The final day of my trip was the most humid of the summer. Anytime I came to a stop I started sweating profusely. About 20 miles into the day I got a flat tire while climbing a hill along Route 7. I lost liters of sweat changing the flat on the exposed shoulder. This was my seventh or eighth flat of the ride. Like many of the others, this one was due to a worn out back tire that was sliced by a piece of gravel. The rest of the day was a breeze once I changed the flat. There was a short 5 miles to Purcellville and then I cruised home on the W & OD bike trail. I made it to 3805 Bent Branch Road around 4:30, just in time for a dinner of barbecued chicken, pasta salad, corn, fruit salad and peach cobbler.

Thanks to everyone who bothered to read this blog. It was a little lonely on the road at times, but it helped knowing that there were people rooting for me.

Most of all, huge thanks to Chris Condit and Mark Beattie. Their combined knowledge of computers and bicycles made this blog and this trip possible.

I only had 30 miles to ride in WV today and it was just as hard as yesterday. There was no rest, just a constant roller coaster. However, it didn’t take long to reach VA. Once I hit VA the road expanded to 4 lanes and the hills eased up. A few more miles and I arrived in Winchester. The city was beautiful to ride through and I’m looking forward exploring it after today’s game. Only one more day of riding.

Photo 1 – Yay!
Photo 2 & Photo 3 – Winchester, VA.
Photo 4 – A treat for the ladies, Evan and the Amazing Technicolor Dreambeard.

It was only a few days ago in Ohio that I had my easiest day of the summer. Today was the hardest. I spent all day on Route 50, heading east across WV. To my surprise, a few miles outside of Bridgeport the road changed from a wide highway with a big shoulder and gentle grades to a narrow two-laner with hills, hills, hills. This change meant less traffic and fun riding but also lots of pain. One of the most frustrating parts of the day was the poor quality of the road. It forced me to go slower on the downhills than I would have otherwise. The wind was against me again too. Despite the non-ideal conditions, the ride was beautiful and the people were nice. The distance I covered today sets me up nicely for a short day tomorrow so that I can catch the US game at 2pm. I should be back home in VA on Monday night.

The first 5 Photos are random shots from the road.
Photo 6 – Romney, WV.

Tough riding today. I started the day on back roads. After a few miles I switched to the highway because the hills were absurdly steep. On Route 50 the grades were less extreme but there was a lot of traffic. Also, the wind was back out of the east today, which added to the difficulty. It was a slog and I’m pooped. The riding for the next couple of days will be similar to today. At least home is close.

Photo 1 – Salem, WV where I stopped for lunch.

The good weather continued today, although the wind was from the east. It made little difference in the end because most of the day was spent riding hills in the woods. My general route followed Highway 50 East. For the first 2/3 of the day I stuck to back roads. The riding was gorgeous but there were 2 big problems: steep hills and dogs. The hills were fun at first but the constant rollercoaster eventually became exhausting. The dogs were never fun. One dozen is a conservative estimate of the number of dogs that came after me. Only one tried to bite and it was a little Boston Terrier. The dumb dog went for my front pannier instead of my meaty calf. I almost wished he had bitten my leg so I could have kicked his ugly face in a little further. There was only one chase that was scary. A giant German Shepherd mix spotted me and unlike all of the other dogs he didn’t start barking. He quietly began sprinting after me. I was going fast to begin with but he still got close enough that I could hear him breathing. The one-headed Cerberus had fire in his eyes and his only goal was to chew on my beating heart. He chased me for almost a mile before quitting. Then he started barking and continued until well after I was out of sight. I was shaken and I rode on the highway exclusively after that.

Photo 1 – The hills have begun.
Photo 2 – McArthur, OH.
Photos 3, 4 & 5 – The back roads.
Photo 6 – I passed through Athens, OH, home of Ohio University. While there I went searching for Armon Bassett. If I found him I was going to beat him up, but the coward never showed his face. If you don’t know who Armon Bassett is, good.

This was probably the easiest day of riding that I have had all summer. It was humid, but the temperature was only in the low 80s. I rode southeast from Beavercreek with a wind from the north on my back. Even the food was good. In Washington Court House I had a gigantic openfaced meatloaf sandwich for first-lunch. Dessert was a slice of coconut pie made that morning. Best of all, more than 50 of today’s miles were on paved bike trail. I could have easily kept riding past Chillicothe but the path was ending and I was feeling spoiled.

Photo 1 & Photo 2 – Bike trail and county road dominated the day.
Photo 3 – Washington Court House Court House.
Photo 4 – A bridge on the bike path with an observation deck!
Photo 5 – The view from the deck.

I spent most of the day on bike paths and deserted county roads. The riding was excellent and it was relatively cool compared to yesterday. The only difficult section was riding the main drag in Richmond, IN. Late in the day I rode through Dayton, OH. It was not a direct route, but I had over 40 miles on paved bike trail. The trail will continue tomorrow for most of the day.

Photo 1 & Photo 2 – County roads in Indiana.
Photo 3 & Photo 4 – Bike path in Dayton, Ohio.
Photo 5 – Dayton.

My, my, it was muggy today. The heat index must have been through the roof. In the time it took to load my panniers on my bike I was already sweating, and I didn’t stop for the rest of the day. The ride was solid, following county roads that went due east to Indianapolis. I was a little worried about navigating in the city but it was quite easy. I followed New York St. and its bike lane from one side of the city to the other. On the east side of Indy the neighborhood was a little scary. I stopped for water and Gatorade at a Village Pantry convenience store. At the register I learned that I was their first customer since getting robbed at gunpoint this morning. Eventually I found the beautiful Pennsy Bike Path and rode that out of town. I ended my day with a milkshake in Greenfield, IN. Tomorrow should be a little cooler, so hopefully I can make it to Dayton.

Photos of Indianapolis, the home of 2005-Dan.

I needed a break and I took advantage of my day off. In the AM I did all of my laundry. Then I relaxed for the rest of the day. That included taking a nap and reading. A highlight was watching the US women beat Brazil.  Heck of a game – one of the best I’ve seen in a while.

However, what really set this day apart was watching the movie Transformers 3. If you don’t love this movie the terrorists win. It had everything. Right off the bat I got a full dose of Ken Jeong doing what he does. I also got John Malkovich acting creepier than ever AND John Turturro in a motorized wheelchair. In fact, there were tons of stars, like Frances McDormand, Patrick Dempsey and Tyrese. There were cool one-liners, like “Class Dismissed!” and “You! Die!” There were giant robot-worms and Bay-tastic shots of a tattered American flag with Linkin Park playing in the background. But most of all, there was Shia. I was so blown away by his performance that I felt compelled to document it. I have included a sampling of the many faces of Shia LeBeoeuoef. I overheard an elderly man suggest that Marlon Brando was the Shia LeBoeuoeuf of his day.

All of the non-Shia photos are Rockville, IN.

I wanted to take a rest day today, but I couldn’t stomach another day in Decatur. I’m glad I kept moving because the ride was a lot of fun. I tried to stay off of Highway 36 by following county roads that parallel 36. There were a few wrong turns but the roads were mostly paved, and I was able to blaze a trail. When I stopped, I met lots of nice people including a woman who wouldn’t let me pay for a rootbeer float. By the end of the day I was riding the hills of southwestern Indiana. I stopped in a cute little town called Rockville, which I will explore tomorrow on my rest day.

Photos – The view.