More about Amahia's Missouri River Ride

MU grad student Amahia Mallea has completed her ride home from Columbia to Minnesota, following the Missouri River as far as .Bismarck, ND. Amahia is doing her graduate research on the river.

Amahia wrote about a lot of interesting experiences she had along the way, and Cyclex has posted these daily dispatches on their website. They also have a collection of photos from the trip.

Here is one of Amahia's observations, which should be READ and MEMORIZED by every Missourian:

Rather than ignoring the river, Sioux City has developed the riverfront into a public space which attracts many people.

Perhaps, one day, Missouri cities will do the same?

Amahia was, of course, following the Lewis & Clark route, as many other cyclists are this summer. In Council Bluffs she met Martin, an avid cyclist who guided her through town:

Martin has plans to bike the Lewis and Clark Trail next year, as does another person who stopped us in town to inquire about my origin and destination. People are really excited about following the Corps of Discovery route and a lot of people talk to me of their intentions to celebrate the bicentennial.

On bicycle touring:

The odometer turned 500 today, even though by freeway the distance is probably one-third fewer miles. By nature, a trip like this is anything but a straight shot. Things started out tough with the injury and in retrospect I was probably a little ambitious considering both the river bluffs and the heavy load were new to me. To think that I was getting out of the saddle and working every hill like it was a race! But after creeping along and healing, I’m increasing my average miles. I’ve had to adopt a different attitude and swap power for endurance. I thought I’d be at least half way done with the trip after two weeks but its more like a quarter or a third.

Before embarking, myself and probably everyone else thought of this trip as a solitary adventure—Amahia going off into some great unknown. But is has been anything but solitary; this trip is far more social than graduate school. In fact, after two weeks, I’ve spent so much time with people that I almost wish I had more time alone. I think I’ll get that as I begin to ride more miles. Whatever the case, I’m not lonely. And the people…the people are all so good.