30 March 2010

Williamsburg to Glendale





This part of the ride would have been awesome if so many things hadn't gone wrong.  We were actually pretty miserable for much of the day.  We had to go way out of our way to get a new house (tent) and getting back on track was no easy task.  It was cold, windy, and very frustrating.  And then Ken did this:
Use the brakes when you want to stop a TerraTrike - unless your name is Flintstone this is what happens when you try to use your feet instead.  Ouch.
But he was tough and we kept riding... The traffic thinned out and we went through Jamestown and after 49 miles spent the night at the Chickahominy Park on the James River.  Our first night in our new tent and we had to set it up in the cold and dark, and we discovered our sleeping bags had gotten wet when it rained in Yorktown.  Yeah, it was a long, hard day.  The next morning we got an early start and found this bike trail along side the road.  A NICE surprise!
Sure beats sharing the road with cars and trucks.
See how green everything is starting to get?  

We found THE BEST restaurant in Charles City. If you are ever in this neck of the woods, you MUST eat here!  Everything was soooo good and the service was SUPER!  

Up the road from here were many plantations and signs all along the John Tyler Memorial Hwy.  We saw alot of battlefields and after 35 more miles we landed at the Willis United Methodist Church Hostel in Glendale:
This church was used as a field hospital during the revolutionary war.  Now they host cyclists!  Juanita lives next door and we really enjoyed talking with her.  She and I had LOTS in common and I will always remember her. 

Across the street from the church was this Veteran's Cemetery. 
This morning the pastor, Hugh, and his secretary Nancy came to the church.  Hugh took my trike for a spin, we told him about our ride and about Alex and they prayed with us before we left.  NICE people.  We sure appreciate their letting us stay in their church through the big storms!


9 comments:

  1. OUCH. Maybe you should consider clipless pedals to save your poor ankles from further abuse. Also increases your efficiency up to 30% or more by being able to pull back on the pedals, not just push.

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  2. Can they put those things into my Chucks? You know how I am about my shoes. :P

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  3. Well, that pic of Ken's foot helped me decide for sure that I'll be getting clipless pedals!
    Great photos and stories. Try to keep those feet on the pedals, Ken! :)

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  4. The Chucks would have to be relegated to camp shoe status. But if you do get cycling shoes get mountain bike shoes that you can walk around in. Road bike shoes don’t have a sole for walking on comfortably. You could get a Shimano (PD-M324) pedal that has a traditional flat pedal on one side for riding with your Chucks and the other side has a clip. For me, being clipped in gives me peace of mind that my feet won’t slip and get stuck under the trike while moving. Oh, but Ken already knows about that.

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  5. Just wanted to say hi and send some virtual support. We're watching here in New Zealand! Wish I could be doing that with you. It looks like fun - mostly. :)

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  6. LOL Mark... Ken says we need to get clipless too, but neither of us will wear the super hero getups so we will have to get the ones that are hidden inside sandals or something. We will be keeping our eyes open and our feet ON the pedals until we find them. Or at least I will. Snicker.

    Thanks for all your supportive comments Jan! New Zealand may be our first ride in a new land!

    Hi Brian. Glad Ken's Flintstone move could help you decide to go clipless. :)

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  7. P.S. Not that there is anything at all wrong with the super hero look, it's just not our personal style. :)

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  8. I agree. My cycling shoes look like regular tennis shoes and the lycra look is not for me. I seriously suggest that anyone over fifty take a close look in the mirror before they wear lycra in public. Not for their sake but for mine.

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  9. in the photo of your ankle injury... you are not even in the power-grip straps. I would say use those at least until you find some clipless sandals and pedals! I did that enough times before I go my clipless shoes and pedals but never got that kind of bruise! Ouch! BTW... I LOVE my clipless shoes now! once you get used to it, you can push and pull the pedals an it gives different muscles some work and allows others to rest. You will like em.

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