We had a very eventful 'rest'day in Muscatine, IA. Several of us had appts at the bike store for repairs, so Carol loaded our bikes atop the van and we drove across town to Harpers Bike shop. I had spoken to the mechanic, Greg, and was optimistic that he could fix my faulty drive train. I am exceedingly happy to report that he was indeed successful (bent the cage of the front derailure, for you bikeys..) and for the first time since this voyage began, my shifting system is fully functional - many thanks to Greg. The owner of Harpers had a Highwheeler and not only gave us a demo on it but convinced one of us (Sue, brave soul..) to give it a whirl. We then went to the home of some relatives of Jean, one of our riders, who threw a big Iowan cook out for us, complete with triple digit temperatures, or so it felt. It was an amazing spread - catfish, trout and bluegill, all caught in the Mississippi, fresh Iowa corn and countless other yummy dishes. We also traipsed across the street and chatted for a good hour with John and Robert, the bachelor farmer neighbors who well into their 80's, still maintain a tight farming operation, with a flock of 60 chickens, 25 barn cats, a couple of cows and lots of fields that they still hay. It was such a treat. Jean's relatives were wonderful - what an opportunity. We felt like Iowans!