Like a bad penny, Steve showed up unexpectedly. Claims he sent out an email telling us he'd be here Saturday, but I didn't get it.

Good to have someone to ride with Saturday, though my 4 pm return time cramped his style. I needed to be back in time to help with the collegiate time trials.

We headed up Tammany at 8 after a brief visit from Mike on his motorbike. I hoped to discover wether the Cottonwood Creek road is still rideable. Jim Kleeburg said millings from the road work on 95 were being put on it. Steve wanted to do the Winchester Century.

In CuldeSac we spoke with a road engineer who indicated no problem with Reuben-Gifford road at all. He said the millings were going on a gravel road from Cul-de-Sac to Cottonwood.

We crossed 95 by climbing out Cul de Sac rather than riding the highway which is down to grooved pavement just before Thunderbird.

The climb up the hill was pleasant despite the heavy clouds that hung over the top. I thought I felt rain drops several time but it was only the sweat dripping from my forehead. On top, though, the winds were blowing out of the south making the ride across the prairie more difficult that the climb.

My time was short. I had outdistanced Steve on the climb and chose to ride on in to Winchester eat and ride back. I ordered MarionBerry pie and icecream for lunch. I figured I'd need to average 15 mph all the way home to make it by 4. I wasn't too worried though sine I knew I had a strong tailwind on top, a long downhill, and probably a tialwind into town.

A waitress at the cafe said the Reuben/Gifford road was a mess. When I told Steve this, he said he had no confidence in what anyone said and that he would try to do the Century as planned. He may have had to turn around or maybe those big touring tires served him well.

Returning to town, I could see black clouds boing up on the western horizon. The time trial's going to get wet, I thought. It didn't happen here. They did get wind. The storm broke on the Palouse with lightning as well as heavy rain according to those who had driven through it to get to the time trial.