Last night before stopping I noticed my butt was starting to hurt. Thinking nothing of it I just went about things normally. Then I sat on the saddle today and it hurt even more… great another butt zit like in Newfoundland. They are just the worst I guess it’s from having a constantly sweaty butt, all I know is they blow rocks. And the fact you have to pop them is even worse.
Wow I managed to talk about butts, and zits within the first paragraph really no segway into that one sorry about that.
Today’s ride was tough from the get go. Mentally I have been having a tough time getting pumped up for the rides the past few days because I know they are going to be tough on a new level. When you only have one small town (if your lucky) and you know your going to spend 8 hours riding alone its hard. Adding to that you know that more then 70% of you day is going to be spent riding on chip seal pavement. Chip seal if you haven’t ridden on it is just the worst. It not only shakes the pee out of you, but it adds extra resistance so the ride even if you have a good wind feels like you have a head wind.
Now a favourable wind here is next to impossible to impossible to come by when your traveling west, and today was no exception. Luckily I was heading north as well so I was paralleling the wind, which was a nice change.
Things were going smooth and I have confidence back in my bike. The previous days I kept stopping to check tire pressure whenever I felt something weird but now I feel like I am set to roll for a while at least.
The road levels out today which makes long distance riding a lot more difficult because as much as hills are a pain to ride they give you short-term goals. When it’s flat your goals very quickly become long-distance goals.
About 40 miles into the ride after toping up with a truck stop sandwich and a cinnamon bun I saw something on the horizon. I could not figure it out at first but within minutes I saw that it was a wind turbine. Then I turned the corner and saw 100’s of wind turbines lined up. It was really a mesmerizing thing to watch because the whole structure is just designed so elegantly. Depending on the angle you look the machine looks as if it is functioning differently. Like the stars in the morning I just had to take a break in the middle of nowhere and watch for a minute.
The short break also had another purpose because I was broken. I was at the glasscock county line and wanted to give up. The days just are not getting easier and my body is aching. I know it will be with it, and I know my body will adapt but it is unspeakably hard when you are in the middle of nowhere. To put it in prospective 2 days ago in a 90-minute span 10 vehicles passed me. Even if you want to give up there is no one around to care so you just have to keep trucking.
After my short break I was back rolling and was hauling. I kept pacing myself to the next section of wind farm and before I knew it I saw a water tower on the horizon, which meant my rest stop, was literally in sight. But not before riding through an oil field. This was the strangest and the most unpleasant part of the day. It was the strangest because on one side of the road I had a wind farm, and on the other rested these industrial oilrigs. It was just a strange thing to think about. It was the most unpleasant part of the day because of the smell. It was a smell I have never experienced before but it almost instantly gave me a pounding headache. When I say I travel at the speed of smell I am not joking.
Trip Distance: 146km
Ride Time: 6:56hr
Avg. Speed: 21.16km/h
Total Distance: 14608km
Total Ride Time: 676hr
Destination: Big Spring, Texas
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Tour Day 96 Luck Is Getting More Flats Sept 29 2010
Ice cream never tasted so good last night. Buying said ice cream was funny. As I went to grab the jar I over hear this guy say, “you have to drink your vitamins”. So I hear this and look over; I then see in his hand a V8. Seeing that I put two and two together, then this guy grabbed a case of beer. I laughed and he said “I know im contradicting myself with the beer”. I did not respond to the statement because I didn’t want to antagonize this guy that was roughly 2.76 times as big as me.
With a bursting stomach of dairy (after drinking 2 litres of milk as well) I went to sleep. When I woke up I felt refreshed. I have made a conscious choice to eat healthier then I have been because I have found myself drinking more and more crap. Even in the two days that I have implemented the changes I can feel the difference. Now granted I burn everything off anyways so I still do treat myself at snack time.
Ready to ride this morning I started tarring up the rolling hills. I thought my legs would feel slow from being beaten up in the hills yesterday for the first time in a while but my body surprised me yet again. Now don’t get me wrong I was still slow because the bike is heavy as heck, but I can notice the 16-pound difference particularly in the back end where 14 of the pounds came from. It also meant that I could get the weight lower so the bike handles better. Really things were going smooth.
I was 40 miles into the ride and planned to stop for water in a little homestead town. Things looked promising because I saw 3 businesses like buildings. Well two of them were boarded up so I went to the door of the one that was in business still. On the door was a note “due to lack of business we will only be open from 3pm till 6pm”. Great im screwed again. Thankfully I anticipated my luck and conserved my water properly. But that business really bothered me. If I have a struggling business I am going to do whatever I can to make it money. Promote it more, be open more, and get more people in. It does not make sense to close the doors for such long periods of time.
I got to my first town at mile 65 and had my snack. I knew that the next stop was going to be my rest stop 47 miles away so I topped up on water and took a muffin for the road. I knew I could make it to San Angelo with no lunch because I was ahead of my timeline for the day.
Well I did not make it that far. I had three tubes on me and thought I could limp my wounded front tire to the shop in San Angelo. I was wrong. The tire almost literally blew up. The thread just shattered and punctured every tube even after taping the tire to the gills.
I was really miffed because I want to just have a few days of solid riding. My body is feeling good it’s just everything else that’s going wrong. So I had to flag someone down and catch a life to the shop. In the car I masked my frustration and told stories of the road for the 30-mile journey into San Angelo. That’s right 3 flats in 10 miles, just brutal.
Over the Gps navigator in the car I heard the name of the bike shop and burst out laughing. The shops name was Concho bikes. The reason I laugh at this is because of a story my friend Corey who toured in Japan told me. In Japan they play this game called concho. In this game they sneak up behind someone, put their hands in a gun shape, yell concho, and then poke them up the bum. This is no joke you can youtube it. I told the guy at the shop the story and he said “no you don’t understand we aren’t perverts, concho are pearls here”. Again I just left the conversation at that and went on my way with my new tire rolling smooth.
This is when I realized I had another bike issue. I have a stripped bolt in my front rack. Even better it’s stripped while it’s halfway loose so it makes this awful clunk when you go over a bump.
Another great day of touring. The next 5 are going to be pretty similar because the way the roads are laid out they are spaced in 40 mile gaps so its either do 80miles or 120miles and destroy myself in the hills. With my luck im going to choose the 80 mile days for a while.
Trip Distance: 122km
Ride Time: 5:53hr
Avg. Speed: 20.86km/h
Total Distance: 14461km
Total Ride Time: 669hr
Destination: San Angelo, Texas
With a bursting stomach of dairy (after drinking 2 litres of milk as well) I went to sleep. When I woke up I felt refreshed. I have made a conscious choice to eat healthier then I have been because I have found myself drinking more and more crap. Even in the two days that I have implemented the changes I can feel the difference. Now granted I burn everything off anyways so I still do treat myself at snack time.
Ready to ride this morning I started tarring up the rolling hills. I thought my legs would feel slow from being beaten up in the hills yesterday for the first time in a while but my body surprised me yet again. Now don’t get me wrong I was still slow because the bike is heavy as heck, but I can notice the 16-pound difference particularly in the back end where 14 of the pounds came from. It also meant that I could get the weight lower so the bike handles better. Really things were going smooth.
I was 40 miles into the ride and planned to stop for water in a little homestead town. Things looked promising because I saw 3 businesses like buildings. Well two of them were boarded up so I went to the door of the one that was in business still. On the door was a note “due to lack of business we will only be open from 3pm till 6pm”. Great im screwed again. Thankfully I anticipated my luck and conserved my water properly. But that business really bothered me. If I have a struggling business I am going to do whatever I can to make it money. Promote it more, be open more, and get more people in. It does not make sense to close the doors for such long periods of time.
I got to my first town at mile 65 and had my snack. I knew that the next stop was going to be my rest stop 47 miles away so I topped up on water and took a muffin for the road. I knew I could make it to San Angelo with no lunch because I was ahead of my timeline for the day.
Well I did not make it that far. I had three tubes on me and thought I could limp my wounded front tire to the shop in San Angelo. I was wrong. The tire almost literally blew up. The thread just shattered and punctured every tube even after taping the tire to the gills.
I was really miffed because I want to just have a few days of solid riding. My body is feeling good it’s just everything else that’s going wrong. So I had to flag someone down and catch a life to the shop. In the car I masked my frustration and told stories of the road for the 30-mile journey into San Angelo. That’s right 3 flats in 10 miles, just brutal.
Over the Gps navigator in the car I heard the name of the bike shop and burst out laughing. The shops name was Concho bikes. The reason I laugh at this is because of a story my friend Corey who toured in Japan told me. In Japan they play this game called concho. In this game they sneak up behind someone, put their hands in a gun shape, yell concho, and then poke them up the bum. This is no joke you can youtube it. I told the guy at the shop the story and he said “no you don’t understand we aren’t perverts, concho are pearls here”. Again I just left the conversation at that and went on my way with my new tire rolling smooth.
This is when I realized I had another bike issue. I have a stripped bolt in my front rack. Even better it’s stripped while it’s halfway loose so it makes this awful clunk when you go over a bump.
Another great day of touring. The next 5 are going to be pretty similar because the way the roads are laid out they are spaced in 40 mile gaps so its either do 80miles or 120miles and destroy myself in the hills. With my luck im going to choose the 80 mile days for a while.
Trip Distance: 122km
Ride Time: 5:53hr
Avg. Speed: 20.86km/h
Total Distance: 14461km
Total Ride Time: 669hr
Destination: San Angelo, Texas
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Tour Day 95 Mellow John Sept 28 2010
Here is how my mind works. I had a great day yesterday that I am pretty sure I could not top so I voluntarily pushed on into terrain that I knew was going to be rough and make sure that today did not live up to yesterday.
After a days rest it was tough forcing myself to get up at 5am and push off into the night but I knew that it was something that had to be done. Today was a little different because it was cold. I went out in just my jersey and shorts, which I thought would be enough because I usually start sweating right at 6am. Today however I had to bust my jacket out for the first time since Newfoundland. Infact I was tempted to pull out my winter gloves but I refused to give into this season called fall. The whole situation was kind of funny because the guy at the front desk thought I was completely bonkers for my clothing selection, then he ask where I was from and lost hit. He automatically hoped over the counter with his phone and started snapping pictures of me and everything I touched.
After getting nice and toasty in my jacket I was back riding down the road. The road itself was rough. Not only was it constant up and down but it was built with this different kind of asphalt that was not broken but it just shook the pee out of me for 100kms. When you getting shaken like paint can for that long it just zaps your body. Your going on average 3km/h slower, and your muscles are having to put out so much more effort to go that speed. Adding to the misery was the fact half way through this paris-roubaix style ride was the fact that 80km in I got a front flat. It just figures. I change the rear tire and now the front is acting up. After changing this flat I was feeling pretty negative about the day because I started it with such high motivation, and such high goals for the day.
After the flat it started to get warm so I started to down my water like a camel. Which if I was thinking I would have topped up in the large city I passed at kilometre 100, but I thought I would be able stop at my lunch stop 20km down the road. I even had a back up town that was only 6 miles past my selected lunch stop. Well a plan is awesome if it works. In this case it didn’t and boy did it suck. The heat had now hit at around 90degrees, the terrain was still rolling (a little less mind you), but thankfully the road had smoothed out a bit. I passed the first town I had planned to stop and because the only building it had was a post office. I then passed the second town because it literally had nothing.
So it is now 2pm I have completed 130km on nothing but breakfast and 2 cinnamon buns with very little water because I had to conserve it. I was not having a great time and my body was letting me know because it started to shut down. My legs started to slow down, and my head started to pound with a wicked headache.
I kept riding and hit over 150km with no water on the bike and broke down. My mind was cooked; body, and bike were cooked for the day. I pulled over 10 miles from my rest stop in Mason and was struggling. Seeing I was in trouble John L. Hinnant pulled over on his way to a muzzle loaded shooting competition up north and offered to help me out with a ride to Mason. I could not deny the offer because I was beyond blown up. I actually like talking with strangers like this because you learn that everyone has a story. In this case John decided to tell me about his motorcycle ride up to Alaska that never made it to Alaska because he stopped in BC. Curious I enquired why he stopped. Then john opened up. He was on his motorcycle and saw a native man on the side of the road standing next to his steaming multi coloured pickup truck. John asked if he needed any help. To which the native man named Robert said, “Thank you pale face but it looks like I am going to have to shoot old paint”. John then offered the man a ride to the reserve on the back of the motorcycle. Once at the reserve john was offered a nights stay that turned into a 2-month stay full of dancing and a possible marriage to Roberts’s sister. The only thing john could not remember was where exactly in BC this took place. Just being a cheeky bastard I said, “that sounds an awful lot like the Okanogan”. To which he responded “the more I think about it the more I think it was infact in the Okanogan”. I had a good chuckle at that.
Once dropping me at the rest stop we exchanged cards, which is normal for me. I was just excited to get some food in my stomach finally because by now it was close to 3:30pm a full 9 and a half hours after my last meal. By the time I started to eat I had that blackout feeling again which is the most unpleasant feeling in the world.
When I got a few minutes to myself I took a look at johns card and I was left with a few questions. On the top it says, “dedicated to the art of the spiral tube” and on the bottom hand written it says “God and Texas”. Both of those statement I don’t exactly understand but that does not matter because john was sure a character to remember.
If the rest of the ride is going to be like this it is going to be a mentally exhausting push.
Trip Distance: 155km
Ride Time: 7:43hr
Avg. Speed: 20.16km/h
Total Distance Time: 14339km
Total Ride Time: 664hr
Destination: Mason, Texas
After a days rest it was tough forcing myself to get up at 5am and push off into the night but I knew that it was something that had to be done. Today was a little different because it was cold. I went out in just my jersey and shorts, which I thought would be enough because I usually start sweating right at 6am. Today however I had to bust my jacket out for the first time since Newfoundland. Infact I was tempted to pull out my winter gloves but I refused to give into this season called fall. The whole situation was kind of funny because the guy at the front desk thought I was completely bonkers for my clothing selection, then he ask where I was from and lost hit. He automatically hoped over the counter with his phone and started snapping pictures of me and everything I touched.
After getting nice and toasty in my jacket I was back riding down the road. The road itself was rough. Not only was it constant up and down but it was built with this different kind of asphalt that was not broken but it just shook the pee out of me for 100kms. When you getting shaken like paint can for that long it just zaps your body. Your going on average 3km/h slower, and your muscles are having to put out so much more effort to go that speed. Adding to the misery was the fact half way through this paris-roubaix style ride was the fact that 80km in I got a front flat. It just figures. I change the rear tire and now the front is acting up. After changing this flat I was feeling pretty negative about the day because I started it with such high motivation, and such high goals for the day.
After the flat it started to get warm so I started to down my water like a camel. Which if I was thinking I would have topped up in the large city I passed at kilometre 100, but I thought I would be able stop at my lunch stop 20km down the road. I even had a back up town that was only 6 miles past my selected lunch stop. Well a plan is awesome if it works. In this case it didn’t and boy did it suck. The heat had now hit at around 90degrees, the terrain was still rolling (a little less mind you), but thankfully the road had smoothed out a bit. I passed the first town I had planned to stop and because the only building it had was a post office. I then passed the second town because it literally had nothing.
So it is now 2pm I have completed 130km on nothing but breakfast and 2 cinnamon buns with very little water because I had to conserve it. I was not having a great time and my body was letting me know because it started to shut down. My legs started to slow down, and my head started to pound with a wicked headache.
I kept riding and hit over 150km with no water on the bike and broke down. My mind was cooked; body, and bike were cooked for the day. I pulled over 10 miles from my rest stop in Mason and was struggling. Seeing I was in trouble John L. Hinnant pulled over on his way to a muzzle loaded shooting competition up north and offered to help me out with a ride to Mason. I could not deny the offer because I was beyond blown up. I actually like talking with strangers like this because you learn that everyone has a story. In this case John decided to tell me about his motorcycle ride up to Alaska that never made it to Alaska because he stopped in BC. Curious I enquired why he stopped. Then john opened up. He was on his motorcycle and saw a native man on the side of the road standing next to his steaming multi coloured pickup truck. John asked if he needed any help. To which the native man named Robert said, “Thank you pale face but it looks like I am going to have to shoot old paint”. John then offered the man a ride to the reserve on the back of the motorcycle. Once at the reserve john was offered a nights stay that turned into a 2-month stay full of dancing and a possible marriage to Roberts’s sister. The only thing john could not remember was where exactly in BC this took place. Just being a cheeky bastard I said, “that sounds an awful lot like the Okanogan”. To which he responded “the more I think about it the more I think it was infact in the Okanogan”. I had a good chuckle at that.
Once dropping me at the rest stop we exchanged cards, which is normal for me. I was just excited to get some food in my stomach finally because by now it was close to 3:30pm a full 9 and a half hours after my last meal. By the time I started to eat I had that blackout feeling again which is the most unpleasant feeling in the world.
When I got a few minutes to myself I took a look at johns card and I was left with a few questions. On the top it says, “dedicated to the art of the spiral tube” and on the bottom hand written it says “God and Texas”. Both of those statement I don’t exactly understand but that does not matter because john was sure a character to remember.
If the rest of the ride is going to be like this it is going to be a mentally exhausting push.
Trip Distance: 155km
Ride Time: 7:43hr
Avg. Speed: 20.16km/h
Total Distance Time: 14339km
Total Ride Time: 664hr
Destination: Mason, Texas
Monday, September 27, 2010
Tour Day 94 Bikegasm Definition Mellow Johnnies Sept 27 2010
It was nice to sleep in this morning and not be rudely awoken by a cell phone alarm clock. This is a pet peeve of mine, why can cell phone companies not have a standard ring tone or a standard alarm sound? Because now when I wake up I am forced to feel like I am in the starting gates of a horse race.
Anyways after getting some breakfast in me I was off to the races. I decided that I was going to make the trek into town and visit Mellow Johnnies. Because of New Orleans I was nervous about it because I had built up such an expectation. Almost immediately Austin superseded everything I had thought. Everywhere I turned I had a bike path that took me to where I wanted to go. Even better most of the routes are tree lined and have these really cool businesses lining them. You would ride past a botanical garden and then 10 feet later you would see a Rasta styled grill in this super cool old building. The whole city had a great vibe because it had the perfect mix of new and old.
About the only place where that mix of new and old did not carry over to were the people. Everyone here seems to be very fit and young. After passing through Alabama and Louisiana where you would be hard pressed to find someone under 40 it is a pleasant change.
That brings us to the bike shop. My heart was beating almost as fast as the day I separated from Gregg on day one. I was nervous about what laid behind these doors. I walked in and was greeted by a radio shack TT bike. That automatically put my nerves at ease. Then my tunnel vision opened up and I had one of my few bikegasams. I did not know which bike to look at first because the shop had everything. I mean a hand built Naked bike (from Vancouver Island), a old colnago steel frame with record 11, or the multiple tour de France wining bike hanging around the shop. I saw the stair leading down but I wanted to save that for last. So I walked around the shop and around every corner was something amazing. I mean what other place would you see 12 team radio shack race bikes just hanging from a wall. I got the chance to actually pick up popvitches bike. I fully anticipated in buying a few jerseys because I knew they would have a mellow johnnies one, a Texas one, and a radio shack one. But then I encountered choices because they had about 5 different options for each. It was hard for me to not go completely crazy and end the tour right here by making myself go bankrupt.
When I started to ride out I decided to turn around for no reason, and then I saw it. I had the perfect view of the city line. I could see everything from the old congressional building to the new sky scrapers it was just amazing. Austin would defiantly be a place I would come back to visit and spend some more time.
That being said I still an mot looking forward to west Texas because it is going to be 5 days of just ruthless riding with huge gaps between everything. Hopefully wearing the lone star on my back will give me star power like in rock band and make me rocket up the hills.
To summarize the day I can just say it was amazing. Everywhere I turned and got off the road by 20-50 feet I was left awe struck because this city is just amazing.
Trip Distance: 33.18km
Ride Time: 1:41hr
Avg. Speed: 19.61km/h
Total Distance: 14183km
Total Ride Time: 656hr
Destination: Austin, Texas
Anyways after getting some breakfast in me I was off to the races. I decided that I was going to make the trek into town and visit Mellow Johnnies. Because of New Orleans I was nervous about it because I had built up such an expectation. Almost immediately Austin superseded everything I had thought. Everywhere I turned I had a bike path that took me to where I wanted to go. Even better most of the routes are tree lined and have these really cool businesses lining them. You would ride past a botanical garden and then 10 feet later you would see a Rasta styled grill in this super cool old building. The whole city had a great vibe because it had the perfect mix of new and old.
About the only place where that mix of new and old did not carry over to were the people. Everyone here seems to be very fit and young. After passing through Alabama and Louisiana where you would be hard pressed to find someone under 40 it is a pleasant change.
That brings us to the bike shop. My heart was beating almost as fast as the day I separated from Gregg on day one. I was nervous about what laid behind these doors. I walked in and was greeted by a radio shack TT bike. That automatically put my nerves at ease. Then my tunnel vision opened up and I had one of my few bikegasams. I did not know which bike to look at first because the shop had everything. I mean a hand built Naked bike (from Vancouver Island), a old colnago steel frame with record 11, or the multiple tour de France wining bike hanging around the shop. I saw the stair leading down but I wanted to save that for last. So I walked around the shop and around every corner was something amazing. I mean what other place would you see 12 team radio shack race bikes just hanging from a wall. I got the chance to actually pick up popvitches bike. I fully anticipated in buying a few jerseys because I knew they would have a mellow johnnies one, a Texas one, and a radio shack one. But then I encountered choices because they had about 5 different options for each. It was hard for me to not go completely crazy and end the tour right here by making myself go bankrupt.
When I started to ride out I decided to turn around for no reason, and then I saw it. I had the perfect view of the city line. I could see everything from the old congressional building to the new sky scrapers it was just amazing. Austin would defiantly be a place I would come back to visit and spend some more time.
That being said I still an mot looking forward to west Texas because it is going to be 5 days of just ruthless riding with huge gaps between everything. Hopefully wearing the lone star on my back will give me star power like in rock band and make me rocket up the hills.
To summarize the day I can just say it was amazing. Everywhere I turned and got off the road by 20-50 feet I was left awe struck because this city is just amazing.
Trip Distance: 33.18km
Ride Time: 1:41hr
Avg. Speed: 19.61km/h
Total Distance: 14183km
Total Ride Time: 656hr
Destination: Austin, Texas
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Tour Day 93 Other Cyclists. PANIC! Sept 26 2010
Yesterday had one more trick in store for me. It came at the very end of the day when I went to brush my teeth. Of course. I forgot another toothbrush in another location to far away to go back for. It was really a great way to end a great day.
That being said I have to start each day with a new mindset, and today was no exception. I got out the door and thought that it was going to be a stellar day. I mean it could not continue at this pace forever right. Well I was wrong. I got 5km out the door and knew the day was going to be rough because I was dealing with a crosswind similar to that of the prairies in Canada. At points it got to where I was leaning over into the wind to stay on a steady course. I very quickly readjusted my goals for the days pace and was content with hammering for the entire day.
With the bad there is always a smidgen of good. That came in the for of cool weather. A dense cloud cover made it a comfortable temperature for a change, which made putting out the power a little easier.
Break time came slowly and I was ready to dome some donouts. After getting a few of them down I figured I would check my tire pressure just to see how my luck was holding up. Well it figures my rear tire was flat… again. The rear tire that I got in Venice so only 1600km ago had started to shred from the inside. Thank you tracx tires for being the biggest hunks on the market. So I flagged a car down in the middle of nowhere and asked if he knew where a bike shop was. Fully expecting him to say Austin I was surprised when he said there was one less then a few miles away. After he gave me directions I was set.
When I pulled into this place I doubted my directions because it was an industrial complex with building upon building dedicated to welding. Then on the end was this little bike shop with 3 bikes on the flood and a small service station. Again I fully excepted him to have no stock of good touring tires but low and behold he had a schwable marathon plus (my favourite tie).
It was amazing having that new tire. I rode faster and harder because I now had confidence back in my equipment. I could monster truck things without having to worry about another flat and wasting moments of my life dripping in sweat on the side of the road.
Things were going a lot better. I still had a wind but I was happy for a change. I mean I was on my way to Austin and another 2 days ahead of schedule even with my issues the past few days.
I didn’t think the day could get any better until I turned around. There right behind me were two fellow bike tourists, the first cyclists I have seen in America. Kim and Rob who are riding for the CIA (check them out at pedalingforpatriots.com) hit it off right away. That was probably because I was so lonely having any company for more then 2 minutes is awesome. I just started talking and talking. I was not even paying attention to my speed and where I was at. Our conversations got me to thinking how I missed the days with Charles and Oliver. I got me to thinking how much more fun this trip was when I had people all the time.
By the time we got to there support vehicle it was time to say goodbye. Which again when you meet such awesome people are always hard. That’s exactly the reason why I doddled around for a few minutes just so that I could soak in a little bit more of the atmosphere.
Still though I had to finish the 13 miles into Austin. The last miles were filled with thoughts of change. Change in luck, and change in bike. With me taking the day off tomorrow I was trying to think of ways I could make the last 1600mile sprint into la easier for me. The best way to do so is cut weight. So the whole time I was thinking of things I could ship back home.
Austin came in a jiffy and I made my way to the western edge of town. I had two options the seedy place or the holiday inn. Usually I would choose the seedy place but I figured I needed a treat with me staying the extra day and all. Well wouldn’t you guess it I ran into Rob, Kim, and there support team again. I am a firm believe that the bike touring community is one of fate. I mean this is a city of 500000 people what are the chances of seeing them? What are the chances that they would be staying at the exact same place? Some time fate works in strange ways.
Rob and Kim I have t say thank you because I have been really down the past few days. Your energy has given me that extra drive to push through and complete the trip. I feel like a new man right now… or a less worn out man.
What is making me even more happy is my weight shedding. Gone are a huge amount of clothing, my sleeping mat (I can rough it), stool, seatbag, and a few misc items. Total weight loss 16 pounds. I can’t wait to feel what my bike will feel like with the equivalent of my track race bike missing from it.
Trip Distance: 146km
Ride Time: 7:13hr
Avg. Speed: 20.29km/h
Total Distance: 14150km
Total Ride Time: 654hr
Destination: Austin, Texas
That being said I have to start each day with a new mindset, and today was no exception. I got out the door and thought that it was going to be a stellar day. I mean it could not continue at this pace forever right. Well I was wrong. I got 5km out the door and knew the day was going to be rough because I was dealing with a crosswind similar to that of the prairies in Canada. At points it got to where I was leaning over into the wind to stay on a steady course. I very quickly readjusted my goals for the days pace and was content with hammering for the entire day.
With the bad there is always a smidgen of good. That came in the for of cool weather. A dense cloud cover made it a comfortable temperature for a change, which made putting out the power a little easier.
Break time came slowly and I was ready to dome some donouts. After getting a few of them down I figured I would check my tire pressure just to see how my luck was holding up. Well it figures my rear tire was flat… again. The rear tire that I got in Venice so only 1600km ago had started to shred from the inside. Thank you tracx tires for being the biggest hunks on the market. So I flagged a car down in the middle of nowhere and asked if he knew where a bike shop was. Fully expecting him to say Austin I was surprised when he said there was one less then a few miles away. After he gave me directions I was set.
When I pulled into this place I doubted my directions because it was an industrial complex with building upon building dedicated to welding. Then on the end was this little bike shop with 3 bikes on the flood and a small service station. Again I fully excepted him to have no stock of good touring tires but low and behold he had a schwable marathon plus (my favourite tie).
It was amazing having that new tire. I rode faster and harder because I now had confidence back in my equipment. I could monster truck things without having to worry about another flat and wasting moments of my life dripping in sweat on the side of the road.
Things were going a lot better. I still had a wind but I was happy for a change. I mean I was on my way to Austin and another 2 days ahead of schedule even with my issues the past few days.
I didn’t think the day could get any better until I turned around. There right behind me were two fellow bike tourists, the first cyclists I have seen in America. Kim and Rob who are riding for the CIA (check them out at pedalingforpatriots.com) hit it off right away. That was probably because I was so lonely having any company for more then 2 minutes is awesome. I just started talking and talking. I was not even paying attention to my speed and where I was at. Our conversations got me to thinking how I missed the days with Charles and Oliver. I got me to thinking how much more fun this trip was when I had people all the time.
By the time we got to there support vehicle it was time to say goodbye. Which again when you meet such awesome people are always hard. That’s exactly the reason why I doddled around for a few minutes just so that I could soak in a little bit more of the atmosphere.
Still though I had to finish the 13 miles into Austin. The last miles were filled with thoughts of change. Change in luck, and change in bike. With me taking the day off tomorrow I was trying to think of ways I could make the last 1600mile sprint into la easier for me. The best way to do so is cut weight. So the whole time I was thinking of things I could ship back home.
Austin came in a jiffy and I made my way to the western edge of town. I had two options the seedy place or the holiday inn. Usually I would choose the seedy place but I figured I needed a treat with me staying the extra day and all. Well wouldn’t you guess it I ran into Rob, Kim, and there support team again. I am a firm believe that the bike touring community is one of fate. I mean this is a city of 500000 people what are the chances of seeing them? What are the chances that they would be staying at the exact same place? Some time fate works in strange ways.
Rob and Kim I have t say thank you because I have been really down the past few days. Your energy has given me that extra drive to push through and complete the trip. I feel like a new man right now… or a less worn out man.
What is making me even more happy is my weight shedding. Gone are a huge amount of clothing, my sleeping mat (I can rough it), stool, seatbag, and a few misc items. Total weight loss 16 pounds. I can’t wait to feel what my bike will feel like with the equivalent of my track race bike missing from it.
Trip Distance: 146km
Ride Time: 7:13hr
Avg. Speed: 20.29km/h
Total Distance: 14150km
Total Ride Time: 654hr
Destination: Austin, Texas
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Tour Day 92 Bustin Balls Sept 25 2010
Last night I was sitting trying to fall asleep but my mind was just racing with thoughts about nothing. I was even trying to write a poem in my mind about the day that had past. I knew that I was starting to loose my mind again so I turned on the t.v. (the motel owner gave me the foreigner discount and charged me $20 bucks because I gave her 3 loonies) and forest gump was on. Now forest gump is one of my favourite movies and just gets better with age. What makes it even better now is that I have traveled to the same places he went to. For some reason this really got me thinking, just the thing I was trying to avoid and I broke down. It was like the day I got out of terranova park in Newfoundland (day 48 if I remember correctly).
When I woke up I felt surprisingly refreshed. That was until I grabbed onto my bars. In the night one of my palm calluses popped and made it painful to grip onto the bars in one of my three positions I ride in. After a while once my body got warmed up I was able to deal with the pain.
I was on the road to Houston and decided to look at my piece of garbage map to try and plan a route through Houston. Thinking ahead I even made a back up plan, and wouldn’t you know it worked. I was so pumped because I finally got through a large city without having to do circles for 30minutes. I must say Houston was a pleasant surprise. It was really clean and very well laid out. Even better the roads were amazing. If you got on the freeway you had 3 lanes of uninterrupted traffic then two lanes on the side where all the stoplights and such were. It helped avoid some anxiety because in some cities you have to fight with traffic passing you at 65 miles an hour.
By this point in the day it was getting hot. It was getting close to 95 degrees and I was sweating like a beaver yet again. Luckily it is starting to become a dryer heat but still hot as balls none the less. I was really starting to regret my 1 litre of milk at my snack break by lunch because it was just ripping apart my insides. Really though that did not bother me because I was having a good day. I mean I got stopped on the freeway by a guy looking to tour across America, I had a neutral wind and the roads were flat so I could lock into a cadence and shut off my brain.
All was going well. I passed my rest stop and pushed on the extra 21 miles in the scorching heat. I was running low on water so I stopped at the bk lounge to top up with some fresh ice. At that point I was 3 miles away from my rest stop. I come out the door and hop on my bike and ride 20 feet and notice my rear tire is soft. No way, not now, not this close to the end of a good day. I just kept riding hoping I could make it to the end. I wanted so much to believe it was not another flat. I wanted to think my luck wasn’t that bad. It kept getting lower and lower so I stopped and pulled the tube out but because I was on the freeway I couldn’t hear where this pinhole flat was coming from. I did not want to waste a good tube so I just pumped up the tube and limped 2 miles. By this point I had the city within sight and the pinhole flat was a full-blown hole because no pumping was going to get this inflated. I just mashed the power through the pedals and got increasingly frustrated with every metre. I threw the bike in the ditch and gave it one last pump to get some morsel of air. This is when I realized I have been using my pump so much the shaft has started to bend. By this point I was grinding my teeth with anger but I still kept pedaling to the downtown.
I pulled into the motel and could care less about my bike I simply left it where it lay and walked in with sweat burning in my eyes again. This is where the lady asks “would you like a room for the night?” “Yes I would”. “How much?” $100” “holy piss you bustin my nuts right”. “no the antique show is in town. I know its ridiculous. Just bad luck.” “Is there anywhere cheaper in an 18 year old bike tourist I cant do that”. “the cheapest place is 3 miles away and is $79”. “Screw it lets just do it here in tired, sweaty, and frustrated”. “I can see that. Have a good night sir.”
Damn antique show I mean how many people come to town to buy old used garbage. That’s like saying o we have raised our rates because the local waste transfer site is open to the public.
Trip Distance: 198km
Ride Time: 8:46hr
Avg. Speed: 22.61km/h
Total Distance: 14003km
Total Ride Time: 647hr
Destination: Brenham, Texas
When I woke up I felt surprisingly refreshed. That was until I grabbed onto my bars. In the night one of my palm calluses popped and made it painful to grip onto the bars in one of my three positions I ride in. After a while once my body got warmed up I was able to deal with the pain.
I was on the road to Houston and decided to look at my piece of garbage map to try and plan a route through Houston. Thinking ahead I even made a back up plan, and wouldn’t you know it worked. I was so pumped because I finally got through a large city without having to do circles for 30minutes. I must say Houston was a pleasant surprise. It was really clean and very well laid out. Even better the roads were amazing. If you got on the freeway you had 3 lanes of uninterrupted traffic then two lanes on the side where all the stoplights and such were. It helped avoid some anxiety because in some cities you have to fight with traffic passing you at 65 miles an hour.
By this point in the day it was getting hot. It was getting close to 95 degrees and I was sweating like a beaver yet again. Luckily it is starting to become a dryer heat but still hot as balls none the less. I was really starting to regret my 1 litre of milk at my snack break by lunch because it was just ripping apart my insides. Really though that did not bother me because I was having a good day. I mean I got stopped on the freeway by a guy looking to tour across America, I had a neutral wind and the roads were flat so I could lock into a cadence and shut off my brain.
All was going well. I passed my rest stop and pushed on the extra 21 miles in the scorching heat. I was running low on water so I stopped at the bk lounge to top up with some fresh ice. At that point I was 3 miles away from my rest stop. I come out the door and hop on my bike and ride 20 feet and notice my rear tire is soft. No way, not now, not this close to the end of a good day. I just kept riding hoping I could make it to the end. I wanted so much to believe it was not another flat. I wanted to think my luck wasn’t that bad. It kept getting lower and lower so I stopped and pulled the tube out but because I was on the freeway I couldn’t hear where this pinhole flat was coming from. I did not want to waste a good tube so I just pumped up the tube and limped 2 miles. By this point I had the city within sight and the pinhole flat was a full-blown hole because no pumping was going to get this inflated. I just mashed the power through the pedals and got increasingly frustrated with every metre. I threw the bike in the ditch and gave it one last pump to get some morsel of air. This is when I realized I have been using my pump so much the shaft has started to bend. By this point I was grinding my teeth with anger but I still kept pedaling to the downtown.
I pulled into the motel and could care less about my bike I simply left it where it lay and walked in with sweat burning in my eyes again. This is where the lady asks “would you like a room for the night?” “Yes I would”. “How much?” $100” “holy piss you bustin my nuts right”. “no the antique show is in town. I know its ridiculous. Just bad luck.” “Is there anywhere cheaper in an 18 year old bike tourist I cant do that”. “the cheapest place is 3 miles away and is $79”. “Screw it lets just do it here in tired, sweaty, and frustrated”. “I can see that. Have a good night sir.”
Damn antique show I mean how many people come to town to buy old used garbage. That’s like saying o we have raised our rates because the local waste transfer site is open to the public.
Trip Distance: 198km
Ride Time: 8:46hr
Avg. Speed: 22.61km/h
Total Distance: 14003km
Total Ride Time: 647hr
Destination: Brenham, Texas
Friday, September 24, 2010
Tour Day 91 R.I.P. Mavic A119 Rear Wheel Sept 24 2010
Last night after I wrote about the wheel I came to a conclusion. It was cooked. I had come to terms with that and realized that it needed to be replaced. All it needed to do was last 120km to Beaumont where I am sure I could a bike shop.
The morning’s ride started fine. I could tell the wheel was out of true because of a slight vibration but that is no problem I have dealt with worse. The road was rolling smooth, I had a neutral wind, and I was starting to get warmed up. Even better it was not as humid as most other days. The highway that I was on turned onto a state road that was not very well travelled. In the back of my head I was counting down the miles to Beaumont, but I knew it was dangerous for me to think that far ahead. It was at 78km that I heard a slight rub on my frame. I stopped and looked and sure enough the hairline crack had spread and were starting to rip. I thought I could limp to Beaumont so I kept riding. At km 83 it hit the fan. The wheel was totalled. So im thinking I am screwed because there is literally no cars for 3 minutes passing me. On the horizon I saw a semi truck which really meant nothing to me but I figure id wave my hands anyways. Behind the semi in its blind spot was a truck that pulled over.
This is where I met Eric. Over the C.B. radio the trucker informed him that I needed help and Eric was more then happy to oblige. It really was fate because he never usually travels that route it was just because he had some time to kill in between checking up on a couple oilrigs that he was on this road. Even better he was heading to Beaumont as well so we were set.
I was so thankful that a complete stranger was happy to help me out, and even let me use his phone to look up where the bike shop was and call them. Then car ride itself was refreshing. It was my first and last taste of Louisiana. We got to talking about everything from B.B.Q. to the war overseas.
When Eric dropped me off at the bike shop (after hunting around for it) we said goodbye. Whenever someone helps me out like this I always feel like a simple goodbye and a handshake is just not good enough.
The bike shop was more then happy to help me out. The only thing was they did not have a 700c touring wheel so I thought I was screwed. Thankfully the shop manager was thinking on his feet and pulled out a 29er rear wheel. He said he had tried it before and it worked so I really had my fingers crossed, and wouldn’t you know it worked. So I guess I can thank heaven that 29ers are more popular down here in the states.
It was 12pm and I was really behind the 8 ball for the day because my legs wee stiff and I really did not have any motivation to complete the day. For some reason I decided to keep riding to the next town which was 40 miles away.
As soon as I got out of Beaumont I started to doubt my choice for a couple reasons. The first was the fact like clockwork at 1:30 the wind shifted and became a lovely headwind that was a big pain in the butt. As well I saw these super dark clouds on the horizon. I tried ignoring the weatherman from last night saying heavy rain was do for today but it was hard to do when I saw sheets of rain ahead of me. At first my luck was holding because I managed to slip between the clouds. Then they closed up and started dumping. I thought id wait it out and huddle under a tree and wait it out and maybe put on my rain gear. When I popped the pants on I took them off immediately because it was just to dang hot.
So I was really happy. Rain, a headwind, and shoes that were very quickly soaking through. I was ready to stop so I kicked up my effort level and ignored my knees screaming at me to turn down the effort level.
I pulled into liberty at 3:30 and thought I would treat myself to some ice cream and a larger then normal soda because I earned it. So I am riding down the road back to my sketchy motel with the bags on the handlebars looking more homeless then ever. I had it within sight when the topper for the day happened. The bag ripped open dropped the bottle n the ground (which because the bottle had been getting shaken) blew up and sprayed it all over me. I just kept riding because I was at that point in the day just laughing. Then I realized that had my peanut butter in it so I looped back to hunt for it but it was gone.
When I got back to the motel I realized my luck kept rolling with a rear flat tire. This one courtesy of the bead coming apart on the back now. Here comes the handy dandy tape again. I must say having a rear wheel that is round and holds spoke tension is wonderful to ride on.
Trip Distance: 154km
Ride Time: 6:56hr
Avg. Speed: 22.27km/h
Total Distance: 13805km
Total Ride Time: 638hr
Destination: Liberty, Texas
I really am not to stoked on Texas. It is big, is going to have big wind, and really a is just a mind crusher.
The morning’s ride started fine. I could tell the wheel was out of true because of a slight vibration but that is no problem I have dealt with worse. The road was rolling smooth, I had a neutral wind, and I was starting to get warmed up. Even better it was not as humid as most other days. The highway that I was on turned onto a state road that was not very well travelled. In the back of my head I was counting down the miles to Beaumont, but I knew it was dangerous for me to think that far ahead. It was at 78km that I heard a slight rub on my frame. I stopped and looked and sure enough the hairline crack had spread and were starting to rip. I thought I could limp to Beaumont so I kept riding. At km 83 it hit the fan. The wheel was totalled. So im thinking I am screwed because there is literally no cars for 3 minutes passing me. On the horizon I saw a semi truck which really meant nothing to me but I figure id wave my hands anyways. Behind the semi in its blind spot was a truck that pulled over.
This is where I met Eric. Over the C.B. radio the trucker informed him that I needed help and Eric was more then happy to oblige. It really was fate because he never usually travels that route it was just because he had some time to kill in between checking up on a couple oilrigs that he was on this road. Even better he was heading to Beaumont as well so we were set.
I was so thankful that a complete stranger was happy to help me out, and even let me use his phone to look up where the bike shop was and call them. Then car ride itself was refreshing. It was my first and last taste of Louisiana. We got to talking about everything from B.B.Q. to the war overseas.
When Eric dropped me off at the bike shop (after hunting around for it) we said goodbye. Whenever someone helps me out like this I always feel like a simple goodbye and a handshake is just not good enough.
The bike shop was more then happy to help me out. The only thing was they did not have a 700c touring wheel so I thought I was screwed. Thankfully the shop manager was thinking on his feet and pulled out a 29er rear wheel. He said he had tried it before and it worked so I really had my fingers crossed, and wouldn’t you know it worked. So I guess I can thank heaven that 29ers are more popular down here in the states.
It was 12pm and I was really behind the 8 ball for the day because my legs wee stiff and I really did not have any motivation to complete the day. For some reason I decided to keep riding to the next town which was 40 miles away.
As soon as I got out of Beaumont I started to doubt my choice for a couple reasons. The first was the fact like clockwork at 1:30 the wind shifted and became a lovely headwind that was a big pain in the butt. As well I saw these super dark clouds on the horizon. I tried ignoring the weatherman from last night saying heavy rain was do for today but it was hard to do when I saw sheets of rain ahead of me. At first my luck was holding because I managed to slip between the clouds. Then they closed up and started dumping. I thought id wait it out and huddle under a tree and wait it out and maybe put on my rain gear. When I popped the pants on I took them off immediately because it was just to dang hot.
So I was really happy. Rain, a headwind, and shoes that were very quickly soaking through. I was ready to stop so I kicked up my effort level and ignored my knees screaming at me to turn down the effort level.
I pulled into liberty at 3:30 and thought I would treat myself to some ice cream and a larger then normal soda because I earned it. So I am riding down the road back to my sketchy motel with the bags on the handlebars looking more homeless then ever. I had it within sight when the topper for the day happened. The bag ripped open dropped the bottle n the ground (which because the bottle had been getting shaken) blew up and sprayed it all over me. I just kept riding because I was at that point in the day just laughing. Then I realized that had my peanut butter in it so I looped back to hunt for it but it was gone.
When I got back to the motel I realized my luck kept rolling with a rear flat tire. This one courtesy of the bead coming apart on the back now. Here comes the handy dandy tape again. I must say having a rear wheel that is round and holds spoke tension is wonderful to ride on.
Trip Distance: 154km
Ride Time: 6:56hr
Avg. Speed: 22.27km/h
Total Distance: 13805km
Total Ride Time: 638hr
Destination: Liberty, Texas
I really am not to stoked on Texas. It is big, is going to have big wind, and really a is just a mind crusher.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Tour Day 90 Kinder Suprise Sept 23 2010
I woke up today and was sore. My brain was not functioning and my body was aching. I just wanted to go back to sleep and not ride. The thing that keeps getting me is my dang will to ride. For example I said I would slow down and now im riding further then ever before. I said I would take a break in set cities and passed through them. I simply love to ride.
That being said it is not always nice to ride in 80-degree heat at 6 in the morning, in the dark, across a bridge that had no shoulder and was about 2.5km long. Maybe it was because I have been buzzed so often on bridges but I have been getting really anxious on them lately. To the point that my palms sweat more then normal, and my body gets really ridged on the bike. Today was no exception for that, but it was an exception for the drivers. For the morning and throughout the day people passed me wide and took up unoccupied lanes to save my nerves.
Thankfully this morning I had a favourable wind so I was lighting hay bails I was going so fast. It really saved my legs because they were cooked. Any time I got a burst of headwind I slowed to a crawl when usually I can just power through it.
The road today was actually really pleasant because for the most part I had a newish shoulder that did not feel like it had land mines blown up under it. On that note let’s talk about the rear wheel. Because of the roads yesterday it threw my wheel out of whack by a good chunk, not bad enough to feel it every revolution but bad enough to undo the rear brake. When I went to inspect the wheel I found hairline cracks forming around a few more spokes. I refuse to part with this wheel. It is a strange sticking point for me. I just feel that it summizes the trip to a tee. Infact when I get home the wheel is going to get framed and become a decretive piece in my room. They say you have to find your souvenir for a trip and I found mine.
I was rolling through mile after mile of Louisiana country that really was not too interesting. I kept pegging out water towers to pace myself to. Then I saw it. The perfect water tower. The perfect lighting. It was easily the most photogenic moment of the trip so far. I grabbed my front brake and sketched to a stop and went to grab my camera. Great my bar bag was acting up and the latches were stick. I wrench on it with my good hand and it pops open. I take my sock and lens cap off and turn around to catch the picture. It was gone. The cloud had cover the beautiful lighting and all that was left was a black mess.
Not one to waste a stop I thought of what to take a picture of. And it came to me take a picture of my hands. To paint a picture for you my entire palm is a callas and by the end of the day a 2-inch wide and 4 inch long strip is bright red and tender. My thumbs from wrapping around the hoods are useless and hurt if you try to incorporate them in anything.
Lunch was typical I stopped for a sandwich and sat down beside this father and son. Now I am like most people that are somewhere alone. I listen to there conversation and was shocked by what I heard. It was the exact same conversation that I had with both my mom and dad about life after high school. It actually got weird it was so similar, I wanted jump in and give my fallow your dreams speech but I held back. That was until they kicked open the door by asking how old I was. Then I spilt over like Niagara Falls. This moment made me come to a conclusion. This is not just a ride. This is my dream. I cannot give up in Austin. The last stop is L.A. That being said After Austin the ride is going to suck because the state highways zip zag all over the map. It is not going to be as simple as the east coast where I just went down route 1.
I was starting to get a headwind and was ready to stop in Kinder when a truck flags me over. Then another tuck pulls a u-turn. I am wondering what the heck is happening here, am I going to die here on a state highway. Well not today death. What happened was the white truck passed me wide and the other truck would not move over. They then smacked mirrors and that was that. So it is 91 degrees and im sitting on the side of the road for an hour waiting for the state trooper to show up to give my report. I guess there went my nap. On the plus side I have e never met two people that were happier to have an accident.
Trip Distance: 185km
Ride Time: 7:58hr
Avg. Speed: 23.32km/h
Total Distance: 13650km
Total Ride Time: 631hr
Destination: Kinder, Louisiana
That being said it is not always nice to ride in 80-degree heat at 6 in the morning, in the dark, across a bridge that had no shoulder and was about 2.5km long. Maybe it was because I have been buzzed so often on bridges but I have been getting really anxious on them lately. To the point that my palms sweat more then normal, and my body gets really ridged on the bike. Today was no exception for that, but it was an exception for the drivers. For the morning and throughout the day people passed me wide and took up unoccupied lanes to save my nerves.
Thankfully this morning I had a favourable wind so I was lighting hay bails I was going so fast. It really saved my legs because they were cooked. Any time I got a burst of headwind I slowed to a crawl when usually I can just power through it.
The road today was actually really pleasant because for the most part I had a newish shoulder that did not feel like it had land mines blown up under it. On that note let’s talk about the rear wheel. Because of the roads yesterday it threw my wheel out of whack by a good chunk, not bad enough to feel it every revolution but bad enough to undo the rear brake. When I went to inspect the wheel I found hairline cracks forming around a few more spokes. I refuse to part with this wheel. It is a strange sticking point for me. I just feel that it summizes the trip to a tee. Infact when I get home the wheel is going to get framed and become a decretive piece in my room. They say you have to find your souvenir for a trip and I found mine.
I was rolling through mile after mile of Louisiana country that really was not too interesting. I kept pegging out water towers to pace myself to. Then I saw it. The perfect water tower. The perfect lighting. It was easily the most photogenic moment of the trip so far. I grabbed my front brake and sketched to a stop and went to grab my camera. Great my bar bag was acting up and the latches were stick. I wrench on it with my good hand and it pops open. I take my sock and lens cap off and turn around to catch the picture. It was gone. The cloud had cover the beautiful lighting and all that was left was a black mess.
Not one to waste a stop I thought of what to take a picture of. And it came to me take a picture of my hands. To paint a picture for you my entire palm is a callas and by the end of the day a 2-inch wide and 4 inch long strip is bright red and tender. My thumbs from wrapping around the hoods are useless and hurt if you try to incorporate them in anything.
Lunch was typical I stopped for a sandwich and sat down beside this father and son. Now I am like most people that are somewhere alone. I listen to there conversation and was shocked by what I heard. It was the exact same conversation that I had with both my mom and dad about life after high school. It actually got weird it was so similar, I wanted jump in and give my fallow your dreams speech but I held back. That was until they kicked open the door by asking how old I was. Then I spilt over like Niagara Falls. This moment made me come to a conclusion. This is not just a ride. This is my dream. I cannot give up in Austin. The last stop is L.A. That being said After Austin the ride is going to suck because the state highways zip zag all over the map. It is not going to be as simple as the east coast where I just went down route 1.
I was starting to get a headwind and was ready to stop in Kinder when a truck flags me over. Then another tuck pulls a u-turn. I am wondering what the heck is happening here, am I going to die here on a state highway. Well not today death. What happened was the white truck passed me wide and the other truck would not move over. They then smacked mirrors and that was that. So it is 91 degrees and im sitting on the side of the road for an hour waiting for the state trooper to show up to give my report. I guess there went my nap. On the plus side I have e never met two people that were happier to have an accident.
Trip Distance: 185km
Ride Time: 7:58hr
Avg. Speed: 23.32km/h
Total Distance: 13650km
Total Ride Time: 631hr
Destination: Kinder, Louisiana
Tour Day 89 New Orleans. The City Of My Dreams. Sept 22 2010
I am going to start with an argument I have been having in my head all day. Ever since I dropped the Austin bomb in my head it has not left. It has just been eating away at my mind and made me a cycling zombie. My first three hours on the bike I did nothing but obsess over what I was going to do. Stop in Austin and take a bit of a vacation. Possible rent a carbon road bike and go for a few nice rides. Or push on the 1400-1500 miles to L.A. and the Ocean. The easiest way to put it is my heart wants to go on but my body and mind want to stop in Austin. I said back in st. johns that I would end when I was crispy and I am officially crispy. Every day the riding is getting more and more routine, and more and more I find myself zoning out on the road.
I started today 49 miles away from New Orleans. A place I have had in my mind for years. I had always seen New Orleans as a mecha for blues, and a hometown vibe in a big city.
When I was 25 miles away I crossed this bridge that took you onto this little spit of land that weaved back and forth. If you went 2 feet to the right you were in the water. If you crossed the road you were in the water. The houses were placed on top of 15-foot stilts and had more boat parking then car parking. It was simply beautiful. I was thinking that New Orleans was going to be everything I expected.
After not seeing a sign that I had entered the town I was in New Orleans. It was not what I had thought. Every 3rd or 4th building was abandoned or demolished, and the buildings that were built all seemed to have this stale look to them. Thinking it was just this one area I moved on to a different section of the city only to find more of the same. As a side note if you are in a wheelchair, or have a handicapped loved one do not come here. If you do have a sidewalk it’s demolished and has no ramps at the stoplights. If it is smooth sailing there is glass everywhere.
I had fully anticipated spending a night in town but it just was not worth it. Maybe it was the argument I was having with myself already but I was actually upset with what I had seen. The only saving grace were two people that I stopped to asking for directions.
When I stopped for lunch I told the lady about my experience and she said she understood and that the only time the town is upbeat is during a football game or holiday.
Anyways I was back on the road and encountered the worst shoulder yet. It was like riding on a roller coaster that had it in for my rear wheel. Multiple times I stopped to check my tire pressure and wheel trueness. Though I had pressure the trueness was less then stellar.
Baton Rouge is my rest stop for the day. It was a long hard day in the saddle but I have this weird thing in my mind. I hate knowing that the road is going to turn during my ride the next day. This is because if I have a tailwind one way if I turn then ill have a headwind and ill be upset because I had a taste of what the tailwind was. Where as it is easier I think if you just hammer a headwind all day.
Trip Distance: 214km
Ride Time: 9:03hr
Avg. Speed: 23.63km/h
Total Distance: 13464km
Total Ride Time: 623hr
Destination: Baton Rouge, Louisiana
I started today 49 miles away from New Orleans. A place I have had in my mind for years. I had always seen New Orleans as a mecha for blues, and a hometown vibe in a big city.
When I was 25 miles away I crossed this bridge that took you onto this little spit of land that weaved back and forth. If you went 2 feet to the right you were in the water. If you crossed the road you were in the water. The houses were placed on top of 15-foot stilts and had more boat parking then car parking. It was simply beautiful. I was thinking that New Orleans was going to be everything I expected.
After not seeing a sign that I had entered the town I was in New Orleans. It was not what I had thought. Every 3rd or 4th building was abandoned or demolished, and the buildings that were built all seemed to have this stale look to them. Thinking it was just this one area I moved on to a different section of the city only to find more of the same. As a side note if you are in a wheelchair, or have a handicapped loved one do not come here. If you do have a sidewalk it’s demolished and has no ramps at the stoplights. If it is smooth sailing there is glass everywhere.
I had fully anticipated spending a night in town but it just was not worth it. Maybe it was the argument I was having with myself already but I was actually upset with what I had seen. The only saving grace were two people that I stopped to asking for directions.
When I stopped for lunch I told the lady about my experience and she said she understood and that the only time the town is upbeat is during a football game or holiday.
Anyways I was back on the road and encountered the worst shoulder yet. It was like riding on a roller coaster that had it in for my rear wheel. Multiple times I stopped to check my tire pressure and wheel trueness. Though I had pressure the trueness was less then stellar.
Baton Rouge is my rest stop for the day. It was a long hard day in the saddle but I have this weird thing in my mind. I hate knowing that the road is going to turn during my ride the next day. This is because if I have a tailwind one way if I turn then ill have a headwind and ill be upset because I had a taste of what the tailwind was. Where as it is easier I think if you just hammer a headwind all day.
Trip Distance: 214km
Ride Time: 9:03hr
Avg. Speed: 23.63km/h
Total Distance: 13464km
Total Ride Time: 623hr
Destination: Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Tour Day 88 I Was Wrong Sept 21 2010
I was thinking about Alabama last night. I was thinking how wrong I was about it. I mean instead of guns and bullets I encountered some of the nicest people I have met yet. That same incorrect thinking transferred over to today. When I thought of a big city in Alabama I had visions of horse drawn carriages and a lot of “y’alls”. When I got within 5 miles of Mobile and saw these beautiful sky scrappers that dominated the landscape as you rode over an extended bridge, or through grass that was taller then you. After this I rode past the battleship u.s.s. Alabama. It was a wow moment when you go past a gun that is 100metres long.
Things were going smooth. I was going along route 90, which was going to take me around the outskirts of mobile. Well that plan came to a screeching halt when route 90 hit the interstate in the worst neighbourhood in mobile (right outside of the shipyard). I only had one option and that was go down this road that took me right into this suburb because I was not backtracking then 5miles and restarting. Now I was not sure of my choice so I decided to ask the first person I saw. This person turned around when I started the conversation and I was facing down a guy with two tear tattoos I was a little intimidated. What took my anxiety away was the fact he was with his 5 year old son, so I was fairly confident he would not destroy me like the mangled dog I saw 2 blocks back. This dog was just messed. I can deal with flat but this was mangled.
After getting little to no help with directions I decided to start a search pattern for the road. I knew I had to go southwest so I just started going 1 block south 2 blocks west. Low and behold I found the road and was good to go on my way to Mississippi.
My first 14 miles in Mississippi left me wondering why people lived there. The reason I say that is because the roads were complete trash. The driving surface was fine because it was repaved after the hurricane but they left the should untouched. So it was ride on the highway or get the pee shaken out of me.
So after getting shaken to bits I hit something that really surprised me. Water. Mile after mile of beautiful beached. Marinas every 10 miles and just a generally good vibe. It is amazing how peoples driving habits change depending on where you are. Beaches are calm. Bridges are crazy. Rain people turn their brains off. And heat I turn my brain off
Lets talk about heat. We are over day 13 94-degree heat or over. I can not wait for a day where it is even 80.
Lunchtime came after stopping to watch a few shrimping boats pass by a team cleaning up from the oil spill. It was an odd mix of emotions. On one hand I felt like forest gump, and the other I felt like helping I the efforts of the clean up… or just rent a jet ski. Ill be honest I was seriously considering leaving the bike and renting a jet ski. Lunch came with my flat of the day as well. Today’s flat was not from the road but rather the tube itself. Faulty manufacturing meant that the tube split in half a lot like the tire I bought a week ago.
I have no complaints today. I am so lucky to me able to ride these roads along easily the most beautiful coast I have seen yet. On that note I have been doing some thinking. With New Orleans only 50 miles away what is my next step. The next step is Austin Texas and mellow johnnies bike shop (lance armstongs store). This is going to be the first stop where I am have to do some serious thinking. The bike is having issues with the hubs having play now. The luck isn’t changing. And the weather is supposed to change for the worst within a week. We will see.
Trip Distance: 187km
Ride Time: 8:04hr
Avg. Speed: 23.14km/h
Total Distance: 13250km
Total Ride Time: 614hr
Destination: Bay St. Louise, Mississippi
Things were going smooth. I was going along route 90, which was going to take me around the outskirts of mobile. Well that plan came to a screeching halt when route 90 hit the interstate in the worst neighbourhood in mobile (right outside of the shipyard). I only had one option and that was go down this road that took me right into this suburb because I was not backtracking then 5miles and restarting. Now I was not sure of my choice so I decided to ask the first person I saw. This person turned around when I started the conversation and I was facing down a guy with two tear tattoos I was a little intimidated. What took my anxiety away was the fact he was with his 5 year old son, so I was fairly confident he would not destroy me like the mangled dog I saw 2 blocks back. This dog was just messed. I can deal with flat but this was mangled.
After getting little to no help with directions I decided to start a search pattern for the road. I knew I had to go southwest so I just started going 1 block south 2 blocks west. Low and behold I found the road and was good to go on my way to Mississippi.
My first 14 miles in Mississippi left me wondering why people lived there. The reason I say that is because the roads were complete trash. The driving surface was fine because it was repaved after the hurricane but they left the should untouched. So it was ride on the highway or get the pee shaken out of me.
So after getting shaken to bits I hit something that really surprised me. Water. Mile after mile of beautiful beached. Marinas every 10 miles and just a generally good vibe. It is amazing how peoples driving habits change depending on where you are. Beaches are calm. Bridges are crazy. Rain people turn their brains off. And heat I turn my brain off
Lets talk about heat. We are over day 13 94-degree heat or over. I can not wait for a day where it is even 80.
Lunchtime came after stopping to watch a few shrimping boats pass by a team cleaning up from the oil spill. It was an odd mix of emotions. On one hand I felt like forest gump, and the other I felt like helping I the efforts of the clean up… or just rent a jet ski. Ill be honest I was seriously considering leaving the bike and renting a jet ski. Lunch came with my flat of the day as well. Today’s flat was not from the road but rather the tube itself. Faulty manufacturing meant that the tube split in half a lot like the tire I bought a week ago.
I have no complaints today. I am so lucky to me able to ride these roads along easily the most beautiful coast I have seen yet. On that note I have been doing some thinking. With New Orleans only 50 miles away what is my next step. The next step is Austin Texas and mellow johnnies bike shop (lance armstongs store). This is going to be the first stop where I am have to do some serious thinking. The bike is having issues with the hubs having play now. The luck isn’t changing. And the weather is supposed to change for the worst within a week. We will see.
Trip Distance: 187km
Ride Time: 8:04hr
Avg. Speed: 23.14km/h
Total Distance: 13250km
Total Ride Time: 614hr
Destination: Bay St. Louise, Mississippi
Monday, September 20, 2010
Tour Day 87 A Normal Day. Whats That? Sept 20 2010
When I woke up at the hotel defuniak I was so comfy that I really did not want to ride. Still I got up and put on my nice salty chamois shorts and was ready to make my breakfast in the dining room. It was 5 in the morning so all the lights in this 1920’s building were off. They said make yourself at home so I had to skulk around for the lights. Once I located them I was in business. Now all I need was to figure out the hot water and I was set.
It was a strange thing having cutlery. It was even stranger to be eating at a table and not eating out of a pot. It actually made me realize I like eating straight out of the pot it just feels normal to me. While enjoying my breakfast I heard some really odd creaks and cracks in the building. My mind raced to the conclusion that it was haunted.
After getting a warm goodbye from the housekeeper I was on the road. Now I evidently missed the page where the time changed so that’s why it’s been so dark in the mornings. Now that I have changed my clocks it is light earlier.
For the past few days at around 9am I get into this weird funk where I want to stop early and abandon the day. This is also the time I start fighting with my eyes to stay open, and my mind to stay alert. With rumble strips on the road today whenever I felt myself slowing down I hit them to shake the pee out of me. You know how new cement gets shaken to get the air bubbles out. Well the same thing happens to the human body.
One really special thing happened today. Along the side of the highway rested the original highway 90 built in 1921 of brick. I couldn’t not ride on it so I ripped off the highway into a pile of sand almost wiping out and proceeded to get shaken to pieces on the bricks. It some of the most fun riding in Florida.
I was feeling good. I was making time and was ready to pass Pensacola. That was until I hit a fork in the road. Do I take route 90 or route 90 alt. Well me thinking logically route 90 sounded like the fastest way? It was almost eerie the situation because I kept riding along this beautiful shoreline and rolling hills (the exact same as the ride into horseshoe bay in Vancouver) and I thought “why am I still along the coastline, I should be heading inland”. I went through the exact same process as in Newfoundland except this time when I asked if I was on the right road they told me yes. I pressed on and kept going down this road for an hour. I then took a second to look at my map and low and behold I was taking the road right into Pensacola. It was a detour yes but a beautiful one so I was not to bothered by it.
After getting some lunch I was on my way to Alabama. Because of my trek I mentally prepared myself for a 230km day. I got into Alabama in good time, and was making progress along blank road that were spot with the odd house.
It was once I got onto route 53 that I hit my first town in Alabama and almost as soon as I started leaving the town I picked up a construction nail that gave me a nice flat. I knew it was going to smooth. I knew I couldn’t have energy at 190km’s, a good temperature, and no problems on the mind. So I change the flat in good time and start rolling. I get 50metres and went to shift. Nothing happened. I shift it back and try again. SNAP. Great. The cable snapped in the shifter and locked me in my hardest gear… of course. I tried fishing the cable out but it was stuck.
At this point my mind is thinking now I have to flag a car in the patron state of shooting stuff. After 10 minutes of trying I was starting to loose hope. Then a suv pulls a u-turn in the middle of the highway. The flashing lights started blaring. Now im thinking “o Jesus another ticket and this time I am not even riding”. Fortunately investigator Brad M. Burke of the Baldwin County sheriff’s office was stopping to help while he was on duty. We loaded my bike in and he took me to Eastern shore cycles (www.thebike-shop.com). The ride was very pleasant because we got a chance to get to know each other.
When we got to the bike shop the guys looked at me as if I was drunk. I was asking for the moon, and when they looked at my broken wheel they all came to the same conclusion “this is one crazy bike tourist”. What I said in response to justify my busted wheel was “it was a new wheel or food for the months”. To which they got a good chuckle out of. Of the 3 bike shops I have been in during the trip this was easily my favourite both for the service and the staff. I forgot to extend this offer when I was in the shop but if you guys are ever in BC I would more then gladly give you a crash course on BC riding.
They fixed my bike and got me on my way. I was spent. Mentally because of the mishaps and miss directions, and physically from the 200kms in some of the worst humility I have ridden in yet. So I just took the closest motel. Unfortunately I was in the upper end of daphine so it legit blew my budget but I really don’t care. Figuring my budget was broken for the day I decided to try Firehouse subs. It is a sandwich change that two people named Charles and Ali turned me onto and we don’t have it up in Canada. If you are not familiar with Charles and Ali they are Internet vlogers that actually turned me onto blogging. Check them out on youtube just search ctfxc. They live here in Florida and I wanted to stay with them but unfortunately they never responded to my email but I understand they are busy.
What a crazy day. I am sleeping in and taking a short day tomorrow.
Trip Distance: 201km
Ride Time: 8:55hr
Avg. Speed: 22.51km/h
Total Distance: 13063km
Total Ride Time: 6:06hr
Destination Daphine, Alabama
It was a strange thing having cutlery. It was even stranger to be eating at a table and not eating out of a pot. It actually made me realize I like eating straight out of the pot it just feels normal to me. While enjoying my breakfast I heard some really odd creaks and cracks in the building. My mind raced to the conclusion that it was haunted.
After getting a warm goodbye from the housekeeper I was on the road. Now I evidently missed the page where the time changed so that’s why it’s been so dark in the mornings. Now that I have changed my clocks it is light earlier.
For the past few days at around 9am I get into this weird funk where I want to stop early and abandon the day. This is also the time I start fighting with my eyes to stay open, and my mind to stay alert. With rumble strips on the road today whenever I felt myself slowing down I hit them to shake the pee out of me. You know how new cement gets shaken to get the air bubbles out. Well the same thing happens to the human body.
One really special thing happened today. Along the side of the highway rested the original highway 90 built in 1921 of brick. I couldn’t not ride on it so I ripped off the highway into a pile of sand almost wiping out and proceeded to get shaken to pieces on the bricks. It some of the most fun riding in Florida.
I was feeling good. I was making time and was ready to pass Pensacola. That was until I hit a fork in the road. Do I take route 90 or route 90 alt. Well me thinking logically route 90 sounded like the fastest way? It was almost eerie the situation because I kept riding along this beautiful shoreline and rolling hills (the exact same as the ride into horseshoe bay in Vancouver) and I thought “why am I still along the coastline, I should be heading inland”. I went through the exact same process as in Newfoundland except this time when I asked if I was on the right road they told me yes. I pressed on and kept going down this road for an hour. I then took a second to look at my map and low and behold I was taking the road right into Pensacola. It was a detour yes but a beautiful one so I was not to bothered by it.
After getting some lunch I was on my way to Alabama. Because of my trek I mentally prepared myself for a 230km day. I got into Alabama in good time, and was making progress along blank road that were spot with the odd house.
It was once I got onto route 53 that I hit my first town in Alabama and almost as soon as I started leaving the town I picked up a construction nail that gave me a nice flat. I knew it was going to smooth. I knew I couldn’t have energy at 190km’s, a good temperature, and no problems on the mind. So I change the flat in good time and start rolling. I get 50metres and went to shift. Nothing happened. I shift it back and try again. SNAP. Great. The cable snapped in the shifter and locked me in my hardest gear… of course. I tried fishing the cable out but it was stuck.
At this point my mind is thinking now I have to flag a car in the patron state of shooting stuff. After 10 minutes of trying I was starting to loose hope. Then a suv pulls a u-turn in the middle of the highway. The flashing lights started blaring. Now im thinking “o Jesus another ticket and this time I am not even riding”. Fortunately investigator Brad M. Burke of the Baldwin County sheriff’s office was stopping to help while he was on duty. We loaded my bike in and he took me to Eastern shore cycles (www.thebike-shop.com). The ride was very pleasant because we got a chance to get to know each other.
When we got to the bike shop the guys looked at me as if I was drunk. I was asking for the moon, and when they looked at my broken wheel they all came to the same conclusion “this is one crazy bike tourist”. What I said in response to justify my busted wheel was “it was a new wheel or food for the months”. To which they got a good chuckle out of. Of the 3 bike shops I have been in during the trip this was easily my favourite both for the service and the staff. I forgot to extend this offer when I was in the shop but if you guys are ever in BC I would more then gladly give you a crash course on BC riding.
They fixed my bike and got me on my way. I was spent. Mentally because of the mishaps and miss directions, and physically from the 200kms in some of the worst humility I have ridden in yet. So I just took the closest motel. Unfortunately I was in the upper end of daphine so it legit blew my budget but I really don’t care. Figuring my budget was broken for the day I decided to try Firehouse subs. It is a sandwich change that two people named Charles and Ali turned me onto and we don’t have it up in Canada. If you are not familiar with Charles and Ali they are Internet vlogers that actually turned me onto blogging. Check them out on youtube just search ctfxc. They live here in Florida and I wanted to stay with them but unfortunately they never responded to my email but I understand they are busy.
What a crazy day. I am sleeping in and taking a short day tomorrow.
Trip Distance: 201km
Ride Time: 8:55hr
Avg. Speed: 22.51km/h
Total Distance: 13063km
Total Ride Time: 6:06hr
Destination Daphine, Alabama
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Tour Day 86 A Good Nights Sleep Sept 19 2010
When I woke up I could not wait to get riding because I was sweaty, sticky, and gross. Adding to this I had to roll the bike down 2 flights of stairs which is a little sketchy because the bike has a mind of its own once it gets rolling.
Once rolling I was amazing how different things look in the dark. This ghetto that I was staying in actually looked nice when only the trees on the side of street were lit up. I have been contemplating stating even earlier in the mornings because it is far more pleasant to ride in. mabey start at 5 am instead of 6, that being said the days are getting shorter so I may actually get my way without changing anything.
The rolling hills carried over today but I was prepared and just took my time on of it and never gave 100%. With things running smooth my mind had a chance to think about things other then my bike. I had a chance to realize how sore I am. My left shoulder is killing when I rotate it backwards, my right hand has multiple pintched nerves so writing is impossible, and my ankle has been hurting for the past few days. I think when I was having my cassette issues when it slipped and snapped my ankle back underload may have caused a problem. Luckily all of these things do not hurt much when im riding unless I do specific movements.
With that in mind I made the choice to take it easy today. No 200km day today for me. So I took my time and took in the sights of a few towns I passed through. I also got the chance to ride one of the coolest stretches of road yet. It was a bridge called Victory Bridge that was dead flat and crossed this swamp that was about 3kms long. What made it really cool was the fact that this bridge was right at the top of the trees so you could see for miles.
Now with taking it easy in mind I still pushed myself. Lunch was supposed to be at 120km. I felt good so I went to the next town at 130km. That town didn’t have any service stations so I had to go another 13km. I was ready to eat by that point and it actually worked out nice because it meant it was only a short ride to the rest stop.
My stop was in Defuniak Springs. This is my first real taste of Florida because up until now I have just been staying in super sketchy places. Today I did not feel like making the 5-mile trek to save a few bucks so I made the choice to stay in the historic downtown. I decided to stop in a hotel that was built in the 1920’s and is one of Florida’s top 10 places to stay. It is really nice and cozy, and the people here are really friendly. Really it is a great way to spend an evening. The only thing is because this is a heavily religious part of Florida everything is closed on Sunday. It is actually a little weird because the roads were super quiet, then you would pass a church and it was overflowing with people.
It looks like I may be alabaham tomorrow so here is hoping I don’t receive a gunshot wound within my first 20kms.
So I screwed up. I accidentally delted my ride info before I recorded it so I will give you the stuff I know.
Total Distance: 12862km
Total Ride Time: 597hr
Destination: Defuniak Springs, Florida
Once rolling I was amazing how different things look in the dark. This ghetto that I was staying in actually looked nice when only the trees on the side of street were lit up. I have been contemplating stating even earlier in the mornings because it is far more pleasant to ride in. mabey start at 5 am instead of 6, that being said the days are getting shorter so I may actually get my way without changing anything.
The rolling hills carried over today but I was prepared and just took my time on of it and never gave 100%. With things running smooth my mind had a chance to think about things other then my bike. I had a chance to realize how sore I am. My left shoulder is killing when I rotate it backwards, my right hand has multiple pintched nerves so writing is impossible, and my ankle has been hurting for the past few days. I think when I was having my cassette issues when it slipped and snapped my ankle back underload may have caused a problem. Luckily all of these things do not hurt much when im riding unless I do specific movements.
With that in mind I made the choice to take it easy today. No 200km day today for me. So I took my time and took in the sights of a few towns I passed through. I also got the chance to ride one of the coolest stretches of road yet. It was a bridge called Victory Bridge that was dead flat and crossed this swamp that was about 3kms long. What made it really cool was the fact that this bridge was right at the top of the trees so you could see for miles.
Now with taking it easy in mind I still pushed myself. Lunch was supposed to be at 120km. I felt good so I went to the next town at 130km. That town didn’t have any service stations so I had to go another 13km. I was ready to eat by that point and it actually worked out nice because it meant it was only a short ride to the rest stop.
My stop was in Defuniak Springs. This is my first real taste of Florida because up until now I have just been staying in super sketchy places. Today I did not feel like making the 5-mile trek to save a few bucks so I made the choice to stay in the historic downtown. I decided to stop in a hotel that was built in the 1920’s and is one of Florida’s top 10 places to stay. It is really nice and cozy, and the people here are really friendly. Really it is a great way to spend an evening. The only thing is because this is a heavily religious part of Florida everything is closed on Sunday. It is actually a little weird because the roads were super quiet, then you would pass a church and it was overflowing with people.
It looks like I may be alabaham tomorrow so here is hoping I don’t receive a gunshot wound within my first 20kms.
So I screwed up. I accidentally delted my ride info before I recorded it so I will give you the stuff I know.
Total Distance: 12862km
Total Ride Time: 597hr
Destination: Defuniak Springs, Florida
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Tour Day 85 The Good Ol' Boys Sept 18 2010
I forgot I was in the south for the past few days because I have been in fairly touristy parts of Florida. Now that I am getting closer to Alabama I have already had a few things that have left e with more questions then anything else. Case and point last night I was walking back from getting my groceries and at this gas station these two guys had erected there hunting chair (an elevated 20 foot platform with a chair) at the station and were having a discussion about it. All I could understand from the conversation was “well what do we do now”. I just envision them shooting birds over the highway at night.
One other thing that left me with a question mark was at my rest stop today in Perry. I stopped at another gas station for a snack and was shocked by what I saw. It had all the typicals like beer, snacks, and more beer, but half the store was dedicated to fake hair. Adding to this I went to purchase my snack and the guy looks at me and says in a heavy southern accent “I like you shirt”. I immediately looked for the necklace made of teeth. After not seeing one I accepted the compliment and promptly kept riding.
I am going to take a stand on something else. I am ok with you having an old P.O.S. car with huge rims on it, but please keep the seat erect. If it is all the way back it is doing nothing. If you wanted to be a real thug just take the backrest off and simply have the bottom to the chair. I mean really that has to be the next step.
The ride this morning was actually very pleasant I because I had tree lining for the first 4 hours. That meant that the temperature was normal for a change. At point I only had the jersey undone halfway which is a first for Florida.
The road today was not easy for two reasons. The first was the fact that it had large gaps between everything. For example lunch was supposed to be at this one homestead called Capps but it turns out that this place was simply an intersection. Luckily there was a gas station 4 miles down the road that sufficed.
The a.d.d. is kicking in hard here. Have you ever seen Zombie land? Well there is a character called Tallahassee and boy did the writers and casters do an amazing job. I was in this gas station and I felt like I was in the movie. Not only were these guys dead ringers for the cast of the movie, but also they could not stop talking about shooting their bows in the morning, and discussing their cow situation. All this was fine and dandy but what I found funny was the fact that all these manly conversations were going on while he has pictures of what I assume was his daughter in a pink dress surround them. If it wasn’t his daughter then he would be the guy with the tooth necklace.
The other reason the road were not easy is because it was not flat. Which if it were a normal temperature would be fine but at 95 degrees climbing just blows rocks, and with the gaps you cant drink as much as you would like to. This is what led to me getting dehydrated. I can tell when I am on the verge because I get really tired. At points I was playing a dangerous game of shutting my eyes for 2 seconds just to take quick catnaps. I knew that was going to end bad so I just turned my music up and started singing the best of journey and mason Jennings. If you have never heard of mason Jennings look him up he is possible the best folk singer of the past decade.
My rest stop was supposed to be in Tallahassee at a solid 160km. Even better I had no flats so I was in at a normal time, maybe even could catch a nap. Then I found out that a major football game was going on so when I asked for a room I encountered an extremely inflated price. My only choice was to go the 20miles to quicey. Thinking my luck was about to turn I was getting really conscious of my tires. I always felt as if they were going flat, but it was just me over thinking things
When I got to quincy I found out it was a nicer ghetto so I had the choice of the motel that was a house converted over, or the motel with grass growing out of the driveway. I decided on the house and it was a bad choice. My room though cheap is constructed entirely of wood, and the ac is broken. So I am in a sauna is what it build down to in this heat and humidity. Needless to say my ice cream is going to taste awesome.
Trip Distance: 201km
Ride Time: 8:59hr
Avg. Speed: 22.42km/h
Total Distance: 12693km
Total Ride Time: 590hr
Destination: Quincy, Florida
One other thing that left me with a question mark was at my rest stop today in Perry. I stopped at another gas station for a snack and was shocked by what I saw. It had all the typicals like beer, snacks, and more beer, but half the store was dedicated to fake hair. Adding to this I went to purchase my snack and the guy looks at me and says in a heavy southern accent “I like you shirt”. I immediately looked for the necklace made of teeth. After not seeing one I accepted the compliment and promptly kept riding.
I am going to take a stand on something else. I am ok with you having an old P.O.S. car with huge rims on it, but please keep the seat erect. If it is all the way back it is doing nothing. If you wanted to be a real thug just take the backrest off and simply have the bottom to the chair. I mean really that has to be the next step.
The ride this morning was actually very pleasant I because I had tree lining for the first 4 hours. That meant that the temperature was normal for a change. At point I only had the jersey undone halfway which is a first for Florida.
The road today was not easy for two reasons. The first was the fact that it had large gaps between everything. For example lunch was supposed to be at this one homestead called Capps but it turns out that this place was simply an intersection. Luckily there was a gas station 4 miles down the road that sufficed.
The a.d.d. is kicking in hard here. Have you ever seen Zombie land? Well there is a character called Tallahassee and boy did the writers and casters do an amazing job. I was in this gas station and I felt like I was in the movie. Not only were these guys dead ringers for the cast of the movie, but also they could not stop talking about shooting their bows in the morning, and discussing their cow situation. All this was fine and dandy but what I found funny was the fact that all these manly conversations were going on while he has pictures of what I assume was his daughter in a pink dress surround them. If it wasn’t his daughter then he would be the guy with the tooth necklace.
The other reason the road were not easy is because it was not flat. Which if it were a normal temperature would be fine but at 95 degrees climbing just blows rocks, and with the gaps you cant drink as much as you would like to. This is what led to me getting dehydrated. I can tell when I am on the verge because I get really tired. At points I was playing a dangerous game of shutting my eyes for 2 seconds just to take quick catnaps. I knew that was going to end bad so I just turned my music up and started singing the best of journey and mason Jennings. If you have never heard of mason Jennings look him up he is possible the best folk singer of the past decade.
My rest stop was supposed to be in Tallahassee at a solid 160km. Even better I had no flats so I was in at a normal time, maybe even could catch a nap. Then I found out that a major football game was going on so when I asked for a room I encountered an extremely inflated price. My only choice was to go the 20miles to quicey. Thinking my luck was about to turn I was getting really conscious of my tires. I always felt as if they were going flat, but it was just me over thinking things
When I got to quincy I found out it was a nicer ghetto so I had the choice of the motel that was a house converted over, or the motel with grass growing out of the driveway. I decided on the house and it was a bad choice. My room though cheap is constructed entirely of wood, and the ac is broken. So I am in a sauna is what it build down to in this heat and humidity. Needless to say my ice cream is going to taste awesome.
Trip Distance: 201km
Ride Time: 8:59hr
Avg. Speed: 22.42km/h
Total Distance: 12693km
Total Ride Time: 590hr
Destination: Quincy, Florida
Friday, September 17, 2010
Tour Day 84 Lets Talk Luck Sept 17 2010
I woke up in a good mood today because I figured my luck had to change. When I got on the road and encountered my first hills of Florida. It was fun because these hills were tailored for me. They here gradual inclines that I could just power up. It was so peaceful riding them in the pitch-black on a quiet side road. It was at this point that I was thinking, “This is going to be a good day”.
At 7am I passed a subway, which means one thing fresh purified water and unlimited ice. This only added to my good mood. Nothing is worse then when you are looking for refreshment and are greeted by chlorine.
I had just taken my first sip of my new water when I felt it. I looked back and you guessed it a rear flat. After dropping a single f bomb I pulled over and changed it. Today’s first flat was courtesy of a nice small nail. I got the tire inflated and was back rolling… or so I thought. I get 20 metres down the road and I had this huge hop in my rear wheel. The dang tire wouldn’t seed on the wheel right. After spending 15 minutes fiddling with it I got it to a point where I could deal with it.
At this point it was getting hot again and I was sweating profusely. Because I have been changing so many flats and getting so sweaty standing still that I converted my tent towel to my sweat rag. After one day it already smells like roses.
Trying to put that behind me I kept pedaling and knew that with the road was going to turn the next 5km were going to suck. Before I could even start the punishment of that I had to stop again. A front flat. I was contemplating throwing my bike over this small fence and letting the rabid dogs chew on it for a while. Alas I did not. As much as it has been a pain the past few weeks I love my bike. When I took the tube out and felt for what caused the flat I had to laugh when I found out was it was. My new tires centre-bead started to come apart and sent a poky metal piece into my tube. Not able to yank the metal out without ruining the tire further I had to use this magical thing called tape. I think that you can officially call yourself a bike tourist once you have to use tape in a serious situation.
After passing through a couple one-shop towns I finally hit a small city. This was at 130km and I was cooked. I also figured that the next two towns one the map wouldn’t have anything that I needed for the evening. Pure stupidity made me continue after getting some food in my belly.
My target was cross-city and I was going to tank it there because I need a good nights rest. I was not getting in at 6:30 again and rushing to get my stuff sorted. I was zoned out pedaling like a beaver when I got a sign from the heavens that my luck was going to change. Not only were my tires holding but as I rode my dream car drove by. Passing me at a little above the speed of smell was a 1974 Gremlin X. It had seen better days but I still was in awe of this beauty.
In cross-town I stopped at the first place instead of riding and rolling the dice to see if there is anything further down the road. Turns my animal instincts were right on this one. Even better I got my grocery shopping done tonight so that I do not have to stop tomorrow. I figure that will add about 25 minutes of time to my day that I can use to change a few more flats.
Trip Distance: 163km
Ride Time: 7:10hr
Avg. Speed: 22.83km/h
Total Distance: 12492km
Total Ride Time: 581hr
Destination: Crosstown, Florida
At 7am I passed a subway, which means one thing fresh purified water and unlimited ice. This only added to my good mood. Nothing is worse then when you are looking for refreshment and are greeted by chlorine.
I had just taken my first sip of my new water when I felt it. I looked back and you guessed it a rear flat. After dropping a single f bomb I pulled over and changed it. Today’s first flat was courtesy of a nice small nail. I got the tire inflated and was back rolling… or so I thought. I get 20 metres down the road and I had this huge hop in my rear wheel. The dang tire wouldn’t seed on the wheel right. After spending 15 minutes fiddling with it I got it to a point where I could deal with it.
At this point it was getting hot again and I was sweating profusely. Because I have been changing so many flats and getting so sweaty standing still that I converted my tent towel to my sweat rag. After one day it already smells like roses.
Trying to put that behind me I kept pedaling and knew that with the road was going to turn the next 5km were going to suck. Before I could even start the punishment of that I had to stop again. A front flat. I was contemplating throwing my bike over this small fence and letting the rabid dogs chew on it for a while. Alas I did not. As much as it has been a pain the past few weeks I love my bike. When I took the tube out and felt for what caused the flat I had to laugh when I found out was it was. My new tires centre-bead started to come apart and sent a poky metal piece into my tube. Not able to yank the metal out without ruining the tire further I had to use this magical thing called tape. I think that you can officially call yourself a bike tourist once you have to use tape in a serious situation.
After passing through a couple one-shop towns I finally hit a small city. This was at 130km and I was cooked. I also figured that the next two towns one the map wouldn’t have anything that I needed for the evening. Pure stupidity made me continue after getting some food in my belly.
My target was cross-city and I was going to tank it there because I need a good nights rest. I was not getting in at 6:30 again and rushing to get my stuff sorted. I was zoned out pedaling like a beaver when I got a sign from the heavens that my luck was going to change. Not only were my tires holding but as I rode my dream car drove by. Passing me at a little above the speed of smell was a 1974 Gremlin X. It had seen better days but I still was in awe of this beauty.
In cross-town I stopped at the first place instead of riding and rolling the dice to see if there is anything further down the road. Turns my animal instincts were right on this one. Even better I got my grocery shopping done tonight so that I do not have to stop tomorrow. I figure that will add about 25 minutes of time to my day that I can use to change a few more flats.
Trip Distance: 163km
Ride Time: 7:10hr
Avg. Speed: 22.83km/h
Total Distance: 12492km
Total Ride Time: 581hr
Destination: Crosstown, Florida
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Tour Day 83 A Run In With The Police. The No Fun Police Sept 16 2010
Last night I was in a bad mood so I figured I would combine two things I love. Ice cream, and sandwiches. As we all know you cant buy just one from the grocery store so I bought a pack of 12. Knowing that 12 would make me sick I was the generous Canadian and walked around the super 8 handing them out. The people were so shocked that someone was being kind that it was invigorating for me. When I told them I was from Canada they went “aaaa that makes sense”.
Today I started riding with a positive mindset I figured my luck could not get any worse. Well as with many things I was wrong. I set out the door and encountered a 12mph crosswind that pumbled me all day. Because it was coming from the west when I turned northwest it was just ruthless. Hour after hour of grinding. It really messes with your mind and body because you are putting out so much extra effort.
By snack time I was beyond drained. I had my regular snack and went back on the road not excited for the rest of the ride. Of course adding to this I already had one flat that had no explanation. At 11 am I was done I had decided that Tampa was going to be the rest stop.
I was miserable. Adding to what was already going wrong I kept passing waste transfer sites, and porn shops. Which I got to thinking about. The two times that the word adult is used in society is in adult shops, and adult communities (old folks home). It makes me wonder about the transition into adulthood.
I passed Tampa and it was bad news. Everywhere I went was a shady area that I did not want to stop in. So I pressed on to Lutz for lunch and a place to rest. At lunch I met a few nice people and I felt the day was turning around. Then I got to my bike and another damn flat. I wasn’t changing it, it still had some pressure and I was gunna ride it to the motel that should have been 5 miles away.
Well the motel was not there and the next one 5 miles away did not take guests. The one after that was more of the same news. At that point I was past the breaking point mentally and physically. The fun police had officially shown up on my doorstep.
I did not want to make the 36-mile gap to Brooksville today but it ended up happening and rounded out another gruelling day on the bike where all my thoughts were focused on why the heck I am doing this. Again the km’s don’t complete themselves and I have the strength to continue so that’s what I am going to do.
I hope my luck is starting to turn around because when I changed the flat front again I finally noticed on piece of metal less then half an mm thick that had been causing me my headaches. After pulling this out and popping a new tube in I feel as if that was a sign from the bike gods. They have put me threw hell now I hope I can just ride for a few days. Just 2 days would make me happy then the problems can start again I just need to sort out my head and the only way I know how to do that is by riding a bike. If the bike is being a problem it just amplifies things by about 1000%
Trip Distance: 195km (was supposed to be 120km max)
Ride Time: 9:13hr
Avg. Speed: 21.25km/h (I do not know how I pulled that off with the wind)
Total Distance: 12328km
Total Ride Time: Brooksville, Florida
Today I started riding with a positive mindset I figured my luck could not get any worse. Well as with many things I was wrong. I set out the door and encountered a 12mph crosswind that pumbled me all day. Because it was coming from the west when I turned northwest it was just ruthless. Hour after hour of grinding. It really messes with your mind and body because you are putting out so much extra effort.
By snack time I was beyond drained. I had my regular snack and went back on the road not excited for the rest of the ride. Of course adding to this I already had one flat that had no explanation. At 11 am I was done I had decided that Tampa was going to be the rest stop.
I was miserable. Adding to what was already going wrong I kept passing waste transfer sites, and porn shops. Which I got to thinking about. The two times that the word adult is used in society is in adult shops, and adult communities (old folks home). It makes me wonder about the transition into adulthood.
I passed Tampa and it was bad news. Everywhere I went was a shady area that I did not want to stop in. So I pressed on to Lutz for lunch and a place to rest. At lunch I met a few nice people and I felt the day was turning around. Then I got to my bike and another damn flat. I wasn’t changing it, it still had some pressure and I was gunna ride it to the motel that should have been 5 miles away.
Well the motel was not there and the next one 5 miles away did not take guests. The one after that was more of the same news. At that point I was past the breaking point mentally and physically. The fun police had officially shown up on my doorstep.
I did not want to make the 36-mile gap to Brooksville today but it ended up happening and rounded out another gruelling day on the bike where all my thoughts were focused on why the heck I am doing this. Again the km’s don’t complete themselves and I have the strength to continue so that’s what I am going to do.
I hope my luck is starting to turn around because when I changed the flat front again I finally noticed on piece of metal less then half an mm thick that had been causing me my headaches. After pulling this out and popping a new tube in I feel as if that was a sign from the bike gods. They have put me threw hell now I hope I can just ride for a few days. Just 2 days would make me happy then the problems can start again I just need to sort out my head and the only way I know how to do that is by riding a bike. If the bike is being a problem it just amplifies things by about 1000%
Trip Distance: 195km (was supposed to be 120km max)
Ride Time: 9:13hr
Avg. Speed: 21.25km/h (I do not know how I pulled that off with the wind)
Total Distance: 12328km
Total Ride Time: Brooksville, Florida
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Tour Day 82 More Miles More Problems Sept 15 2010
I was out the door this morning and you guessed it front flat. I was thinking it was ok so I just inflated it and went on down the road with a smooshed muffin in my back pocket. About 3km’s down the road I saw the bright lights of a gas station and decided to suck it up and change it. Well when I stopped and took the wheel off I immediately regretted the choice because this place was a mosquito pit. I must be delicious because they would not get off of me. Even once I pulled out the chunk of rubber that caused the flat and got back on the road I found myself scratching as if they were still one me.
At this point I was getting competitive with myself because I was behind and wanted to get back on time. Luckily I had a wind pushing me so within 2 hours I was on time and infact making time. Then all of a sudden my front end started to bounce. I pulled over and there rested a nice piece of wire sticking out of my tire. I can only assume it was from my incident 10kms back. Now before I go any further I am going to put my foot down on this, I am not going to be taking any more state routes in Florida because of the drivers. My incident today was the closest I have ever got to getting smoked in my life. I was rolling down this two-lane road and this woman in a gmc Yukon pulls out to pass ignoring im there. This forces me over onto the grass because she kept coming over. After giving her the thumbs up I noticed that she was on a cell phone as well. About the only thing that was missing was the lipstick in the other hand. This did not make me a very happy camper.
So after changing this flat I was behind again. I knew I only had another 15 miles of this tailwind so I hit the gas. By the time I made it to Tice I was back on time and was feeling good. That was until I turned and got the tailwind I had in the form of a crosswind. I still pushed it because my legs were feeling good. It was at this point I realized that time had flown by and I missed my break. As soon as I realized that I missed my break my body hit the wall and I needed food. Stubbornness made me pass one town and move the 7 miles to the next one. It was a good choice because at this subway they were super interested in my trip. It picked up my mood and got me pumped for the last 50km.
When I got back on the bike I realized I pushed it because it was a struggle to turn the pedals over. Now the task was to find a bike shop to get a couple new tubes because I had used both of my spares up. It was just as I was thinking about this that my rear end started to bounce. Now way I thought. I was not stopping to change it because I know my patches would not hold so I rode it flat for 2 miles to the business to get a new rear tire (it was a sign from the bike gods) and new tubes. Now I was not a happy camper so when this place only had one tube and one tire I was not pumped. What got me even more frustrated was the fact the tire when I pulled it out of the box was in two pieces. Really useful.
Now I had to use my one good tube on my worn out tire. I was fully expecting it to pop right away but I had a trick up my sleeve. I ran it at super low pressure so that I was not running on the worn out tread. This robbed power but got me down the road.
I got to the next business and no tubes or tires. The bike shop after that luckily had a tire and a couple tubes so I was golden. Now you may have guessed that I was not happy and I wasn’t. I actually started to loose my mind. I was yelling at my bike to cooperate. Yelling at it to last until the rest stop then I will baby it.
With my luck I expected the tube to blow before I got to Venice but it lasted. I think. We will see in the morning. What made me even more upset was while I was literally white with salt I was craving a visit to Venice beach. Instead I am stuck here working on my bike changing tire, tube, and lubing. I guess that’s why im touring by bicycle.
Trip Distance: 190km
Ride Time: 7:30hr
Avg. Speed: 25.32km/hr (I am a monster. Thank You Skins compression wear.)
Total Distance: 12132km
Total Ride Time: 564hr
Destination: Venice, Florida
At this point I was getting competitive with myself because I was behind and wanted to get back on time. Luckily I had a wind pushing me so within 2 hours I was on time and infact making time. Then all of a sudden my front end started to bounce. I pulled over and there rested a nice piece of wire sticking out of my tire. I can only assume it was from my incident 10kms back. Now before I go any further I am going to put my foot down on this, I am not going to be taking any more state routes in Florida because of the drivers. My incident today was the closest I have ever got to getting smoked in my life. I was rolling down this two-lane road and this woman in a gmc Yukon pulls out to pass ignoring im there. This forces me over onto the grass because she kept coming over. After giving her the thumbs up I noticed that she was on a cell phone as well. About the only thing that was missing was the lipstick in the other hand. This did not make me a very happy camper.
So after changing this flat I was behind again. I knew I only had another 15 miles of this tailwind so I hit the gas. By the time I made it to Tice I was back on time and was feeling good. That was until I turned and got the tailwind I had in the form of a crosswind. I still pushed it because my legs were feeling good. It was at this point I realized that time had flown by and I missed my break. As soon as I realized that I missed my break my body hit the wall and I needed food. Stubbornness made me pass one town and move the 7 miles to the next one. It was a good choice because at this subway they were super interested in my trip. It picked up my mood and got me pumped for the last 50km.
When I got back on the bike I realized I pushed it because it was a struggle to turn the pedals over. Now the task was to find a bike shop to get a couple new tubes because I had used both of my spares up. It was just as I was thinking about this that my rear end started to bounce. Now way I thought. I was not stopping to change it because I know my patches would not hold so I rode it flat for 2 miles to the business to get a new rear tire (it was a sign from the bike gods) and new tubes. Now I was not a happy camper so when this place only had one tube and one tire I was not pumped. What got me even more frustrated was the fact the tire when I pulled it out of the box was in two pieces. Really useful.
Now I had to use my one good tube on my worn out tire. I was fully expecting it to pop right away but I had a trick up my sleeve. I ran it at super low pressure so that I was not running on the worn out tread. This robbed power but got me down the road.
I got to the next business and no tubes or tires. The bike shop after that luckily had a tire and a couple tubes so I was golden. Now you may have guessed that I was not happy and I wasn’t. I actually started to loose my mind. I was yelling at my bike to cooperate. Yelling at it to last until the rest stop then I will baby it.
With my luck I expected the tube to blow before I got to Venice but it lasted. I think. We will see in the morning. What made me even more upset was while I was literally white with salt I was craving a visit to Venice beach. Instead I am stuck here working on my bike changing tire, tube, and lubing. I guess that’s why im touring by bicycle.
Trip Distance: 190km
Ride Time: 7:30hr
Avg. Speed: 25.32km/hr (I am a monster. Thank You Skins compression wear.)
Total Distance: 12132km
Total Ride Time: 564hr
Destination: Venice, Florida
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Tour Day 81 Let Your Guts Hang Low Sept 14 2010
I woke up this morning with a sore shoulder, throbbing legs, and drowsy eyes. I was out and packing up my stuff when I just went back and decided today is a day off and promptly fell back asleep.
When I woke up at 8am (a huge sleep in) I immediately felt better. Everything in my body was thanking me for not pushing it over the limit again.
I laying half awake I was thinking of the things I was going to fill my day with because I had no chores to complete. Other then a few emails I had nothing. That meant that I had an entire day to relax and do absolutely nothing.
When I got out the door I was met with super dark clouds and a heavy wind that would not have been at my back. With the next town 30 miles away it would have killed me that morning, so again that gave me a positive feeling.
At breakfast though I could not help but feel a little guilty. Here I am stuff my face when I should be turning over the pedals and getting my butt down the road. It is funny how cycling for me has progressed as a kid it was a hobby, as a teen it was a passion, now becoming an adult its an obsession.
With the feeling of guilt in my head I had to make myself useful. I did that by looking at my maps and deciding my route out of Florida. Because I am not coming down the coast anymore I have to actually plan. It is not as simple as saying “o I will just fallow route 1 for 13 days in a row”. When I looked at my map I had no idea what to do because really any route had multiple large gaps. So as a backup I went to goggle maps to look at side roads. Usually if you see side roads there will be some business of some sort. Or at least that’s what im hoping. My choice in terms of route is to not go up the inland. Instead I will be going up the golf coast. I will have a better breeze, better scenery, and hopefully more stuff.
After taking a nap and spilling half a tube of toothpaste on my shirt it was time for lunch. Now I did not realize I had that much splatter on me till I was halfway across the street. I had gone about 20 feet into a 350foot journey and I decided that it was to far to turn back and get a new shirt. I mean it seems here that any shirt is rarity. I would have just loved to read the minds of the people that were helping me.
Before I go any further I have come to a conclusion. Florida is not filled with old people. They are actually all young but the humidity has the same affect as sitting in water for a long time; you become like a grape. On the water note I was taking a bath today (the first in about 6 months) and farted. After this I was left with a question. Why do farts in any water smell so much worse then anywhere else?
Now it was time to just relax and do some research for when I get back. I figured the reserve I am going to try to get into. I am going to apply with the 15th field artillery regiment in Vancouver. Artillery is something I always have been interested in because it is the most technical of the frontline forces and no battle has ever been won without it. I looked at things like becoming a technician or lineman, more safe options but if I did those I would not truly be committed 100% to my reserve.
At this point it was time for dinner and I decided that it was time for a buffet. At this Chinese buffet I was the only one in it to start off. As the night wore on all these single guys came strolling in and they all had one thing in common. They had this strange walk when the approached the door. It was almost as if they had ridden a horse all day, or in this case they were awaiting there guts to drop once full. Buffet edict is also something interesting. You have to process how am I going to make this worthwhile. In this case it was tackle the crab legs, and dairy products. Make them pay for only charging me 8 bucks.
Trip Distance: 0km
When I woke up at 8am (a huge sleep in) I immediately felt better. Everything in my body was thanking me for not pushing it over the limit again.
I laying half awake I was thinking of the things I was going to fill my day with because I had no chores to complete. Other then a few emails I had nothing. That meant that I had an entire day to relax and do absolutely nothing.
When I got out the door I was met with super dark clouds and a heavy wind that would not have been at my back. With the next town 30 miles away it would have killed me that morning, so again that gave me a positive feeling.
At breakfast though I could not help but feel a little guilty. Here I am stuff my face when I should be turning over the pedals and getting my butt down the road. It is funny how cycling for me has progressed as a kid it was a hobby, as a teen it was a passion, now becoming an adult its an obsession.
With the feeling of guilt in my head I had to make myself useful. I did that by looking at my maps and deciding my route out of Florida. Because I am not coming down the coast anymore I have to actually plan. It is not as simple as saying “o I will just fallow route 1 for 13 days in a row”. When I looked at my map I had no idea what to do because really any route had multiple large gaps. So as a backup I went to goggle maps to look at side roads. Usually if you see side roads there will be some business of some sort. Or at least that’s what im hoping. My choice in terms of route is to not go up the inland. Instead I will be going up the golf coast. I will have a better breeze, better scenery, and hopefully more stuff.
After taking a nap and spilling half a tube of toothpaste on my shirt it was time for lunch. Now I did not realize I had that much splatter on me till I was halfway across the street. I had gone about 20 feet into a 350foot journey and I decided that it was to far to turn back and get a new shirt. I mean it seems here that any shirt is rarity. I would have just loved to read the minds of the people that were helping me.
Before I go any further I have come to a conclusion. Florida is not filled with old people. They are actually all young but the humidity has the same affect as sitting in water for a long time; you become like a grape. On the water note I was taking a bath today (the first in about 6 months) and farted. After this I was left with a question. Why do farts in any water smell so much worse then anywhere else?
Now it was time to just relax and do some research for when I get back. I figured the reserve I am going to try to get into. I am going to apply with the 15th field artillery regiment in Vancouver. Artillery is something I always have been interested in because it is the most technical of the frontline forces and no battle has ever been won without it. I looked at things like becoming a technician or lineman, more safe options but if I did those I would not truly be committed 100% to my reserve.
At this point it was time for dinner and I decided that it was time for a buffet. At this Chinese buffet I was the only one in it to start off. As the night wore on all these single guys came strolling in and they all had one thing in common. They had this strange walk when the approached the door. It was almost as if they had ridden a horse all day, or in this case they were awaiting there guts to drop once full. Buffet edict is also something interesting. You have to process how am I going to make this worthwhile. In this case it was tackle the crab legs, and dairy products. Make them pay for only charging me 8 bucks.
Trip Distance: 0km
Monday, September 13, 2010
Tour Day 80 The Willard Of Cats Sept 13 2010
After getting little rest because of the constant screaming matches, doors opening and closing, and a swarm of people coming and going I was ready to leave.
It was 5am my regular wake up and I was tempted to sleep in but then I gave myself a goal. Leave now and I get to my rest stop earlier. I promised myself a treat today to splurge the extra 10 bucks for a room that does not smell like an old mans backside or have something crawling on the floor when you open the door (not a joke). As a side note after seeing that all my bags were tightly sealed that night.
The first 15 miles today were nerve racking because I was fighting with airport traffic and dump trucks along a road with no shoulder. Thankfully as soon as the sun came up I got a shoulder. As well I had some tree cover which gave me some shade to avoid baking. Really it was shaping up to be a good ride.
Well with me saying that you can probably guess it was not a stellar ride. And it started to turn that way at saw blades airboat tours. This was the last stop before hitting what I thought was a 41-mile gap with nothing. The operator of the tour boat company, which strangely was open at 7:55am, said that it takes her an hour to get to south bay… which then means its 60 miles.
I started the gap with a negative spin on it. I had 60 miles, and my water tasted of stale alligator. The terrain was mentally exhausting because it was dead flat and my bush cover was gone. I was left to cook.
An hour into the ride I was done. I was out of my good water and started on alligator water. I kept focusing on a point roughly a mile away. Low and behold I saw a single building. I pulled in and encountered a no trespassing violators will be shot sign confronted me. I saw no one on this farm so I went in the open gate and snooped around for someone to ask for some fresh water. It sounds worse then it was I swear. Luckily I found one guy leaving and he pointed me to the water jug. It was so awesome to have bottled water that was cool.
I decided to make this my rest point. I was just starting my cinnamon bun peanut butter sandwich when 7 cats crawled out from under this house. Willard had rats apparently I have cats. They would not leave me so I had to give them a little bit of love before I pushed on down the road.
Before I left I encountered another guy who was a little hesitant looking at this tiny red and white spandex figure in his driveway (I assume he has the gun). I asked how far the town was from that point and he told me the good news. My initial distance was right so that meant that I did not have conserve the energy I had left in the tank.
I started to eat up the miles and made it to the gas station in south bay in stellar time. The only thing I could complain about was the fact my lunch was a pre-packaged microwave burrito.
After my burrito I had 16 miles to round out the day. I made them quick because I had chores to be done. Nothing was really pressing but I wanted to pre plan everything. So thinking ahead I got some white gas did my laundry two days early, and grocery shopped one day ahead. This means that I don’t have to worry about that stuff for a while which is nice.
Trip Distance: 138km (another good rest day)
Ride Time: 6:00hr
Avg. Speed: 23.01km/h
Total Distance: 11942km
Total Ride Time: 557hr
Destination: Clewiston, Florida
It was 5am my regular wake up and I was tempted to sleep in but then I gave myself a goal. Leave now and I get to my rest stop earlier. I promised myself a treat today to splurge the extra 10 bucks for a room that does not smell like an old mans backside or have something crawling on the floor when you open the door (not a joke). As a side note after seeing that all my bags were tightly sealed that night.
The first 15 miles today were nerve racking because I was fighting with airport traffic and dump trucks along a road with no shoulder. Thankfully as soon as the sun came up I got a shoulder. As well I had some tree cover which gave me some shade to avoid baking. Really it was shaping up to be a good ride.
Well with me saying that you can probably guess it was not a stellar ride. And it started to turn that way at saw blades airboat tours. This was the last stop before hitting what I thought was a 41-mile gap with nothing. The operator of the tour boat company, which strangely was open at 7:55am, said that it takes her an hour to get to south bay… which then means its 60 miles.
I started the gap with a negative spin on it. I had 60 miles, and my water tasted of stale alligator. The terrain was mentally exhausting because it was dead flat and my bush cover was gone. I was left to cook.
An hour into the ride I was done. I was out of my good water and started on alligator water. I kept focusing on a point roughly a mile away. Low and behold I saw a single building. I pulled in and encountered a no trespassing violators will be shot sign confronted me. I saw no one on this farm so I went in the open gate and snooped around for someone to ask for some fresh water. It sounds worse then it was I swear. Luckily I found one guy leaving and he pointed me to the water jug. It was so awesome to have bottled water that was cool.
I decided to make this my rest point. I was just starting my cinnamon bun peanut butter sandwich when 7 cats crawled out from under this house. Willard had rats apparently I have cats. They would not leave me so I had to give them a little bit of love before I pushed on down the road.
Before I left I encountered another guy who was a little hesitant looking at this tiny red and white spandex figure in his driveway (I assume he has the gun). I asked how far the town was from that point and he told me the good news. My initial distance was right so that meant that I did not have conserve the energy I had left in the tank.
I started to eat up the miles and made it to the gas station in south bay in stellar time. The only thing I could complain about was the fact my lunch was a pre-packaged microwave burrito.
After my burrito I had 16 miles to round out the day. I made them quick because I had chores to be done. Nothing was really pressing but I wanted to pre plan everything. So thinking ahead I got some white gas did my laundry two days early, and grocery shopped one day ahead. This means that I don’t have to worry about that stuff for a while which is nice.
Trip Distance: 138km (another good rest day)
Ride Time: 6:00hr
Avg. Speed: 23.01km/h
Total Distance: 11942km
Total Ride Time: 557hr
Destination: Clewiston, Florida
Tour Day 79 An Epic Ride And A Change Of Plans Sept 12 2010
I have to apologize for my blog yesterday. I know it was confusing to read and I apologize. I just know I have something to say I simply have not figured out how to word it yet.
Because I took a nap yesterday I found it very difficult to fall asleep. So really the nap was useless because I spent my nap tie up at night. Which meant in the morning I was not completely charged, but anything was better then where I was at.
I got on the road and felt pretty descent. I knew from my calculations that I had 100 miles to Miami which in my condition was going to be a nicely pace day. What made the morning even better was my helmet. I cleaned the pads last night for the first time in 2 weeks and lord was it gross. I squeezed them out and saw 2 weeks of sweat and dead skin drop out in a cloud of grossness in the sink. Once cleaned it took a lot of pressure off the cut on my head and made the riding a lot better.
I was getting down the road in good time and was ahead of schedule when I got passed by a guy on a tri bike. Thinking nothing of it I just kept riding. Then a lady pulls up next to me and we start talking. It was nice to see some other cyclists because for the past 4 days it had been nothing but the odd klunker in the rough parts of town. This lady was very interested in the trip and telling it to he students that she helps.
After getting a good talk in and being forced to travel a little quicker I ran into a group of triathletes. They were a little bit snooty to me so I jumped into there pace line and took a double pull over a few rolling hills. When they peeled off they collectively said that they did not see that coming from a bike as loaded as mine. That gave me a good boost of pride and energy.
That boost was quickly zapped when I realized my rear wheel was starting to rub again. Now I realized I had a lot of distance left and did not want to true my wheel so I just unhooked it thinking I was going to fix it later.
It was 12 and I was ready for lunch in Boca. Now I had my map closed because I felt confident in where I was going so I did not need it. I opened it to see where I was at and was shocked when I found out I was 130km into the day and still had 70km left.
At that point I braced myself for what was going to be a long day in the saddle and treated myself to some powerade. I figure it says power in it so it pretty much pedals the bike for me. Sadly this was not the case because when I got into ft. laterdale near the airport I promptly made a wrong turn because my brain was starting to get fried and I was stuck on the interstate again.
I was not going to get another ticket so I had to dismantle my bike and push it over a barrier that was roughly the height of a car. Once I crawled down and backtracked the 2km and started over I was cooked. I was just thinking get to route 27 north and that will be where I will stop.
Before I talk about the rest of the day I want to tell you about the change of place that has taken pace. I am not going to key west. It is 200 miles down the road with next to nothing for 50 to 80 mile patches. Adding to that I had planned to take a ferry once down there that would take me up the cape so that I would not have to ride the same road back. Unfortunately that ferry turned out not to exist anymore, which means it would be a combined 400 miles on the same road. For those reason I made the choice to turn around in Miami and take route 27 up to route 90 in Tallahassee. That also answers the next question; yes I will be continuing the trip from here until the weather turns.
Now this shows you how cooked my brain was at this point I thought that right in the middle of Miami I would be able to find a motel. Well that was not the case so after making a few wrong turns I was lost. Adding to it no one could give me good directions. So I was getting dehydrated because I was forgetting to drink, I was over 200km, and was still lost.
The was I ended up navigating was by planes. I knew I had to get beside the airport so I just kept watching the planes lading getting closer and closer. Fortunately a police officer final gave me some better directions and got me the fastest route.
I was running on fumes when I got into the Miami equivalent of the Mexican Compton. I had no gas to press on so I had to pick from one of the awesome motels in Hialeah. The one I decided on looked the worst from the outside which means it was going to have a good price which is all I cared about at that point because it was so late all I needed was a bed.
The best way I could put it is the motel in Baltimore had the murderer outside. This one had the inside. From the bathroom light that wont stop flickering in that way that you expect someone to pop up from behind you, to the duck tape on the floor. Everything has a pretty interesting vibe.
Trip Distance: 238km
Ride Time: 10:34hr
Avg. Speed: 22.53km/h
Total Distance: 11803km
Total Ride Time: 551hr
Destination: Hialeah, Florida
I was going to take tomorrow off and do nothing because I am fried right now and will need a day to rest from that, but I am not staying in this area. Instead I am going to put in a few hours spin the legs and get a good days rest.
Because I took a nap yesterday I found it very difficult to fall asleep. So really the nap was useless because I spent my nap tie up at night. Which meant in the morning I was not completely charged, but anything was better then where I was at.
I got on the road and felt pretty descent. I knew from my calculations that I had 100 miles to Miami which in my condition was going to be a nicely pace day. What made the morning even better was my helmet. I cleaned the pads last night for the first time in 2 weeks and lord was it gross. I squeezed them out and saw 2 weeks of sweat and dead skin drop out in a cloud of grossness in the sink. Once cleaned it took a lot of pressure off the cut on my head and made the riding a lot better.
I was getting down the road in good time and was ahead of schedule when I got passed by a guy on a tri bike. Thinking nothing of it I just kept riding. Then a lady pulls up next to me and we start talking. It was nice to see some other cyclists because for the past 4 days it had been nothing but the odd klunker in the rough parts of town. This lady was very interested in the trip and telling it to he students that she helps.
After getting a good talk in and being forced to travel a little quicker I ran into a group of triathletes. They were a little bit snooty to me so I jumped into there pace line and took a double pull over a few rolling hills. When they peeled off they collectively said that they did not see that coming from a bike as loaded as mine. That gave me a good boost of pride and energy.
That boost was quickly zapped when I realized my rear wheel was starting to rub again. Now I realized I had a lot of distance left and did not want to true my wheel so I just unhooked it thinking I was going to fix it later.
It was 12 and I was ready for lunch in Boca. Now I had my map closed because I felt confident in where I was going so I did not need it. I opened it to see where I was at and was shocked when I found out I was 130km into the day and still had 70km left.
At that point I braced myself for what was going to be a long day in the saddle and treated myself to some powerade. I figure it says power in it so it pretty much pedals the bike for me. Sadly this was not the case because when I got into ft. laterdale near the airport I promptly made a wrong turn because my brain was starting to get fried and I was stuck on the interstate again.
I was not going to get another ticket so I had to dismantle my bike and push it over a barrier that was roughly the height of a car. Once I crawled down and backtracked the 2km and started over I was cooked. I was just thinking get to route 27 north and that will be where I will stop.
Before I talk about the rest of the day I want to tell you about the change of place that has taken pace. I am not going to key west. It is 200 miles down the road with next to nothing for 50 to 80 mile patches. Adding to that I had planned to take a ferry once down there that would take me up the cape so that I would not have to ride the same road back. Unfortunately that ferry turned out not to exist anymore, which means it would be a combined 400 miles on the same road. For those reason I made the choice to turn around in Miami and take route 27 up to route 90 in Tallahassee. That also answers the next question; yes I will be continuing the trip from here until the weather turns.
Now this shows you how cooked my brain was at this point I thought that right in the middle of Miami I would be able to find a motel. Well that was not the case so after making a few wrong turns I was lost. Adding to it no one could give me good directions. So I was getting dehydrated because I was forgetting to drink, I was over 200km, and was still lost.
The was I ended up navigating was by planes. I knew I had to get beside the airport so I just kept watching the planes lading getting closer and closer. Fortunately a police officer final gave me some better directions and got me the fastest route.
I was running on fumes when I got into the Miami equivalent of the Mexican Compton. I had no gas to press on so I had to pick from one of the awesome motels in Hialeah. The one I decided on looked the worst from the outside which means it was going to have a good price which is all I cared about at that point because it was so late all I needed was a bed.
The best way I could put it is the motel in Baltimore had the murderer outside. This one had the inside. From the bathroom light that wont stop flickering in that way that you expect someone to pop up from behind you, to the duck tape on the floor. Everything has a pretty interesting vibe.
Trip Distance: 238km
Ride Time: 10:34hr
Avg. Speed: 22.53km/h
Total Distance: 11803km
Total Ride Time: 551hr
Destination: Hialeah, Florida
I was going to take tomorrow off and do nothing because I am fried right now and will need a day to rest from that, but I am not staying in this area. Instead I am going to put in a few hours spin the legs and get a good days rest.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Tour Day 78 A Day To Think And Remember Sept 11 2010
I feel that today is a good day to elk about this. When I left I said that this trip was about self-discovery. Now when I said that I honestly did not know what to expect, or if anything would happen at all. What has changed is I have become comfortable in my own skin. I now know that I can do whatever I set my mind to. I know that if I set my mind to something im not going to stop until it is complete. And I now realize that my priorities when I left where wrong. I was so focused on myself that I did not focus any attention on my community or more importantly my friends.
Over the space of the last few weeks I have made an effort to open up a little bit more and tell people how I feel, and how I am I am sorry for what I have or haven’t done. The easiest way to reference it is like this. What does an animal born in a zoo think is normal?
We are those animals in the zoo. I will leave it at that.
As for the days ride I got out the door and felt my legs were toasted. Not even a honey bun could save me today. At one point I stopped on the side of the road because I thought I had a wicked head wind. When I stopped I found out I infact had a tailwind and was still going less then the speed of smell.
Things got worse when I forgot to drink as much as I should. It was mainly because the water I had tasted like a pool when you drank it. When I stopped at a gas bar to get some fresh water and ice the lady said that the ice would be a dollar to which I just walked right out the door.
Once I realized I was getting dehydrated I started cramming. Which is almost worse then not drinking at all because your body cant take it all in. When I started to dry heave up my honey bun I was regretting it.
What saved me was the view, and some prospective. I was riding right next to the water for the better part of the day which meant it was only 97 degrees with humity not the 110 it was when I got inland a couple kilometres. One thing I found amazing was the differences here in Florida. I was riding through a less then beautiful city when I looked over and saw nothing but huge hotels on the other side of the river. It is shocking to see such a difference in just a few kilometres.
It was at lunchtime I decided to stop. It was worth taking half a day off to rest, recharge as much as possible, and just enjoy some time to myself. Two things have me concerned. One is the fact that every 10th add here seems to be for a cancer agency. Which usually means that something is causing cancer around here (rockets if you ask me). The other is my hand. What was happening to my left hand back in Canada is now happening to my right hand. To the point that last night I told the guy he had to fill out the form for me because if I did it, it would just look like a scribble. Luckily my signature is a scribble so I can still fudge that.
To go back to the first things I said today. I am still young and I have a lot of time to make a difference in the world. I have a lot of time to take this piece of mind that I now have and put it to good use.
On the anniversary of 9/11 one thing disturbed me. I don’t think that it is right that on a day that brought so much tragedy as this they should be airing commercials that crack jokes and push products down my throat after showing me images of real people dieing, real people loosing families, and really people coming together. It just goes to show you what a consumerist society we live in. Mind you I am kind of a hypocrite as I sit here typing on a name brand computer, and eating name brand ice cream. In all honesty I don’t know what I am trying to say here, so hopefully you can read between the lines and enlighten me.
Trip Distance: 119km
Ride Time: 5:29hr
Avg. Speed: 21.83km/h
Total Distance: 11565km
Total Ride Time: 540hr
Destination: Ft. Pierce, Florida
Over the space of the last few weeks I have made an effort to open up a little bit more and tell people how I feel, and how I am I am sorry for what I have or haven’t done. The easiest way to reference it is like this. What does an animal born in a zoo think is normal?
We are those animals in the zoo. I will leave it at that.
As for the days ride I got out the door and felt my legs were toasted. Not even a honey bun could save me today. At one point I stopped on the side of the road because I thought I had a wicked head wind. When I stopped I found out I infact had a tailwind and was still going less then the speed of smell.
Things got worse when I forgot to drink as much as I should. It was mainly because the water I had tasted like a pool when you drank it. When I stopped at a gas bar to get some fresh water and ice the lady said that the ice would be a dollar to which I just walked right out the door.
Once I realized I was getting dehydrated I started cramming. Which is almost worse then not drinking at all because your body cant take it all in. When I started to dry heave up my honey bun I was regretting it.
What saved me was the view, and some prospective. I was riding right next to the water for the better part of the day which meant it was only 97 degrees with humity not the 110 it was when I got inland a couple kilometres. One thing I found amazing was the differences here in Florida. I was riding through a less then beautiful city when I looked over and saw nothing but huge hotels on the other side of the river. It is shocking to see such a difference in just a few kilometres.
It was at lunchtime I decided to stop. It was worth taking half a day off to rest, recharge as much as possible, and just enjoy some time to myself. Two things have me concerned. One is the fact that every 10th add here seems to be for a cancer agency. Which usually means that something is causing cancer around here (rockets if you ask me). The other is my hand. What was happening to my left hand back in Canada is now happening to my right hand. To the point that last night I told the guy he had to fill out the form for me because if I did it, it would just look like a scribble. Luckily my signature is a scribble so I can still fudge that.
To go back to the first things I said today. I am still young and I have a lot of time to make a difference in the world. I have a lot of time to take this piece of mind that I now have and put it to good use.
On the anniversary of 9/11 one thing disturbed me. I don’t think that it is right that on a day that brought so much tragedy as this they should be airing commercials that crack jokes and push products down my throat after showing me images of real people dieing, real people loosing families, and really people coming together. It just goes to show you what a consumerist society we live in. Mind you I am kind of a hypocrite as I sit here typing on a name brand computer, and eating name brand ice cream. In all honesty I don’t know what I am trying to say here, so hopefully you can read between the lines and enlighten me.
Trip Distance: 119km
Ride Time: 5:29hr
Avg. Speed: 21.83km/h
Total Distance: 11565km
Total Ride Time: 540hr
Destination: Ft. Pierce, Florida
Tour Day 77 Running On Fumes Sept 10 2010
I woke up today and was in one of those moods. I was so comfy I did not want to move. My mind got the better of me and I got up figuring I was already up so why just lie there and do nothing.
When I got on the road I was hit with a heat wave… again. It was leg zapping because I was dripping in sweat and it was 7am. Mentally and physically I was cooked. I made the choice that today was going to be a rest day, and I was going to finish at lunch.
Each km was a struggle to keep up to a pace I deemed acceptable. I kept pushing and pushing until I felt my calve start to tighten up. I stretched it for 30 seconds and kept going. When the stretching didn’t help I had flash backs to Regina back on day 13 (I think). I then made the choice to make my pit stop early… mainly because my stomach was getting the best of me.
At the rest stop I saw these delicious looking things called honey buns. This snack was about the size of my palm and an inch thick. Looking at the size I got three of them. When I was eating the first I looked on the package to read about it and started to laugh at what I found. Each one was 800 calories, and contained 187% of my daily fat intake. I may have laughed but I needed those calories because I was running on fumes. I could tell I was running dry not only by my computer, but also by the way my mind was working. I kept wanting to stop and rest. I kept wanting to give up.
After I got some food I thought ok I can make it to lunch no problem. At lunch I got to talking with another guy thinking about doing some touring. It is always nice getting to geek out for a few minutes and tell him how much I love all of my gear.
With some lunch in me I thought ok lets go for another hour and that will make it an average day. At the 30-minute mark I decided to look at my map and saw that the next town that had anything was 30 miles away. I then decided to stop complaining and just put in the miles. I picked up my pace and was making surprisingly good time. It looked as if I was going to make it to my stop before 3pm, which meant it would turn out to be a rest day after all.
About 10 miles out I got hit by a sudden rainstorm. Now it was not really a problem because it was light and it was still 97 degrees outside. The only thing was once the rain stopped it became even more humid. With the heat index it was 107 degrees. Which translates to hot.
I had the shirt unzipped and could tell my chest was burning but I did not care it was not worth zipping the jersey, and I was so sweaty that sun scream would have just fallen off. I was just thinking about a cheap motel and how awesome it was going to be. I saw the signs for the town and was even more exited. Then I heard POP, tick, tick, tick. I thought the worst “my ear wheel is toast”. When I looked my wheel was fine. Instead I got a lovely nail from the construction site I had passed.
It is over 100 degrees; I am dripping sweat all over the curb, and changing a rear flat. Knowing I had no spare tubes left I was forced to use one of my crummy peal and stick patches. I knew it was going to going to fail, but I was hoping it would stick.
I was back down the road and could feel my tire loosing pressure slowly. The only problem was I was 13 miles from the nearest town that had any bike supplies. At this point I had done 180km and was beat. I decided to try to flag down a stranger to help me. 5 minutes in no takers. Then a lady pulled up and said throw the bike in back ill take you to my bike shop.
What a stroke of luck. She took me to her motorcycle shop which was a heaven for British motorcycle people. The whole place was lined with BSA and Norton bikes. I got to talk with her about my little British car back home, and swapped stories of my travels. She then drove me the local mass merchant store, which we both hated because we work with local shops, but it was the only option.
Once back at the motorcycle shop I changed the flat and she offered to take me to the local motel down the road in Cocoa. This was an offer I could not refuse because it was 5 pm and I was cooked.
Now I am bad with names and I did not write down this strangers name I believe her name was Beth, but her husband runs Ronnie’s Motorcycle Service in Titusville.
Beth was a native to New Orleans and made me really stoked to see that area for the people because the people here are very set on doing only what they are doing, and not what a strange bike tourist is doing.
Trip Distance: 185km
Ride Time: 8:05hr
Avg. Speed: 22.95km/h
Total Distance: 11445km
Total Ride Time: 535hr
Destination: Cocoa, Florida
When I got on the road I was hit with a heat wave… again. It was leg zapping because I was dripping in sweat and it was 7am. Mentally and physically I was cooked. I made the choice that today was going to be a rest day, and I was going to finish at lunch.
Each km was a struggle to keep up to a pace I deemed acceptable. I kept pushing and pushing until I felt my calve start to tighten up. I stretched it for 30 seconds and kept going. When the stretching didn’t help I had flash backs to Regina back on day 13 (I think). I then made the choice to make my pit stop early… mainly because my stomach was getting the best of me.
At the rest stop I saw these delicious looking things called honey buns. This snack was about the size of my palm and an inch thick. Looking at the size I got three of them. When I was eating the first I looked on the package to read about it and started to laugh at what I found. Each one was 800 calories, and contained 187% of my daily fat intake. I may have laughed but I needed those calories because I was running on fumes. I could tell I was running dry not only by my computer, but also by the way my mind was working. I kept wanting to stop and rest. I kept wanting to give up.
After I got some food I thought ok I can make it to lunch no problem. At lunch I got to talking with another guy thinking about doing some touring. It is always nice getting to geek out for a few minutes and tell him how much I love all of my gear.
With some lunch in me I thought ok lets go for another hour and that will make it an average day. At the 30-minute mark I decided to look at my map and saw that the next town that had anything was 30 miles away. I then decided to stop complaining and just put in the miles. I picked up my pace and was making surprisingly good time. It looked as if I was going to make it to my stop before 3pm, which meant it would turn out to be a rest day after all.
About 10 miles out I got hit by a sudden rainstorm. Now it was not really a problem because it was light and it was still 97 degrees outside. The only thing was once the rain stopped it became even more humid. With the heat index it was 107 degrees. Which translates to hot.
I had the shirt unzipped and could tell my chest was burning but I did not care it was not worth zipping the jersey, and I was so sweaty that sun scream would have just fallen off. I was just thinking about a cheap motel and how awesome it was going to be. I saw the signs for the town and was even more exited. Then I heard POP, tick, tick, tick. I thought the worst “my ear wheel is toast”. When I looked my wheel was fine. Instead I got a lovely nail from the construction site I had passed.
It is over 100 degrees; I am dripping sweat all over the curb, and changing a rear flat. Knowing I had no spare tubes left I was forced to use one of my crummy peal and stick patches. I knew it was going to going to fail, but I was hoping it would stick.
I was back down the road and could feel my tire loosing pressure slowly. The only problem was I was 13 miles from the nearest town that had any bike supplies. At this point I had done 180km and was beat. I decided to try to flag down a stranger to help me. 5 minutes in no takers. Then a lady pulled up and said throw the bike in back ill take you to my bike shop.
What a stroke of luck. She took me to her motorcycle shop which was a heaven for British motorcycle people. The whole place was lined with BSA and Norton bikes. I got to talk with her about my little British car back home, and swapped stories of my travels. She then drove me the local mass merchant store, which we both hated because we work with local shops, but it was the only option.
Once back at the motorcycle shop I changed the flat and she offered to take me to the local motel down the road in Cocoa. This was an offer I could not refuse because it was 5 pm and I was cooked.
Now I am bad with names and I did not write down this strangers name I believe her name was Beth, but her husband runs Ronnie’s Motorcycle Service in Titusville.
Beth was a native to New Orleans and made me really stoked to see that area for the people because the people here are very set on doing only what they are doing, and not what a strange bike tourist is doing.
Trip Distance: 185km
Ride Time: 8:05hr
Avg. Speed: 22.95km/h
Total Distance: 11445km
Total Ride Time: 535hr
Destination: Cocoa, Florida
Tour Day 76 A Heat Index In Flordia Who Would Have Thunk It Sept 9 2010
I heard through the grapevine that it was going to be another foggy morning this morning so I did not even bother unpacking my lightweight jacket. Other then one semi truck it was another beautiful morning ride. The fog was light and I still had some visibility, which was nice. I was roughly 10 minutes down the road when I realized that I forgot my toothbrush. It was not worth going back because it was getting worn out. I simply thought that I would skip my extra snack at my stop tonight to compensate.
The morning’s ride was amazing. I was hauling down the road at a really good clip. I kept focusing on my distances to Jacksonville because it was a stretch to make it for lunch so I wanted to make sure I could do it without hurting myself. So when I saw a 10 miles to Jacksonville sign I was on it.
By this time the nice morning had given way to an extremely hot day. It was 86 degrees with 100% humidity at 10am; by 1pm it was nearing 100 without the addition of the heat index. I had thought my lunch stop was 10 miles away so once I covered that distance and saw another sign that said 10 miles to Jacksonville I was a little upset. I now had to go even further on a fairly empty tank and little water.
I was just entering Jacksonville and had planned to take route 1 alternate because it is usually more bike friendly. When I got onto the exit I had two options Main Street or the alternate route. My gut told me to go down Main Street so I did. I was very pleasantly surprised. Jacksonville is beautiful. Nice palm lined streets with very clean buildings. It even had a bike path for most of it. The town itself went for these more classic building into the new financial district that you had a view from everywhere. I knew I had to cross a bridge eventually, which is always interesting because you take a shot in the dark guessing which one is bike friendly. In this case I had 5 options and managed to pick the only one that was bike friendly the first time.
Once over the bridge I was on my way out of town. I was still feeling good so I pressed on another 3 miles down this road that had stop lights every 50 metres, but they were timed perfect so it did not cause any issues.
I got to the subway and started to order my lunch. By the time I got to pay I felt like I was going to black out. I started to feel light headed so I started to walk towards my table. As I was walking my vision started to blur. I got to the table and just sat with this horrid feeling for about 10 minutes. After finishing my lunch I tried to think about the miles leading up to lunch. I then realized that I could not remember anything. My body had shut down everything except my legs, which scared me.
After getting food and a lot of drink in me I was on my way. At this point it was even hotter. I had 30 miles to St. Augustine and it sucked. I went through 7 litres of water in that time, and was soaked by the end of it.
I got into the motel and asked for a room and the lady looked at me as if I was a bum. In all honesty I look like one. Unzipped jersey, exposed nipples, dripping in sweat, and filthy dirty from road grime all added to this lovely motif.
Usually I just chill out after getting showered but today was different. I trued my rear wheel because it was rubbing and went to explore the downtown. It was awesome. This town has so much heritage and lovely architecture. Everything from early Spanish building to a British fort. This is not to mention the riplies museum.
It does not look like I will rest in Dayton beach tomorrow because it is only 4 miles away but if I decided to take a rest day that will defiantly be the place. Florida has defiantly lived up to my expectations already. I mean in one day I went from banjo picking music to listening to chromeo on a pedestrian walkway.
Trip Distance: 187km
Ride Time: 7:55hr
Avg. Speed: 23.67km/h
Total Distance: 11259km
Total Ride Time: 527hr
Destination: St. Augustine, Florida
Unfortuantly it looks like I missed a yacht ride while I was here because I had no wifi.
The morning’s ride was amazing. I was hauling down the road at a really good clip. I kept focusing on my distances to Jacksonville because it was a stretch to make it for lunch so I wanted to make sure I could do it without hurting myself. So when I saw a 10 miles to Jacksonville sign I was on it.
By this time the nice morning had given way to an extremely hot day. It was 86 degrees with 100% humidity at 10am; by 1pm it was nearing 100 without the addition of the heat index. I had thought my lunch stop was 10 miles away so once I covered that distance and saw another sign that said 10 miles to Jacksonville I was a little upset. I now had to go even further on a fairly empty tank and little water.
I was just entering Jacksonville and had planned to take route 1 alternate because it is usually more bike friendly. When I got onto the exit I had two options Main Street or the alternate route. My gut told me to go down Main Street so I did. I was very pleasantly surprised. Jacksonville is beautiful. Nice palm lined streets with very clean buildings. It even had a bike path for most of it. The town itself went for these more classic building into the new financial district that you had a view from everywhere. I knew I had to cross a bridge eventually, which is always interesting because you take a shot in the dark guessing which one is bike friendly. In this case I had 5 options and managed to pick the only one that was bike friendly the first time.
Once over the bridge I was on my way out of town. I was still feeling good so I pressed on another 3 miles down this road that had stop lights every 50 metres, but they were timed perfect so it did not cause any issues.
I got to the subway and started to order my lunch. By the time I got to pay I felt like I was going to black out. I started to feel light headed so I started to walk towards my table. As I was walking my vision started to blur. I got to the table and just sat with this horrid feeling for about 10 minutes. After finishing my lunch I tried to think about the miles leading up to lunch. I then realized that I could not remember anything. My body had shut down everything except my legs, which scared me.
After getting food and a lot of drink in me I was on my way. At this point it was even hotter. I had 30 miles to St. Augustine and it sucked. I went through 7 litres of water in that time, and was soaked by the end of it.
I got into the motel and asked for a room and the lady looked at me as if I was a bum. In all honesty I look like one. Unzipped jersey, exposed nipples, dripping in sweat, and filthy dirty from road grime all added to this lovely motif.
Usually I just chill out after getting showered but today was different. I trued my rear wheel because it was rubbing and went to explore the downtown. It was awesome. This town has so much heritage and lovely architecture. Everything from early Spanish building to a British fort. This is not to mention the riplies museum.
It does not look like I will rest in Dayton beach tomorrow because it is only 4 miles away but if I decided to take a rest day that will defiantly be the place. Florida has defiantly lived up to my expectations already. I mean in one day I went from banjo picking music to listening to chromeo on a pedestrian walkway.
Trip Distance: 187km
Ride Time: 7:55hr
Avg. Speed: 23.67km/h
Total Distance: 11259km
Total Ride Time: 527hr
Destination: St. Augustine, Florida
Unfortuantly it looks like I missed a yacht ride while I was here because I had no wifi.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Tour Day 75 Accept Jesus... Or Else Sept 8 2010
Today was going to be a good day. I just had the feeling in my chest, and im pretty sure it was not the morning flem this time.
I got out on the road at 6 am, which is normal now because I bank on 30mins of time wasting changing flats and whatnot. As I started riding I got right into some more wicked hot fog. I am not going to complain though because it was a beautiful morning. No street lights, no cars, and a nice wide shoulder. All I could see with my headlamp was 20 metres in front of me and the wide array of stars in the sky.
As the sun started to rise I rolled past this lone tree in the centre of this field with the sun just peering through the fog and the forest in the background. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. So much so that I stopped on a downhill, which never happens. I then turned around laid my bike down and sat at this fence just watching this for about 3 minutes.
After being a bit of a geek for scenery I was back down the road. About 3km down the road I hear this bark and think nothing of it. I then look around and see this nasty rot wilier chasing me. I run my emergency evasive manoeuvres which involve slowing down to trick the dog to run at my speed then speed up to drop it.
After getting passed this one dog I then ran into another 4 dogs. The last couple ran across the road in front of me so I slowed down to watch then they turned around and ran at me. I got my butt in gear and sprinted past them. Apparently not only do they agree with condoms down here they also don’t agree with leashes… just saying.
On that note at my break stop a car passed me that had something very off putting on it. Among many other slogans it had in bold writing along the sides written “accept god or else”. Or else what? They will come and stone me to death. Or else they will place not one but two bibles in every hotel room.
I am sorry if any of this is off putting to you reading this but these are my views, and what I have experienced down here so far.
After that I just locked in. I was lighting hay bails and taking names with every mile. I simply listened to the beat of the music and locked into a cadence. I managed to finagle my gears into combinations that worked for most of the day.
Another interesting day in the Bible belt. Thank god Florida is next. Just remember accept Jesus or else. I shouldn’t make jokes like that or else. O god I am good at this joking thing. You can tell im a little tired by how ridiculous my jokes are getting.
Trip Distance: 175km
Ride Time: 7:48hr
Avg. Speed: 22.52km/h
Total Distance: 11072km
Total Ride Time: 519hr
Destination: Waycross, Georgia
I got out on the road at 6 am, which is normal now because I bank on 30mins of time wasting changing flats and whatnot. As I started riding I got right into some more wicked hot fog. I am not going to complain though because it was a beautiful morning. No street lights, no cars, and a nice wide shoulder. All I could see with my headlamp was 20 metres in front of me and the wide array of stars in the sky.
As the sun started to rise I rolled past this lone tree in the centre of this field with the sun just peering through the fog and the forest in the background. It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. So much so that I stopped on a downhill, which never happens. I then turned around laid my bike down and sat at this fence just watching this for about 3 minutes.
After being a bit of a geek for scenery I was back down the road. About 3km down the road I hear this bark and think nothing of it. I then look around and see this nasty rot wilier chasing me. I run my emergency evasive manoeuvres which involve slowing down to trick the dog to run at my speed then speed up to drop it.
After getting passed this one dog I then ran into another 4 dogs. The last couple ran across the road in front of me so I slowed down to watch then they turned around and ran at me. I got my butt in gear and sprinted past them. Apparently not only do they agree with condoms down here they also don’t agree with leashes… just saying.
On that note at my break stop a car passed me that had something very off putting on it. Among many other slogans it had in bold writing along the sides written “accept god or else”. Or else what? They will come and stone me to death. Or else they will place not one but two bibles in every hotel room.
I am sorry if any of this is off putting to you reading this but these are my views, and what I have experienced down here so far.
After that I just locked in. I was lighting hay bails and taking names with every mile. I simply listened to the beat of the music and locked into a cadence. I managed to finagle my gears into combinations that worked for most of the day.
Another interesting day in the Bible belt. Thank god Florida is next. Just remember accept Jesus or else. I shouldn’t make jokes like that or else. O god I am good at this joking thing. You can tell im a little tired by how ridiculous my jokes are getting.
Trip Distance: 175km
Ride Time: 7:48hr
Avg. Speed: 22.52km/h
Total Distance: 11072km
Total Ride Time: 519hr
Destination: Waycross, Georgia
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Tour day 74 Jeuse Take The Bars... And My Luck Sept 7 2010
I woke up this morning with a good feeling in my heart. I had a new tire, new tubes, and a fresh mindset in terms of my bike.
I cooked my breakfast and went outside to eat. When I went outside I encountered a shock… fog. This was not like Canadian fog because it was hot. When you rod through it, it felt as if a blanket was wrapped around you. It was 7 in the morning and I was already sweating. This is when I realized my mindset means nothing if the other elements do no cooperate.
The fog stuck around for about 3 hours. It made me a little nervous at first because it was dark, but I had my big headlamp charged and used my other lamp as my taillight. It all worked for the best because most drivers drove very kindly.
Augusta came sparingly quickly. Unfortunately I could not find the golf course so I just kept trucking along the main road. The main road was something else because it had 4 other roads connect with it, so by the end the road ended up being 6 lanes wide. Now crossing that to get onto the number 1 at a stoplight was interesting to say the least.
I was 10 km from the Georgia state line when I was climbing at a slower then normal pace. I look down and you guessed it another front flat. I stopped at the top of the climb and came close to throwing down my bike. What the heck is going on here? What did I do to deserve this karma? I was not happy in the least. On top of tat stopping in the hot fog meant that I was literally dripping in sweat changing the flat. I was thinking at the end of this change I was going to take the day off and stop at Louisville.
I was 30 mins down the road and expected another small pinhole flat because I could not find anything in my tire. Fortunately this was not the case, but now my cassette and derailleur were giving me troubles and going all over the map.
The map was actually the one surprise today. I over estimated my distances so I hit my stop early. It was at this point I decided to press on. I figure the kilometres are not going to complete themselves so why not if my legs were feeling good.
After lunch I turned on the radio thinking I would get a good selection of music. Instead I had one choice… the gospel station. Now I gave it a shot because when in Rome do what the Romans do. When in the Bible belt do what Jesus would do. After roughly 12 minutes I turned it off. I hit my limit for the use of the word Jesus in a day. If you are wondering the limit is 500 times.
The end of the ride was a mixed bag. The plus I had a closed road to myself so I had 2 lanes to myself. As well I had a few dark clouds overhead so the temp dropped to a cool 87 degrees. The minus was a crosswind. I am not going to complain yet though because at the end of each day I always seem to summon up a lot more power then the first 6 hours of the day.
At the rest stop I got to catch up on some bike tech stuff, which I love. You know im a bike geek because my job 7 days a week is riding, then when I have a spare minute what do I do? Research bikes of course.
I also got some time to reflect on my first day in the Bible belt. In ways it is very similar to bike touring because it is never normal. It is always one of the extremes. One example is the radio. One county I was listening to a black radio host telling “his people” to man up. Telling them its time to change our image. The next county the radio talked of “homos”. The in the final country it was all about Jesus. I want to say it is a culture shock, but really it isn’t. They simply do not censor their thoughts. What goes through the mind is what is said. Where as where I am from it would be taboo to not censor yourself. In ways it is refreshing, and in others disappointing. I guess it all depends on whom you meet.
Trip Distance: 157km
Ride Time: 7:28hr
Avg. Speed: 21.01km/h
Total Distance: 10896km
Total Ride Time: 511hr
Destination: Swainsboro, Georgia
I cooked my breakfast and went outside to eat. When I went outside I encountered a shock… fog. This was not like Canadian fog because it was hot. When you rod through it, it felt as if a blanket was wrapped around you. It was 7 in the morning and I was already sweating. This is when I realized my mindset means nothing if the other elements do no cooperate.
The fog stuck around for about 3 hours. It made me a little nervous at first because it was dark, but I had my big headlamp charged and used my other lamp as my taillight. It all worked for the best because most drivers drove very kindly.
Augusta came sparingly quickly. Unfortunately I could not find the golf course so I just kept trucking along the main road. The main road was something else because it had 4 other roads connect with it, so by the end the road ended up being 6 lanes wide. Now crossing that to get onto the number 1 at a stoplight was interesting to say the least.
I was 10 km from the Georgia state line when I was climbing at a slower then normal pace. I look down and you guessed it another front flat. I stopped at the top of the climb and came close to throwing down my bike. What the heck is going on here? What did I do to deserve this karma? I was not happy in the least. On top of tat stopping in the hot fog meant that I was literally dripping in sweat changing the flat. I was thinking at the end of this change I was going to take the day off and stop at Louisville.
I was 30 mins down the road and expected another small pinhole flat because I could not find anything in my tire. Fortunately this was not the case, but now my cassette and derailleur were giving me troubles and going all over the map.
The map was actually the one surprise today. I over estimated my distances so I hit my stop early. It was at this point I decided to press on. I figure the kilometres are not going to complete themselves so why not if my legs were feeling good.
After lunch I turned on the radio thinking I would get a good selection of music. Instead I had one choice… the gospel station. Now I gave it a shot because when in Rome do what the Romans do. When in the Bible belt do what Jesus would do. After roughly 12 minutes I turned it off. I hit my limit for the use of the word Jesus in a day. If you are wondering the limit is 500 times.
The end of the ride was a mixed bag. The plus I had a closed road to myself so I had 2 lanes to myself. As well I had a few dark clouds overhead so the temp dropped to a cool 87 degrees. The minus was a crosswind. I am not going to complain yet though because at the end of each day I always seem to summon up a lot more power then the first 6 hours of the day.
At the rest stop I got to catch up on some bike tech stuff, which I love. You know im a bike geek because my job 7 days a week is riding, then when I have a spare minute what do I do? Research bikes of course.
I also got some time to reflect on my first day in the Bible belt. In ways it is very similar to bike touring because it is never normal. It is always one of the extremes. One example is the radio. One county I was listening to a black radio host telling “his people” to man up. Telling them its time to change our image. The next county the radio talked of “homos”. The in the final country it was all about Jesus. I want to say it is a culture shock, but really it isn’t. They simply do not censor their thoughts. What goes through the mind is what is said. Where as where I am from it would be taboo to not censor yourself. In ways it is refreshing, and in others disappointing. I guess it all depends on whom you meet.
Trip Distance: 157km
Ride Time: 7:28hr
Avg. Speed: 21.01km/h
Total Distance: 10896km
Total Ride Time: 511hr
Destination: Swainsboro, Georgia
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