Five Days After

With the trip having been over for five days, today (Monday) was the first time I got on the bike since Yorktown.  A friend from Buffalo drove down to Yorktown and brought me back up to stay with him and his fiancé. The bike stayed in his car until this morning. I felt incredibly lazy going from getting on the bike day after day to having  four days in a row of virtually no physical activity. So it was good to go for a ride this morning in Buffalo, even though it’s a little cold and I just rode up to the cafe, where I’m writing this now. [Read more…]

The End of the Road

On Wednesday I had breakfast at the hotel and was waiting for it to warm up a little before heading out for the last day of riding.  But even though the temperature was in the 30s I couldn’t wait too long as it was going to be 82 miles and I didn’t want to arrive in Yorktown too late in the afternoon. [Read more…]

Getting Closer to the Coast

I was up just after 6:00 on Tuesday at the fire station in Mineral, waking up often during the night to the sound of freight trains running directly past the station and as the temperature went down into the upper 30s.  The minor lower back issue I had pretty much went away.  I think sleeping on the aluminum table might have helped. [Read more…]

Counting Down the Miles

When I stood up after dinner on Sunday night my lower back was really, really stiff. It continued this morning. The 88 mile ride on Sunday was full of hills and very difficult, so maybe that had something to do with it. It wasn’t a huge issue but of all the days on the road it was the biggest of the entire trip. Interesting that it happened with just a few days to go. I wasn’t bothered by it while riding, but when I would get off the bike it took a long time for it to loosen up. [Read more…]

A Very Long Day

(Technical issues fixed)

Sunday was an eventful day from the start. The weather had turned very cold and I stayed at the Econo Lodge in Lexington. At 7:00 I was leaving my room to head to the lobby for breakfast, only I couldn’t get out. The door wouldn’t open, for some reason. It seemed like it was sealed shut at the top. [Read more…]

Cold and Windy

(Having some internet and posting problems.  Photos are beneath the text.)

The temperature really started dropping since Friday and the strong winds on Saturday made it feel even colder. The ride ended up being 47 miles but it was one of those days where it felt like a lot more than that. [Read more…]

Avoiding the Rain– Again

Friday morning I was ready to go at 9:00 but the rain began, adding to some that had fallen earlier. So I sat around for a while writing Thursday’s post and by then it had stopped. The hourly forecast said it might begin again over the rest of the morning but not into the afternoon. [Read more…]

Graveyard Politicians

Thursday was about as routine and uneventful as it gets. I decided to do a shorter day than the past few and ride what ended up being 46 miles to the town of Radford. There I’d wait and see how the weather turned out on Friday morning as wind and rain were in the forecast. [Read more…]

Along the Appalachian Trail

Wednesday I was up and ready to go before 6am under the pavilion at the Mt. Carmel church in Meadowview. Usually if I’m ready early I’ll wait until the sun starts to rise, but this time I headed out. It was a nice change riding in the dark with the headlight on and no traffic.  But I didn’t have to ride far before I crossed under the interstate highway, of course with a McDonalds at the exit ramp. After a dinner of a banana and trail mix the night before, I was ready for breakfast. [Read more…]

Big A Mountain

Tuesday was a 62 mile ride from Breaks to Meadowview.  When I looked at the elevation profile on the map, I knew it was going to be a long day of climbing.  But there weren’t many options unless I wanted to do a shorter day or find someplace off the road to camp. [Read more…]