Sunday, July 3, 2011

day 3, hobo livin' in pennsyltucky

I write to you from the pavillion in Taney Park in Everett, PA, a town with not much more than hills and fireflies. We've secured a secret spot in the back corner of the park for our tent. When we arrived a few hours ago, we freshened up with "water bottle baths," or pouring water over ourselves with a bit of shampoo and soap to help. I'm also armed with a variety of "wipes" for moments like this. I'm surprised at how relatively clean I feel after such an endeavor, especially after a day like today.

All we did was climb today. And dscend a bit, but mostly, we climbed. The inclines didn't stop. What we thought were summits were not. I'm learning about distance cycling mentality. And by that, I mean: "I go freaking insane when all I do is ride a bike at four miles an hour up a mountain all afternoon." True story. There were many moans of pain, shrieks of fustration, and I even fell down twice ( minor occurrences, both of em - once, my chain fell off the gear when I switched to the easiest set and I was ascending so slowly, I didn't have enough momentum to keep me up til I could get my foot out of the pedal. The second time, I stopped at an intersection and my bike tilted down mountain, but my free foot was on the opposite side.) Anyway, I'm tempted to say days like these are the most physically challenging I've experienced, the four marathons included. It's partly the length of the day, spending 6+ hours on the bike (marathons take me just under 4.) It's also the heat and the god awful humidity, and it's also the uncertainty. We just don't know where the summit is or what hill/mountain is next. Tomorrow will be another rough one. I'm hoping to be a little more zen about it. I'm also looking forward to Ohio. (It's flat, right?!)
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3 comments:

  1. Google maps makes it look like the worst it almost over. My favorite part so far is tuning a corner an Aaron screaming "No! Fuck You!" at the road.

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  2. Go Jamiel! How bout those hills where you can't see the top? Ugh!!

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