I don’t wanna a Pickle, I just wanna ride on my Bi_Cycle. (Arlo Guthrie – sort of)
Most people who know me, know that I am a recreational bike rider. Have been for around 10 years. I enjoy the ride, the view, the challenge to keep on pedaling, and the effort expended in climbing hills; but only when I succeed.
But I also ride for health. Over the years my doctors have always maintained that I get to a gym or participate in some regular exercise. I tried gyms and got bored. So I went back to bike riding much more frequently. Riding frequently has not been one of my primary activities on this trip. As in everything that happens in an RV, there is a story. One of the first items I bought for the RV was a bike rack. In order to secure the bikes – I took Shirley’s little used bike as well – I purchased a ratchet strap.
And I sure did ratchet that strap real tight.
I had hoped that at some of the spots where we stayed for a few days, I could take a ride. Also, since we didn’t tow a car, I could pick up some groceries at local markets as long as they were within riding range. When finally during the second week out, I had the chance, I took my bike off the rack and immediately noted my front tire was sliced by the very tight ratchet strap. Whoops! Actually, only the tire itself was sliced, it had not gone through to the tube; but not safe to ride. No, big problem I could use Shirley’s bike! Whoops! Her rear gear cable had come loose, and I lacked the know-how to pop it back in correctly without totally messing up the gears. So, no bike.
A few weeks later we made it into Austin, where the very first afternoon there, I popped off the front tire, called an Uber and got a ride to the nearest bike shop. The ride took 30 minutes, the campground lied big time when they said they were 15 minutes away from Austin civilization. But I got the tire replaced with the exact brand and model and when I got back and popped it back on … there was a slice, much smaller, on the rear tire.
Another 2 weeks later we were in Colorado Springs, and as we circled around a block near downtown after missing a ramp to the highway for the last 5 miles to our campground, I noticed a bike shop, and it as right next to the shop and it was right next to the highway to our campground. When I got settled into the campground, I decided to chance riding the bike on the less sliced rear tire to the bike shop. Sure, I went slow and carefully avoided serious bumps. But it was mostly on the bike path, and it felt great to actually ride. They replaced the tire with a different brand, but still with the tread I prefer and that is all that matters.
After that, for almost 2 months, no stop where I had time or opportunity to ride except for a few one mile trips for groceries. Until today.
Last night a fellow camper was telling us about a wildlife refuge about 4 miles away. Having nothing planned, I immediately told Shirley I wanted to ride there. At first, she considered riding it with me, then decided that if she can get a Lyft, she would meet me there. So, off I went. Soon I realized that she would never had been up for the ride, it was mostly uphill. I call her when I get to the park, and she has a Lyft driver coming shortly. Only once she gets there we realize that there are no walking trails for about a mile. No biggie, so I scout ahead and circle back and let her know what’s ahead. Meanwhile, we see no wildlife except for a couple of chipmunks skittering across the road. Finally we get to where there is a trail. Boring.
Shirley decides to call Lyft for a ride, but there is no phone service inside the park. So she returns to the entrance and I proceed to take the 5 1/2 mile loop tour. I guessed we would meet back up somewhere near the entrance. Which is what happened.
Much confusion happened after that because we could not raise Lyft at all. I biked back into town, tried from there – no luck. So I ended up biking back to the park, where Shirley was running out of phone juice and had started walking. Apparently Lyft did not serve the park, only 4 miles from downtown Cheney, WA. We again met up, I had gotten in a decent 13 or 14 mile ride in. We got a ride from a guy who noted a woman with a dog and a man with a bike walking down the road.
Tomorrow is the eclipse.
And I did not forget about Shirley’s disconnected cable. At the campground near Monterey, there was a guy that set up a tent to fix and rent bikes. He hooked the cable back on and filled her tires. For only $10 dollars and 15 minutes of conversation.
The Journey Home has time plugged into the itinerary that I hope will allow me more rides, hopefully with less extraneous hassles.
