Jan 13th - Phon Phisai to Pak Khat - Kim and Glory - Cycling beyond

January 13, 2024

Jan 13th - Phon Phisai to Pak Khat

Mr House Resort & ITALIAN Restaurant

I stuck to Highway 212 today. The shoulder was very wide which was nice, but overall, it was pretty boring riding.

I saw there was a Mr. DIY store and planned to stop there on the way out of town. It opens at 7:30am. I think I arrived just before 9:00. 😂 Early starts are not my specialty these days. Lucky for me there's been cloud cover so I'm not facing the full brunt of the sun.

In yet another jab at my irritation with Bryan Adams, I decided, "I'm not hungry anymore." 😂

My friends Rachel and Patrick liked these garbage cans made out of tires. I joked with her, that maybe she was here as I see tissues littered outside of it. (If you know, you know.) 😂

What's wrong with this picture? What's wrong is I'm heading the opposite way the flags are blowing. Yes, it's at least my third day with slight headwinds. I haven't complained because its helps keep me cool

About halfway in when I was needing a break, I found one of those full service 7-11/Amazon cafe areas and took a lunch break. I just sat on a bench in the sun wondering what was wrong with me. Why wasn't in Amazon Cafe where it's cool? Ha ha I eventually headed over to the restrooms and it was then I noticed benches in the shade. Could have been sitting there the whole time!

Feeling refreshed, I headed back to the highway. Apparently, the sun did get to me because I went to leave and started to head the wrong direction. I was confused thinking, "I didn't cross the center divider to get here." Thank goodness for that or I might have actually pedaled the wrong way. Doesn't happen often....

Catching up to a monk walking along the shoulder

The entrance to towns frequently have these fancy gateways.

I was a little tired by the time I arrived thanks to a bunch of gently rolling hills the first half of the day. At least I can confidently do gently rolling. It's the long steep ones that I really hate! (Okay, really I hate most hills.) 😂 Don't worry, once I got settled in my room I quickly made use of the swimming pool and re-energized myself. I am looking forward to dinner tonight. Will it be pizza or pasta?

Glory imitating the dead body I saw. Funny. Not funny. As you can see, I'm still processing it. Being back on the Mekong River, it's a constant reminder ☹️

Umm, didn't notice this shrine on my way in

Saw these pretty yellow flowers when I walked to, where else, 7-11

The two cyclists I saw pass by last night showed up this afternoon. I chatted with them briefly but let them get settled. I ate dinner before them so didn't see them in the restaurant. When I came back to my room, I noticed my Brooks saddle has a definite indent on the left side. This is my 3rd Brooks saddle because I keep having issues with what I thought was the saddle, but I'm pretty sure at this point it's the way I ride or sit on it. Why didn't both sides look the same? I decided it was definitely time to tension it, but I couldn't get the Brooks wrench to work. I went over to the restaurant to see if they could help me after dinner. In the meantime, I went back to my room and finally got it turned. I went with a full turn since this is the first time tensioning it.

My room reminds me of Seahawks colors :) Ask me how sad I am about the Pete Carroll news. He's no longer the coach.

Oh, and to answer the question, it was pizza!

Today's ride: 30 miles (48 km)
Total: 555 miles (893 km)

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