I've written everyday about how hard the hills have been for me. Well, today was no different. I heard from one of the ladies with a Garmin that we climbed about 3800 feet and descended about 4200 today. It was another hard day and I am tired tonight. Today's ride was really pretty, though. We were up on a ridge again, with beautiful views, a lot of old barns, pasture land with horses and cows, hay fields, and some tobacco farmland. We passed through some great little towns again. I'll post a few photos along the side for you. Purple and yellow iris are blooming and are in almost every yard we pass. The peonies have been really pretty, too. I've noticed mostly white and pinks. There was almost no traffic today (Sunday). There are A LOT of churches on this route. Sometimes we can see three or four at the same time. I wish I had been making photos of the signs some of the churches put out front. Some of them have been quite amusing.
I've been riding the past three days with Marilyn, the lady I told you about earlier who looks like she should be at a Garden Club meeting instead of on a bicycle. She has ridden her bike more than anyone I have ever met. She had ridden across America five (yes, 5) times, and border to border 5 times, also. She has ridden more shorter tours (one to three weeks) than she can remember. She is a good rider, not the fastest in the group, but she is usually one of the first in to the hotel because she is steady and doesn't stop much. When she does, her breaks are short. She flies downhill. I just get over and out of her way on the downhills because I know she will be passing me quickly. Today we had a lot of long descents, some of which were steep and curvy. At mile 60 of today's ride, our cue sheet read "CAUTION: begin steep 0.4 mile downhill, sharp turns at bottom followed by equal climb." When we approached this downhill about 12:30 today, I moved over and let both Marilyn and Marilee pass me. Marilyn was going fast like she usually does, when she came upon a 90 degree left turn. I saw her come out of her cleats, and touch her toes down on the inside of the curve, then her front wheel swerve, before she went out of site around the curve. When Marilee and I rounded the curve we saw that she had crashed and was lying on the right side of the road, not moving. She was breathing, but unconscious, and I didn't see any blood, or what I thought were broken bones. We were in a hollow, and our cell phones wouldn't work, so Marilee stayed with her while I ran back up the hill to call 911. She was taken to the hospital, but released about 6:00 pm, with a fracture to her pelvis, a cut on her head, and abrasions to her elbow and shoulder. She is here at the hotel tonight, but is flying home tomorrow afternoon. I am just so sorry that this has happened, and I am thankful that her injuries, although bad enough, were not worse. We will all miss her.
Tomorrow we have a 69 mile ride into Milford, Ohio, a suburb of Cincinnati. My photos today include a couple of Marilyn, along with some of the pretty countryside we rode through.
Today - 72 miles
