Chapter One (Carson) >> This is a preliminary post for the day coming at you live via iPhone from the side of the road 62 miles from Ames, IA. More will come later, but for this moment I am waiting on Eric to drive by and pick me up to carry me about 20 miles down the road where presumably the Big Rig traffic will not be as heavy. A few minutes ago, I was hugging my narrow white line on this middle of nowhere country road (I could seriously bike a tightrope at this point) when a tractor trailor driver decided it a good idea to not move over and lay on his airhorn. A little rattled, I pressed on. Several miles later, it happened again - that time the truck giving me about 6 inches "wiggle" room. Not 10 seconds later another 18- wheeler coming towards me blew me off the road into the gravel excuse for a shoulder with its high speed vortex trailing behind. With that, I've decided to give up on this section of road, not risk life and limb anymore, and sit down in the high grasses, high winds, and low temperatures of central IA. I just recorded some related video I'll try to post later. This is the ugly head of the romantic bike trip many have been emailing me about, wishing they were on it. I wish things were more like you imagine. Will check in from Ames - Eric just texted and will be here shortly,.......
Chapter Two (Theresa) >> Carson just emailed me to say he was “airhorned again.” Then he was pretty much blown off the road by a truck a few minutes later. Got me thinking that for all of our progress – in transportation and other areas- the US is still behind the curve when it comes to mobility. I only read a few parts of Bill Bryson’s “A Walk in the Woods,” but he mentioned being in areas where, as a pedestrian, he was literally not able to travel safely. Seems that Carson is facing some of these same challenges now – his chosen mode is incompatible with the tractor-trailers, and more likely, with the drivers who are confused, annoyed, or just unable to deal with a cyclist on their road. These Midwestern “county roads” are turning out to be more dangerous than the bad neighborhood in Worcester where Carson found himself in March (a little lost, but at least not ‘airhorned’). Smart boy is taking a break, waiting for Eric to pick him up. (The little Scion with Mass. plates is still probably no match for the semis; ah, Iowa!)
Chapter Three (Eric) >> First of all, let it be said that no matter its plates, the little Scion is more than a match for any other vehicle... as long as I'm driving. Carson, who I know has never been thrilled about the idea of me driving his car, was forced to admit that I must be doing something right when we looked at the gas receipts and realized that the Scion was getting the highest mileage of its career. (Carson: first time the car has been driven on non-city streets).
Second of all, while Carson was loading his bike on the car to escape the Highway of Death (en Espanol: La Ruta de la Muerte), we were treated to the spectacle of a tractor-trailer passing another tractor-trailer. In a no-passing zone. Uphill. In high crosswinds. Driver on a cell phone. Unbelievable. (Carson: you can't make that stuff up.)
Third of all, there was a dead snake on the shoulder. And a fox. Wasn't there a fable about a snake and a fox?
And now we head into downtown Ames, if there is a downtown Ames, to explore.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Keep doing the safe thing. Sounds like "the safest bike route across the country" would be a good book project.
That's funny, your experience on the roads of Iowa don't sound that much different from my experience biking the roads of MA (people on their cell phones, driving too close to the shoulder, pulling out in front of you, passing/turning where they shouldn't). Maybe there should be a little more bike advocacy EVERYWHERE in this country. Ames is a nice place and home to Emily Silet (now of Cambridge, MA). I hope you checked out the botanical garden - it's awesome!
Post a Comment