Serpentine! Serpentine!

The Kentucky Countryside

June 1

Dry Ridge to Maysville, TN

50 Miles

Total Miles to Date ~ 1,119

Does anybody out there remember a movie with Peter Falk where he played a dentist and was drawn into something illegal with his daughter's future father-in-law? While they were being shot at in some Central American country the FFIL told him "serpentine, serpentine" while they were being shot at. Why am I bringing this up and what does it have to do with a bicycle ride? I'll explain. Today's ride was a series of climbs and downhills. Many of the climbs were long and difficult or short and difficult. Either way, the best method to get up these climbs (Holly just taught me about this earlier in the tour) is to serpentine up the hill. It has something to do with the angle of the road rather than going at it straight on. Physics? I don't know. What I do know is this - it works and it helps. My climbing continues to improve. All of that being said, and with great (some frightening) downhills, I threw in the towel at 50 miles on this 75-mile day. The sun was out, we had been on the road for 6 hours, and my legs screamed "No more!". 

SAG stop at mile 40

We had not been in the van very long when, at mile 60.5, we saw one of our riders walking up the hill in front of us. Another of the riders had taken a sharp turn at a high speed and lost control of her bicycle, was unconscious, and rescue was on the way. During our dinner hour the injured rider came back from the hospital. She has a fractured pelvis, a number of bruises, possible shoulder issues, and is generally miserable - but alive. Tomorrow she will head for home and a full recovery. This could have been so much worse. Her helmet broke in at least five places - saving her life for sure. We are so thankful that she is alive, and well enough to have told the nurses at the hospital that they could NOT cut off her expensive cycling shorts in order to remove them. This is one feisty woman and we will miss her presence on the road and in the group. Today, as she passed by, she constantly told me how well I was doing - and I always answered "At least I'm still upright". 

Maysville is a very cute riverfront town that is on the route some of the riverboats that ply the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. There are numerous places to stop and see things pertinent to the Underground Railroad. We had lunch at a small cafe that serves wonderful food and the owner told us that the sites in this town, and nearby Washington, are manned by volunteers and not opened all the time, making it very difficult to see what we are in search of. Now that the Adventure Cycling route is a reality, perhaps that will change.

We had dinner in the parking lot next to beautiful murals that were painted on the flood gates. Tomorrow is another long day with some early climbs followed by flatter and rolling terrain. 

We leave Kentucky tomorrow and cross the Ohio River on this beautiful bridge. One of the locals told me that it was a prototype for the Golden Gate Bridge. I've got to check that out - it doesn't sound legit. 

Thanks for visiting. Talk to you from Cincinnati. Judi and Holly