TransAm Day #6 Buchanan, VA - Christiansburg, VA
TransAm Day #6
May 31, 2018
Buchanan, VA - Christiansburg, VA 68 Miles
Ride Time 5:16 Hours
Tour Total 395 Miles
details at: https://cyclemeter.com/4b2d99e24f1383f2/Cycle-20180531-0800-57656
Minus Steve H slacker #teamRS got off to an 8am start. We had the worst breakfast so far on the tour, consisting of prepackaged foods and horrible coffee. To make up for it, we made off with a pannier’s worth of granola bars and Cliff bars.
It was another hot muggy day. Several times I passed cows standing in streams trying to cool themselves. I rode up through a series of valleys, and it was wild looking up at the surrounding 3000’ peaks knowing that two days ago I was up on an even higher ridge.
For much of the day I was on a narrow 20’ wide country road that paralleled and criss-crossed a train line. There really wasn’t a whole lot of room for cars to pass one another, and I was startled by a woman in a red minivan who came clipping towards me in the middle of the road a little too close for comfort.
The scenery reminded me of the long country rides I used to take with my dad back in the 70s. He used to plan extensive day trips and we would navigate with county maps.
Riding up into a clearing with a particular old white barn I was reminded of a section of the Appalachian Trail I backpacked in high school. I crossed the AT today and I stopped and talked with a backpacker named Eddie. A second backpacker emerged out of the woods as I was pedaling away.
The grades today were steep up-and-downs. I had my most difficult grades yet, and I had to use my very lowest granny gear for the first time. On the flip side I hit the #rustycrank downhill speed record today at 36 miles an hour.
I’ve now passed two bras laying out on the shoulder. I imagine there must be some good stories behind those. I also saw a lot of road kill today. There were many dead squirrels and one ground hog. The flies had picked apart several of the carcasses down to the bone. Around one turn I startled two turkey vultures picking apart something.
I rode past the enormous Roanoke cement plant and mining area and I’m happy to report that production was in full swing - #jobs. I passed a massive pipeline project- I believe for natural gas-that extended far into the distance up and over mountain tops for miles using massive earth moving equipment.
The innkeeper back in Buchanan had offered both of us small American flags which we fastened to the back of our bikes. I’m proud to be flying Old Glory as I ride coast to coast.
The food options today were extremely limited. I stopped at a grocery store in Troutville run by two very friendly ladies, who asked me to sign their cyclist registry. I was able to score bananas and apples. It was another 35 miles before I found anything else. In Ellet I encountered a Citgo station that had a kitchen and grocery. I ordered 2 cheese burgers - my first in 18 years. I needed protein and I had to make up for the poor breakfast. A minute after I sat down at a picnic table out front under an awning, it began to downpour cold rain. It blew sideways and I got drenched. The temperature cooled down 30 degrees, and for a moment it felt great.
I finally made it to Christiansburg. Steve wanted to camp, so we went to the brand new extremely fancy aquatic center that offered free showers for traveling cyclists. I talked with a police officer in the parking lot who said that we could camp in the adjoining park. For dinner, we met up with my Cincinnati friend Kim and her husband Jim. Kim and I went to the same high school, and she’s been a good friend of my mom’s for years. Her son Camen hiked the Appalachian Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail.
Speaking of mountain ranges, I crossed the Eastern Continental Divide this afternoon. Water is now flowing west to the Mississippi. Oh, and I'm done with Map #12. I'm more than halfway to Berea.
May 31, 2018
Buchanan, VA - Christiansburg, VA 68 Miles
Ride Time 5:16 Hours
Tour Total 395 Miles
details at: https://cyclemeter.com/4b2d99e24f1383f2/Cycle-20180531-0800-57656
Minus Steve H slacker #teamRS got off to an 8am start. We had the worst breakfast so far on the tour, consisting of prepackaged foods and horrible coffee. To make up for it, we made off with a pannier’s worth of granola bars and Cliff bars.
It was another hot muggy day. Several times I passed cows standing in streams trying to cool themselves. I rode up through a series of valleys, and it was wild looking up at the surrounding 3000’ peaks knowing that two days ago I was up on an even higher ridge.
For much of the day I was on a narrow 20’ wide country road that paralleled and criss-crossed a train line. There really wasn’t a whole lot of room for cars to pass one another, and I was startled by a woman in a red minivan who came clipping towards me in the middle of the road a little too close for comfort.
The scenery reminded me of the long country rides I used to take with my dad back in the 70s. He used to plan extensive day trips and we would navigate with county maps.
Riding up into a clearing with a particular old white barn I was reminded of a section of the Appalachian Trail I backpacked in high school. I crossed the AT today and I stopped and talked with a backpacker named Eddie. A second backpacker emerged out of the woods as I was pedaling away.
The grades today were steep up-and-downs. I had my most difficult grades yet, and I had to use my very lowest granny gear for the first time. On the flip side I hit the #rustycrank downhill speed record today at 36 miles an hour.
I’ve now passed two bras laying out on the shoulder. I imagine there must be some good stories behind those. I also saw a lot of road kill today. There were many dead squirrels and one ground hog. The flies had picked apart several of the carcasses down to the bone. Around one turn I startled two turkey vultures picking apart something.
I rode past the enormous Roanoke cement plant and mining area and I’m happy to report that production was in full swing - #jobs. I passed a massive pipeline project- I believe for natural gas-that extended far into the distance up and over mountain tops for miles using massive earth moving equipment.
The innkeeper back in Buchanan had offered both of us small American flags which we fastened to the back of our bikes. I’m proud to be flying Old Glory as I ride coast to coast.
The food options today were extremely limited. I stopped at a grocery store in Troutville run by two very friendly ladies, who asked me to sign their cyclist registry. I was able to score bananas and apples. It was another 35 miles before I found anything else. In Ellet I encountered a Citgo station that had a kitchen and grocery. I ordered 2 cheese burgers - my first in 18 years. I needed protein and I had to make up for the poor breakfast. A minute after I sat down at a picnic table out front under an awning, it began to downpour cold rain. It blew sideways and I got drenched. The temperature cooled down 30 degrees, and for a moment it felt great.
I finally made it to Christiansburg. Steve wanted to camp, so we went to the brand new extremely fancy aquatic center that offered free showers for traveling cyclists. I talked with a police officer in the parking lot who said that we could camp in the adjoining park. For dinner, we met up with my Cincinnati friend Kim and her husband Jim. Kim and I went to the same high school, and she’s been a good friend of my mom’s for years. Her son Camen hiked the Appalachian Trail and the Pacific Crest Trail.
Speaking of mountain ranges, I crossed the Eastern Continental Divide this afternoon. Water is now flowing west to the Mississippi. Oh, and I'm done with Map #12. I'm more than halfway to Berea.
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