June 18,
2001. Outside Carbondale to Chester, Illinois. (25 mi.) Mile 1187
The
Incredible Lightness of Biking
OK, I'll admit I was getting
discouraged. Today is my 51st birthday, and even when I have been in the best
condition, I am not a gifted athlete nor that strong. It has been difficult
for me to keep up the daily mileage necessary to make it to the west coast
without layover days for rest, especially in this stifling heat. I really want to
complete this goal, yet I was really overdue for a break from camping, heat,
and hills. It was great to have a friend in Carbondale who pampered us for a
while.
Many readers of this journal from
back home know our host, Bill Davies. Bill is in the physician assistant
program at SIU. This last winter, he had months of severe back and leg pain
related to a ruptured lumbar disk, and underwent surgery a week ago. He is
getting around with a cane, but doing much better. Victoria and his two
daughters are presently in Oregon where Victoria is working short term and
visiting friends.
Bill went out of
his way to feed us and haul us around.
Bill drove us all over on errands,
starting with a trip to "The Internationally Famous Bike Surgeon"
(according to his shirt), where Mike dropped off his rear wheel for a new rim.
The Bike Surgeon is another personality on the TransAm Trail, though not quite
comparable to The Cookie Lady. He has a poster in his shop quoting bike guru
Gary Klein:
"Riding is about the
rhythm and flow. It's the wind in your face and the challenge of hammering
up a long hill. It's the reward at the top and the thrill of a high-speed
descent. Biking lets you come alive both in body and spirit. After a while,
the bike disappears beneath you and you feel as if you're suspended in
midair."
"Yeah but," I was
thinking, "does the wind always have to blow in your face?"
Actually, I do love bicycling and
traveling this way, but it's the extra weight that challenges me on the hills,
so we came up with another plan. We mailed home another 8 lbs of things we had
thought we couldn't live without and shipped 17 lbs of tent and camping gear
on ahead to general delivery where we hope to be in a few days. This will
lighten our load for the Ozarks coming up tomorrow. Instead of camping, we
will get motels, but we will also try to put in 60+ mile days in order to try
to make the west coast in time, and see how this plan goes.
Flat riding,
light bikes
For my birthday, I got new bike sox
and gloves. You know you need new bike gloves when you think you are smelling
another road kill 'possum and it's really just your gloves. I have also
received positive email from all over and this has been very much appreciated. For the final
gift, Bill dropped us off on the outskirts of Carbondale and took all of our
panniers on ahead to the Best Western in Chester. Mike and I then rode
"naked" (a bicycling term meaning: without the panniers and load)
along the nearly flat Mississippi flood plane into Chester, our bikes light
and fast, with Mike pulling and me drafting. We started after 4 pm to try to
get past the heat of the hottest day yet here. Now we'll finish it off with a
hot tub soak and some effervescent beverage. I am doing better already!
1)
2) 
1) First glimpse of the Mississippi River on the way to Chester
2) The Popeye Museum in Chester, home of the creator of Popeye
Mike wore his
safety triangle around his waist when we took the panniers off the bike, then
forgot it was back there while walking around town later. He finally figured
out why so many people were looking at his back side, though it took him a
while to think it was unusual.
