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June 16, 2005
Rapid City, South Dakota
Before launching into detailing all the fun mnt biking we've been doing here in the beautiful Dakotas, I'm trying to think of how to describe our time in Iowa City, Iowa. Maybe i'll just make a list:
Hung out with Virginia, an ex prostitute who now drinks Old Crow and Pabst for breakfast while driving her maroon chryster car around selling pot to the locals and supplying text for experimental music performances both while she's at the gig and while away.
Hung out with Lewis, a native Iowan who took us swimming in a reservoir and told us about how when he was in jail for cridit card fraud, that he almost married his then fiance even though it was her fault that he was in jail. with his 1500 dollars lewis is now planning a 7 month bike trip from mexico to brazil, and is certain he can purchase a airline ticket from iowa city to mexico city for less then $150 dollars.
Hung out with Mikey's friend Kate's female friends, all of whom work or have worked at the Pleasure Palace, one of the two Iowa City porno stores. they were happy to recount stories of all the bizarre patrons who frequent the "arcade," and were all perfectly content to drop out of community college, spending the entire day smoking pot, and lounging in the brand new Walmart inflatable pool they'd installed in their backyard. (note: Lewis was fired from his job as a janitor (read: jizzmopper) from said porno store)
while we hung out at the porn store for nigh on half an hour, Lewis gave us a "selective biography" of an elementary school classmate of his who, last summer, decided that god thought that porn stores were bad, and decided to take matters into his own hands by shooting the clerk of the other porn store point blank 3 times in the chest with birdshot (the clerk lived). Lewis felt that his teasing of the gunsman in their youth had direct correlation with the incident, and concluded that "kids can be cruel, but that doesn't mean you have to go shoot up a porn store."
We slept in the most disgusting hovel (that's right i said hovel) i've ever seen. the day began with the zanax addicted roommate almost burning down the house after he put a whole pizza box in the owen for 40 minutes. there were no utensils, plates, or surfaces on which it was safe to put food.
anyways, after we fled Iowa City we drove past some more corn fields and empty plains and ended up in Rapid City, South Dakota. i must say that this state looked mighty fine after Iowa. we went riding yesterday on part of the centennial trail, and today a local bike mechanic who helped us out a great deal took us riding on some trails near rockerville (what a good name for a town, eh?). Josh was extremely fast on his 29 inch single speed mountain bike, and i found myself stopping to pant and gasp for air on more then one occasion. Near the end of the trail, when mikey and i were both exhausted, Mikey misjudged a narrow decent that he describes as "really steep" and managed to halt his tumbling near freefall by using his right cheek against a craggy rock. He didn't cry though, because he was embarrassed. also, he will have a nice scar that will always remind him of his summer spent with his cousin, me.
Next stop, Montana. Owen can't come up, which is a total bummer. After that, a visit to Airielle in Montana, then on to Portland. we may change our focus and ride in BC, Canada instead of Utah, since it will be so very very hot there in the summertime, and BC is full of shady trees. Plus, i've never been to Canadia, i've only heard stories of milk sold in bags, polar bears, and igloos. sweet.
Posted by bendan at June 16, 2005 04:00 PM
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