Added fenders to the bike this weekend, assuming that it might rain in the over two months I'll be gone. Had a little fun this week on google earth looking at some of the places I will be riding. Made the mistake of showing Charlotte some of it and her reccommendation is for me to sit in front of the t.v. and google earth the entire bike trip. Says it will be a lot safer and I can still experience it all. Didn't help my case any when I showed her a picture along one of the highways of an elk standing close to the road. Her comment was, "What if that had been a bear?" I said , " Well, I guess I would be peddling way too fast to get a picture!"
If that didn't do enough to worry her, she recieved a bit of encouragement today from an anonymous friend. An article addressed to her that appeared recently in the local paper about preparing to be a widow. No joke! Well intentioned I am sure, however, just what she needed to comfort her prior to me leaving for a bike trip. It takes me months to make her feel comfortable about the whole concept and a few seconds in an anomymous letter to undo it. The article pointed out that over 1,500,000 women are widowed between the age of 55 - 65. I figure that's true and mostly from couch potatoes whose wife wont' let them do anything exciting and they die from boredom. Or maybe he's trying to escape from a boring woman! Charlotte isn't boring! Thought too, that maybe it's because many of these 50 something women were married to 80 something men. All kidding aside, if you really want to know what causes this phenomenon, go to any restaurant or bar on a Friday or Saturday evening ( or any evening ) and it becomes obvious why this happens.
Just in case the "anonymous" person reads this, she ( Charlotte ) is very well covered if anything happens to me. Hope that doesn't encouarge her though. :-) Enough for now, gotta go eat a couple of quarter pounders, some fries, a bowl of ice cream, wash it down with a couple of colas, and take a nap! Might even order my Mountaineer football tickets! Now that's enough to do me in!
" Our eyes reveal what lies before us; our minds what lies behind us; our faith what lies ahead of us; and our heart what lies inside of us" mod
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Been there and done that!
Mod's bicycle trip 2010 from Portland, Oregon to Parkersburg, West Virginia
PERSPECTIVE
When I think of the men, women, and children who suffer from disease and hunger throughout the world I realize the smallness of my endeavor. When I think of the men and women who serve in our military defending our freedom and spending months in foreign lands, I realize a 4000 mile bike journey is fairly insignificant. When I think of the elderly who spend the brief time they have left being lonely, and the animals who suffer at the hands of humans I am reminded that my journey is not very important.
Blog Archive
What do you think of mod making this trip?
My top 10 cycling pet peeves.
- 10. Any bicycle sold by Wal Mart. There isn't enough good metal in one to make a pie pan!
- 9. People who throw glass bottles out of car windows.
- 8. Any cyclist who feels the type of riding they do is the only type of cycling. I think it's great to see anyone on a bike.
- 7. Bicycle shops that charge to put air in your tires.
- 6. People throwing things from cars at cyclists. Really stupid!
- 5. People who yell out the window when passing a cyclist. They must not realize that all we hear is a squeal. Kinda funny actually!
- 4. Kids and young adults who ride through yards, weave wrecklessly through traffic and stop signs, and in front of cars, causing people to view cycling in a negative way.
- 3. Cyclists who ride in the road to prove a point. A little common sense goes a long way! I'm not going to argue with a red neck driving a 6000 pound truck with a dog in the back bigger than my bike! The goal is to ride, have fun, and get home alive! I do think we live in an area that needs to be more aware of cycling and hopefully people who ride often and correctly can have an impact on the way we are viewed by automobile drivers.
- 2. People who know they have dogs that chase bicycles and do nothing. Wonder if they would like them to be pepper sprayed. Of course not!! If its your dog or my legs, I'm choosing my legs!
- 1. People who don't turn on headlights when it isn't daylight. Maybe they think they are saving gas, too lazy to turn, push, or pull the switch, or maybe they think they are hiding in the dark.. Dumb and dangerous habit!!
PAVEMENT SURFING
Been there and done that!
Hey Bald Mo!! Good Luck on ur trip!
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