Distance: 104 miles
Average Speed: 17.8 mph
Terrain: 800 feet of climbing, but it seemed like more than yesterday.
Winds: Light headwinds all day
I know you’re thinking, “How many days does he have to go?” I know and could tell you, but I’m not going to because it’s a dangerous way to think. You add them up, you don’t subtract. With subtraction comes hubris, and we all know what comes after that. I just keep riding until I run into an ocean. Occupy the moment, pay attention, take care of body and bike, don’t think too hard, don’t fuck up. That’s how you ride a bike across the country.
It was a pretty straightforward day, not too hard. We spent the first half making our way through the suburbs of Indianapolis. That was slow riding, lots of stop signs, much navigation. I think everybody was feeling the loss of the hour from the time zone change because frankly we were riding like a bunch of private school girls. We hit the country roads just before midway, and I jumped off on my own and rolled into Richmond solo. It felt like a sort of homecoming somehow.
Barb and Dave and my Aunt Norma were here waiting to take me to dinner. My folks are up visiting family, and Richmond, Indiana, is just across the border from their ancestral lands in Ohio. I’m glad Norma came out with them. She is class. Right after my folks moved to Roanoke and I was a whelp of 18 or so staying with them for a while, Norma came down and helped my mom out with some depression issues. By extension she helped me out. I appreciated it at the time, but I was pretty much just pissed off usually so I appreciated it more as one of the few things that didn’t piss me off than as a unique contribution. 21 years later, thank you, Norma. It was important.
The second half of this ride it’s been nice having visitors. During the first half family concerns made me some pretty faulty company, and it was important to maintain a newly established routine until I was stronger and smarter about this. That routine is so engrained now that visits are a welcome diversion. Techa came out to Springfield for the rest day. We kicked it around that town and made of it the most happening place in the galaxy. Oddly enough, Sexybike threw her bearing the day Techa left. Now whether Techa tampered or Sexybike suffered a fit of jealous pique I don’t know. Suffice it to say relations between those two have been strained for a while. Here we are; Techa’s the good looking one:
Average Speed: 17.8 mph
Terrain: 800 feet of climbing, but it seemed like more than yesterday.
Winds: Light headwinds all day
I know you’re thinking, “How many days does he have to go?” I know and could tell you, but I’m not going to because it’s a dangerous way to think. You add them up, you don’t subtract. With subtraction comes hubris, and we all know what comes after that. I just keep riding until I run into an ocean. Occupy the moment, pay attention, take care of body and bike, don’t think too hard, don’t fuck up. That’s how you ride a bike across the country.
It was a pretty straightforward day, not too hard. We spent the first half making our way through the suburbs of Indianapolis. That was slow riding, lots of stop signs, much navigation. I think everybody was feeling the loss of the hour from the time zone change because frankly we were riding like a bunch of private school girls. We hit the country roads just before midway, and I jumped off on my own and rolled into Richmond solo. It felt like a sort of homecoming somehow.
Barb and Dave and my Aunt Norma were here waiting to take me to dinner. My folks are up visiting family, and Richmond, Indiana, is just across the border from their ancestral lands in Ohio. I’m glad Norma came out with them. She is class. Right after my folks moved to Roanoke and I was a whelp of 18 or so staying with them for a while, Norma came down and helped my mom out with some depression issues. By extension she helped me out. I appreciated it at the time, but I was pretty much just pissed off usually so I appreciated it more as one of the few things that didn’t piss me off than as a unique contribution. 21 years later, thank you, Norma. It was important.
The second half of this ride it’s been nice having visitors. During the first half family concerns made me some pretty faulty company, and it was important to maintain a newly established routine until I was stronger and smarter about this. That routine is so engrained now that visits are a welcome diversion. Techa came out to Springfield for the rest day. We kicked it around that town and made of it the most happening place in the galaxy. Oddly enough, Sexybike threw her bearing the day Techa left. Now whether Techa tampered or Sexybike suffered a fit of jealous pique I don’t know. Suffice it to say relations between those two have been strained for a while. Here we are; Techa’s the good looking one:
The forecast promises rain and headwinds tomorrow. It’s interesting but changes nothing. I’ve got multiple demands for video with narration, so I may try to pull that one off tomorrow. It may be a composition in drips and voice.
Evening, y’all.
Hey Andy,
ReplyDeleteWelcome to Eastern Time. Now I don't have to type as slowly as when you were a few hours behind...
Krish
Andy - Glad you made it Richmond - Indiana that is. Jack and I picked strawberries this AM and plan on planting some flowers this PM - Glad you had some family come out. I know it was good to see your mom and Techa! When I told the kids - you were in RIchmond,- Virginia said - "you made it back already". She also wants me to tell you about her pet flies and caterpillars. "Everytime I wake up from nighttime the flies are in the same corner of the porch and now today they are gone and I don't know why that could be?" Virginia also has a bunch of caterpillars that she caught - they are great, she moved them to the shade and they eat lot's of leaves and grass. Harry says "FLy away Stanley, Be free". Jack says "Lightening McQueen" - Take care - Hang in there. The weather is turning into good kayak weather - come on home!
ReplyDeleteAndy,
ReplyDeleteGiven your reluctance to count down the remaining days of your odyssey, it’s probably a bit gauche of me to mention that I actually have been counting down rather than up. When I take that number, combine it with your accumulated miles, and apply this transformational integral I learned during Advanced Calculus, two words result: litany and excuses. As in what I will be compiling over the next weeks in order to avoid riding with you. Now, since I know Sexybike is in the room with you as you’re reading this, I think it’s only polite that you explain that sardonic little chortle you just made. And if you won’t, I will. Sexybike, he thinks I’m afraid I can’t keep up. This is what we call the hubris of youth. You see, I am in no way afraid I can’t keep up. Quite simply, I’m afraid I’ll die trying and I’m just not down with dying for lost causes. Or doomed heroism. Whatever. Call it a character flaw, but I don’t think old King Leonidas would have been all that tickled if I had been at his side.
So that’s it. Lost causes just aren’t on my list of acceptable things to risk death for. Free beer? Maybe. But not lost causes.
Hal Incandenza