TransAm Day #17 Elizabethtown, IL - Carbondale, IL
TransAm Day #17
June 11, 2018
Elizabethtown, IL - Carbondale, IL
78 Miles
Ride Time 6:46 Hours
Tour Total Miles 1208
My alarm went off at 4:30am and I was on the road by 5:08. It was warm, humid, and the Ohio River at dawn was beautiful. I was loaded down with fruit and pastries from the Rose Hotel. Brian had warned me there would be no place to stop for 30 miles.
I was chased early on by a beautiful Golden Retriever, which startled me, but I realized he just wanted to play. I’m missing the 76 bicycle signs. Thank you Virginia and Kentucky! It made navigation so much easier. At some point today generic ‘Bike Route’ signs began to appear. They’re not as good as the 76 signs, but I’ll take them.
I met Robbie, a westbound cyclist, at the Shawnee Mart in Eddyville. He’s an architect from Asheville, North Carolina, and he was filling in a gap from a previous TransAm. His gap extended from Charlottesville, VA to Goreville, IL. His blog is at: robbie41.blogspot.com. He told me about many things to expect out west. For one, he promised the humidity wouldn’t be as bad. Robbie (and apparently I) had passed British cyclist, Becky, the Carter family, and an entirely different ACA supported group. He told me about a TransAm race, currently in progress, that would soon be passing me east bound in Missouri. These guys go coast to coast in 19 days, and have to be self supported. They apparently froze in Yellowstone. Robbie and Rob rode together through Robbs, IL. We had lunch at the Subway in Goreville, which was the end of Robbie’s trip. There were too many choices for me there when ordering.
From there I only had another 25 miles, and it was relatively flat-ish. I rode around the Devils Kitchen lake area. I made it into Carbondale by 2pm. I located my super sketchy motel and proceeded to device charging, laundry, shower, and nap. At 5pm it was still broiling out. I headed into town to find a bike shop and dinner.
Patrick the Bike Surgeon adjusted my new gear cables and tightened my lose chain ring bolts. I am so lucky that I haven’t had any mechanical problems out on the road. He recommended places to go for sustenance and lubrication. I’m writing my report from Hanger 9, a slick popular hangout with $2 Big Muddy Monsters.
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