Seeing small town America from the bicycle seat ___________________________
Tuesday, October 4th was the two month mark of the trip and the other day I went over 3,000 miles. Now I’m at 3,122. For the 52 days of riding that puts me at a 60 mile per day average, and with the rest days included it’s an average of 50 miles per day. [Read more…]
In riding with Charlie, Marcus and Kirsty the past week, a lot of events seem to revolve around eating. The only place open Sunday morning in Ellington was the store at the gas station, so that was the stop. They had a couple of tables indoors where you could sit after buying your breakfast sandwich and biscuits and gravy, which is popular around here. An older man was sitting at the table when we arrived. I’ve mentioned thick accents, but this guy, combined with his very raspy voice, put him over the top. [Read more…]
Saturday was going to be a long day, 77 miles from Houston to Ellington. I had thought that the hills in the Ozarks hadn’t been that bad, but would find out this day that you don’t get away that easy. [Read more…]
While talking with a few people in Marshfield and then listening to a group of older men around a table Friday morning at the Uptown Cafe, it wasn’t hard to notice that many of the people around here have a tremendously thick country accent. It’s strong to the point where sometimes you’re not quite sure what they’re saying. They’ll talk about things such as “I slept with the wind’ers open last night.” [Read more…]
The ride on Thursday began with heading over to Mike’s house to return the key to the Ash Grove Community Center (where I slept). His and other homes in the neighborhood already had fall decorations and pumpkins on display, so the town looked good. [Read more…]
Wednesday ended up being a 72 mile day into Missouri and the town of Ash Grove. I had enjoyed my stay in Pittsburgh. It was a nice city with an old, brick Rexall drug store on the north end. I hadn’t seen one of those in years. As I’ve said, even though you’re doing this trip at a slow pace on a bicycle, you still don’t have all the time you would like to spend in these towns. [Read more…]