Day 79-81

Day 79 08/08/22

Thankfully we woke up to no rain. The ride to get out of town was difficult to navigate with lots of twists and turns through Indiana State University and parks and neighborhoods. Once out of town the ride took us through farmland and eventually into hilly countryside. We had some fun downhill rides through treed forests which we have not experienced since the west. We videoed our ride down Hurricane hill hooting and hollering on our descent. This part of Indianna reminded us a little bit of the Oregon landscape minus the heat and humidity. It was nice weather in the early morning but ramped up to its hotter self by early afternoon. We arrived in Martinsville, ID around noon and checked into the Brickhouse BnB. It is all contactless check-in and we have the place to ourselves. They have done a fantastic job updating and making the place feel like home.

We went out to get some yummy BBQ for lunch and came back to the BnB for a nap. We are both really tired today and have a long week ahead of us. All the weather reports are once again calling for rain tomorrow which can be a bit unnerving because that usually involves lightening. We went out for dinner and the girl who waited on us talked us through the weather which was encouraging. We both left the restuarant feeling like tomorrow will be a good day!

Rode 64 miles today.

Day 80 08/09/22

Lots of lightening and rain last night but we decided to make a run for it when morning came. We left in light rain in the dark. After today we have decided no more riding in the dark unless we are on a trail. The traffic is too heavy in towns and the roads are too hilly and windy; not to be confused with windy. To put it simply, Sarah is on her last traffic nerve and I don't blame her. Riding on the back of a bike with no control, in the dark of night, rain falling, and with cars whizzing by does not settle one's nerves. Thankfully it began to get light and the rain abated.

We made it to Franklin and ate breakfast in a family restuarant. Checking the map we only had another 16 miles of mostly flat road to our destination in Selbyville, IN. The weather remained favorable and we made it to the outskirts of town where we ran into Steve.

Steve was riding his bike and flagged us down to satisfy his curiousity and boy was he curious. He wanted to know everything about our journey and told us a bit about himself as we were standing in the middle of a neighborhood street. I asked him about a donut shop that was recommended and he said he would take us there.

O

We went on a crazy ride down a one way street into the downtown where we arrived at Linne's Bakery. We bought Steve a donut and talked for a while until Steve got a weather alert and we parted ways. We made a quick trip for groceries and headed to our motel. Along the way the skies opened up and drenched our already drenched bodies. It is hard to tell the difference between when it rains or when it's humid. We arrived at the hotel two hours ahead of check-in time and they wanted to charge us $45 for early check-in. We opted to wait in the lobby and within a half an hour they had a room ready. Funny how that works! We spent the rest of the day eating, napping and planning.

Rode 46 miles today.

Day 81 08/10/22

Take a moment and pour yourself a cup of coffee today had many twists and turns you don't want to miss. We thought we would wake up to rain today but we were surprised when it was just overcast. Sarah was also not feeling well so with the good weather forecast we decided to get a later start than usual. For the first time in over a month the air was cool and we almost needed to put on an extra top layer. Today was a beautiful day for riding and it really lifted our spirits. We rode to the town of Rush and found ourselves in a coffee shop talking with a precious couple. I said to the wife that she needs to get a bike and come join us. She sweetly replied that she had not been on a bicycle in 58 years and her time has passed. I took that as a no. We headed out of Rush on a real nail bitter road. The road was a busy highway with rumble strips that did not allow us to get onto the shoulder and out of the traffic. We had a ten mile stretch that was certain to reduce one's allotment of heartbeats over a lifetime. When we turned off onto a nice, beautiful, flat, relaxing piece of blacktop within two miles came two mycardial producing infarctions. In other words, from out of nowhere we were suddenly flanked by two dogs. Our heart rates went from 75 bpm to 200 bpm in seconds and we were pedalling faster than Lance Arstrong after a good blood transfusion. If we had stopped they probably would have quit charging but that was not our first instinct. I'm yelling, "pedal faster," when one of those little turds circles around the back of the bike and passes us but not without first displaying his nice canines. Sarah pulled out her air horn but before she could blow it, I yelled at the dogs to go home. Thankfully they did and the fun was over. You may wonder why Sarah didn't blown her horn. It actually is an amazing deterrent. During the last dog chase, unbekownst to me, she discharged the horn from behind me without giving me a warning. No joke, men may not be able to have babies but I certainly had a cow that day. Another amazing moment came when we were riding into a tree canopy with a car behind us and another car approching in the opposite direction. At the moment we entered the darkness of the trees, just off the side of the road, were twenty plus vultures enjoying a snack. They were startled by our bicycle and without warning took to flight. It looked like twenty 747's trying to clear the runway all at once. They swept right across the road just 10 feet in front of us impairing our vision, traffics vision and almost created an accident. We both cannot believe how much corn this country produces. We have been riding through corn fields for a month. So much corn that we have corn coming out of our ears now.

We are now regretting having pre-booked booked so many motels because we want to get back to camping. It looks like our wishes will come true this Sunday. But in the meantime one more motel we need to add to our skanker list, the Liberty Inn in the town of Liberty, IN. It was the only game in town so we knew beforehand it could be a real gooder.

We have posted a nice ensamble of photos for you to enjoy. If you have ever been to the Knotts Berry Farm attraction called, the Haunted Shack, you get the optical illusion vibe the moment you walk in. Walking into our motel room you immediately notice the incredible shrinking headboard on the massive king size bed. They actually paired a double headboard, set off centered, with a king size mattress. Why? We could not begin to tell you.

In case you don't know how to operate a shower they marked the handles with directional symbols for ease of temperature control.

You don't feel the concern of scuffing the walls with your luggage because the walls have been indiscriminately prescuffed.

And if you are a painter by profession you will definitely feel encouraged that your work product is above average because you actually finish your jobs.

There are so many more touches that I could mention but I need to go check the laundry that I've hung out in the parking lot to dry. The crazy thing is no one from management has even mentioned my laundy! Gotta love it.

Headed out for some mexican food and a walk around town. Heading into Ohio tomorrow with only two states to go after that.

Rode 54 miles today.

Day 81 08/10/22

We have been on the road for over two and one half months. Breakfast is now becoming a chore as we are eating the same junk over and over and over again. One can only drink so many protein drinks and eat so many bananas and swallow so much yogurt. This food consumption all has to happen at 5:00am in the morning when my wife is at minimum functioning capacity and I am in maximum getter done mode. Somehow we manage to make it work and we get on the road without a tempertandem. Today was the first day it was cold enough that we had to put on another layer which was a welcomed change. The ride was a hilly one with some traffic and you guessed it, more corn fields. But today was also another milestone, we left Indiana and entered Ohio. We rode along a beautiful bike path that followed the Great Miami River. The temperature was in the mid 70's to low 80's for most of the day which made for great biking weather. We arrived early at the Hammel House in Waynesville Ohio where we spent the night. Our room was not ready so we grabbed lunch and explored a few antique shops. After checking in and exploring the inside of my eyelids while laying on my backside we headed downstairs for dinner. We got to talking to couple (Ralph and Amy) sitting at a table nearby which turned into two hours of conversation. They just celebrated their 50th anniversary and amazingly they met when they were patients in a mental institution. Ralph shared story after story of his younger years but one story that stood out was his meeting Charles mansion at a halfway house in his early 20's. He said Charles had this amazing ability to mesmerize the ladies. We finally had to say our good byes and get ready for bed. Tomorrow is a new day full of new adventure.

Rode 55 miles today.