Yesterday was a day on which sad news just kept coming. I learned that a friend's father died quite unexpectedly. In addition, our already small group of cyclists keeps getting smaller. The amazing women who I met on these TransAmerica rides have become important to me, and the loss is real when any one of them cannot join us for this third segment. There will also be a shift in the collective strength we bring to the effort as the group gets smaller and smaller. As is often the case, expectations don’t line up with the reality.

I am terribly undertrained for this ride. I have been counting on that collective strength to help me get through the hard times on the rides. I will miss the special contribution that each of the women who told us yesterday that she cannot be with us. I am crossing my fingers and toes that we don't lose anyone else.

My expectations have also not quite lined up with respect to technology on the road. It has been much more of a challenge than I expected. Last night I had something I needed to get done for work and I couldn't make it all happen. I was tired and lacked the resilience to deal with the frustrations of my technological challenges. But like so many times before, Chris walked me through what I needed to do calmly and I was able to get it done without losing the tiny bit of my mind that I had left. A win for long term working from the road. We aren’t quite there yet, but we are moving in the right direction.

There is a beautiful breeze this morning and the state park is absolutely gorgeous. Interestingly, the cicadas that were so loud last night are essentially silent this morning. It makes for a peaceful couple hours of work before we get back in the van and head to our next stop: Lunch with a friend in Kansas City and then to Wichita later today.

Margaret multi-tasking. Glasses up for phone, done for laptop.