This is Steve and I am checking in to let everyone know that I have finished my ride for the day safe and sound.
ESN:0-7458562
Latitude:30.8527
Longitude:-89.1543
Nearest Location: E Frontage Dr, Wiggins, MS, US
Distance: 0 km(s)
Time:12/22/2008 14:00:18 (US/Pacific)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=30.8527,-89.1543&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1
Monday, December 22, 2008
Day 30 - Sunday, December 21
Description: Finished the 83 mile ride in Franklinton Louisiana. Tomorrow, the target will be Wiggins Mississippi with a solid 70-75 mile ride.
Bad news - I have come down with a cold and suffered some today with my nose and a sore throat. Got some good drugs and hope to kick it tonight. I think I got it the day we went without stopping at a Donut Palace:-(
We all got up early today, grabbed some light breakfast snacks (I had a Smores Luna bar) and hit the road at 7:15. Kevin lost the coin toss again and reluctantly agreed to be the Sherpa for the morning. He took off north with the van to drop it off at Chipola and then ride back our way to join our party. Teresa, Carl, and I headed north out of Baton Rouge to look for a Donut Palace for some good Community coffee and some sugar bombs to fuel our day. From the beginning, Teresa charged to the front of the pace line and broke wind (I guess that could have been worded better) all morning for us 2 guys. The wind was very fierce and blowing at 15-25 mph straight into Teresa's face which she fought for the first 27 miles of our day. After about 5 miles, we found Mary Lee's Donuts & More shop and immediately hit the breaks. We could smell the grease and sugar from the road. The apple fritters were just coming out of the oven so all 3 of us snagged one and some Community coffee to wash it down. It was great and hit the spot. We then zipped up and charged into the wind knowing we would be turning east at our 27 mile marker and hoped for some wind relief. After about 20 miles, Kevin caught up with us and he helped Teresa out in the breaking wind duty. Kevin is great at breaking wind and if you have ever ridden behind him, you know what I mean. We stopped in Clinton for an early brunch at T-Man's Downhome Cafe and Bar-B-Que. This place was real proud of Obama as there were pictures, posters, and printed shirts of him all over the place. I was going to ask if they had a McCain shirt but was advised to shut my trap. We warmed up with more Community coffee (this is a local brand that is very smooth and in my opinion, much better than Dunkin Donut's coffee) and placed our orders. Carl went with a shrimp po-boy and a salad. Teresa had a bar-b-que chicken sandwich and fries (that I ate). Kevin and I had the breakfast special with 2 eggs, sausage, grits, and a biscuit. The food was excellent. Outside we went and into the cold again as we were on a mission We finally got rolling and made our turn east and out of the wind god's breath. It ended up being a cross wind for the remainder of the day and we were happy with that. We rode another 15 miles up to Kevin's parked van at just over 40 miles into our day. Teresa loaded up her bike and then took over Sherpa duty. The record will note that she rode extremely well today in very difficult conditions (A+). She then jumped in the van and blasted 45 miles east to Franklinton to secure lodging, purchase snacks, and beverages. Kevin, Carl, and I had a long and difficult ride ahead of us. I was excited as it looked like it would be a good race with the sun to the motel (which I love doing). Carl said for Kevin and I to go on ahead as he planned to have a slower pace and to take a number of pictures - remember that he is retired! We passed large plantation homes, big pine woods, small dairy farms and rode on some very hilly roads (almost Texas like) which surprised us. We rode through the small towns of Easleyville, Tangipohoa, Bolivar, and Richardson before ending our day in Franklinton. In Tangipohoa, Kevin and I ran into a young couple who were also touring. They were stopped a lady's house who was offering them (and then us) some hot chocolate which was cool. Their names were Ben Becker and Christine Compton (I will call them BB & CC) and they were from Baltimore Maryland. They have been riding for 2 months and were heading west and then south to Argentina - can you believe that? Also, CC had the exact bike as my Mean Green Machine but without the dents. BB was riding a classic Schwinn. Their web site is www.lettherebmorebikes.com. I also just put their link and Carl's on my web page link list. Back to riding again, Kevin and I had a bad dog encounter. As we were going up a hill, a big Pit Bull came running from the front porch of a house next to the road. This guy was bounding so fast that his front legs and his back legs would all be stretched out at the same time with nothing on the ground on each stride. It was wild looking and I wish my camera was available. He came within inches of getting his teeth into my rear wheel or from biting my rear bags. I pulled away just in time. From here, we rolled into town and made it to the hotel just before dark so we beat the sun today. Carl came in about a half hour later and lost to the sun as he had to use his lights. Carl had a tremendous ride today and this was one of the longer rides of his entire trip. Carl also saved the day by noticing and then finding Teresa's computer that had fallen off of her bike plus he notified me when my Spot device and Wilson almost fell off my bike. The roads were rough at times which is why stuff was falling. I must also give Kevin kudos for a job well done today as he was a great Sherpa plus got in close to 90 miles of riding himself with a lot of pulling against the strong winds. I just don't understand why he does not ride this well on his normal weekend rides where he regularly bonks after just 30-35 miles. After cleaning up, hydrating, and snacking, we hit the town for dinner. We ate at the Grand Buffet which had one of the best all-u-can-eat spreads I have seen in a long time. Tons of fresh local shrimp, crabs, and every other Chinese food item you would ever want. Kevin and Teresa just shook their heads as Carl and I gorged ourselves with 4 or 5 plates each. Then we went to a Win-Dixie to get breakfast supplies and finally back to the room to plot out tomorrow's ride. Everyone is crashed now. Our Sherpas looked very tired and worn out from their long day of babysitting Carl and me.
Good night.
Weather: Cold, overcast and strong winds in our face for most of the day. Some sun peeked through the clouds for about an hour but it never warmed up. It was not a bad temp for riding.
Performance Metrics:
Miles: 83 Trip: 2,215
Total travel time: 9:30 Trip: 229:00
Bike Riding time: 6:34 Trip: 177:46
Avg speed: 12.57 Trip: 12.68
Max speed: 28.48 Trip: 41.87
Total ascent (ft): 2,094 Trip: 53,193
Avg pedal RPMs: 85 Trip: 86
Avg heart rate: 111 Trip: 111
Max heart rate: 153 Trip: 195
Calories burned: 4,604 Trip: 130,004
Weather Statistics:
High temp 48 Trip: 77
Low temp: 40 Trip: 28
Hours of rain: 0 Trip: 13.30
Hours of snow: 0 Trip: 0
Total days of rain/snow: 3
Wind factor: mostly against and hurt bad at times
Total good wind days: 11
Total bad wind days: 19
Misc. Stats:
Flat tires: 1
Mechanical failures: 1
Hotel or camping today: hotel
Total hotel nights: 1
Total camping nights: 1
Cups of coffee: 3 Trip: 96
Pints: 3 Trip: 53
Mood rating (1-10): 9.25. The wind was real tough today plus I have come down with a cold - haaachoooo. Overall, I continue to be in a great mood and still love the adventure and friends.
Bad news - I have come down with a cold and suffered some today with my nose and a sore throat. Got some good drugs and hope to kick it tonight. I think I got it the day we went without stopping at a Donut Palace:-(
We all got up early today, grabbed some light breakfast snacks (I had a Smores Luna bar) and hit the road at 7:15. Kevin lost the coin toss again and reluctantly agreed to be the Sherpa for the morning. He took off north with the van to drop it off at Chipola and then ride back our way to join our party. Teresa, Carl, and I headed north out of Baton Rouge to look for a Donut Palace for some good Community coffee and some sugar bombs to fuel our day. From the beginning, Teresa charged to the front of the pace line and broke wind (I guess that could have been worded better) all morning for us 2 guys. The wind was very fierce and blowing at 15-25 mph straight into Teresa's face which she fought for the first 27 miles of our day. After about 5 miles, we found Mary Lee's Donuts & More shop and immediately hit the breaks. We could smell the grease and sugar from the road. The apple fritters were just coming out of the oven so all 3 of us snagged one and some Community coffee to wash it down. It was great and hit the spot. We then zipped up and charged into the wind knowing we would be turning east at our 27 mile marker and hoped for some wind relief. After about 20 miles, Kevin caught up with us and he helped Teresa out in the breaking wind duty. Kevin is great at breaking wind and if you have ever ridden behind him, you know what I mean. We stopped in Clinton for an early brunch at T-Man's Downhome Cafe and Bar-B-Que. This place was real proud of Obama as there were pictures, posters, and printed shirts of him all over the place. I was going to ask if they had a McCain shirt but was advised to shut my trap. We warmed up with more Community coffee (this is a local brand that is very smooth and in my opinion, much better than Dunkin Donut's coffee) and placed our orders. Carl went with a shrimp po-boy and a salad. Teresa had a bar-b-que chicken sandwich and fries (that I ate). Kevin and I had the breakfast special with 2 eggs, sausage, grits, and a biscuit. The food was excellent. Outside we went and into the cold again as we were on a mission We finally got rolling and made our turn east and out of the wind god's breath. It ended up being a cross wind for the remainder of the day and we were happy with that. We rode another 15 miles up to Kevin's parked van at just over 40 miles into our day. Teresa loaded up her bike and then took over Sherpa duty. The record will note that she rode extremely well today in very difficult conditions (A+). She then jumped in the van and blasted 45 miles east to Franklinton to secure lodging, purchase snacks, and beverages. Kevin, Carl, and I had a long and difficult ride ahead of us. I was excited as it looked like it would be a good race with the sun to the motel (which I love doing). Carl said for Kevin and I to go on ahead as he planned to have a slower pace and to take a number of pictures - remember that he is retired! We passed large plantation homes, big pine woods, small dairy farms and rode on some very hilly roads (almost Texas like) which surprised us. We rode through the small towns of Easleyville, Tangipohoa, Bolivar, and Richardson before ending our day in Franklinton. In Tangipohoa, Kevin and I ran into a young couple who were also touring. They were stopped a lady's house who was offering them (and then us) some hot chocolate which was cool. Their names were Ben Becker and Christine Compton (I will call them BB & CC) and they were from Baltimore Maryland. They have been riding for 2 months and were heading west and then south to Argentina - can you believe that? Also, CC had the exact bike as my Mean Green Machine but without the dents. BB was riding a classic Schwinn. Their web site is www.lettherebmorebikes.com. I also just put their link and Carl's on my web page link list. Back to riding again, Kevin and I had a bad dog encounter. As we were going up a hill, a big Pit Bull came running from the front porch of a house next to the road. This guy was bounding so fast that his front legs and his back legs would all be stretched out at the same time with nothing on the ground on each stride. It was wild looking and I wish my camera was available. He came within inches of getting his teeth into my rear wheel or from biting my rear bags. I pulled away just in time. From here, we rolled into town and made it to the hotel just before dark so we beat the sun today. Carl came in about a half hour later and lost to the sun as he had to use his lights. Carl had a tremendous ride today and this was one of the longer rides of his entire trip. Carl also saved the day by noticing and then finding Teresa's computer that had fallen off of her bike plus he notified me when my Spot device and Wilson almost fell off my bike. The roads were rough at times which is why stuff was falling. I must also give Kevin kudos for a job well done today as he was a great Sherpa plus got in close to 90 miles of riding himself with a lot of pulling against the strong winds. I just don't understand why he does not ride this well on his normal weekend rides where he regularly bonks after just 30-35 miles. After cleaning up, hydrating, and snacking, we hit the town for dinner. We ate at the Grand Buffet which had one of the best all-u-can-eat spreads I have seen in a long time. Tons of fresh local shrimp, crabs, and every other Chinese food item you would ever want. Kevin and Teresa just shook their heads as Carl and I gorged ourselves with 4 or 5 plates each. Then we went to a Win-Dixie to get breakfast supplies and finally back to the room to plot out tomorrow's ride. Everyone is crashed now. Our Sherpas looked very tired and worn out from their long day of babysitting Carl and me.
Good night.
Weather: Cold, overcast and strong winds in our face for most of the day. Some sun peeked through the clouds for about an hour but it never warmed up. It was not a bad temp for riding.
Performance Metrics:
Miles: 83 Trip: 2,215
Total travel time: 9:30 Trip: 229:00
Bike Riding time: 6:34 Trip: 177:46
Avg speed: 12.57 Trip: 12.68
Max speed: 28.48 Trip: 41.87
Total ascent (ft): 2,094 Trip: 53,193
Avg pedal RPMs: 85 Trip: 86
Avg heart rate: 111 Trip: 111
Max heart rate: 153 Trip: 195
Calories burned: 4,604 Trip: 130,004
Weather Statistics:
High temp 48 Trip: 77
Low temp: 40 Trip: 28
Hours of rain: 0 Trip: 13.30
Hours of snow: 0 Trip: 0
Total days of rain/snow: 3
Wind factor: mostly against and hurt bad at times
Total good wind days: 11
Total bad wind days: 19
Misc. Stats:
Flat tires: 1
Mechanical failures: 1
Hotel or camping today: hotel
Total hotel nights: 1
Total camping nights: 1
Cups of coffee: 3 Trip: 96
Pints: 3 Trip: 53
Mood rating (1-10): 9.25. The wind was real tough today plus I have come down with a cold - haaachoooo. Overall, I continue to be in a great mood and still love the adventure and friends.
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