Day 12 - Sumter to Latta, SC - 55 miles planned, 71 executed, 876 feet ascent
You may be right
I may be crazy
~ Billy Joel “You May Be Right”
And we’ll leave this Darlington City
For a ride down that Dixie Highway
Driving out of Darlington County
My eyes seen the glory of the coming of the Lord
Driving out of Darlington County
Seen Wayne handcuffed to the bumper of a state trooper’s Ford
~ Bruce Springsteen “Darlington County”
Condolences to Cubs fans everywhere. Congrats to the Brewers. Congrats to the long suffering Mariners fans…
….and HOW ABOUT THOSE MIDSHIPMEN! WAY TO GO NAVY!
The weather made good on the Weather Channel’s prediction of heavy rain. Let’s be honest, predicting rain in the middle of a Nor’easter isn’t exactly quantum physics. Trying to bicycle up the east coast during a Nor’easter on the other hand takes a special kind of crazy. We awoke to heavy rain and strong winds gusting to 35 MPH from the north. During breakfast, Arlen polled those present and the decision was made to skip today’s ride and shuttle everyone to Latta in the van and reset for tomorrow. Carl June was absent from the conversation and very much wanted to ride if possible. He found a willing accomplice in Mike Donnelly who had the necessary waterproof gear and decided to attempt the ride, or at the very least some portion of the route. They departed at 9 AM planning to finish the 17 miles of yesterday’s route then begin today’s route. Six miles from the end of the 17-mile leg they celebrated the half-way for the Apalachicola-Annapolis trek.
Corbett Hall provided the riders chase support in the minivan and periodically updated the rest of us on their progress. Mother nature was a little more accommodating with slackening winds, periods of higher ceilings and no rain, as well as tailwinds. The course zig zagged through Sumter, Lee, and Darlington Counties with no leg longer than 9 miles until the pair cleared the town of Darlington. Along the way they did not see one single tractor trailer. Hallelujah! They chewed their share of grit and got thoroughly soaked, but never cold enough to shiver or worry about hypothermia. They also noted dogs, cats, and judgmental cows looking on with complete disinterest. The temperature soared to a balmy 69 degrees, and they kept the rest stops tight and to a minimum. Besides some great support from Corbett and text message encouragement from Latta, the effort required some determination, positive mental attitude, a couple of gels, half a banana, and a sleeve of fig newtons. We also determined the identity of another mystery crop: green beans.
They hooked up with Corbett to shed their rain gear for the final dash to Latta. Almost immediately the rain resumed. Corbett circled back to return jackets, but by that point they decided to tough out the last forty minutes, cruising the last four at average of 20 MPH.
The other nine members of the team arrived at the Best Western Hotel at 12:30 unpacked and had lunch. Carl and Mike arrived at 2:25 after a 71-mile trek once again thoroughly soaked and happy to have dry digs and a cold beer. Today is pizza day! Hooray for pizza day! Garmin computers depict an arrow and a cyan line as we proceed down our route and tomorrow the cyan line stabs into North Carolina on our way to Southern Pines. This is the first of two consecutive 70+ mile days and the first to include significant climbs as we move further inland. Bring it on. Life on the road is great! Watching Navy beat Temple is great! Passing the half-way point is really great! Stand by, Bill, we’re well on our way! Go Navy!