Back At It

Well, getting hit by a car was a major bummer. Yesterday my arms were wicked sore. I'm guessing it was from bracing myself for impact. I decided to load up the Brown Machine in a rental car and drive ahead a few days. So I'm near Baton Rouge, LA now. Today I took it wicked easy. It wasn't the worst ride I've ever been on, but I think it'll take one more day until I'm back to my bad self.

I traveled up "Scenic" highway 61, which turns out is lined by chemical plants. I feel like I may have shaved off a few years by breathing the air near these places. I worry about the folks who live nearby (these plants have a surprising number of houses right across the street).

I got my first flat today. I got a chance to use the pump I brought- the Topeak Road Morph G. It's a pump that's new to me. I spend more time on fat tire/low pressure bikes, so the pumps that I usually carry are very small, and not very high pressure. Well, this guy is a little bigger, but it got my tire up to 90 psi in no time. It wasn't as efficient as a floor pump, but it does have a small, fold out foot peg that turns it into a super mini floor pump (kind of). I didn't use the foot peg today- I don't think it would have made things any easier, but I guess it's a nice option to have. The mini hose kept the valve from getting jerked around/ ripped out, which is super important when you've got a limited supply of replacement tubes... Yep. I'm sold. It was the most pleasant on-the-road flat I've ever fixed.

Hey! That was my first flat fix of 2012. Seems a little crazy, but it made me want to get back to the shop. That's definitely a sign that I love my job (and that I'm a workaholic).

Could Have Been Worse

To start off, I should let you know I'm OK, but I was hit by a car today in Tallahasse. Or rather I hit a car, when the driver pulled out into me. However you phrase it, it really sucked.

Tallahasse is the worst place I've ever ridden a bike. It makes Boston look like Amsterdam. Not only is cycling infrastructure nonexistent, there aren't even any shoulders on the roads. I went way off my route to try to find safer roads, but no luck. The city has really made sure that cyclists aren't welcome.

Just as I was almost finally, finally out of town an FSU student in an SUV started to pull out of a side street that was partially obscured by a sign. I thought 'She probably won't see me', and checked quickly over my shoulder to see if I had any room to swerve (which I did not, thanks to the no shoulders, and drivers not giving me an inch of space). By the time I looked ahead again she was already there and I had a split second to brace for impact. It was really unpleasant. Some very nice witnesses called an ambulance. I was pretty shaken up at this point, and it hurt to move the fingers on my right hand. I guess that's to be expected when you put a dent in someone's car. The firefighter who showed up first said he'd be surprised if I didn't have a broken finger or two.

Long story short- my fingers aren't broken, just sprained. And I'm the one at fault, because of something in the Florida law... I hit the car, not the other way around. I'm not sure... The cop was not very helpful, and I didn't think to ask more questions about it. If only there were a 'Bike Safe Boston' card for Florida (next card, Josh?). All she said was, "I'm not writing any tickets. So unless you want to sue the guy who put the sign there, we're done."

Thankfully, with a little ice and rest I'll be a-ok. The Brown Machine could use a front wheel true (I brought a spoke wrench with me), but other than that it's also fine. The EMTs strapped it to the stretcher in the ambulance so I wouldn't have to try and track it down at the police station. Pretty nice of them, and they thought it was hilarious to have it on the stretcher (first responder humor, I guess).

I rode away from the hospital, but my hand doesn't feel awesome, I've got some road rash on my knees that was chaffing, and to be perfectly honest I'm feeling a little gun shy in the traffic here. So my plan is to lay low tonight, and probably grab a car tomorrow to get me out of FL, keep me on schedule, and give me a days rest. I won't let one little (now dented) SUV get in the way of adventure.

That Smell

So far, so good. I decided to make today a short day (41.75). I'm ahead of schedule, in spite of taking some not-so-short shortcuts/wild goose chases.

I passed an animal farm today. I'm going to guess a pig farm (the 'illustration' on the sign was a little ambiguous). I can say without a doubt that I weren't already a vegetarian, the smell of that place would have converted me. It was otherworldly. Think about how bacon smells. Pretty good, right? (Hey, even though I don't eat it, I can appreciate how good it smells) Now think about how the opposite of bacon would smell (like maybe rotting bacon) and add in a porta potty from the county fair. That's pretty close.

Oh. And, to make it even worse- I passed it while I was going up hill. So it's not like I could hold my breath until I passed... Ugh. That smell is going to haunt my dreams.

Hopefully some refreshing Florida citru can help cleanse my senses. Keep you fingers crossed for me.

Things I've Learned So Far.

I'm in Madison, FL- home of the... I don't know... they probably have a claim to fame... Well, only three days in and I've learned a bunch already.

One- Just because you are prepared/want to ride for 60/70/80 miles, doesn't mean there will be a place for you to stop and stay at that point. So either get ready to ride more or less. Especially in rural areas.

Two- 'Dirt roads' in Florida are not dirt. They are soft sand, which are not rideable on The Brown Machine when it's fully loaded up (I'm not sure they'd be rideable when The Brown Machine isn't fully loaded...).

Three- Judging by the number of 'Calvin peeing on Obama's campaign logo' bumper stickers I've seen, he probably shouldn't expect to win FL in November.

Four- I'm going to get sick of oatmeal pretty quick here.

And finally- This is a real thing, apparently:

Day One

In the books.

I had a very long day. What was supposed to be a 52 mile day ended up finishing at 86. It was either camp at Blair Witch campground or keep riding into Gainesville. Go Gators! I'm going to be a little sore tomorrow, but it was worth it to not get murdered in the woods.

Today I noticed that the people of North Florida are very nice (lots of waves from motorists and pedestrians) and are also fascinated about this trip ("Why? Why would you do that? That does not sound like fun. But, be careful and God bless!"). I can't say the dogs of North Florida are as friendly. I was chased by a bunch of them today- two of them broke out of their fences and followed me down the road (Don't worry...they were small, so I out rode them).

Here are a few pics from today:

Go Time

I'm in St Augustine. I just put my bike back together after a rough plane ride.

I haven't actually ridden anywhere yet. Well, I did ride around the parking lot of the Regency Inn & Suites. Oh man, a bike handles differently with 40lbs of stuff on it. Strangely, it handles very much like the Grand Marquis rental car I drove around today- kind of 'boat-y'.

The real fun starts tomorrow. Bright and early(ish. I do have to wait for the sun to come up). Wish me luck!

Christmas Ride

I like to go for bike rides on Christmas. My second favorite kind of ride (second to single track, of course) is neighborhood exploration riding.  I headed out for one of those rides in the afternoon. I don't get to ride south of the river much, so I wanted to take full advantage of the light traffic and go get lost in city for a while.  It had the potential to be one of the crappiest rides of the year, but I'm going to have to put it in the top 3 for 2011.

I lost a good pair of pants to this ride. Good pair, as in 'the pants I don't wear to the shop' kind of good. Exactly at the moment I thought "Oops. Forgot to roll up my pant leg..." passed through my brain, I heard a terrible ripping sound and my bike stopped dead in the middle of the road.

Then I noticed a gash in my monster truck tire. No flat, but a slice big enough to stick your thumb through (maybe not yours. I don't know how big your hands are). Not to worry- I had a pocket full of tire boots with me.

Later it started raining. 40 degrees, spitting rain, no fenders (I don't care what you say. I don't like fenders. And I keep my bike clean without them.), and I lost my rain pants 3 weeks ago. It could have been a recipe for a miserable ride home, but I couldn't seem to keep a big dumb smile off my face (it helped that my hands and feet stayed warm and dry). I even took the long way home. I shouted holiday greetings to the only other biker I passed, but he didn't seem to be enjoying himself as much as I was (understandable). It wasn't an epic day of riding. You won't find any videos posted about rides like this- slow, around town, without a single bar spin. If there was a video, I promise it would be too boring to watch. Still, it was fun. Really fun.