Day Twenty Nine: rest day

Day Twenty Nine - rest day

I woke up after sleeping for nine hours. I can generally tell how badly I need a rest day by the number of hours I sleep. I could've slept longer but I didn't want to miss the free breakfast at the hotel, so I set my alarm for fifteen minutes before it ended. They have Belgian waffles (you cook them yourself in the waffle iron), scrambled eggs, sausage, cereal, juice, and about twenty other things.

After breakfast I checked my email.... My computer was delayed again... (sigh)

The first thing I did was ride to the bike shop, Hill Country Bicycle Works. I bought a new tube, a new tire, some better patches (translated: made in this century), and a couple of other items.

Adam, the store owner, was the first person EVER to recognize what kind of bike I ride. That includes previous bike shop owners I've met. He's even met the guy who designed it, Bruce Gordon.

My bike is designed for touring, not for speed. It's not a particularly light bicycle, since it was designed to be stable and sturdy. During my Utah trip I met a guy traveling from the southern tip of South America to Alaska and his head tube had cracked. He was using some rubber tubing and clamps to keep it from getting worse. (His was a different brand) Hopefully, mine will never break.

A touring bike has a longer wheelbase, which translates into a less bumpy ride. Longer also means it's more stable. The wheels have a lot of spokes, making it less likely that any one of them will be bearing so much stress that it breaks. It has braze-ons built onto the bike frame so you can attach three water bottles as well as front and rear racks without having to use clamps on the tubing.

Adam knows about bikes because, about 8-10 years ago, he and his wife rode around the world on their bikes. They took off three years to complete it. When they arrived in Kerrville, which is just down the road, they met some people there. When they reached their final destination, San Francisco, they both realized that they didn't want to live there any longer and moved to Kerrville where they started a bike shop. Later, they started the one in Fredericksburg. (His wife was working at the one in Kerrville)

Before leaving, I asked Adam where the best burger in Fredericksburg was and he directed me to Porky's, at the opposite end of town. I rode there for lunch, then went back to the hotel and blogged almost the entire rest of the day.

That evening, I rode my bike to the Cabernet Grill. If I'd known how far it was (about 3.5 miles) and how dark the roads were, I probably would've picked some other place. However, the meal was REALLY delicious.

Back to the hotel, back into bed.

It looks like I didn't take a single picture today.

11.8 miles
8.8 average speed
19.3 maximum speed
1:20:13 time
1402.1 total miles