Thunderstorms in Illinois

I jinxed myself with the title of my last blog post.  And by the way, some of my posts are crass, as you have likely realized if you read my blog regularly. This is life, with this in mind, here is my most recent story.

I rode into Carbondale, IL at about 6pm on Saturday. The ride getting into town was a bit gloomy with dark, heavy clouds forming above my head like over-filled water balloons, ready to release inches of water in a pin-prick. Somehow I averted the rain (while riding) and had time to set my tent up in a densely forested park, after finishing a spaghetti dinner. The town reminded me of Tucson considering it was a big, yet small college town, crowded with college students who were rowdy with school pride.

The rain started twenty minutes after I set up my tent and was relentless. Then, came the flashing lightning and deep thunder. I slept soundly throughout the night and woke up to the call of nature and beating of rain on my tent. I put on my rain jacket and exited into the cold. As I made my way through the vegetation, into a dense thicket of shrubbery, my eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness. I was tense, on high alert for snakes, since I had seen a large number as road kill upon entering Indiana and Illinois. As I assumed the position, I was suddenly shocked. Out of my periphery, something about the size of a squirrel startled and aggressively bolted at me. I screamed a humiliating and feminine high-pitched yelp that echoed off of the trees. It must have startled the small creature, considering it immediately made a ninety degree turn into a pile of timber. My heart rate was through the roof. I booked it to my tent where I would rock to-and-fro for the rest of the day calling my family and friends to tell them how much I love them.

I despise leaving my tent in the cold rain so I decided at about noon that I would call Carbondale home for another night. With a bag of almonds and a bottle of water as my only rations, cabin fever set in quickly. My phone was at 9% total battery life and my laptop was completely powerless... just as I was feeling. LIGHT BULB. I needed food yet didn’t want to move. Papa John’s delivery baby, directly to my tent! I used the last bit of charge on my cell phone to request a large cheese pizza and a Vitamin Water. The young lady at the other end of the phone paused for some time when I told her I was in a tent at Parrish Park and that I would be near the soccer goal to meet the driver. Forty minutes later, the driver called a bit confused, asking “Where exactly are you?” To simplify the situation, I decided the distant community center would be the perfect rendezvous point. I slopped my way through rain and small ponds to eventually reach the delivery boy in the parking lot. 

Needless to say, it was the best pizza I have ever eaten.

Monday, 7:30am. I felt like Andy Dufresne in the Shawshank Redemption as I left the park…Morgan Freeman’s narration  was oddly comforting.

Justin

Pictures

Days Inn, Jasper, IN

Indiana Mauser... Raider of the Lost Campsite

Events of the past couple of days

*On Sunday (my birthday), I met a nice man named Tom on the bike path near Xenia, OH. After a short conversation, he invited me to stay at his place near Cincinnati, OH.

* Jackie (Tom’s wife) prepared Tom and I an epic and delicious homemade pasta dinner. She surprised me with lemon cake with a Funfetti-like frosting. [in tone of Lil Jon] YYYYYEEEH.

*We noticed that my back tire, a Specialized Armadillo model, was worn to the wire beads which I suppose this is due to my heavy rear. On account of this and the inclement weather, I stayed Monday night as well.

 *Rode from Tom’s house to a desserted Church camp in Bryantsburg, IN where I was caught by nightfall and slightly rainy weather. No water, no electricity, no people…  Just me and my tent and slight ill-at-ease due to the zombie-pocolypse feel of my campground. Several buildings had open doors and even furniture within the walls of peeling paint with absolutely no sign of life.

*Ran out of water by morning and made a 10 mile ride to Madison, IN praying for a restaurant. I found Subway. More rain was on the way so I camped for about 3 hours where I charged my phone, ate 4 cookies and 1.5 feet of sub, drank a cup of coffee, and made friends with the employees.

*Manager gave me a $10 gift card. Score!

*Thanks to a caffeine high, I rode 65 miles in the second half of the day. I even drafted off of a horse drawn Amish carriage which on several occasions dropped turd-mines that threatened to end me. I averted a steaming disaster and gave the amish boy a thumbs up when he looked back.

*Found a Co-Op in Paoli, IN that was about to close but the owner let me in. I was starving. I bought a quart of whole milk, 1/2 pound of dried pineapple, 1/4 pound of dried banana, an apple, 4 bananas, a root beer, half a gallon of orange juice, a gluten free sandwich, and 1/2 pound of egg salad. I think that is it.

*Camped at a public park. I’m such a rebel.

*Woke up to meowing cat. I meowed back. Ate breakfast… he didn’t like apples or peanut butter.  

*I had a headache and an upset stomach upon leaving Paoli. I rode through French Lick, whose name itself raised my spirits slightly. I know the difference between kissing and French kissing but I'm curious to know the difference be licking and French licking.

*With poor weather on the horizon and a desperate need for a shower, I checked into a Days Inn in Jasper, IN.

*Showered for the first time in 3 days. Ripe. Ate dinner at a German restaurant called Schnitzelbank. Cleaned my clothes and relaxed.

*Continental breakfast tomorrow from 6-9am complete with waffle press. Count me in.

 Justin

Sunshine in Ohio

I’m writing from my dinner table at Ronetti’s Pizza in London, Ohio where my legs are a bit worn, my face is a bit sunburned, my back is a bit tight, but thanks to my epic appetite, I still have quite a bit of energy.

Let me take you back a couple of days. After a 10 day stretch of riding from Lake Placid, NY to Akron, OH, my body was aching and my drive was slightly diminished. Luckily, my Uncle Bill and Aunt Maxine invited me over for a rest day at their home near the old Goodyear tire factory in Akron. Their hospitality was amazing! It was great just getting a chance to rest my legs which my aunt described as looking like those of a “football player.” At least she didn't describe them as cute or feminine considering their lack of hair.  I was craving a milkshake and so, after a fried chicken dinner, I drank 32 ounces of the richest, most delicious, vanilla milkshake I have ever had. Good thing I was sleeping alone tonight, since lactose doesn’t really cooperate with me so much.  The next morning, my zero day, I looked outside at the frigid rain pouring from the ominous, gray sky which looked all too familiar. No peeing on my feet today!

I laid around and listened to the stories about the old days, where my aunt and uncle described how much things have changed since they were young. After going to a Greek festival, I soaked my body in a hot bath and went to sleep. Refreshed, I hit the road the following morning.

Today started cloudy in Fredericktown, OH. My campsite, which was actually the east side of a community baseball park, was located just behind the home team’s dugout, neighboring a small river. I awoke to the sound of crow’s high pitch laughter high in the trees, at about 8:30 AM. I packed my camp and headed to a local diner. I ate French toast, a ham and cheese omelet, and hash browns. After paying for my ticket, I started talking with a local woman who was interested in my ride. She asked about the cause and logistics of the ride and I answered her questions. After the conversation ended, I collected my phone and computer from the table and headed for my bike. I was intercepted by the same local, who handed me $20 and told me that she wanted to help out in some way. It’s funny, many people who hear about my ride and my constant interactions with strangers shake their heads. They say, I can’t believe you trust people so much. Good news, like generosity, is typically not represented in the media.

To those selfless, kind people who have helped so much in my journey by giving me a place to stay, sometimes even when I was a complete stranger. Thank you.

Dave and Lauren (Ellsworth, ME)

Bill and Heather (Brunswick, ME)

 Jen and Judy (Bridgton, ME) - (Judy too scared to be photographed)

 Doug and Robin (Hanover, NH)

 Dawn (Lake Placid, NY)

Jerry and Terri (Boonville, NY)

Mary and Charles (Oswego, NY)

Eric and Jennifer (Medina, NY)

Steven and Kim (Angola, NY)

Uncle Bill and Aunt Maxine (Akron, OH)

 Tom and Jackie (Evendale, OH)

Now I must be going, but how about some soft-serve at McDonalds?

Justin

Recent Pictures!

 Ausible Chasm

 Oswego, NY

 near Sodus Point, NY

Niagra Falls, NY

That Warming Feeling.

I realize this post has been long awaited for considering I haven’t updated my blog for some time now. I’m sorry!! I will try to update more often, it is just sometimes difficult to get the motivation when I am sitting in my tent, tired, with low wi-fi signal. Maybe this is only an excuse. Either way, I am going to make three posts today for you to read, one of which will be recent pictures. I have a juicy story to tell you about a situation I was faced with while riding through the Adirondack Mountains just southwest of Lake Placid, NY.

               It started on a rainy morning at Raquette Lake, NY on my primitive camp site at about 8am. The rain was no surprise after hearing the constant barrage of weather updates which called for a 100% chance of rain for the day. I like those odds. I rolled my wet tent, packed my gear, and ate the only can of tuna fish that I had in my pack from the previous day. It's just one of those days. My first objective for the morning was finding somewhere to eat a solid breakfast, preferably something hot. After finding a little hotel nearby, I ate 4 slices of French toast, eggs, ham, and had a cup of coffee. As a side note, I was served by a very nice woman who had previously lived in Tucson! What are those odds?

               You may be thinking “This isn’t juicy” …which at this point is very true. I have to preface this story several times just to tell it, for my reputation’s sake. Actually, now that I think of it, for those of you that know me and especially my sister, this next experience isn’t even all that surprising.

               I started my ride by fitting my feet with socks that were advertised as “waterproof,” which soon proved to be anything but resistant to water. Epic Fail. About 3 miles into the ride, the rain had saturated my shoes, filled my polyester socks like water balloons, and damped my shorts. My raincoat held in heat so my upper half was surprisingly comfortable despite the steadily growing icy feeling in my toes. As the speed of my downhill decent increased, so did the numbness in my toes. The wind forced its way through the ventilation holes in the bottom of my shoes and created wind chill that magnified the effect of the water and 50 degree weather. As I felt numbness crawling up the bones in feet and into my calves, I knew something had to be done before I suffered more serious complications. Initially, I stopped, dried my feet, and placed zip-lock bags over them in the hopes that they would remain dry. Epic Fail again. My feet were wet within 5 minutes and cold as ever soon after.      

               At this point, miles from civilization in the middle of the forest with my feet frozen and numb, I decided I had run out of options for ways to keep warm. I looked like a soaking cat after an unwanted bathing, and was so uncomfortable I even made desperate feline sounds as I pedaled in agony.  I stopped, and with my bladder full of urine, the idea hit me like the bird that crashed in Fabio’s face. I would just pee on my shoes! Juicy. So I unleashed my steamy stream which had the instant effect of reviving the feeling in my toes. The numbness subsided and I was back on my bike comfortably pedaling towards the next city. Epic Win. Upon arrival to the next gas station, which was about an hour down the road, I filled my insulated bottles with the near boiling waters of the coffee maker. I then used this water to continually douse my shoes as they slowly numbed throughout the ride.

               I rode 60 miles to the town of Boonville, NY where I stopped at a hotel. I was purple, shivering, and my teeth were chattering. In the lobby I met a couple, the man looked at me with a grin and said, “It must be Halloween out there, because there is no way you’ve been riding in this rain.” Trick-or-Treat! The front desk clerk at the hotel must have been turned off by the fact that I was leaking on the floor. I thought I had washed the urine out with the boiling water, but perhaps she had a nose for that. Either way, she said that they had no place to put my bike, no laundry capabilities, no wi-fi, and apparently nothing else that they could offer to me. When she recommended that I go down the street to another motel that could accommodate me better, the gracious couple I had been talking to offered a room at their house. WINNN.

Needless to say it was the best shower and spaghetti dinner I ever had. I cannot thank Jerry and Terri enough for their random act of kindness. Events like these are what have made this trip great, even if it did require me to urinate on myself to get to that point. 

tl;dr - I rode through the rain and peed on myself to warn my feet and then luckly found an uber nice couple who housed me for the night. 

Quick Update.

1. Slept in back of Elks Lodge in Keeseville, NY with permission, which was next to the town cemetery.

2. Woke up several times to the sounds of footsteps outside my tent which I suspect was the adjacent building's tin roof settling / tarp blowing in the wind. Or ghosts.

3. Realized in the morning that my wallet was missing. Cancelled all of my cards and had my sugar mama wire me some money to keep me alive.

4. Realize massive thunderstorm is T minus 10 seconds from Keeseville. Hide under pavilion awning under a tin roof. At least it wasn't a Haboob-y.

5. Ate more than I can keep track of. (One day I will record a days worth of food in some kind of calorie chart just as an experiment)

6. Rode into Lake Placid, NY and ate some more. Then, had a beer at the pub.

7. Met an awesome couple who recommended me to a hostel.

8. Laundry at the Golden Medal Laundromat. I had to get naked so the all of my clothes were clean. Odd looks from everyone in the building.

9. Rode in the dark, 4 miles through the woods, with a headlamp, to the hostel. At least my clothes were still warm from the dryer.

10. No one's at the hostel. I move my stuff in and shower. I soon meet the caretaker. She is awesome and shows me the location of the "Community Food." I try to remember that it's rude to eat all of it.

11. ZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I made it to New York...