From Cody, Wyoming--

My vacation to Montana/Wyoming/South Dakota has been extended with wrist surgery. The day before we left, I was on my bike downtown and was hit by a car making a right turn across the bike lane. My 9-day-old cyclocross bike suffered a bent brake/derailleur handle and I was left with knee abrasions, a nasty bruise on my left hip and a broken left wrist. X-rays did not show a fracture, so I wore a splint and wrap for a week in hopes of healing a sprain. A follow-up appointment I scheduled in Cody resulted in an MRI and the need for pins and a cast. Instead of going home today, I'll have the surgery tomorrow and hang out here for the rest of the week since I can't race the Adventure Xstream in Moab as originally planned.

Despite the complications and inconvenience, we've had a fun vacation. We spent two days hiking in the Beartooth Mountains of Montana where we left the ashes of our dog, Samuel J. This was his first hike and swim. After eating and purchasing supplies in Montana, we headed for Badlands National Park in South Dakota for two days of exploring. We met two interesting people at our campsite: Jim from Ohio is living a life dream to explore the country while receiving unemployment. He's traveling alone in his Ford wagon and seeing all the usual tourist sites of the west. Julie is a teacher from Pennsylvania on sabattical and touring the country for 6 months.

We drove over the Bighorn Mountains to Cody where we stayed with Scott's parents and visited friends and family. The weather has been spectacular and I'm looking forward to a few more peaceful days here.