The Dec. 22, 2016 edition of The Brookings Register highlighted the fortitude of two hardy classmates. In the article entitled Year-round Riders, Harry Rossow and Bernie Hendricks were interviewed for their reliance on their bicycles for much of their winter transportation. Bernie lives near the hospital, and commutes to the Pharmacy building on campus, while Harry is employed as a coordinate measurement machine technician at Falcon Plastics.
Bernie's ride is helped by the efficiency of the snow removal crew on campus. He states, "In my case, it's pretty clean. I have to get off the bike and push it through some areas once in a while, but once I get across Sixth Street, the college keeps the streets and sidewalks very clean. They really do a great job of cleaning those walks off quick." For him, it is more convenient to ride rather than drive. ""It's probably just as fast for me to bike from my house and get in my office as it would be to drive and have to park somewhere."
Harry noted that while there really are no large hills to surmount, the wind can easily be just as much of a challenge. "Wind is our version of a hill. It's pretty flat around here, so wind is what our uphill biking is."
Many people wonder why even bike under such brutal conditions. Both of them cite health reasons as their main incentive. Harry said that he was born with a heart murmur, and that "15 years of avid yearlong biking has kept his heart murmur in check." He tries to ride about 70-80 miles per week in the winter, while that increases to around 100 miles the rest of the year. If he is in a hurry, he can get to work in about seven minutes. Bernie also cites health benefits. "It's just something you do. It's part of your life after a while. What's amazing to me is how many people aren't riding."
Bernie uses the same bike all year round, while Harry has a separate bike for the winter. It is a little bit smaller, but has a studded rear tire and a specially grooved front one.
Both feel relatively safe on the roads, as they avoid the high-volume traffic 22nd Avenue, 6th Street, and 8th Street South. They also try to equip their bikes with lights so that they can remain easily visible to drivers.
The right type of clothing is crucial. Dressing in layers helps immensely. On those bitterly cold and windy days, adequate face and neck coverage and good pair of mittens or gloves is a given.
While this mode of transportation may be irrational to most people (especially when we have had around 25 below this past weekend) , it has become a habit for Harry and Bernie. As Harry explains, "It's easier than you think it is. Once you get started and make a habit out of it, it's not (bad). You see people out on bikes in inclement weather, and you can adjust to the weather very quickly. Six weeds ago, I thought 40 degrees was cold. I don't think that anymore; 30 degrees would feel warm today."
On a sad note, the mothers of two of our classmates are no longer with us. On December 18, 2016, Mary Margaret Collins, mother of Margaret (Collins) Dempster, passed away. Her obituary can be found at http://rudesfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/RudesF1/obit.cgi?user=46189937_MCollins
My association with Margaret was limited to religion classes at St. Thomas More. She has been a long-time secretary at the Park and Rec department here in Brookings. For our 20th reunion in 1989, she typed up the booklet that listed the brief biographies of many of our class members. I believe she did that manually on a real typewriter. Cut and paste, which would have made her task much easier, was a few years off. She put in a great deal of time to make a very memorable booklet.
Margaret's youngest sister Judy (BHS class of 1978) was a student of mine when I first started teaching in 1973. Her husband Mark Rue was also in that class. I had the privilege of coaching Mark in high school track and field. He set a school record in the high jump his senior year. He also anchored the mile relay, the last event at a track meet. Thus, he was usually one tired competitor at the end of a long day. He continued to run for USD in college. His father ran the Runnings store that was on South Main for a number of years. The store is now located on 6th Street out by the interstate.
Two days later, Patricia Ann Privett, mother of Rick Thompson, passed away. Her obituary can be found at
http://rudesfuneralhome.com/sitemaker/sites/RudesF1/obit.cgi?user=11854838_PPrivett
Had a nice conversation with Rick, also. He now lives in Canton after residing in Estelline for a number of years. His wife is the business manager for the Canton School District. His daughter was also an accomplished runner in both high school and college. We had a good time reminiscing about our more youthful days.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to both Margaret and Rick and their families at this difficult time.
