May 17, 2008
Day 5: Reidsville, GA to Point South, SC
105.92 miles, 7:36:41 Ride Time, 13.92 Average Speed, 23.8 Maximum Speed
I slept well in the super-comfortable bed at the B&B, and didn't get on the road until almost 8:00. It was very pleasant this morning; the rain in the night seemed to have cooled things down. This was good, since I was going to try to do a long ride today. The short day yesterday had messed up my plans; the next campgrounds or motels were in Statesboro, only 40 miles away (too short a day), and the ones after that were 100+ miles away, near I-95 in South Point, South Carolina. This would probaby be a long day.
I quickly arrived in the little town of Collins (pop. 528). I felt good after the easy day yesterday, and the wind was with me. I decided that I would only stop for snacks and water today, and not burn an hour or two in a restaurant for a real breakfast or lunch.
I would be going North and East today, back towards the coast, and if the tailwind, flat terrain, and mild temperature all lasted, a 100+ miled day seemed doable.
I was on very quiet roads all morning, and I finally used my handlebar-mounted speakers that I'd brought along (they plug into my iPod that stays in the handlebar bag). I had contemplated sending them home a few days ago, but now I decided they were enjoyable (at least when the traffic noise was low enough that their sound wasn't drowned out).
Somewhere before the little town of Register, I met another touring cyclist. It was Shamus, from New York, riding from Pennsylvania to Florida; I believe he had been on the road for about three weeks. A nice guy, he seemed a little concerned about dogs; he was carrying no less than three anti-dog measures: A can of Halt!, a can of super-powerful insect repellant, and a sharp-looking stick. I was happy to tell him that I hadn't had a single dog problem since I left Florida, and that I didn't think he would, either.
The riding continued to be great as I approached Statesboro. At the outskirts of town I stopped at a gas station and was checking my maps, when a friendly local guy, Russell, stopped to see if I needed help finding my way into town. Thanks, Russell! Georgia continued to be a state full of friendly, helpful people.
Statesboro (pop. 22,698) was a nice-looking town, but I was enjoying the riding too much today to stop and look around. I did stop at at little city park and eat my second Little Debbie apple pie. There was a bike shop in Statesboro, but I decided I could wait until Wilmington to get a new tire, so I rode on.
I rode through the little town of Oliver (not much there but a post office and a few houses, but it was supposed to have a whopping population of 253, according to my maps), then on to Kildare which was the last chance in a while for snacks and water. This was one of those little stores that probably sold more live bait than food. Had an interesting talk with the owner about the frustrations of running a retail business, then rode nine pleasant miles on flat, traffic-free Clydo-Kildare road.
My maps had me making a left turn onto something called Reedsville Road/County Road 82. I kept expecting, and failing, to see it, so finally I pulled over at the entrance to a dirt road to check the maps more carefully. I looked up and saw the sign that said that this was the road! Not only was it not paved, but it was more sand than dirt - sand being the hardest stuff to ride on, in my experience.
The 2.5 miles on this "road" were horrible - the surface was so soft, I kept sliding around. I stubbornly refused to get off and push the bike, so it made for an exciting couple of miles of riding.
I finally got to the end of the dirt road, and soon crossed into South Carolina, where no state sign welcomed me on this back road. I rode through some very poor looking communities - Garnett, Robertville, and Pineland. It might have been my imagination, but these did not seem like very friendly places. The riding, however continued to be great - still flat, and the wind was still at my back.
I made one last stop for an ice cold Gatorade at about the 95 mile mark, in the little town of Gillisonville. This was a strangely sparse store, with very little in stock. The lady working there was extremely nice, however, and gave me the usual warnings to be careful. I hear this a lot; I'm not sure what people think is going to happen, exactly. Perhaps I should watch more television news and learn to be afraid of everything.
After several flat miles through pine trees (reminiscent of the first day in Georgia), I crossed I-95, and arrived at Point South, which was the usual cluster of truck stops, fast food restaurants and motels found at interstate interchanges. This was not the ideal place to end one of the best days of pure riding I'd had all year, but it would have to do. I checked into the Best Western, then later walked over to Wendys and brought a huge, deeply unhealthy, bag of food back to my room
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Today's ride: 106 miles (171 km)
Total: 367 miles (591 km)
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