Category: Indiana 2010

Anderson to Lebanon via Strawtown and Cicero: Oh yes! I’m living my dream!

Thursday May 6, 2010, 47 miles (76 km) – Total so far: 47 miles (76 km)

Thursday morning. The ride begins. Or not.

My dad insists on taking me to the edge of town because, you know, there’s morning traffic, school buses, and people who aren’t used to looking out for cyclists. It is nothing that I won’t encounter over the next seven weeks – but I know it will make my dad feel much better, so I concede. He drives me the first ten miles to the edge of town. If he knew all of the adventures I’ve undertaken over the past 15 years since leaving home (and most of the things he does know), then it seems like this would not be a big deal. But for whatever reason(s), it is. He may not be able to protect me from negative experiences along the route, but he can do his best on his own turf. Read more →

Lebanon to Shades State Park: Carrots for dinner

Friday May 7, 2010, 48 miles (77 km) – Total so far: 95 miles (153 km)

I wake up and I’m ready to go. I’m not sore. I’m not tired. At the motel’s continental breakfast I toast two bagels, grab two cream cheese packets and a banana and then I’m on the road. I’m still so excited that I’m living my dream that I just get on the bike and go. As I head south out of town I notice that there is a southeasterly breeze about 10 mph. I fight this quartering headwind and considerable traffic up and over the interstate. The traffic eases after the I-65 junction and soon I turn off to head west on a county road. One nice thing about Indiana and Illinois is that the county roads are laid out in a grid pattern of mile-long blocks. You can head west on 800N- which will be 8 miles north of the county centre, turn south on 325W, which will be 3.25 miles west of centre, etc. You can zig zag your way in any direction and never really get lost. Read more →

Shades State Park to Turkey Run State Park: What month is this?

Saturday May 8, 2010, 11 miles (17 km) – Total so far: 106 miles (170 km)

When I peek my nose out of my sleeping bag, I notice it is COLD. The cold front was a pretty big one and it has dropped the temps from nearly 70 degrees F yesterday to 42 degrees F this morning. The wind is still gusting over 35 mph, though it is now out of the NW. It is a bleak grey outside and feels more like late winter than early May. I pack up and wonder how I’m going to ride in this wind. Today I’m meeting my parents at another state park just down the road for Mothers Day. Read more →