Wednesday, July 30, 2008 – Day 38

Start: Napoleon, Ohio
End: Sandusky, Ohio
Miles: 89.10 Total Miles: 2,899.24 BRAA Total Miles: 2,740.00
Time: 5 hours 5 minutes (avg 17.5 MPH)
Flat tire count today: 0 Total flat tires for the ride: 10

We experienced another episode with people near the campground that apparently had too much to drink. It took place at a house across the street from where we were camping. There was a lot of screaming and foul language. It was like watching the sequel to the Coal City experience. The police eventually made their way over and things quieted down.

The morning started a little earlier than I had planned. I was going to get up at 5AM, but at about quarter till 5, I heard a couple of rain drops on my tent. I jumped into action packing my stuff so I could take down my tent before any heavier rain came. I know how quickly storms can move in this area and wanted to keep my tent as dry as possible. Well, those few drops were about all we had. It was no big deal. It just got me going earlier. Throughout the day, we only received a few small rain drops here and there. They were actually welcomed to help cool things down, especially the humidity.

The ride today was fantastic. So many of the factors came together at the same time. We had flat roads that did not have much traffic on them. The biggest factor was that we had a tailwind between 5 and 15 miles per hour for most of the ride. That combined with the other factors enabled us to ride quickly. I averaged about 2 to 3 miles per hours more than usual. For about 50 miles, we were riding at speeds of up to 25 miles per hour with not too much effort.

There are riders on this trek that spend thousands of dollars on their bikes and riding gear. Some bought new bikes just for this ride. I wanted to recognize one of the riders that did not go to any extreme whatsoever in purchasing riding gear. She has ridden over 2,700 miles so far from Seattle, Washington to Sandusky, Ohio in Converse low top basketball shoes. She will finish the ride with them as well. I rode in tennis shoes until the beginning of this year, so I know how much different it is to ride with real biking shoes.

I knew that we were officially in Ohio today when we reached the Ohio Turnpike. I spent many hours driving on the turnpike when I lived in the Cleveland area, so it was like a homecoming to me. Actually, tomorrow we will ride within about 15 miles from where I used to live – just south of Cleveland.

When we arrived in camp this afternoon, there was a baby bird on the ground next to where we were going to setup camp. Someone reached out their hand and the bird jumped right on her hand. It was pretty cool. The bird was eventually put back into the tree for safety, but it came back a little later looking for food. Experiencing things up close is so eye opening.

We are camping in Sandusky, Ohio right next to Lake Erie. About half the riders are heading over to Cedar Point Amusement Park this evening to enjoy the roller coasters. I know they will have a fun time, but I don’t want to be out until 10PM and then have to get up tomorrow morning. Also, I have already been there several times, so I know that I am not missing anything.