It's great to be on the road again. I spent seven hours (nearly 300 miles) yesterday riding through mostly farm land and forest between Marietta and Columbia. Empty roads, rolling landscape, a comfortable bike and visions of a fun week ahead. Stress free riding at its best.
The only challenge so far has been the intense heat; nearly 100 degrees and 80 percent humidity. Within five minutes of leaving EagleRider yesterday I was soaked in sweat. The protective gear is great but it's unforgiving in the extreme heat. I stopped many times yesterday to chug water or Gatorade. Margot would have been proud.
At one of those stops I went into a rural gas station to use the bathroom. There was an elderly black woman behind the counter. When I entered, she lowered her People magazine to her lap, peered over her glasses and asked in a southern drawl, "How can I help you Sweetpea?" I had a little chuckle and then asked how far it was to Columbia. The woman said, "Well, that depends" and then went silent. I waited a bit and then asked "What does it depends on?" Just like Bubba in Forest Gump talking about the many ways he likes shrimp, she said slowly, prolonging her vowels, "Well, it depends on whether you're going to Columbia, South Carolina or Columbia, North Carolina or Columbia, Tennessee or maybe Columbia someplace else." With a twinkle in her eye she added, "Honey, my time is precious. You've got to be more specific. You could be going to Medellin, Columbia as far as I know." I love this woman.
I said I was going to Columbia, South Carolina. She replied; "Do you want to go the fastest way, the prettiest way or the way my late husband used to go, God bless his soul." I said "no offense to your late husband, I'm sure he was a wonderful man, but I want to go the prettiest way." "Good choice Sweetpea" she said. "Go straight out that road. After two hours you will exit the forest and begin to see signs for Columbia". She then picked up the magazine and began reading again, as if to say that the conversation was over. Without looking up she added, " You better giddy up. The sun is going down quick, there no lights in that forest and it gets mighty dark in there. That's when the livestock starts wandering into the road. You don't want to deal with that, specially on a motorcycle Sweetpea." Good advice if there ever was any.
I could have chatted with her all day.
Yesterday was a long day overall? Eric spent the night before at my place. We woke up at 5 a.m. and took an Uber to Logan. After checking the bags curbside, we entered the Delta terminal and Eric joined the line of hundreds of people waiting to go through security. Thankfully I had registered for TSA Pre-check last year and was able to whisk right through. It was a tough way for Eric to start the day. I was finishing my newspaper and large coffee when he arrived at the gate an hour later, covered in sweat and out of breath.
The flight itself was easy. In fact, we arrived in Atlanta ten minutes early. Eric slept the entire way. I did some email and worked on an upcoming work presentation.
Form Atlanta we took an Uber 35 miles to Marrieta. The driver, a recent retiree, didn't know how to get there and held his phone in his hand the entire trip, constantly glancing at it for turn-by-turn directions. Along the way he took two wrong turns, adding six miles to the ride. He was apologetic and offered to refund us for his mistakes. We declined. We were more concerned about his continually taking his eyes off the road than about the added time and expense.
We left EagleRider in Marrieta at a little after 1 p.m., later than we had planned. Eric had forgotten that he had placed his bike's registration in his Camelbak. We spent 30 minutes unpacking his and my bags looking for the damn thing. He finally found it in the Camelbak but neglected to tell me so I continued to search through every pocket and folder. I even went back in and searched the motorcycle store, the storage room and the bathroom before Eric offhandedly mentioned while he was repacking his luggage that he had found it.
Once we got going, it took us awhile to get out of the city. I wanted to take the country roads (Eric didn't) but the GPS kept leading us to the freeway. After multiple attempts, I gave in and followed Eric onto the major highway east.
We stopped an hour later for lunch, a Caribbean deli where we both had chicken and beans covered with curried chicken. I liked it? Eric didn't. I cleaned my plate. He barely touched his. And so it goes.
After lunch, Eric was anxious to get to our destination. I wanted to take the scenic route. He opted to continue on the highway. I set off for the back roads adding 100 miles and nearly three hours to my trip.
I was glad I did. The route through Stone Mountain, Athens, Lake Richard Russell and Sumter National Forest was serene and peaceful and just what I had been longing for. I arrived at the hotel at 8:30, fully contented. Almost.
The first two days of this adventure are actually work days for me. Our women's soccer team is here to play the University of South Carolina, one of the top teams in the country. On Sunday they play at Furman University up in Greenville, SC. I am accompanying the team, meeting with my peers from the two universities and otherwise getting to know our incoming freshman.
Yesterday, as I pulled into Athens for a water break, I got a call from our head coach saying that their flight to Dulles was going to leave Boston four hours late and that the connecting flight to Columbia had been cancelled. Yikes. After many phone calls and help from folks back in Boston, the team ended up taking an eight hour bus ride from D.C. to Columbia. I went down to the lobby early this morning to greet them. While I waited, I chatted with Barbara, the front desk clerk, and had a couple cups of coffee. Barbara loves the night shift. She's been doing it for 30 years. She enjoys the peace and the ability to think quietly about life, God, and her family and friends. A very contented woman for sure.
The team arrived at 5 a.m. I distributed their room keys and they all went up to bed. I then rode the stationary bike for an hour and helped myself to the big breakfast. At about 8:30, I went up to the room to rustle Eric. Unfortunately, he was suffering from heat exhaustion. He was nauseous and weak and he couldn't get out of bed. He called his nurse practitioner back home who instructed him to keep hydrating, which he did. By mid-afternoon he was feeling better.
As for riding solo, late this afternoon Eric received word of a work crisis. He said he had to return to Boston at the crack of dawn tomorrow. It's too bad. This trip will not be the same but I will stay the course without him.
We just got back from the soccer game.
Though we hung tough with a 1-1 tie at halftime, S. Carolina broke it open in the second half for a 4-1 victory.
I'm unsure of tomorrow's plans. Whatever happens, I'm sure it will be eventful and exciting. Going solo will be a challenge. Nonetheless, I can't wait.
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