Where is Gonzaga University? You guessed it...Spokane, Washington. It is a beautiful campus, but it's obvious that college life has changed since some of us were in school. Campus housing is amazing here.
This is the art building which includes a museum. Our Spokane hotel is next door to the campus, and one of the city bike paths goes through campus.
Today was mostly about chores. We went to the bike shop this morning to pick up bikes. The shop is about a mile from the hotel. This is where I had my bike shipped, and to have the Spokane shop re-assemble it for me. The other option would be to disassemble myself, and either ship or take on the plane. I prefer to ship ahead and make travel as simple as possible.
After getting everything back to the hotel, I wandered around and found a local sandwich shop for lunch, Caruso's. It was excellent, and really busy by the time I left.
After lunch, I got on my bike and took a short ride before tour orientation then the SAG driver meeting. I took the bike path through campus which then winds around through town. It will be the route the riders will take tomorrow on our way to Priest River, Idaho.
Spokane is a really bike friendly community from what we've seen. Motorists are courteous. There are bike lanes and paths throughout. It is also pedestrian friendly with a good walk-able downtown area with lots of shops, small restaurants and bars. This is some place I would return to visit when there's more time.
Arrival last night was a little off to enjoy the city's fireworks display. We saw the conclusion from the airport shuttle as we drove into downtown. There were a lot of people milling around when we arrived at the hotel, so I assume the show was well attended.
I will be on SAG tomrrow, then every third day after that. We are a group of 23 this time. There are two riders, plus the chef, that were on last year's Cascades to Glacier ride. Tomorrow will be challenging as I get to know and, more importantly, recognize the riders. It's important, of course, to keep track of everyone, and more important to realize when someone is off route. Tomorrow's 61 mile ride Priest River. The cue sheet is a page and a half long, which is pretty lengthy for that mileage, and means many opportunities for bonus miles.
Everyone is anxious to start. The group is a mixture of seasoned riders and a few that are new to touring. Unfortunately, at this time the forecast is not favorable, but we ride unless there's lightening.
Thank you and shout out to my Missouri SAG team (Steve, Brenda, Sophia and Natalie) for making sure the trip gets off "on the right foot." The Minions were waiting in Spokane along with SAG treats (although the M&Ms will probably not make it that far).
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