Sue and I did a drive today down to Berea, and followed the route of the TransAmerica for awhile, maybe about 50 miles, through Big Hill, Sand Gap, and McKee. I am happy to report that the weather along this part of the route is perfect, with mild temperatures, gentle sunshine, and moderate winds. There is a lot of downhill - about half, I'm guessing. No dogs bothered us, and only a few coal trucks and logging trucks were encountered. The road was pretty well paved and not much traffic, except it picked up a bit around the towns. There was a DQ at the top of every hill, as I recall.
Also, I went to a talk at REI this evening by two ladies who did a cross country trip and wrote a book - "Across America by Bicycle", which I bought a copy of. Don't know that they had anything profound to pass on, but some basic advice such as be sure to use a rear view mirror and be prepared to get off the road when you see trouble coming up behind and be sure to communicate assertively with your fellow riders when safety is threatened. That said, they did not have much in the way of road trouble, but they were careful. They said be sure to stop to let your rims cool off on long downhills so you don't have blowouts due to heat buildup. Carry lots of water, there might be long stretches with no water available and when it is hot that can be a problem. They have a website, aliceandbobbie.com and they recommended another site, crazyguyonabike.com that has lots of cross country stories from other's experiences.
Keep riding!
Jerry
No comments:
Post a Comment