We were up with the lark this morning making great time leaving camp just after 8. Maybe the blog post writing helped but i felt so much more positive today. We were ready to hit the hill... I'm not gonna lie, it was hard work, but I got into a rhythm and kept going. I had to to stop to take my jumper off but I actually found it easier than the hill yesterday, whether it was the road surface, the better mind set or a culmination of things we both felt great reaching the top, after 3 miles and 850ft.
The down hill payoff was awesome but there were a lot of pot holes and when reaching the bottom to admire the forest in the sand, we noticed one of my spokes was broken. We had the release tension on the break to get us down the road to a cafe with wifi so we could google what to do.
Luckily some guys we chatted to cycling from Portland had a spare spoke. After scratching our heads for a while a group of guys who I had met a couple if days previously came to our aid, who were amazing and just jumped into action knowing exactly what to do. At one point I think there was about 6 people all tying to help. After a lot of fiddling and banging they realized it couldn't be done without the right tools as it was on the cassette side. As its 45 miles to the next bike shop they advised me to keep I under 20 and go steady but Jack gave me his number incase we ran into bother.
We are both totally blown away by the people we have met in the trip. It makes you realize how awesome people can be and when you need help people are actually willing to go out of their way to help you.
After continuing on, we managed our second climb of the day up over Cascade head. This was much busier than the first traffic wise and the shoulder wasn't great in some parts. It was hard work but we managed it, Dave behind me all the way just incase I had a problem with my bike. Reaching the top at 750 feet we were greeted by the guys again who had helped us, but this time with the cavalry - Jack's wife and kids with the van and tools!!
Within seconds my bike was upturned and work in progress. It took a while to realize the spoke was actually the wrong size, but with a little ingenuity and asking "what would Macgyvor do?" the spoke was fixed and we were on our way. Just as we reached the bottom, the guys had a puncture! So we hang out for a while eating homemade jerky and blackberries. You begin to realize these problems actually add to the trip and not make them worst.
We managed to make the last 25 miles from Lincoln City in just over 2 hours which was pretty good going. We took the Otter ridge route avoiding the busy section of the 101, and it was just stunning scenery. Arriving in camp we were greeted by a few friendly faces we had met earlier in the week, and shared stories until bed time. I'm feeling so much better than I did yesterday, it's great how the actions of others can really lift your spirits.
A massive thank you to Jack, Ken, Randy and Roberta you guys rock!
Miles today 57. Total miles 519 - over quarter of the way!!
The down hill payoff was awesome but there were a lot of pot holes and when reaching the bottom to admire the forest in the sand, we noticed one of my spokes was broken. We had the release tension on the break to get us down the road to a cafe with wifi so we could google what to do.
Luckily some guys we chatted to cycling from Portland had a spare spoke. After scratching our heads for a while a group of guys who I had met a couple if days previously came to our aid, who were amazing and just jumped into action knowing exactly what to do. At one point I think there was about 6 people all tying to help. After a lot of fiddling and banging they realized it couldn't be done without the right tools as it was on the cassette side. As its 45 miles to the next bike shop they advised me to keep I under 20 and go steady but Jack gave me his number incase we ran into bother.
We are both totally blown away by the people we have met in the trip. It makes you realize how awesome people can be and when you need help people are actually willing to go out of their way to help you.
After continuing on, we managed our second climb of the day up over Cascade head. This was much busier than the first traffic wise and the shoulder wasn't great in some parts. It was hard work but we managed it, Dave behind me all the way just incase I had a problem with my bike. Reaching the top at 750 feet we were greeted by the guys again who had helped us, but this time with the cavalry - Jack's wife and kids with the van and tools!!
Within seconds my bike was upturned and work in progress. It took a while to realize the spoke was actually the wrong size, but with a little ingenuity and asking "what would Macgyvor do?" the spoke was fixed and we were on our way. Just as we reached the bottom, the guys had a puncture! So we hang out for a while eating homemade jerky and blackberries. You begin to realize these problems actually add to the trip and not make them worst.
We managed to make the last 25 miles from Lincoln City in just over 2 hours which was pretty good going. We took the Otter ridge route avoiding the busy section of the 101, and it was just stunning scenery. Arriving in camp we were greeted by a few friendly faces we had met earlier in the week, and shared stories until bed time. I'm feeling so much better than I did yesterday, it's great how the actions of others can really lift your spirits.
A massive thank you to Jack, Ken, Randy and Roberta you guys rock!
Miles today 57. Total miles 519 - over quarter of the way!!
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