Ride report: 62.7 miles, 666.4 total miles, 15.3 mph avg, 4,695 calories, 2,848 ft. climbing, 1 unplanned bath, 1 obstinate road construction guy.
Yeah, yeah, yeah - there was some beautiful scenery today and I’ll get to that later. I know you’re all dying to hear about the bath...
So there I am, riding merrily along less than 5 miles in to today’s trip when what do I see but a low water crossing. If I’ve been thru one of these I’ve been thru a hundred by now. And this one didn’t look like much - my first missed clue. But I slowed to less than 5 miles an hour regardless. Just as I was entering the water, which was maybe 2 inches deep, I noticed that the concrete was dark. My second missed clue. Just then the ACA map’s warnings flashed thru my head: slick moss. Unfortunately my “flash” reflex needs some work because at about the time I flashed, the bike went down. This, of course, meant that I went down with it. Thus answering the question in yesterday’s post, “What can go wrong at less than 5 miles an hour?”
So, now I'm lying on my back in 2 inches of what turns out to be rather brisk water. (Note: all water is brisk when one is sweaty and said water suddenly fills your spandex shorts.) Well this was just ridiculous - I got up. A misnomer, I made it to one foot and one knee and when I had the audacity to use the other foot, the moss struck and I went down again. OK - this is some slick moss. I tried again - same result. This evolution thing isn't all its cracked up to be - the moss was winning. Now lying on one’s back in running water clarifies one’s thinking. I remember thinking quite clearly, “this sucks”. But it was obvious that getting up the normal way wasn’t gonna happen. So I took the only option available to me. I rolled over to my stomach (the last dry part of me) and used a swimming motion (yes - in 2 inches of water) until I made it to the edge of the running water where the moss was no more.
This was good. Damned moss... Until I realized that my map had fallen out of my pocket and was balanced precariously on the edge of the low water crossing about to go into the creek. Sigh... I entered the moss infested water and retrieved it. Without falling - because I went in on my hands and knees. Why the hand and knee thing didn't occur to me when I was "swimming" in two inches of water I've no idea. I took solace in the fact that the ACA made their maps water proof. clearly I wasn't the only one to have suffered this fate.
Great - I needed to call Susan for a dry set of clothes. Why can’t I read the map? (Takes off glasses). Oh, one of the lenses is missing. Sure enough, there it was back in the water. So, in I go on my hands and knees - again. Laurel and Hardy couldn’t write a schtick like this. I tell ya, wet moss is enough to make a man wanna curse like two sailors. Fortunately the lens hadn't gone over the edge by the time I got to it, so I didn't have to. We won't discuss my reaction when I later discovered that there was now a small scratch on my lens. There are no pictures of this event...
But back to Susan. Apparently the Teamsters have a roadside assistance plan, because she came to the rescue in the parking lot of the next town at an abandoned grocery store/restaurant with a dry set of riding clothes. God bless the Teamsters. (Sidebar: Imagine trying to explain all this to her over the phone.) I made a mess of her recently cleaned floors in the RV, but I couldn't strip down and squeeze the water outta everything I was wearing in while standing in the parking lot. Apparently there are some things even the Teamsters will not tolerate.
What's the deal with the obstinate road construction guy, you ask?
So there I am, riding merrily along (a lie - Hunter road into Groene from the North absolutely sucks) when I see a "road closed to thru traffic" sign. Now this sign is conveniently placed for the cyclist, seeing as how by the time one gets to it you either live there and thus aren't "thru" traffic or you have to backtrack about 5 miles. So, I did what any good touring cyclist would do. I rode up to the first guy in a neon yellow vest I could find and politely inquired about waking thru the site. "No. The road is closed. Can't you read the sign?" Yes, I can read the sign, but I'm on a bicycle and by the time I got to the sign I was well past the point of no return. Do you have any suggestions? "Yeah - find another way around." Might you be able to offer any suggestions? "No. Figure it out. Everyone else has." Everyone else is driving a car. I'm just trying to save five miles. "Ya can't walk thru here." How about if I just walk where your guys are walking up by the train tracks? "No. we're improving the crossing. Its all torn up." (Now I knew he was lying. So far as I am able to determine Texas road crews work actively to make the road surfaces rougher - not improve them.)
Can I speak to your supervisor? (Guy in road grader pulls up and guy in neon yellow vest bellows at him from the ground.) Guy in road grader, "Well, we're really not supposed to let you thru." OK, I'm just looking for a solution that works for everybody. What would happen if I left the road right here and walked thru the grader ditch over to the train tracks and then followed the train tracks until I was on the other side of the guys you have walking around up there where I can't walk? Road grader guy, "Ain't nothin we can do about that." Great, I can work with that. Thank you. Neon yellow vest guy stomps off - his day ruined. Good, seems like justice.
So that's the deal with the obstinate road crew guy. Ya can't make this stuff up. Now on to today's pics, because some of the scenery was absolutely beautiful. Even if pics can't do it justice...
The first 11% hill of the day - that's why I'm still smiling.
Me - pulling into Groene. Photo courtesy of Teamsters local 1976.
Good thing Delta isn't here. He'd wanna race. You can see our rig in the background. Susan was wanting to give em a go. To her its all about turning left...
But alas it was not to be. She didn't make the start - apparently Teamsters are a bit slow out of the pits.
Susan found this really cool old house while waiting for me to show up in Groene.
Is this pic politically correct? Hey - I'm not the guy renting out a tepee.
This pic is along River Road following the ACA map out of Groene. Once again I was riding along the Guadalupe River - this time heading upstream. What the Guadalupe giveth it taketh away. Last time I followed it was for a downhill run into town. This time - uphill for about 12 miles.
Another river pic. The water is quite clear. I could see the bottom.
The farther upstream we got the more of this we saw. I knew the reckoning was coming.
The reckoning came and went in order to get to here. This is the lake fed by the Guadalupe River.
Which also happens to be where we're spending the night - Potter's Creek State Park.
Till next time.
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