Today was one of the toughest days I’ve had on the trip. Not only because of the conditions, but some of the people that have been in touch with me throughout the ride have dropped out. I have one more day of riding on this trip, and wish I could share it with them, but I guess I understand.
I rode 46 miles today, and it took me 5 1/2 hours. Most of it was on a bike path, which was nice. I left Marathon with plenty of cold water. They were nice enough to leave two bottles of water in my room, which I appreciated. I awoke to the news that one of my credit cards has been hacked. After several phone calls, I had the account cancelled and a new card in the mail. Then I found out that the hotel used the wrong card when I checked in. Annoying, but not the end of the world. I had the continental breakfast, and it was pretty good. I had been up since 4:30 or so. I went down to the pool and lay down in the hammock, which was very comfy, and watched the lightning flash across the sky. It was pretty cool. I was tempted to go for a swim, but I didn’t want to ride with a wet bathing suit in my trailer.
I saw enough iguanas today to fill a huge terrarium. It’s funny, when I come down the path, I don’t make a lot of noise, but they all start crossing the path to hide in the woods. Some of them were huge! I rode across a whole lot of very windy bridges today. They were all cool, except for one. They had orange cones set up (not sure why), so the lanes were shifted. A car next to me started texting or something, and hit several of the cones, which sent them flying in my direction. I managed to dodge them. Scary. Another scary thing was, I was biking along and all of a sudden, a crab ran out at me. So yes, I screamed... Not something I’m used to! I managed to avoid him too.
I stopped for lunch at a little motel that had a cafe. They made me a very good bratwurst. I was starving. I tried to stop at a place in Layton, but they were closed. The 10 miles after Layton took me FOREVER. It was so hot. I had no opportunity to get shade on the bike path, and I called Chuck when I was 4 miles from my hotel. I said, “I know I’m so close, but it’s so hot, and I feel like I’m gonna pass out.” He told me to drink some water and walk around slowly. It really helped. The 4 miles felt like 14, but I did it. I rewarded myself with a really good dinner. I like Marathon. I met some really nice people here, and they all had recommendations for my time in Key West. I have 50 miles to ride tomorrow. I hope it goes a little smoother than today!
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