Yesterday, Joe and I talked about going for a bike ride. We could have just ridden the streets around Kristen and Cory's place, but Joe wanted to go to the Towpath. He had, years ago, done bicycle rides along the Towpath, and almost every year that we visit Ohio, he talks about going for a walk on it. So, we got organized (including an hour long search for the small bicycle pump that I got Joe for Christmas, which came along on the trip, in a secure place, instead of being in the weather where it would have been if attached to the bicycle.) I finally found it- under Joe's seat, between the slide and the center console- where I had seen it before, but couldn't remember exactly where it was. Have you ever done that? I had a visual of the pump, under a seat, but because it was tucked in between the seat and the console, it was hard to find.
We headed for the parking area that Joe remembered using, which would give us about a 14 mile round trip, with lunch in the middle. The weather was decent- a bit warm- but with clouds and a canopy of trees to keep things cool. We headed out- it was a beautiful day for a ride.
as described; there were only a few small hills. Mostly, we just meandered next to the river.
We stopped at one point to look at a Great Blue Heron. It was looking for fish, so it wasn't bothered by us!
I could hear thunder in the distance, as well as dark clouds, but they didn't seem to be close enough to bother us. We stopped for lunch at the Winking Lizard- great burgers and fries. Joe had grilled veggies, which he said were really good. The Winking Lizard is known for the huge selection of beer that they carry. In fact, you can drink "around the world" in one year- you earn a Winking Lizard jacket. (Joe said that it would be quite a bit of money for that jacket, though, since each of the 40 some beers is around $7.)
When we came out, it was obvious that there had been a shower, since our bike seats were sprinkled. We started back up the Towpath, after Joe used the bike pump to inflate his rear tire. Not very far down the path, it started raining. It wasn't just a drizzle, either, it was a full, hard, huge dropped, RAIN! We rode for a bit, coming to a tunnel, where we hung out for a bit.
It looked like the rain was slacking off, so we started off again. It did ease, for a little while, and then poured again! We had no option, other than to ride in the downpour.
Kira and I both have fenders on our bicycles, and Koen's is small enough that he wasn't impacted much by the water splashing from the path. Joe, though, has no fenders. It doesn't matter when we are on pavement, but this was mostly packed trail, unless it is raining, and then it becomes white muck. When there are fenders, it all flings like a rooster tail up the back of the rider.
The rain eased off again, stopping, in fact. We rode straight through, not stopping for any breaks, right into another thunder storm. It came down in BUCKETS! I was getting so much rain in my eyes that I had to close them for part of the time to try to clear them out. By the time we reached the truck, we were all drenched. Joe had the truck keys in the pouch on his bike, which was covered in the white sandy mud, so it didn't unzip very well, and we were all standing by the truck, hoping to get in out of the rain. He found the keys and we all got into the truck- except Joe. Obviously, we had to get the bikes put away, so Joe and Koen worked on them. By the time we got on the road, the rain had eased again, for a little while. The whole drive home, it didn't rain, but when we pulled into the driveway, it poured again. Kristen asked if it reminded us of Oregon. :o)
Since the weather was so interesting, I worked on my sweater. I have the back complete and have started the front- which is identical to the back.
No comments:
Post a Comment