, and 8 was brutal. Today we would push 8 hours.
We stayed mainly on the interstate in this case I90. The land is very flat, and we could see a storm in the distance - a bad one with very dark clouds. We stopped for gas and decided to push on despite the looming weather. Rain suits on we began west again.
The storm hit us and the rain was very cold. The cold slipped into our rain suits and gloves, slowly numbing our hands. We rode into Madelia but had no idea where John's aunt lived. Stopping at a bar in the rain, our frozen hands could not undo the straps on our helmets. We walked into the establishment in helmets dripping water and asked for a phone - and asked the bartender to dial the number. We were guided to our roost and defrosted in hot baths.