"THERE'S A SHORTAGE OF CHANGE", the very pleasant Indian lady behind the counter of the convenience store told me.  "Banks don't have coin rolls to sell.  You have to order them, and there's a 25 cent charge for each roll.  So if I order a roll of pennies (50 cents) it costs me half the value of the roll plus, of course, the 50 cents the roll itself is worth."

We got onto the subject of pocket change because that was what I was using to pay for my mid-ride snack.  I keep a medicine bottle in my handlebar bag and dump whatever loose change I generate during a ride into it.  Periodically it needs to be emptied; today was a day for that.

Earlier in the ride I had stopped at the same store to get a bottled drink.  It was $2.65 and I didn't really feel like breaking a $20 so I had hauled out the magic bottle-o'-coins.  The lady- I presume she and her husband are the owners- was delighted.  "We always need change." she said, and so I handed over $2.65 worth of quarters, dimes, and nickels, then exchanged another $5 worth of coins for a $5 bill.  Everyone walked away happy.

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Today's was the most ambitious ride I've undertaken so far this year.  At a hair over 31 miles it was more than twice as long as the mini-rides I've previously done in 2022, and also (on purpose) much hillier.  As such it provides a good benchmark as to the state of my preparedness.  What it told me is that I'm not ready to go on the big tour yet, but I'm much better off than I might be.

You can see from the profile that it really had no extended flats: you're either climbing or descending pretty much all the time.

There were many other riders out today, enjoying splendid weather.  I got lots of nods and waves, and one burly guy riding the opposite direction greeted me with a cheery "Rock on, brother!"

By the time I hit the convenience store for the second time, it was obvious that the final 10 miles would be a slow slog, taking things one. mile. at. a. time.  I knew what was ahead of me- this is my regular riding territory after all- and I knew I could make it if I just rode within myself and didn't do anything stupid.  And so it proved.  But I'm glad I hadn't tacked on any more gratuitous miles or hills early on when I was still fresh.

Ove the next couple months I plan to extend this route or variations of it: there are many miles of bike-friendly road to the west and north of the farthest point of today's jaunt.  

There's a giant container of change in our bedroom.  I foresee many further visits to my new friend at the convenience store, in the coming months.