Unsurprisingly to some, and to the relief of others, I was not dragged into the water by a rabid alligator. I don't even know if alligators can get rabies. Probably not, since they aren't mammals. Still, it was a hard night. The noises startled me, the sleeping bag was too hot at first, so I removed it. As the night dragged on, I found myself tightly grasping it to conserve heat, as it was really cold. Come on, Florida, really? Anyway, I wanted to wake up with the sunlight, but instead I woke up to my alarm at 6, looked out, and saw complete darkness. I set my alarm to 6:30, and overslept it, at which point the sun was already up. It sounds strange to say this, but the sun rises really fast in Florida. Like, there's no solid hour of foreplay before the sun slams into your face and insults your mother.
And so, at about 7:00am, I packed my things, stuffed my dewey tent into my bags, and went looking for the first gas station I could find.
I needed water, bathroom, food, and an excuse to sit and look at the map for a bit. Today was going to be a day of trails, which meant I had to carry extra water, and extra food. I only carried extra water, and in fact, for the entire day, I only ate a few handfuls of trail mix, a rice-krispy square, and a disgusting yogurt-covered cereal bar that advertised "good for muscles." I am writing this from a restaurant, where I have plenty of food to eat.
And so, after spending some quality time in a gas station bathroom, I was on the trail at 7:30.
I had complained in the past about bike trails. They are often unpaved, lack amenties, and while they can be fun for a stroll, or to see some nature, they are a bit repetitive and tedious. Not so in Florida. The trails are paved, flanked by shade-providing trees, paved, full of signage, paved, interesting, paved, and even dotted with water-fountains when the trail runs near a town. The trails were a blessing today.
And so, I biked, listening to pop shuffle on Spotify, and enjoying the lack of data. Every so often, I would turn off the music and listen to the chirps of crickets, or songs of birds. I saw beautiful swamps, grand trees, and my first warning sign about alligators.
And an escaped calf:
This particular trail had rest areas, with picnic tables and shade, but also emergency bike-repair boxes! How cool!
Continuing along the trail, there was an abandoned farm with vintage cars.
At some point, I saw some people standing in the middle of the trail. I stopped, and one of them told me about the baby alligator up ahead. Look how cuuuuuuuuute it is!
At this point, I'd like to remind everyone that my birthday is on May 21, and that some baby alligators don't have mothers because they get hunted. I took a picture, and left. I didn't want to see if this one had a mother.
45km before my goal for the day, I started feeling and hearing some scratching coming from the direction of my pedals. My first thought, was that something in the drive train was wrong - this is a big repair, that would put a dent of at least half a day in the trip. I stopped by the side of the road to turn the pedals by hand, and to listen, and I still heard the clicking and rubbing. This was bad.
There was a bike shop 6km down the trail, which was closed, and a second one about 15km afterwards, which was open. Their mechanic was gone for the day. Still, we put the bike on the stand, and it turned out that it was the pedals themselves. The bearings inside the pedals themselves, which allow them to freely spin independently from the gears, were worn out.
This, in and of itself, was not a big deal. The scratching was something minor, it didn't affect the ride, or the safety of the bike. However, I decided to replace them anyway, since my best diagnosis tool for the bike is actually my ears.
I had only realized this recently, but the bike has reached a point in its maintenance, that the first indication of a problem is the sound that it makes. When my inner-tube exploded on Day 1, the first notification I had was a periodic rubbing of the tire on the break-pad, when it escaped the rim of the wheel. When my breaks were misaligned, it was the same periodic rubbing that told me about it. The flat spot in my back wheel, looseness in the old drive train, and any strap rubbing against a wheel were caught in the same way. You listen, and you feel the vibrations, and something might not feel right. For example, the clacking of the chain is due to gear shifters being in between gears, and I know to move them to be sure I stay in gear.
Sound is just vibrations. When something on the bike makes a strange sound, you can both hear and feel it. In a sense, this is why it can be dangerous to listen to music while biking. And so, to aid in future diagnostics, and to make the ride smoother and quieter, I had the pedals replaced.
As of today, the only original parts of the bike that are left are the frame, handlebars, breaking mechanism, gear shifters, front wheel, and the gears. Oh, and the front deraileur. Anyway, here's the big red railcar at the front of the bike shop
Today I biked 70km before noon. That's not impressive in and of itself, and it's not even close to my record. In fact, I hope that this is the norm. The interesting thing about it, was that I felt good. I wasn't muscle-exhausted, I wasn't counting distance, waiting for the next stop. I was just going. This mood persisted all day. Sure, I was tired, hungry, and even thirsty during the times I was too lazy to stop and take out my spare water bottle. But that should say something! I didn't want to drink water, because I just didn't want to stop. There were actual times today when I said to myself: "okay, I'll stop at the next round kilometer to fill water, look at a map, and eat a handful of trail mix." I just wanted to continue.
I didn't bike particularly fast today. Just persistently. The shade of the trees helped, but I also really think that I'm finally back in some kind of shape, and that I am ready to burst out a consistent, reliable ride every day. Soon, I might get to the point where I finish my biking earlier and earlier, and can spend time exploring the placed I visit.
The sun is my enemy, but I know its tricks. I've gotten used to sunscreen, I've continued to optimize my mornings, and to dawdle in the afternoons. But at the end of the day, I'm no longer scared that I can't meet targets I set myself. Today I set myself a goal of 140km, and after 115km, at the bike shop, I rested, debated whether to stay or to move on, and decided to only continue another 15km. I got back on the trail, and ignored my turn, because I was just feeling so good on the bike. Probably because I turned off the pop, and started listening to country music. A wonderful day.
It's getting late, and I'm not exhausted. I'm sitting at the bar in the Blue Gator, finishing some lemonade, chatting up patrons, and for the first time since Day 1, I am not worried about tomorrow.