Traveling at Mach 0.012

Start – Glen Allen
Destination – Aquia/Quantico
Day total miles – 77
Journey total miles – 162

Well, it was hot this morning and just got hotter. At one point the temperature on my garmin Lots of fluids and electrolytes kept us going.

Started today at the fabulous Waffle House in Glen Allen. Betty was nice and helped us to get the best bargain for our money. We finished breakfast and then headed out. Our nemesis, Parham Rd, last night was quiet this morning. Soon turned off and rode back streets around Glen Allen. Experienced the first bit of road rage – one would think the person in the maroon Ford F150 with professional firefighter tags would be safety conscious and aware that the road we were traveling was frequently used by cyclists; shame on you! Another first, a killer hill. The road was a series of gentle rolling hills, nothing to complain about. Then it was down a hill, around a turn, crossing a bridge and then the road seemed to loom straight up. Good thing it was early. We made it but this seemed to set the stage for more hills throughout the day.

We weaved around country roads and passed through Ashland. Nice town. Left Ashland to more open roads and lots of sun. Thanks to working garmin and gps today, minimized the wrong turns. At one intersection, printed directions indicated left and the garmins pointed right. The garmins won.

Our next adventure would us on and off of Rt 1. Up ahead, was Jerico Road, and several options for restocking the food/drink supply. There were flashing lights and bicyclists. We approached the intersection to find a large group of riders and a police escort. It was the 19th annual Bike for the Blue ride from Richmond to DC as a part of Police Week in Washington DC to honor police officers killed in the line of duty. There were about 200 riders getting ready to take off. We were greeted and invited to ride along. Several of the officers and organizers asked what we were doing and invited us to ride with them as they headed north on Rt 1. We quickly accepted and joined in. Could have used a water and fluid upgrade, but they were rolling and when do you get the chance to ride with such an honorable group. We fell into the mass of cyclists. As we peddled up the road, many of the cyclists said hi to us and asked where we were going. To most, the reaction was – “you are crazy.” It was a hot ride, a faster pace than we anticipated, but we kept up to the first stop. As we made it to the rest area, we were invited to put our bags in someone’s truck and helped to fix a bike and injured rider. Out came the tools and bandages to make some necessary repairs. Water and gator aide passed out and we even got t-shirts from the group. I can’t make this stuff up. Where else can you get a full police escort on your cross country trip? For about 25 miles, we got to ride with some incredible people and experience the thrill of riding in an escorted group. None of the motorcycle officers took us up on the offer to ride along for the rest of our journey. Now that would be fun.

Now, that our bikes were much lighter, we kept up (mostly) with the group to the next stop – Wawa in Fredericksburg. Did I telly you that it was hot today? There were riders resting in the shade and many headed into the cool store to fuel up and cool down. This was our time to break away from the group. We said good byes to many of our new friends and got some great pictures. What a great cause, may have to join them next year – May 13 is the day to ride.

Next stop to visit with friends Daniel, Abigail, and Evan who live in Fredericksburg. Consulting with the iphone, found the route and headed out. I knew we were in the right place when I say the sign, written in chalk, in the driveway. In about a half hour we were there and greeted with cold water, snacks, and a hose out back to cool off with. Abigail was so talkative, she is growing up and becoming quite the talkative young lady. I have a hand drawn picture, some flowers (they stayed on until we got to the hotel) some photos and more fond memories. Oh yeah, Adam loved the salt on my legs. We rested for about an hour and thoroughly enjoyed the visit. Refueled and cooled off, we headed out for the last 15 or so miles. It did not cool off outside while we were in the house.

Fredericksburg to Aquia was the final leg. Ok, it was really hot now. We winded up and down hills, missed a turn (I was enjoying the shade and woods when Potomac Rd flashed by). The last few miles had more hills and most of them seemed to be up. About 6 miles out, Joe suffered a flat. Took some time to fix the flat and then back on the road to finish. The last big down hill was awesome and helped to cap the day as a success. Back on Rt 1 and we had a hot climb to the hotel. Best Western in Aquia. Nice place, nice staff and convenient to stores for resupplying. Dinner with MB tonight (yeah!). Here are some pictures from the day and hoping that tomorrow is cooler, but not too rainy. Cross Fairfax county and up to Louden county, across Whites Ferry and up to Brunswick.

Start – Yorktown VA
Destination – Glen Allen VA
Day total miles – 85
Journey total – 85 miles

After many months of planning and hours on a bike, we are off. Early rise and down to the water for the customary dipping of the tires in the water. It was great to have friends and family to see us off. Thanks to Carol, Alejandro, Mom and MB.

So, the three crazy old men are loose and pedaling across country.

What a perfect day to start. The sun was out, temperature warm and not much of a breeze to speak of. Went from the fabulous Yorktown Motor Lodge (reasonable price, ok rooms and convenient) to water street in historic Yorktown. Beautiful morning; about 65 degrees and the sun coming up over the horizon. Have lots of send off pictures that will add later when i figure out how to download them. Starting out in coastal VA was the right move. The terrain is flat, and some long stretches of road right from the start to let you settle into the routine. Good thing too. Reprogrammed the garmin to be able to track the miles and did not get the cadence to work. At the waterfront, turned on cadence and took off down the road. Looked at the mileage and speed – wow going 32 MPH and already at 14 miles. Wait, we did not go a mile yet… Ugh. Now I am pedaling down the road, reprogramming the garmin and watching for cars. Reverted back to the old setting, now the garmin is set, but my mileage is way off. I guess the mental math will help keep me straight.

Riding out of Yorktown, we were on the Colonial National Historic Parkway. Interesting road. No lines, about 3 lanes wide and cars zipping by with plenty of space clearance. Nice!

Took the parkway into Williamsburg and was looking for N England St. Missed it. Not marked? Ugh. Got to drive thru this great tunnel and off into the hinterlands of Williamsburg. Not having the mileage or garmin to help me (loaded the routes into the garmin but today’s route was corrupted or something — oh no!) made for interesting navigating today. Thanks to the iphone, got the directions straight. Backtracked a bit and then found the way.

Made our way to the John Tyler Highway/New Market Rd, and rt 5 – take your pick. Spent many miles on old VA 5 today. Interesting terrain. wide open farm land, forests, developments, and lots of wide open road to pedal. First stop was Charles City at a gas station/convenience shop/ fried chicken joint. Think they also dabble in bait. Should have got the picture of the sign. Now I know where to get pigs ears. Oh yeah, got on the VA Capitol Trail on and off as we rode along rt 5. Great way to ride. Hope they finish it soon.

Put in lots of miles and no more lost children. Stopped outside of Richmond near the 95 bypass. Deli, gas station, and lottery store. Lots of fired food in this part of the world. Settled for a Dr Pepper and bag of chips. Sugar, caffeine, and salt. the perfect combo of food groups. Talked to our new friend the tour bus driver. His reaction pretty much summed up the reactions we got – wow, you are really riding across country? Are you kidding?

Left the rest stop and finished our journey on Rt 5. Turned a corner and hit the Richmond downtown. Interesting and fun ride thru the city. A little turned around at times, but found the route and made it out of town. Finished on a crazy road – Parnham Rd – that was a bit interesting. Lots of traffic and no shoulder. We made it to Rt 1 – never knew it was called Brook Rd.

Dinner at the dugout. Forgot that smoking was allowed in restaurants. But the food was great and beer cold.

My day is done.

Out the door and into the dark.  No iPod tonight, just the sounds surrounding me.  

Cars hurrying by; jets overhead.  I go deeper into the darkness of the running route that is so familiar.

Picture the sounds.  

Foot strikes on pavement, on asphalt, dry leaves, wet leaves, sandy path with that gritty sound, bricks, sticks, wooden deck, stairs and a metal grate.  

Wind rustling in the trees.

Water lapping onto the shoreline.

Concentrating on the footsteps. 

Thirty minutes to lose myself from the grind of the day. Then, metal on metal and the heavy door screeching as it swings open.  

I miss the sounds already.

Hey there.  You are embarking on a journey with me that will chronicle some of the many adventures I experience and some of the many random thoughts that pop into my head. I could start with a bio, but that would be too easy.  Read on and I will build it for you.

It is Sunday night and the weekend flew by.  Catching up on the sports scores of the day, flipped by the coverage of the New York Marathon.  Stopped for a few minutes. I did not know that the woman who wins the NY marathon gets a purse of over $500,000 and then some other goodies like endorsements.  I am sure that the winning man gets something similar (ok, lets not start with the inequality of mens and women’s sports just yet.  you can get political later, maybe).  My point is, had I known I would have at least admired the elite runners a tiny bit more when I graced the starting line at that prestigious race. At least the last time I ran it (yeah, I have run NY marathons… because 2 makes it plural), I beat the favorite, who did not finish.

Wow.  The Redskins won.

The real joy of the moment is the wonderful smell of Italian sausages simmering in a spicy tomato sauce.  Earlier today, had to figure out what to do for dinner.  MB is out for the week at a work event, so I get the culinary bonus of cooking for me.  I have been on a mission to clean out the freezer and found some italian sausage lurking underneath indistinguishable stuff.  A crock pot, some crushed tomatoes, leftover tomato sauce from that pizza last week, and a bunch of spices.  Voila, awesome sausage for sandwiches tonight.  Picked up some split top buns from Trader Joes this afternoon; oh the anticipation.

Started out this morning with an early bike ride.  My plan called for 2 hours.  Planned a frequently used route – home to the WOD trail and back.  Basically part of my normal ride to work.  Yesterday had an hour ride and took the Mt Vernon trail from Alexandria to Roosevelt Island and back.  It was a sunny and warm day at least in the late morning.  The trail was too crowded, lots of impatient bikes behind me and walkers in groups of three walking side by side with no thought that others may want to share the path with them (ok, i will spare the rant today).  To overcome the crowd issue, decided to ride early, at first light.  I dressed warm and was out as the sun came up.  Have been having some issues with the rear derailer  and swapped out a seat with a friend.  Rode a block, adjusted the seat some more and added a little more tension on the cable.  At 630 AM on a Sunday morning, no traffic, so I breezed through on my way to the Mt Vernon trail.  Something wasn’t right.  Oh, I guess I need my HR monitor strap to record my HR.  Ugh.  Maybe that is why there were two blank spots on my bike computer.  Turned around and back to the house.  In and out fully geared up this time.  It has been a while since I rode up to the WOD trail.  Nice to see that the bike path at Columbia Pike is fixed, well mostly. This was just a fun and relaxing ride today.

Spent part of the day cleaning up gear from my recent bike touring trip from Pittsburgh to Cumberland and back to Pittsburgh.   I will elaborate on the trip in a future post.

The cat is fetching toys, which are accumulating at my feet. Dinner is calling… will get to savor the essence of these sausages and sauce for a day or so.

Just getting used to this WordPress thing, so the page may change after I figure it out.  Not sure what all of those things are at the top of my page.  Guess I will have to read some more.