I woke late in State College, so I took an easy day riding just 50 miles or so to Altoona. New York and Pennsylvania had been very hilly so far. I was constantly surrounded by valleys and mountains, it was beautiful, but the riding was tough and the wind was always blowing against me. I rode rolling downhills to Altoona, a town in central PA. Upon arriving in Altoona I got some pizza. The manager gave me free slices, free gatorades, and got his outdoorsy worker to show me a beautiful park nearby where I could camp. Like every day, both of these guys offered me their couches without my asking. The kindness of strangers on this trip is unparalleled. My butt felt like it finally got used to my seat, unfortunately my feet still hurt a lot from these shoes. I have to stop for my feet, rarely due to exhaustion.
I camped on a high point in that park. It was beautiful. I used two pairs of socks to give myself a rubbing alcohol bath and use the woods as a bathroom. I realized it was summertime, I didn't need a sleeping bag. I left it in a frisbee golf goal. Now instead of three packs on my rear rack I just had my panniers. The weight was reduced, the air flowed by me much easier, and my max speed would increase to 40 mph during steep dives.
Unbeknownst to me Altoona is in the heart of the Appalachain valley. I was riding a hundred miles to Pittsburgh, and to get there I had to ride up the toughest portion of the Appalachain mountain range. It was a straight uphill in record heat for the first 25 miles. My odometer read between 6 and 8 mph for that portion of the ride. I stopped in the keystone truck stop restaurant where I got the hugest plate of breakfast food in my life for ten bucks after tax and tip. This gave me the fuel to continue.
I left the truck stop at 12:30, being told there were only 70 miles to go. I had to break again between 3 PM and 3:45. It was the only bit of shade I could find all day, I was happy to lay there. I could only lie face down because my back was so sunburnt.
I kept riding. I saw handmade sign after handmade sign that made my mouth water. "Peaches $1.99," "Free hot dog and lemonade," "Watermelons $1." I finally get there and I pull in. A big guy wearing a shirt that says "American Cancer Society" ushers me in. Him and his friend are trying to get to Pittsburgh today, then eventually San Francisco. Obviously, so was I. We could all enjoy more company, especially if I was a cyclist and former bicycle mechanic. The big guy (Mike) rode a Fuji Newest 2.0 and broke three spokes on his rear wheel. The other guy (Nick) just bought a Raleigh road bike. Mike hitch hiked to Pittsburgh and got a free easy ride for the last 30 miles. Nick and I got a hot dog and charged ahead. An hour later I got a text form Mike. Mike found a room in a really fancy hotel for just 70 bucks! Split three ways that's an amazing deal. Nick and I rode on exhausted legs and got to know one another. He persuaded doctors and teachers from his home town in New Jersey to sponsor him 10 cents a mile for the American Cancer Society. We were the same age, we had even both stayed in State College on the same day, we just didn't run into each other. This was a pretty cool coincidence.
We finally get to Pittsburgh just before nightfall. 10 AM to 9 PM, that was a grueling day. We find the hotel and Nick doesn't believe it. Nick calls Mike "This hotel looks really fancy, this can't be right." Mike opened the door for us. I was impressed. Beautiful lobby, beautiful mattresses, free coffee and tea, beautiful clean bathroom. Tired and dirty, we all showered (one at a time), changed, then hit the town. Right away I met some really cool drunk college kids. We were happy to help this guy celebrate his birthday, and he and the girls were eager to hear our bike trip stories. I made a glowstick cleopatra crown for him, and he rocked it like no metero guy ever has. The bar was awesome. Two dollar beers? Hell yeah! We met some really cool people. It was a good night.
The next day Mike went to Iron City bikes to get a new rear wheel. The mechanic offered him a double walled rim with double studded spokes for 35 bucks, 50 to do it today. I told Mike I could tell the mechanic was ripping him off, but back in Jersey and New York you couldn't find a pre-built wheel for less than 80 bucks. The shop didn't have bike shoes, so I walked a few miles to squirrel hill and found a really good shop. I found last year's touring shoes for 75 bucks marked down from $150. They invited me to go in the back and tune up my own bike. Wow, the difference truing a wheel using a truing stand versus eyeballing it with the brakes is astonishing. My wheels fly now, my feet don't hurt, my shifting doesn't hesitate and my hoods don't slip. The Bike Tech was a great, classy shop. Once again, unparalleled hopsitality.
1 PM and Mike's wheel is ready. We leave at 2 and make it through West Virginia to Ohio by 9 PM. I am a stronger rider than these guys, but waiting seems to help my endurance. I instinctively start my centuries as sprints and don't even think about pacing myself for 30 miles or so, starting to get tired arounbd fifty. Pittsburgh to Ohio was only 52 miles, but I didn't even feel stiff. We are out of Pennsylvania, through the mountains, and in the beautifully flat midwest. It is 146 miles to Columbus. Beautiful sunshine as awlays, compared to the mountains this is gonna be easy.
No comments:
Post a Comment