Day 31, Wednesday, July 30.
Rochester, IN to Ft. Wayne, IN
Daily Mileage: 63.11 miles
Total Mileage: 2,880.7 miles
Daily Time on Bike: 4:35 hours
Average Speed: 13.7 mph
Maximum Speed: 26.2 mph
We got a nice rest last night and were ready to go home today. Even though the trip was sixty-three miles today it all seemed so close. We say that city miles don't count, and I guess mileage on the way home doesn't count either. (Maps tell you how far it is from city to city, however they don't tell you how far it is through the city. As in Minneapolis, it's fifty miles of city miles—doesn't count, but it sure takes a lot out of you. I guess we do it because you have things to look at and there's stuff happening.) I can't remember much about the trip today except the excitement of passing familiar landmarks. We were still twenty miles on the other side of town, but it was smooth sailing from there.
As we pulled up to my parent's house my grandmother, who happened to be spending a couple of weeks with them, opened the door. A bit surprise to see me with a shaved head, dark tan lines, and really dirty clothes, she hesitated to give me a big hug but did nonetheless. As I was walking over to my dad's office he came out to greet and give me a big hug, followed by some kidding about my shaved head. I hadn't seen my parents for about six weeks or so now, and have only talked with them on the phone. After washing up and changing, David and I took our bikes to the bike shop to get our wheels trued again. It's a very strange thing to drive a car after months of being on a bike. When we bike, we have everything we need on the bike—money, food, cell phone, spare tubes and keys. When you get in a car after a month and a half on the road you really need to think carefully about what you need to take and what you might need along the way. You can't just reach back to your panniers and pull out your driver's license. Following our stop at the bike shop we made a surprise visit to my mom's office. By the time we walked up to her desk she had tears in her eyes, I'm assuming it was because she was glad to see us and not that she had just hurt herself. (David still to this day says that the hug my mom gave him was one of the best he’s ever received.)
After driving around town for a bit we went to the grocery store to rent a couple videos. Once at home again, we just sat on the couches for a few hours and watched the flashing images on TV. From Minneapolis, we placed an order with grandma asking her to please make some of her amazing chocolate meringue pies and rice crispy treats (weird things that you crave from the road, but I would still place an order for them if I could). We spent the whole rest of the day watching videos. That was all.
(Photo: David and I posing outside of my parent’s home.)
Daily Mileage: 63.11 miles
Total Mileage: 2,880.7 miles
Daily Time on Bike: 4:35 hours
Average Speed: 13.7 mph
Maximum Speed: 26.2 mph
We got a nice rest last night and were ready to go home today. Even though the trip was sixty-three miles today it all seemed so close. We say that city miles don't count, and I guess mileage on the way home doesn't count either. (Maps tell you how far it is from city to city, however they don't tell you how far it is through the city. As in Minneapolis, it's fifty miles of city miles—doesn't count, but it sure takes a lot out of you. I guess we do it because you have things to look at and there's stuff happening.) I can't remember much about the trip today except the excitement of passing familiar landmarks. We were still twenty miles on the other side of town, but it was smooth sailing from there.
As we pulled up to my parent's house my grandmother, who happened to be spending a couple of weeks with them, opened the door. A bit surprise to see me with a shaved head, dark tan lines, and really dirty clothes, she hesitated to give me a big hug but did nonetheless. As I was walking over to my dad's office he came out to greet and give me a big hug, followed by some kidding about my shaved head. I hadn't seen my parents for about six weeks or so now, and have only talked with them on the phone. After washing up and changing, David and I took our bikes to the bike shop to get our wheels trued again. It's a very strange thing to drive a car after months of being on a bike. When we bike, we have everything we need on the bike—money, food, cell phone, spare tubes and keys. When you get in a car after a month and a half on the road you really need to think carefully about what you need to take and what you might need along the way. You can't just reach back to your panniers and pull out your driver's license. Following our stop at the bike shop we made a surprise visit to my mom's office. By the time we walked up to her desk she had tears in her eyes, I'm assuming it was because she was glad to see us and not that she had just hurt herself. (David still to this day says that the hug my mom gave him was one of the best he’s ever received.)
After driving around town for a bit we went to the grocery store to rent a couple videos. Once at home again, we just sat on the couches for a few hours and watched the flashing images on TV. From Minneapolis, we placed an order with grandma asking her to please make some of her amazing chocolate meringue pies and rice crispy treats (weird things that you crave from the road, but I would still place an order for them if I could). We spent the whole rest of the day watching videos. That was all.
(Photo: David and I posing outside of my parent’s home.)
