Revision of Day 4 - Bothered by a bearing from September 10, 2008 - 5:12pm
Where it all came to an endI think the Dude's secret admirer said it best best when he pronounced that, "Sometimes you eat the bar, and sometimes, well, he eats you." Well today, I was the all-you-can-eat buffy.
After my night in Bonchester Bridge, I awoke to find myself coming down with a cold. Not surprising considering the mileage I had been riding in the pouring rain dispicable rain. However, it looked like the sun was breaking and I was only 60 miles outside Edinburgh, then if I wanted whimp out I could jump on the train and get into St. Andrews for my first conference with time to spare.
Plan sounds feasible, right? After all what could go wrong?
As I would find out... pretty much everything.
Sun, glorious sun
Sun sweet sun: Sun washes over the road out of Bonchester Bridge, Scottland.
As the day got going the sun broke and I was awash in the warm glow of a long forgotten friend. After a few miles the heat started to clear my chest and for the first time in the last week I was sporting a smile as I rolled across the scenic Scottish countryside.
Dispite the horrendous weather I had experienced earlier, I was loving bike touring once again. There is nothing like having the miles roll effortlessly under you as the sun shines and there is not a car within what feels like a hundred miles. This is what makes Scotland ideal for cycling. Quiet, quiet rolling roads. The efficiency of the fixed gear bike just started to eat up the miles, as I flipped back to my tall gearing so I can make the most of the fast rolling roads.
My first stop was for coffee and a croissant in a small town that doesn't see many visitors. An older woman with a walker, tells me she figures I am Australian, I smile and agree. Perhaps this is one small part of the world where drunk Australians (god love em) haven't invaded. For the record I am Canadian and usually get mistaken for Americans (ack!).
Mishap #1: Melrose Chain Smash up
Just prior to entering the town of Melrose I ran across a father sun bike touring duo. We sat and chatted a while comparing our completely different approaches to touring. Myself with my self-admitted mad 10 lbs pack and these two fellows
Ceased Wheel Rant
With the wheel ceased and an hour or so into my hike a bike, I took this enlightening video:
With a title like "The Disaster" Thank you Surly for making a fine fuckin' product in the Steamroller complete.