We got up early with breakfast at the Comfort Inn. As we finished up, the desk clerk gave us a small bag of apples and bananas for the day. We appreciated their gesture. We started our day just inside the Ohio border and headed due east on Hwy 114 and 224. Today and tomorrow were the two days that the forecast indicated could be rainy. We got off to a good start. With all the homes and farms that line the road, we were chased by dogs at least three separate times. At these times, I t
ried to make sure I stayed ahead of Matt.
Just 38 miles into the ride, the skies broke open with heavy rain – no lightning. Lucky for us, Larry had stopped for gas and we found him just before the rain. We spent about an hour in the gas station – taking the time to grab a quick meal.
After waiting an hour, the skies lightened up but the rain didn’t quit. The decision was made to continue our ride and we spent the next hour riding in light rain, trying to get to Willard before the predicted afternoon showers hit. The last 53 miles were in overcast skies as we arrived at our hotel for the evening. Shortly after we arrived, we got one of the predicted showers. More rain is predicted for the evening and morning tomorrow. We will deal with that in the morning. The roads were generally good today, but the last 25 miles were rough. The rou
te was again flat with total climb of just over 1,200 feet. We averaged 18.9, despite the wet conditions. We had a stiff crosswind (20 mph) almost all day long.
Tomorrow we will start our last week of riding with about 770 miles remaining. We have one long day (over 125 miles) and one day of climbing before we dip our wheels in the Atlantic Ocean at Plumb Island.
