Daily Miles: 66
Total Miles: 365
(I accidentally reset the bike computer so no additional stats)
I grabbed some morning coffee with Scott and we chatted for a good hour about his shop and life in general. He’s a very intersting guy and I found out he was actually a professional cyclist back in the day. The whole concept of a community bike shop that he’s trying to develop is really great. He’s helping a lot of people in his community get reliable transportation so they can get back on thier feet and find employment. Many of the people he helps are from the homeless community in Talahasee, and a lot of people he has helped return to volunteer at the shop to pay it forward. He is truly a pillar for his community. I’ve never met a person so passionate abut cycling and helping others through the sport. It was pretty inspiring. It made me reflect on what I’ve done in my life to help others in need. Which unfortunately isn’t much and makes me feel somewhat pathetic. This is something I need to work on going forward.
Scott gave me some information on another trajectory for my route instead of taking the official southern tier route. The alternate would take me to the gulf coast much sooner, which sounded a lot more appealing than being lambasted with more farmland, Baptist churches and unfulfilled promises of Gatorade from now defunct convenience stores. Something different? Yes. Yes, please.
He rode with me for 30 miles down a really nice bike path out of Talahasee called St. Mathews Bike Path. It was a a lot of fun riding with someone else for a change. Scott talked about his days as a Pro Cyclist and about all the strategy that goes along with it. How to stay with the pack; how to use your teammates to your advantage; and knowing when to push and strike at the right moment. He talked about cycling like a grand master chess player would talk about chess: technical, beautiful, and with a sense of awe at how pure and amazing a disciplelinr cycle racing is.
Eventually he turned back after we took a 30 minute break at a Chevron station and I rode another 30 miles along the beautiful coastline, referred to as the Forgotten Coast, to a small boating town called Carabelle.
Scott hooked me up with a place to stay in Carabelle via his friend Jerry, who actually has been away for several months in New Hampshire selling Real Estate, but was renting a room in his house to a wonderful 60 year old lady named Cindy Lou Lou. She was very inviting when I finally reached the house, and we had a good night of drinking wine and eating some home cooked food.
Today was the best day so far of the trip. Hanging around with a guy like Scott was really what I needed to kick me into gear and start thinking about this journey in a different way. Having a positive and open mind and being open and honest with people fosters the possibility of great happiness.
