The rooms at the Best Western were definitely not as nice as the plush Home2Suites in Tallahassee, but the breakfast this morning was great! I was starving by the end of the day yesterday, so I filled up on eggs, biscuits, sausage and gravy this morning…plus a yogurt. I was stuffed but knew that we had a long day of 75mi plus to get through. The hotel was right on a frontage road that parralleled I-10, so our first 5 miles or so was along that nearly traffic-less road and we got to ride 2×2 which was a nice change.
One we got back to US90, we were again riding a busier road, but it had a descent shoulder. Mark was the first flat tire casualty (do you sense the foreshadowing?), but it was quickly repaired and we were riding again in no time. The scenery today was pretty bland and much more dry and dusty than yesterday, but we did have about 60 miles of tailwind which was awesome!
After a roadside lunch, Brian noticed a slow leak in his tire and we stopped several times the rest of the way to pump it back up. I was the last to flat and it happened with less than 10 miles to go. It was mysterious since it is a brand new tire and had no visible damage. I put in a new tube and made it to the B&B where it promptly went flat again. So, only my dad escaped the flat tire curse today. We chatted with the guy whose driveway we were sitting in as I fixed my tire, but I’m sure Brian will fill you in on that.
After checking in, we all did a bit of bike maintenance in the courtyard garden over beer and chips and then walked over to the bike shop in town to resupply. High Springs is a great little town that kind of seems to be just waking up from the 60s. Tonight we had dinner at a wonderful restaurant with outdoor seating and, Mark’s favorite, country music. Ok, MAYBE, not his favorite. But it’s mine, and the hot wings were hot, and the ribs were great. Happy happy happy. We were surrounded by tons of young families with little kids, all enjoying the night out. It’s hard not to wonder what life would be like raising kids in such a slower paced place.
Last piece of entertainment, but I’ll have to leave most of it to your imagination. The B&B where we’re staying has somewhat themed rooms. Beth assigned them with help from the owner. The proprietor described my dads as ‘testosterone challenged’ and mine as the ‘romance room.’ Perfect. He also took one look at me and asked Beth, “Who is the young guy?” My new BFF. The walls of my room are covered in interesting photos. Below is the ONLY one safe to share online, and it’s appropriately themed!
Our first rest stop. A train came by a short time after we left!
We found a nice park for our stop in Live Oak, and it had plenty of benches…but no bathroom. They’re not peeing, I promise.
The shade was welcome since today got pretty warm. Again, not peeing, I promise.
Yep. This is the safe one. Oh my.
Now I see why they have this as the pre-bedtime routine!
Gotta see that room!