Spirit Lake, Iowa, Sept. 15—The day started out overcast and misty as riders made their way out of Cedar Rapids, but it warmed up quickly as the group puttered across miles and miles of cornfields to find themselves motoring through a small Amish community. School children gathered at the fence to wave at the passing riders as adults trotted horse-drawn buggies along the roadsides. Lunch was served by the gracious folks at Mason City Harley-Davidson before Cannonballers headed off into the windy flatlands of Iowa.
Flat tires continue to plague the riders who are running clincher tires. Though frustrating, the blowouts failed to cost Georgia rider #96, Doug Jones, any points. Doug managed to ride his flat into the mechanics bay of Mason City Harley-Davidson where lunch was being served for Cannonball riders. Depsite the time spent changing 2 more flat flat tires over the course of the 274-mile day, Doug is ranked 7th in perfect scores. Mark Lowen, however, was not so lucky. The frustrated Californian has set his own Cannonball record by suffering 5 flats in one day.
Sweep trucks picked up 9 broken bikes over the course of the day before arriving for a parking lot party in Spirit Lake, Iowa, home of the Indian Motorcycle Factory. Riders and the public alike gathered to check out the old bikes and poke around the Indian factory. Tours were offered and several riders found themselves wondering what it would be like to own a model from the historic brand.
Saturday will be the longest day of the entire transcontinental run. Riders will cover a whopping 314 miles before arriving for a dinner in Steamboat Park hosted by the city of Pierre, South Dakota. So come to the park to see what a bunch of functional antique motorcycles looks like.
Standings for Stage 7:
For complete information on the Motorcycle Cannonball, go to www.motorcyclecannonball.com
