Day 11 - Thursday, May 21
Start - Radford, VA
End - Wytheville, VA
Miles (on route) - 46
Miles (total) - 54.5
Ave Spd - 11.1mph
Max Spd - 38mph
Total Ride Time - 4:45
I left the Lee's house refreshed and clean, ready to ride on my rejuvenated smooth ride. But not so fast. I left the town of Radford and immediately started to notice some odd wobble to my ride. I sometimes get some wobble in the front end at higher speeds, but I was now getting it at speeds under 10mph and it felt as if it was through the whole body of the bike. I made sure the weight balance was even through all my bags and hoped I could ride it out. After checking my bike a second time I found the spokes on the back wheel, the new wheel, had come severely loose. I was able to hitch a ride back to Radford to take it into the local bike shop. I haven't trued a wheel previously and I didn't think this was the right opportunity to learn to do it. Dave at The New Wheel bike shop was great and trued me up in no time. He was surprised to see a wheel come that loose so quickly, but assumed it was quite a shock to suddenly throw all the weight on it and run it 50 miles.
I finally got rolling around three, and again found myself racing against the sun to bike some decent miles. I was hoping this time was for real, finally riding smooth. The bike felt great, but again I was feeling frustrated riding through the constant ups and downs of the Appalachians. I've found myself not staying in the moment and turning towards a more negative attitute, hating this terrain as I struggle to beat sundown. Similarly I've been neglecting the camera in recent days. As of late, each day has been focused on making it to a destination and not all the experiences along the way. That's not what I'm out here to do.
I eventually made it into Wytheville where I was able to throw the tent down in the city park. It arrived only two days after another biker was hit by a car while leaving the town and was airlifted to a neighboring hospital. The story served to remind me of the dangers that are out there each day.