Hi All,
First of all I need to thank our marvelous crew who are at every SAG stop and keep us hydrated, fed and motivated. They are awesome and really help to make the hard – not as difficult.
Today’s ride was all desert and I think the temperature hit 110 degrees. We started off with a long climb and then it went downhill. I posted the Garmin map / player of the ride on Facebook. I don’t know how to embed it here so if anyone knows how, I’d appreciate the tip!!
The most eventful thing today was my near crash. I was going about 25 and hit a pothole and was down on the aerobars at the time. The jolt caused my handlebars to shift all the way down. I was close to losing control of the bike and went off the road but managed to slow and stop without falling. I scrunched the bars back into position and somehow gave me a field tightening later on. Afetr the ride, our mechanic Rick gave them a once over. I will attach a photo of that if the network cooperates.
Once again, I rode in with Nick from Brighton, United Kingdom who is a very interesting chap who has thoroughbred horses and has raced motorcycles and cars. He also has done bike tours in China and in the Sahara. He told me that there are hundreds of little kids who got a kick out of throwing stones at them as they passed. Boys will be boys. He also rides a 20 year old boring bike and I have no doubt he would smoke me if he had the technology that I am riding.
All of the folks doing the ride are wonderful. I try to spend some time with different folks every day. Some amazing stories and I will try to post photos and stories of more of them as we go along.
Tomorrow may be the longest of the tour in that we ride 115 miles and have quite a few climbs. We also cross into Arizona and we have a ritual that we are supposed to perform. Each of us was given some sand from the Pacific Ocean and we sprinkle the sand at the state border (or at the cool sign). Failure to do so will result in saddle sores from hell.
Larry Emigh (pronounced “Amy”) is my roommate. We get along fantastically and after 3 dates there has been no battles over bathroom or shower times. He is 70 and riding for Dyslexia.
Thanks for keeping track and all the well wishes that I receive every day. Please check out Wounded Warrior’s if you get a chance. I think the link to Chet’s donation page is broken but we will get it fixed.
Ciao
Chuck
chuckhardesty 
so great to read about your ride!! it sounds awesome. Glad you didn’t fall off the bike and get hurt. keep up the good work! carol
Carol, thanks for following the Blog. I will post more later tonight, I am waiting for Larry to go out and get something to eat. I think one of our group did crash today – not sure how he is doing. One of the chaps from England. Don’t like to see that. I hope your new place is working out well. All moved in?
Chuck, I am thoroughly enjoying your blog about the trip. Keep up the great work. It looks like the overall route of travel will be bringing the group close by where I am now living in central Kansas. I hope to get out there to watch everyone zooming through.
Hi Ed,
Many thanks for your kind comments. I would love for you to come by and say “hi” – we aren’t really zooming but sometimes the speeds get over 30mph. For the most part, we are just a bunch of old farts:) Check in with me when we get close to Kansas and perhaps we can touch base then. Would love to catch up!
U GO DOG !!!! I will never match your mileage. However, You, Larry and Deeds were the ones that inspired me to always continue commuting. I want to inspire you to keep it up !! remember, stopping pedaling won’t get ya there any faster ! I guess this tour will make up for those miles “you said” you were doing around forest park. LOL — take it from experience, watch out for those drunk drivers. When the miles get tough, just think of what those soldiers do for us, everyday. YOU CAN DO IT !! I will follow in awe.
Hey Paul,
I was thinking about you the other day! Thanks for connecting – hope that all is well down at Wells Fargo. I certainly hope that you get to experience this some day. It is truly amazing and only another cyclist can appreciate all the nuances of a trip like this. Our crew is fantastic. Yes, I have seen a few of the soldiers along the way. Chet was a Green Beret and is an amazing and gracious man.
We did 115 today although I turned the Garmin off with about 6 miles to go at the second flat. I was having a really good day until then and it was over 100 degrees.
I did do 2500 miles around Forest Park in the 2 months prior to the ride. You certainly are an inspiration from the commuting perspective. You kept it up better than any of us. Deeds ann Ollie were both inspirational. I think Larry is going to do RAGBRAI. Take care Paul and keep in touch. Tell Mary that I said “hi” and to any of my old friends down at Wells!!!
SWEET ! you responded, Yes i will tell Mary HI, for you. Sorry i was slow for responding, however, this weekend i had a graduation, wedding and funeral. Sounds like your having a great time, and yes i hope to some day be able to ride out west, getting 100+ miles weekly in traffic gets old. Guess your gettin pretty good at changing flats. Are you using a Camel back drink system or pub crawl program ? oops, guess there aren’t many saloons left in all of that cactis. LOL– hope ya got some music to listen to —well for now– take care— drink alot–HAPPY TRAILS — i will keep in touch
Hi Paul,
Well congrats and condolences…. Yes, it sure is a change of pace and the scenery change is something to behold. I have a camelback and also use 2 bottles. Not hitting many pubs but a few now and then. There are a LOT of saloons in the old west towns but they don’t hanker to dudes with pink shirts, shoved legs, and tight little cycling shorts. No toons when riding and I have suggested music at the SAGS. Larry sings to me but it isn’t the same thing…
Einstein did say “Live is like riding a bicycle, to keep your balance, you have to keep moving”. Thats you Chuck ! Keep those miles passing under your tires and enjoy the ride. We are now tasting the St. Louis summers, 94 degrees today, It is Saturday, of course, nothing like the west. but gee, no humidity there. Many salutes to the enlisted folks on this Memorial Day weekend. Make sure to find some BBQ. Till next time, as Deeds said “God Bless”.
Thanks Paul,
We’re getting close to 1000 miles and we keep moving. Have some new Gatorskins and hopefully fewer flats. We have hit a lot of days over 100 degrees but as you say there is no humidity. I actually think St. Louis was worse than the desert. Wait till some of these folks hit the high heat and high humidity combo. Had BBQ today for lunch and it was fantastic. Thanks for your salute to the military – I want to make note of them especially this weekend. Many thanks!