8/09 Brattleboro, Vt. to Manchester, NH.

 

Once again it’s chilly this morning. It’s also cloudy and foggy. We see the sun for only 5 minutes as we leave town and never again during the day. -- Soon after we leave the hotel we cross the Connecticut River, which separates Vermont from New Hampshire.

Yesterday I commented on climbing 400 feet in the first 12 miles. Well today we climbed more than twice that amount in the first 10 miles. -- Both yesterday and today were 79 miles with over 4,500 feet of climbing but I felt more tired today. My quads are tight. Maybe I didn’t fully recover from yesterday. It seemed that we climbed a lot in the first 30 or so miles and the last 20. But in between, we had a couple of short, but very steep (14% grade) climbs. -- At about mile 40 there were a series of rollers (look like a roller coaster and, if they’re the right height and length and if you find the right gears, you can use momentum to coast or pedal easily uphill at 20 miles per hour). These were particularly nice since they had a downhill component. They would have been even better on a tandem.

         

I think it was mile fifty I had a flat tire – actually a blowout, hssssssss –bang. It blew the tire off the rim. I couldn’t find anything wrong but when I replaced the tube, my spare tube was bad. The other spare tube was fine and I soon got a replacement from the mechanic’s van. So this was flat number 4, or is it 5? I have a theory about the blowout. Remember I replaced the (rear) tire after Niagara Falls. I’ve recently noticed, on some smooth roads, a bump, bump, bump feeling. I figured my wheel was out or round – visual inspection didn’t reveal anything. So my theory is that, when I put on the new tire, the tube got somehow twisted and that was the bump I was feeling. Why it waited 450 miles to blow, I have no clue.

The part of Manchester we’re staying in tonight reminds me of industrial, urban New England. The houses are all multi-story, multi-family and close together. This is quite different from the New England village (tree-lined streets, large lawns, parks and town squares, white churches and town halls) which I mentioned yesterday.

The ride ends tomorrow but the celebration – or a least a banquet, is tonight. Some people have prepared skits; I’m not part of any of these. (80 year old Dr. John Damiano, concert violinist and retired college professor won the “Riders Award”- truly deserved.) Tomorrow, we will all arrive at Rye Junior High School by 11:30, the police will arrive shortly thereafter and we’ll be escorted to the beach. This is where people will REALY celebrate and photos will be taken. Then, it’s over and people will scatter in many directions. Some will just disappear with their family, some will ride an extra 12 miles to say they’re ridden in Maine, some will ride to the motel and others, like myself, will get in the van and go to a bike shop to schedule my bike being shipped back home.

Day 49, 79 miles, 4,531 feet climbed, 5.9 hrs. 3,698 miles so far

1 day remaining, 48 miles remaining