Jimmy sprawled over the railing at the end of the coach. He was pretending to be shot by the bad guys on the next coach. He looked down at the ground, fascinated by the railroad ties flying below him between the two cars. The coupling banged and slammed as the train eased up and down the gentle terrain between Portbou and Barcelona. Continue reading
The air was cool, with a gentle tailwind from the coast. Up ahead, we spied a Sobey’s in a shopping center on the right-hand side of the road. She wheeled into the parking lot, and I followed her. A few minutes later, we were sitting at a picnic table outside, checking our smart phones and swapping a half-gallon carton of orange juice between us.
“I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”
— Robert Frost.
The mountain was not as steep as some that we had already climbed, but it seemed interminably long. It was not as hot today as it had been earlier, but I was drenched with sweat. To keep up a steady cadence on my pedals, I repeated the artilleryman’s mantra as I stroked,
“If I wasn’t a gunner I wouldn’t be here. Ready, aim, fire!”
My legs no longer burned like they did the first week, so I must be getting stronger. But there was no denying that she was faster, stronger, and lighter. Continue reading
This week I get to show you just how clueless I was when I started out a year and a half ago to live on the road. When bike packing, nothing gives you away as a newbie faster than your gear. Continue reading
Black Cat Road
Trip update: I have managed to ride almost every day, and, as often as not, out into the rolling hills of Albemarle County, Virginia. The days are short, so 40-45 km is a good ride. Still, the last three days, I have pulled in before dark. Now that I have ridden in as many places as I have in the last year, I find that Albemarle County is a very pleasant place to ride. The topography reminds me of riding along the Southern Shore of Nova Scotia. The weather has been comparable, too. Continue reading
The Freewheeling Freelancer 