Miles 2826 to 2931, 105 miles (and six bonus miles for detours and dumb turns), 2010 feet of climb, max speed 30 mph, avg speed 15 mph, great weather, 80% good roads, 50% 10-12 mph head wind, 50% crosswind.
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| Leaving Indiana into Ohio |
Nobody slept well last night for a variety of reasons that AbB is now fully aware of, causing the day to start on a grumpy note. We crossed into Ohio about five minutes into the ride north of Richmond on an old country road. We were told that we will be finding a new mindset in drivers in Ohio and points east (one hand on the steering wheel, one on the horn, and one hand texting an outrage to somebody). Within an hour my experience was the opposite. When we found a bridge out on our route, we doubled back to the town New Paris, OH and pulled into the fire station to ask for directions. The two ladies manning the station went out of their way to tell us how to detour around it. (I do have to chuckle that the only smokers we have seen on the ride were firemen.) Not an hour later I had pulled off the road to take a picture of a small covered bridge (but couldn’t upload due to no cell coverage) and a man pulled up behind me in an SUV and asked if I was okay and if there was anything he could do to help. I asked him about the area and he told me about the recent interest in an Indian village found just down the road beyond the covered bridge. I wished my youngest daughter was here to explore that!
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| Tire Swing calling my name |
One thing I have noticed since entering Ohio was that the rivers have much less silt. In fact, some of the rivers today were clear and shallow enough to see the bottom. On the way to the first SAG we crossed Greenville Creek. There was a small dam that created a swimming hole, and over the swimming hole was a tire swing. If I had more time I might have ventured a few swings and splashes. The second spot on the river was the Greenville Falls near Covington. One of the benefits of being last is the freedom to pull off the side of the road and take pictures. Not just take pictures, but to try to compose a picture that will help me generate stories later. One interesting item was a silo made completely of decorative concrete blocks. My favorite was the round barn near Saint Paris. Another ‘delay of ride’ event was at the second SAG stop. A pastor had opened his church for us and in the basement fellowship hall was a piano. It had been over a month since I had played, and this one was old enough to have ivory keys. It was somewhat weird playing the piano with no feelings in my fingers. (That happens from riding long distances.)
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| A place of rest |
Without doubt the gem of the day was a man named JL. He has been a long-time friend of AbB and had sent up his personal SAG station for us at the high point of today’s ride. He had chilled sports drinks, an extra chair, and time to talk. I could not resist the invite to sit-a-spell and chat. He told me of his ride on this same route years ago. Eventually we talked bikes and that is when the magazine came out. Due to injuries, he had to give up his road bike and had recently purchased a recumbent tricycle. He loves it, calling it a lawn chair with wheels. There have been many improvements in those bikes and it looks like he has gotten himself a good one. I asked him several questions, to include how safe was it riding in traffic. He surprised me by saying he gets more respect with his trike than with his road bike. I could have stayed much later but I had to be at the hotel before Route-Rap to explain tomorrow's ride. JL came to dinner tonight but was covered up with all the other bikers who got there first. There are times when being last means you miss out on benefits.
Bottom Line: Tough day, harbinger of more to come. I really need a good night’s sleep tonight.
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