June 24 – Stephenfield to Richer

Bike log: 175.8km, 330m of vertical, avg. speed 33.4 km/h

Had a really strong wind from the west today – which was great for the most part! We took the south route around Winnipeg and did not come within 40 km or so of the city. Probably a good thing because the traffic was getting pretty bad on the major highways that I crossed and it is not a particularly bike friendly region. I did a few segments on gravel today, not too bad but it is amazing how fast some people drive down those roads…and don’t slow down for anything! Truckers seem to be the most considerate, believe it or not.

This was the strongest wind in several days. I am really glad it was from the west! But the dodging around we did on backroads to get past Winnipeg did give me the opportunity to head north, south, east, and west at different points. Going west I was easily able to do 40-45 km/h, going east was about 15-20. North and south were both around 25. Normally, without wind I average around 30-32. I was not aware that a crosswind would affect the speed that much, but I guess it makes sense – you spend a lot of energy fighting to keep going straight, and there is only 1 source of that energy!