Day 13: Mountain Grove, MO to Bolivar,MO
Day 13 on the road.......
Number of Miles I WAS SUPPOSE TO RIDE: 87.56
Number of Miles I ACTUALLY RODE: 106
Temperature: Hmmm, maybe 90?
Wind: The wind was nice to me today
Terrain: Surprise Surprise......hills
Route: I couldn't tell ya...it obviously wasn't a good one in terms of Point A to Point B. But the backroads were steller for sure.
Scariest Moments of the Ride: On four different occasions I had dogs chase me. Fortunately, I have a deep, dark, scary voice that I bring out in these circumstances. "The Voice" (you can ask Stephen and Colin about it) usually keeps most hounds away. In fact, sometimes the voice even scares me. YIKES! I was horse in the late afternoon from yelling so loud.
Songs stuck in my head: "Even the man in the moon is crying" -Mark Collie
GOPHERS LIKE TO "PLAY CHICKEN".....
Yes, this is indeed true. A recent report by the AGA (American Gopher Association) stated that one in eight gophers enjoys "playing chicken" with oncoming bicyclists. I experienced this today as I was going down a steep hill:
On my bike, I'm 30 yards from a large gopher on the shouler.....I'm thinking, "Surely this guy is going to run into the grass."
20 yards from the gopher I'm thinking..... "Wow, he must really be out to lunch, he's acting like he doesn't even see me."
10 yards from the gopher I'm thinking...... "What's the deal with this guy?!? Is he crazy? Does he want to get pancaked and take me down in the process???
7.5 yards from the gopher I'm thinking......."Alright, without a doubt this guy has been watching re-runs of "Footloose" on TNT or the USA network because he definitely is trying to pull a Kevin Bacon on me."
5 yards from the gopher I'm thinking...... "This has been such a great bike trip so far.....I can't believe that I'm going to swerve at 30 mph for 8 pounds of furr in the road.
3 yard away.........Gopher wins the battle.....he moves in the end, but I moved first. My pride is squashed.
SUMMARY OF THE RIDE......
It's crazy that 106 miles can feel better than 70 (the day before) but it's true. I felt great most of the day. The deal with backroads is that they're great for scenery and usually have less traffic. However, they are not always the easiest to navigate. Also, some of the extra mileage was due to the fact that I forgot my bike pump at a gas station.
THE CAUDLE FAMILY.....
Highlight of the day.....probably the highlight of the week was staying with the Caudle family in Bolivar Thursday night. (see pictures above). I had not met the Caudle's previously, but was overwhelmed by their generousity, their willingness to take me in, and their enthusiasm for the Hunger Ride. Pam cooked two amazing meals (breakfast and dinner) and I truly enjoyed their company as I stayed overnight at their house Thursday night. They are incredible people with an incredible story. In some ways, even better than the bike riding has been the people that I have met along the way. Today, I was reminded on Peter Jenkin's stories in "Walk across America" and how his encounters with different people changed the way he viewed the country.
TODAY'S SHOUT OUTS'...........
-The Caudle Family......thanks again!
-Brooke and Mary.....for their rendition of "Mrs. Potter's lullaby" by the Counting Crows
-Marcy McGovern for her angelic melody
-James at the Sonic in Marshfield for the grub at lunchtime
-JoLynn in Beaverton, OR for the HUNGER RIDE GARAGE SALE that she is having this weekend at her house!
-Dad & Mom.....for all of the admin. help.....not mention 40 YEARS together on Saturday.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home