Today was yet another one of those days that you work yourself into a good mood. As I put my arm warmers and rain jacket on as I left the hotel room with my bike at my side, I said again to myself “All I have to do today is ride my bike, how lucky am I?”. My iPhone weather app had popped up just a few minutes earlier with the message “Light Rain Starting Soon”. We’ve had a good bit of rain lately so it’s best to assume that it will be raining and that we’ll have headwinds all day – that way you’ll be happy when it’s different.
We rolled out later than usual at 9:30 AM from the Punderson Manor given the relatively short ride of 64 miles scheduled for the day. We did have a good bit of climbing again for a short route but it was not as punchy as yesterday’s route. The rain started on cue as we rolled out after the route talk but by the time we had made it to our mile 18 SAG stop, the heavier rain had abated. With temps in the high 60’s, I was sweating a good bit on the climbs so off came the light rain jacket at that point. But the damage was done since the roads were sloppy and wet.
Did I mention that we were rolling most of the the day through the Northeast Ohio Amish community? Well, the Amish travel locally by horse and buggy – and just like us, those horses have to poop every once in a while. So you can imagine how pleasant of an experience it is to be kicking up water mixed with horse poop with your wheels for a good part of the day. Let me say this – it is highly recommended to put maybe 8-10 feet of distance between you and the cyclist in front of you – and it’s a good idea to take a close look at your water bottle before you take a swig.
But again, once you get wet and accept it, the ride itself isn’t so bad. Could it be more comfortable? Of course it could but you know it’s not going to last forever – so just keep pedaling and remind yourself how lucky you are to just have to ride your bike that day.
Despite the messy road conditions, it was pretty cool to see the Amish homes and some of the kids doing their chores (mowing lawns with powerless rotary mowers, for instance). They seem to be a friendly bunch – as we rode by their homes, they would look at us and once we raised our hands with a friendly wave, they would all wave back. But I can’t say that any of them waved first. Maybe it’s just ingrained in their culture? I don’t know. It was also interesting that almost all their home bore the same simple and “boxy” architecture. I would suspect that many if not most of those homes were hand built by the community. One thing I did notice was that there were no electric transmission lines leading to their homes – they lead simple lives with just the basics and no cable TV, Netflix or the curse of “social media”. And they all seem happy! I think I did spot one Amish “cheater” though, they had a few solar panels tucked into a small part of the roof. What’s up with that?
With just 64 miles to cover today, we didn’t have a lunch stop. We just ate lunch at the Hampton Inn when we got into Meadville, PA. So, today we hit a couple of milestones – we entered our 11th state and we crossed the 3,000 mile mark of our journey just 10 miles out from the Punderson Manor. It’s hard to believe we’ve come so far! The golden hills of Oregon seems like months ago, but it’s not. Our guides have been putting more emphasis on safety lately – accidents happen when people get lackadaisical. As for me, I am feeling pretty good but we have 2 consecutive centuries starting tomorrow and we’re expecting rain or a high chance of rain all day – with yet more miles through some Amish communities.
Regardless of the sometimes difficult weather conditions, I thank God for every day of this adventure and the blessings that it has brought – time alone on the bike to think about the things that are meaningful in our lives – our families, treasured friends, our health, our goals and how to achieve them. And I remind myself that it all comes from Him!
But for now, it’s time to gear back up an get ready to tackle the 203 miles and 10,052 feet of climbing over the next two days. I’ll be thinking again about Philipians 4:13!
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