Month: October 2016

Weigh-in #14 – !!!

Wheel full 70px I stopped in the Newport, Rhode Island VA Clinic this morning and asked to be weighed.

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…wait for it… …wait… …wait…

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Wheel full 70px Sorry about the two part photos, but I have not yet figured out how to get a good single shot with my iPhone on one of these beam scales.  The slightest jiggle and you are back at square one.

Wheel full 70px Oh, and did you notice I weigh three hundred AND SIX AND ONE-HALF POUNDS?  I practically needed assistance getting off the scale after seeing that.

Wheel full 70px Diet and exercise, David.  Diet and exercise.

Doing a 60

Wheel full 70px I’ve mentioned that, south of New York City, my trip plan calls for me to put in 60 mile/100 kilometer days.  Every day.  For a month.

Wheel full 70px Now, this is basically possible because, between there and Key West, the terrain can pretty much be summed up in two words: parking lot.  During the trip to date hills have slowed me down, sometimes a lot.  On stretches like rail-trails where there is no appreciable elevation change or, at worst, almost imperceptible grades I am currently riding at around 14-15 miles/~25 kilometers an hour, and I can apparently sustain that speed for a long time.

Wheel full 70px So I was pleased today on a somewhat hilly route to find that I had made it 58.5 miles/about 95 kilometers.

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Wheel full 70px I can do this!

Wheel full 70px I did run into my first major routing glitch.

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Wheel full 70px A three year bridge replacement project according to a nice guy who stopped and asked if I was lost when he spotted me staring forlornly at the construction barriers.  The bridge still shows up as open on both Google and Apple maps.  Oopsie.

Wheel full 70px Oh, and

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Wheel full 70px Weigh-in day tomorrow.  The suspense is killing me.

On to Newport

Wheel full 70px I’m in Buzzards Bay, another place name from my youth.  I plan to ride to Newport, Rhode Island today.  Good bye, Massachusetts.

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Wheel full 70px It has pretty much stopped raining and the extended forecast looks much better.

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Wheel full 70px Still looks foggy and damp this morning, though.  Nothing like yesterday- I white-knuckled my way over the Bourne Bridge off Cape Cod in the fog at dusk.  This is the first of several really big bridges on the trip.

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Wheel full 70px I had breakfast with two great friends in Buzzards Bay.  Thanks, Art and Bev, for meeting me and treating me to a nice meal and some excellent conversation.

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Water, water everywhere

Wheel full 70px I had hoped to do major miles today over a particularly flat area, including stopping at a bike shop and meeting up with a friend.

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Wheel full 70px But, as that ominous TV music goes… dah, dah, dah, DAAAH!

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Wheel full 70px It is an understatement to say that there is rain in the forecast today.

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Wheel full 70px This is on top of it pretty much pouring from 2:00 pm on yesterday.  The bike and I were soaked when I finally stopped for the night.  Everything except my shoes pretty much dried overnight, but it looks like I’ll be doing that all over again today.

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Wheel full 70px But nothing inside my panniers or handlebar bag is even damp, thanks to Ortlieb’s “Waterproof Classic” series.  The panniers, front and rear, are essentially heavy-duty dry bags on a frame that allows easy attachment to the correct kind of bicycle rack.  They do a lot towards helping me keep my spirits up on wet days.  I recommend them unconditionally for the kind of trip I’m making.