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| Getting Ready to ride some hills! |
I knew I needed to bike some hills to prepare for pedaling over the mountains! I thought a bike ride to Mt Gretna would be a good start - after all it is a mountain. So John (hubby) and I biked there, and it felt good. Then, reality set in.....I looked up its elevation, only a measly 673 feet! Ugh!! On our trip we will bike up Lolo's pass in the Rockies at an elevation of 5,233 feet, Togwotee pass in the Grand Tetons, at an elevation of 9,658 feet, and Powder River Pass in the Big Horn Mountains at 9,666 feet. HaHa!! Mt. Gretna is a little more than a speed bump!
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| It was a beautiful day to ride along the river to the PPL power plant |
Well, Jeff Bradley who had biked across the US last summer was nice enough to give me some trip planning advice. He told me to bike in the southern part of the county - particularly to bike the hills along River Road past the Turkey Hill plant. He assured me this would prepare me for the mountain passes I'd encounter. So with that advice, I planned two rides to our "river hills." Each provided valuable lessons! First I set off with my girlfriend Margaret.....Up, down, up, down.....most of the ride we had the wind in our faces......then it started to rain, so we had hills, wind, and rain!! Then, things got worse! Margaret's bike chain broke!! We didn't have the tools nor the know-how to repair it! We called for a rescue!
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| The gate was open when we went through to the dam! |
Then on Friday, the Pedal Princesses accompanied me on another trip along River Road. My dear friends, Kathy, Lynn, and Yvonne kept me laughing as our legs felt the burn pedaling uphill. But, the climax of this day was not the hills. Instead it was when we stopped for a short break. I got off my bike, unzipped my trunk bag, and took out a cut up apple to share. As I walked away from my bike, it crashed to the ground and everything in my bag spilled onto the road and toward a nearby grate on the side of the road. I watched as my cell phone teetered on the edge of the grate. Quickly, I gathered my belongings from the road..... Then, I looked at the bottom of the grate. There, about six feet down, were my bag of salted almonds, my brand new SPF 50 sunscreen that I had just purchased for our bike trip, and my CAR KEYS!!!!!
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| Keys!!!! |
One of the Princesses responded by saying, "We need to get a fishing pole to fish out your keys." But, before the sentence was completed, Yvonne picks up an "S" hook just lying there on the road! I had a strap on my bag long enough to reach the bottom of the grate and we used a rubber band to attach the "S" hook. While we were trying to hook the small loop on the edge of my key, two kind fellows stopped to help and completed the job!! Thank-you God for the "S" hook, the kind rescuers, and for the world's best girl friends!! It was a great day!
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| To the rescue!! |
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| Job complete! |
Lessons learned.....(1) Confirm that Jack does know how to fix a broken chain.... Margaret bought us a chain repair kit to take along on our journey. (2) Never, ever stop near a grate at the side of the road. (3) Always zip bike bags before walking away. (4) On our trip we will need to depend on the kindness of strangers—I can't wait!!
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| Awesome lunch! PB&J on Yvonne's homemade bread!! xo |
Then on Friday, the Pedal Princesses accompanied me on another trip along River Road. My dear friends, Kathy, Lynn, and Yvonne kept me laughing as our legs felt the burn pedaling uphill. But, the climax of this day was not the hills. Instead it was when we stopped for a short break. I got off my bike, unzipped my trunk bag, and took out a cut up apple to share. As I walked away from my bike, it crashed to the ground and everything in my bag spilled onto the road and toward a nearby grate on the side of the road. I watched as my cell phone teetered on the edge of the grate. Quickly, I gathered my belongings from the road..... Then, I looked at the bottom of the grate. There, about six feet down, were my bag of salted almonds, my brand new SPF 50 sunscreen that I had just purchased for our bike trip, and my CAR KEYS!!!!! 
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