The weather is perfect. The road is empty. And to top it off, it is all downhill with a tailwind.
Starting at 6:00 am could not get any better.
There isn't much to report until lunch. I thought I would eat another peanut butter banana wrap, but just around noon I passed an old-school diner, Reed's Drive-In. I picked up a burger and some fries. Satisfying.
About an hour further down the road, I saw a big red barn advertising ice cream. Well, I couldn't pass that up either.
I had a bowl with two scoops of ice cream: cookie dough and salted caramel vanilla. Sitting on their porch, perfect weather with a light breeze - just sublime.
I took a photo of the place and the people that asked about my ride (folks are so friendly in Utah), but my phone corrupted the pictures... Only the first few rows of pixels are visible, the rest of the frame is black.
This is getting aggravating.
The only shot I salvaged was this road, just a couple miles down from the ice cream barn, running through some orchards:
Then I noticed a strange sound originating from my front wheel. And I could feel it.
Not good. I pulled this off my tire:
Failing at perspective...
It is a "U" shaped piece of metal with sharp points. Wrapped perfectly around my tire, it was pinching the side wall with those sharp edges.
Hoping it didn't puncture my tire, I pulled it off. Disaster averted.
I think just a couple hundred more feet of riding would have dug that terror into my tire, shredding the sidewall.
With no more incidents, I arrived at my Warmshowers host for the evening, David. He prepared pork chops with rice and salad. Absolutely wonderful.
David is a software developer so we had plenty to talk about. He's also an avid cyclist, traveling around the United States, Canada and Guatemala.
Upon arrival he mentioned that I had "too much stuff." Well said - I do have too much, and I plan on lightening the load.
I'm going to jettison a few items of clothing that I wear less than the others. I'm also going to get rid of the spare tire I'm carrying. Ironic, considering the incident earlier, but I figure while riding through the U.S., it's trivial to find a bike shop, or at least Amazon Prime myself a tire. Downtime would only be two days.
I'm also going to send home a few miscellaneous items that sit idle in my bags, such as my GoPro.
David said something that really resonated with me (and I'm butchering it, but it is the concept):
If you don't take it with you, you don't really need it.
Ultimately, you might bring something while traveling that you may or may not use. But if you don't bring it, you'll find a way to cope with not having it. Stick to the essentials.
Joe