Temperatures are starting to drop but I've made it 75 miles from Brookville into Pendleton, Ind.

The day started off nice enough. The Pioneer Restaurant was open in Brookville. They had hot coffee and a morning paper. The customer base included two locals and me. One took my paper as I made my way to the door and the other stopped to ask questions about my ride. I'm a bit of a circus in spandex so I tend to draw a look or two. I tell the man I'm headed out of town on Hwy. 52 and trying to get to Rushville.

"Had a nephew killed on that road ridin' a bike," said the man. It's just the kind of information I want to hear. The other guy who took the paper chimed in. "Lots of hills between here and Rushville," he said acting like it would take me a day and a half to make it 30 miles up the road. All I could think while leaving the cheery place was -- a big Robin Williams GOOOD MORNING EVERYBODY!!

Roads weren't that bad, nor were the hills. A little chilly at 8 a.m. and some fog but that lifted shortly and I had 30 miles in before 10:30. Continued on towards Greenfield after a quick change of clothes. You can spend more energy fighting the headwinds on the flats then putting in a 100-mile ride in one day. And riding wet is a quick route to failure.

The winds are about 3 to 7 miles an hour from the west. I change directions and head north up Hwy. 9, still making my way towards Wisconsin. I use the semis to my advantage. If they're coming up behind me and pass, I try to ride in their wake and use the draft to pull me down the road. If the semis are coming at me I tuck and bear down as the wind from a passing semi really whips me around and hanging onto the handlebars is as challenging as trying to steer a kite.

I stop in Greenfield, debating about whether to continue. The skies have grown darker, and even though there's no rain in the forecast I'd hate to chance it with the cold. Cold and damp equals doom. The locals say it's about another 10 miles and I figure I can make it.

About four miles out of town I start regretting the decision. Battling the breeze today has taken it out of me. My form is starting to fade and I start wishing for a water tower. The water towers are normally so high they can be seen for miles and they're a good indicator that a community is not far off. I also start closing my eyes briefly to save my eye energy. At this point in time I know I'm getting tired. I'm also relying on my "I can make it" song. It's just a little ditty I made up, very popular on my internal bicycle radio station, WBYK. The song has a simple rhythm of a train, a Johnny Cash kind of beat.

With every word I pump my legs like pistons and get a little further down the road. If I sing the four words over and over with a little twang, that's the country version. If I throw a "Sweet Jesus" into the mix, that's my religious version. I'm still working on a hip hop and rap version.

Finally made it to Pendleton and rode an extra seven miles to find a place to stay in Anderson, Indiana. This is the tenth day of my tour and I've got in about 700 biking miles. Have to be back at work on Tuesday, Sept. 26 and looking ahead at the weather I have to really make time within the next couple of days, as storms are in the forecast for Friday and Saturday.

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