Freewheel Day 2: Sulphur to Seminole
**UPDATED**
Participating in an eight day bicycle tour teaches you a lot.
It teaches you a lot about life, about cycling, and about cyclists. Here is some of what I have learned already today, and it is only 9:00am.
Murphy is alive and well. Because I cover our Seminole branch, I am in this town pretty often. I like it a lot. The people are genuine, hard working folks, and they are very trusting. When I found out that FreeWheel would be making a stop here, I was excited, because I knew Seminole would go all the way to make us feel welcome and comfortable. I was right. And because I am friends with a member of the FreeWheel/Seminole committee, I got a little insight into the planning that most towns do, when they want to do it right. The organizers of the event had told Seminole they wanted to put the riders at the high school. Problem is, the high school is really out of the way, and prevents cyclists from going downtown and spending money at shops, restaurants, etc. That's why towns like to host this event, because it brings so much new money into the area, even if only for one day. After looking at all the possible locations for camping, I agreed with the committee that the overnight spot should be at the sports complex, near downtown, near the pool, and the movie theater, and several local restaurants and places to shop.
"As long as it doesn't rain," my friend told me. She said that when it rains, the entire area of the sports complex floods. Well guess what? It is raining. And it is raining a lot. I chose not to ride today, so Lisa and I drove to Seminole in a pounding rainstorm, and upon arriving in town, not only is the camping area flooded, but the road to access the entire park is under several feet of water. Murphy has shown up in Seminole, and brought his whole family along for the ride.
Here are some pics from the town:
This is where we were supposed to camp
And in case you can't read the sign in the picture above, here is a closeup:
The second thing I've learned is that cyclists do not believe in Murphy's Law. I knew this rain was coming last night, when I looked online and saw the radar. When I woke this morning and stepped outside the camper, the sky looked mostly clear and it appeared as if it was going to be a good day to ride. Then I checked the radar again, and I knew we were in for it. It was 5:30, and Spencer was already up and getting dressed to ride. I showed him the radar image, and he was undaunted. He thought maybe he could get in a good bit of the ride before it hit, and I agreed with him. He asked if we could handle putting the camper up so he could hit the road.As of now, I'm not sure how he is doing, but at his speed and ability, I figure he could have gotten half way to Seminole before the storm hit and the winds turned. So far it has been mostly rain, with just a little lightning and thunder, so I am guessing that he will press on.
Funny thing is that as Lisa and I were getting ready to leave Sulphur, we could hear the riders talking, and all of them were forecasting great weather for today. I will give them the benefit of the doubt, since they might not have had a radar to look at, however, the black clouds to the north were pretty ominous. Still, I must have heard more than half a dozen cyclists saying, "I think its going to move around us," and, "it looks like it is clearing off, we're going to be fine."
One meteorologist I watched online this morning said that we could see up to six inches of rain before it is all over. Or else it will move around us
. We're going to be fine.
As soon as Lisa and I got to town, we drove to the Best Western, the only real hotel in Seminole.
What the heck, right? We get a bed and a Bible for one night, a dry nights sleep and a hot shower, then we start out fresh in the morning. No chance. They're booked. Already. Should have known. Murphy.
I don't have any photos to post right now, because I don't want to get soaked to the skin. I will post some later on, maybe of the flooded park, or the wet cyclists. Check back here later for those.
**Spencer made it in. He was soaked to the skin, but he made it and that is what counts. Check the poor fella out:
Rain or shine, Snoop Dog still has to take care of business:
Tomorrow we ride to Henryetta. It is a shorter day, only about fifty miles. But it is straight east, very hilly, and with a predicted SE wind, could present a bit of a challenge. At least the weather is forecast to clear out and be nice. Let's hope so.
Participating in an eight day bicycle tour teaches you a lot.
It teaches you a lot about life, about cycling, and about cyclists. Here is some of what I have learned already today, and it is only 9:00am.
Murphy is alive and well. Because I cover our Seminole branch, I am in this town pretty often. I like it a lot. The people are genuine, hard working folks, and they are very trusting. When I found out that FreeWheel would be making a stop here, I was excited, because I knew Seminole would go all the way to make us feel welcome and comfortable. I was right. And because I am friends with a member of the FreeWheel/Seminole committee, I got a little insight into the planning that most towns do, when they want to do it right. The organizers of the event had told Seminole they wanted to put the riders at the high school. Problem is, the high school is really out of the way, and prevents cyclists from going downtown and spending money at shops, restaurants, etc. That's why towns like to host this event, because it brings so much new money into the area, even if only for one day. After looking at all the possible locations for camping, I agreed with the committee that the overnight spot should be at the sports complex, near downtown, near the pool, and the movie theater, and several local restaurants and places to shop.
"As long as it doesn't rain," my friend told me. She said that when it rains, the entire area of the sports complex floods. Well guess what? It is raining. And it is raining a lot. I chose not to ride today, so Lisa and I drove to Seminole in a pounding rainstorm, and upon arriving in town, not only is the camping area flooded, but the road to access the entire park is under several feet of water. Murphy has shown up in Seminole, and brought his whole family along for the ride.
Here are some pics from the town:
This is where we were supposed to camp
And in case you can't read the sign in the picture above, here is a closeup:
The second thing I've learned is that cyclists do not believe in Murphy's Law. I knew this rain was coming last night, when I looked online and saw the radar. When I woke this morning and stepped outside the camper, the sky looked mostly clear and it appeared as if it was going to be a good day to ride. Then I checked the radar again, and I knew we were in for it. It was 5:30, and Spencer was already up and getting dressed to ride. I showed him the radar image, and he was undaunted. He thought maybe he could get in a good bit of the ride before it hit, and I agreed with him. He asked if we could handle putting the camper up so he could hit the road.
Funny thing is that as Lisa and I were getting ready to leave Sulphur, we could hear the riders talking, and all of them were forecasting great weather for today. I will give them the benefit of the doubt, since they might not have had a radar to look at, however, the black clouds to the north were pretty ominous. Still, I must have heard more than half a dozen cyclists saying, "I think its going to move around us," and, "it looks like it is clearing off, we're going to be fine."
One meteorologist I watched online this morning said that we could see up to six inches of rain before it is all over. Or else it will move around us
. We're going to be fine.As soon as Lisa and I got to town, we drove to the Best Western, the only real hotel in Seminole.
What the heck, right? We get a bed and a Bible for one night, a dry nights sleep and a hot shower, then we start out fresh in the morning. No chance. They're booked. Already. Should have known. Murphy.
**Spencer made it in. He was soaked to the skin, but he made it and that is what counts. Check the poor fella out:
Rain or shine, Snoop Dog still has to take care of business:
Tomorrow we ride to Henryetta. It is a shorter day, only about fifty miles. But it is straight east, very hilly, and with a predicted SE wind, could present a bit of a challenge. At least the weather is forecast to clear out and be nice. Let's hope so.
Trackbacks
-
7/6/2008 12:57 PM
florida bicycle repair wrote:
[...] Class July 01, 2008 By: Peter Smith Category: Advocacy Yet another inspiration from the folks in Atlanta: the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition and Emory: Ladies: Always wanted to learn to ride but never could or did? So many of us would love [...]
Wow! Crazy conditions but you guys are pressing on. I am way impressed. Spencer is truly "da Man!" I look forward to reading and seeing more of the wet and wild Freewheel adventure.
Reply to this
Thanks Tim, on Spencer's behalf. Tomorrow you will be reading about our ride into Henryetta.
Reply to this
I can't wait to see tomorrow's ride- take lots of pics of where i used to live
Reply to this
Thanks T! We love you and miss you too. You will see some pics of Henryetta today.
Reply to this