Day 19--Wabash to Decatur, IN

Friday, May 4, 2013

Woohoo! A day to lift me out of the doldrums. I'll have to admit to feeling low after yesterday's long ride, which took all I had and then some. I even thought briefly of renting a car or quitting. Okay, don't panic. Those were only brief, feel-sorry-for-myself thoughts.


This only a mile or so out of Wabash; some farmer is getting $$ for using the side of his buildings for advertising

This morning was all I had hoped for. It dawned overcast and with a SW wind. Yesss! I was heading northeast and then due east. Yesss! And I had only 58 miles. Yesss! And the miles turned out to be rolling and then flat. Yesss! And there were places along the route to stop for water or a cold drink. Yesss! And I had a shoulder on both IN-24 and IN-224. Yesss! Life was good again.

Before leaving my room I filled my water bottles with ice and water and then checked my tires. Decided that the back tire was too low, so got out the trusty pump. (The CO2 cartridges went by the roadside early on. The doohicky I use to hold the cartridges must be defective because when I inserted the cartridge into the holder, the cartridge immediately expelled all of its CO2. Decided this was a fluke, but it did the same with the second cartridge, before I could even get it on the valve.)  Anyhow, back to the pump. Put on my shoes so that I could stand firmly on the foot tab, attached the pump, pushed down and the pump was stuck in the down position. Pretended I was Brad and tried all sorts of common-sense things, but the pump is kaput. When I am through writing this post, I shall check to see if the area has a bike shop.


A cobblestone bridge in a Huntington park. I had to ride through Huntington to catch 224-E. It's a bigger city than Decatur and I should have thought to look for a bike shop.

I left Wabash at 9 a.m., and got to Decatur and the motel at 1:00 p.m., low tire or not. The shoulders were clean today. Yesterday's shoulders were not--full of glass and pieces of radial tire wire. It's a miracle that I didn't get a flat.


This could almost be Tony Perkins' hotel in Psycho

The wind was a great assist today, but in one place where the road curved it played an odd trick on me. Must have been the way it was coming through the ventilation slits in my helmet because the right ear was hearing rising wolf howls and the left ear was hearing Sgt. Preston-like Alaskan wind. Almost transported me back to my grade school days when I'd rush home from school to sprawl in front of the big cabinet radio to listen to Sgt. Preston of the Yukon, Sky King (and Penny), and the Lone Ranger.


Hmmm. Do parisioners wear loincloths and carry spears?

Several things have happened or I've seen nearly every day but which I forget to relate:

• I get at least one bug a day in my mouth, but manage to spit it out. The bug de jour was fairly large. Yuk!
• Buffalo gnats are gnasty and can fly at least 10 mph
• Many Red Admiral butterflies and Sulfurs, a few Eastern tailed Blue, and a couple of Wood Nymphs
• Every morning at least two Canada Geese fly across my path.
• Bob's flag bends toward the road when I am going east and have a south wind. This is good as it forces vehicles to move farther out and around me.
• Recently the red-winged blackbirds that have nests in the ditch cattails, have been diving at me. This has happened on other spring tours I've taken. These birds are very aggressive in guarding their nests. In fact this morning they ganged up on a crow that was trying to steal an egg. The crow didn't stand a chance.
• Everybody is mowing their lawns on riding mowers, and some of the lawns are huge. The farms sit in the middle of plowed fields and what isn't plowed is mowed right up to the barns and outbuildings. Also mowed for long stretches along the road.

If you look very very carefully, you will see two white specks that are my two Canada geese for the day; they are to the left of the bright white post by the side porch

I got in so early that I don't know what I will do with the rest of my day. I am at a crossroads and not in the town itself. If there is a bike shop, that shall be my destination. Might add a bit later this evening, but for now, "that's all she wrote." (Keep scrolling because I did add a bit after I published.)



This happy water tower was a couple of towns west of Decatur



An intresting 1930s barn, but I took the pic to try to show how the lawns are mowed



This one's for you, Joel. It's pretty, though I don't even know what make and model it is

I'm back. Searched for bike shop in Decatur, IN, and found Rick's Bikes on W. Jefferson downtown. Talked to Rick on the phone and then  headed to the shop. An easy ride on 2nd St. into town. At the north end of 2nd is the biggest RR & grain elevator depot I've ever seen. the photo below gives no idea of the size. There were at least 8 sets of tracks and I had to wait for a train each time I passed. Then I came upon the old house below that was being renovated. It will be fantastic when done, I think.


The grain elevators north of downtown Decatur; this photo doesn't begin to show the enormous size of this depot

This house is going to be magnificent when renovated I think. Wouldn't you like to explore all of its nooks and crannies?

Rick and his employee, Jonathan, provided 1st class service: repaired and oiled my frame pump, supplied me with another CO2 holder and three cartridges, inflated my tires, oiled my chain, and even trued the rear spokes. Thank you Rick and Jonathan! With all these improvements and no B.O.B. I felt light as air.


Rick inflating my bike tires with a shop floor pump; the rear tire was down to 80psi; when inflated properly it holds 110 psi. My apologies to Rick for this dreadful photo!



Jonathan, a Rick's Bikes wrench

After he'd finished with the bike, Rick directed me across the street to The Old 27 Ice Cream Shop in what appears to be an old service station. It had just opened at 11 a.m. today. I had a soft ice cream cone and had one of the employees take my photo with their sign.

Now I'm back in the room and really am finished with today's post. Tune in tomorrow.