2 Wheels, 7 States, 1500 Miles

Erie, PA to Brookville, PA Day 15 (rest day), Day 16 97 Miles, Toughest Day Yet!

Erie was a great place to rest. The Sheraton was the nicest hotel so far and the view looking out over Lake Erie was very relaxing. I spent the day going over my route for the last 5 days of my trip and importing the data into my Garmin computer. The details on how to do this are not important, but planning the route and getting it to the computer was surprisingly manual and very time consuming.

I had a sneaking suspicion that my route from Erie, PA through to Maryland was going to be full of steep climbs. I didn't study elevations because the route is the route and I have no choice but to bike what is laid out ahead of me. I guess it's one of those things that I intentionally avoid thinking about, but in the back of my mind, I knew that it would be difficult.

I started off by having breakfast with the group. It was a bit bitter sweet event. We exchanged our goodbyes and I snapped a few pictures knowing I will likely never see these people again. Initially, I thought that I would wait to head out with them and then just turn away when we headed in our separate directions, them North and me South. I rethought it and concluded that this would be a bit dramatic like a bad made for TV movie. Instead, I filled my tires, avoided just about everyone, and left by myself to climb out of low lying Erie, PA. Immediately, the climbs were steep and long. The weather was cold but bearable. I felt the impact of being alone right out of the gates. No friendly banter for the first 10 miles, no bikers to catch during the day and no SAG wagons waiting in the distance. Fortunately, my mother Sharon was just waking up in the hotel room and I knew that at least I would see her later in the day, which was a big mental plus.

After 15 miles or so, the climbs got much longer and more steep. The temperatures climbed and I could feel myself fatiguing at an alarming rate. I would go down the mountains at 35-40+ miles an hour and was instantly greeted, almost laughed at, by the next climb. Some climbs were more than a couple miles long and with elevations close to 2000 feet, I quickly grew annoyed. The scenery was beautiful however, and the Pennsylvania back country with all of its trees, clear rivers and quaint little towns caught my attention and gave me a lot of reason to appreciate how great it was to be on a bicycle. Most of these little towns are hidden jewels, rarely seen by outsiders because everyone bypasses them when they take the major interstate highways.

Sharon caught up with me at about mile 60. She could easily see that by mile 70, I had almost had enough. With almost 30 miles to go, her van was looking mighty inviting for a SAG 'bump'. A bump is when you ride in the support vehicle to give yourself a rest. I haven't taken one in all of this distance and I wasn't going to start now. Like an oasis, we spotted a restaurant at the top of one of these climbs and we sat down for a fish sandwich and some cold lemonade. The restaurant was very old fashioned, but it was air conditioned, clean and the food was delicious. This was the first time in the trip that I had lunch during a ride day. Usually, it's a drinks, refill bottles and then get back on the road. I loved sitting with mom and catching up but I was worried that the food would sit like a rock in me. I needed to keep going so I ducked out a bit early and she stayed on to finish lunch and pay the bill.

The Garmin was reliable but took me down some very country back roads. One road was shaded and cool but went down at a 12%+ grade. I had grown tired of the high speed descents and because this road was mostly pressed gravel, I had to break for most of it so that I didn't wipe out. This was just irritating and the return ascent was unbelievable steep and went straight up for two miles. There were very few cars, but the ones that did come by, I could hear their engines straining from a mile away. This marked the first time on the trip that I could not finish the climb. I'm not embarrassed to write it because I simply didn't have the gears and/or the physical juice to finish it. I had mentioned in an earlier entry that I came to the ride with two gear wheels in the front. What I needed on this hill was a third smaller gear (and perhaps a bit more mountain training). There are plenty of bikers out there that could have made this climb, but with the temperature at 85+ degrees and having climbed up and down for 70 plus miles, and not having the right equipment (in my opinion), I dismounted and walked the bike for the last half mile. I don't regret it because the rest of the day presented plenty more hills to climb and opportunities to test my manly bravado.

I finished the day on a road called 'The Bottom' road. It was about 2-3 miles of all gravel and dirt road. Sharon had to ride behind me because she was throwing up a dust cloud and was kind enough to realize it and let me pass. The road was dangerous for me because the stones were chewing into my thin tires and I was worried that any second I would puncture an inner tube. Even worse, I was afraid I would destroy a tire, and with no spare on hand, we would have to go really out of our way to find one. It was definitely not the type of thing that my road bike was designed for. Fortunately, I made it through without incident and was dumped back on to the main road for one last monster climb before it dumped me down to my hotel with a kick in the butt, almost to say, 'How you like me now!'. Mom and I checked into the Super 8, which is anything but super. Just to pain the picture, a biker guy was giving the front desk (a sweet woman, maybe 75 years old) grief because he didn't have an ash tray in the room. Screaming loudly, 'I paid for a smoking room, I should have an ash try'. He was finished yelling and coincidentally, the two of started walking down the hall together. He attempted to get my support for his dilemma.. 'Can't believe I paid for a smoking room and they don't have an ashtray... that's bullshit!'. I just nodded in brotherly agreement and said, 'that really stinks'. Secretly, I wanted to throw up. The not so super 8 was a mess to begin with, but knowing that this clown was going to be puffing away right next door to me, didn't make me feel any more super. On top of that, I was a bit embarrassed that I had my mother staying in this place. Fortunately, she is a good sport about everything and didn't have an issue with the place.

The ride was my toughest so far and it took everything out of me. We got an ice cream cone and I came back to shower and fell solidly asleep for 2 hours. I have never in my life ridden any course like the one I designed for myself today. I'm not sure why I booked a century ride after just completing four, but I am glad it is behind me with only four days left until I get home.

NO GERMAN SHEPHERD for me! Not many people know that I have a fear of dogs, which is largely the result of some bad childhood experiences. I also had some bad situations around my kids where dogs have come after them. On one occasion, I nearly broke one in half when it attacked my kids in a wagon. Even afterwards, the neighbors who were good friends claimed that it was a 'friendly' dog. We remained friends even after the incident, but I did make them a sincere promise that I would kill the animal if it ever came after my children again. All these incidents combined, I have had zero interest in having a dog.

What fewer people know is that I have been secretly entertaining the idea of getting a dog for the last year or so. While on this trip, the feeling grew stronger when Sherman, one of the riders (the Mt. Everest record holder), showed me a picture of his beautiful west German Shepherd named Denali. It made me think to myself that it was maybe a sign. I had always grown up with German Shepherds, and if this old guy could have a big handsome animal like this, then why couldn't I..

Well, that all changed today... I was just coming over the top of a steep climb, panting and sweating almost uncontrollably. As I was recovering on the flat, I could see to my left a nice trailer home with a well kept yard. I didn't pay too much attention until I heard very loud barking and a door slam. When I looked back again, a pure bred German Shepherd had came rushing out of the door, and was in full sprint across two lanes of traffic with the obvious intent of attacking me. It was showing its teeth and was growling as it was running. I did my best to yell at it which had zero impact. The best I could do was to start pedaling like a mad man. It kept up with me for 50 feet or so, and snapped at me for at least the first 30. It gave up fortunately, but since I had lost sight of it, I didn't stop speeding away for a mile or so. I was completely shaken up for the next five miles. It was right then and there that I decided that there would never be a German Shepherd in my future.

Sharon was great company today and really came through in backing me up. Big shout out to her. Again, I'm embarrassed for the place that we're staying in right now, but I'm so glad that she's here and that I can finally see someone from home.

Tomorrow, I will bike 76 miles on what will likely be a redo of today's course. The unfortunate part is that the elevations will get more severe. I am as ready as I will ever be.

Some Pictures from the Road: