June 24, 2005

Hottest Day of the Year

We set off early as it’s an 85 mile ride to where we are to meet Tim Dearborn and the weather calls for hazy, hot, and humid with winds out of the west of 10 to 15 miles an hour which is good as we are back to the L route syndrome: south, then east, then south, then east, etc. About fifteen minutes in Nick’s bottom bracket seized up again as we have no tools to properly tighten it. I was using the makeshift method when a guy in a pickup truck stopped and asked if he could help. I asked him if he had a channel lock wrench, which would have done the trick. He showed me the tools he had and nothing looked any better than what I was using until he came across a pipe wrench. I tightened the bottom bracket as best I could with the wrench but stopped as I thought it might be cross threaded and I did not want to permanently damage Nick’s bike. We would have to get to a bike shop to have it looked at.

We made good time going south when we stopped for our second breakfast in Mendota, IL. We checked the yellow pages and saw a bike shop called Bill’s Bike Shop and it was only a couple of blocks away. I called first as it was just 9:00 and most bike shops don’t open until 10:00. When we arrived at Bill’s, which was a personal residence where Bill does repairs in the garage, Bill’s wife was sitting in the driveway in lawn chair. She summoned Bill when we arrived to take a look at out problem. Bill as it appears does repairs and fixes up and sells used bikes mostly of the traditional American style bikes. He doesn’t do much work on racing style road bikes and consequently doesn’t have the bottom bracket tool we need. What he does have is a channel lock wrench. The bottom bracket had loostened again which was a relief as it was not cross-threaded. Bill tightened it as best he could, taking care not to do any damage to the bike. We chatted a couple minutes and Bill sent us on our way without any charge. Thanks Bill. We will still look for a shop with the right tools to fix it properly.

In the next town Ottawa, we asked where there was a bike shop and were directed to Smitty’s Bike Shop. There were no cars in the driveway but it was early so I went to the door only to see a handwritten sign on the door which read: “Going out of business, everything must go.” Smitty’s Bike Shop, I thought that was a good omen. Oh, well! I should have gotten a picture of the place but thought of it about a half mile down the road.

Another Hot One! It's 10:30 in the AM

It was getting really hot and in one town at around 10:30 one of the temperature signs read 100. At around 1:00 we made it to Streator, IL and were close to back on the Adventure Cycling Association route and a bike shop waypoint showed on the GPS. On our way to where it was indicated we saw a market and stopped in to get bananas; they had none. I mentioned to Nick when we got outside that I guess the Irish markets don’t carry bananas as I saw a shamrock painted on the floor out the way out. He would tell me later that they had plenty of potatoes. When we took the next right there was green glass all across the road so we went onto the sidewalk. After about an eighth of a mile I was a guy and a girl of high school age and asked: “What’s with all the glass on the road?” The reply: “It’s in the pavement - - don’t worry.” With the flats we had the first week or so of the trip, I worry. The green glass was part of the pavement so we rode on it. Oh yes, the bike shop.

We followed the GPS to a small road that went down a hill and turned into a dirt road and the town garage was where the bike shop was supposed to be.

We took a break from 1:00 to 3:00 to avoid the heat of the day. We stopped in the public library, which was air conditioned and quite comfortable. I typed my log for yesterday and Nick went on the internet and checked his e-mail. We had lunch and an ice cream on the way out of Streator. From there it was just a 26-mile ride to meet Tim at the City Park where we are camping. Tomorrow morning the plan is for an early start to avoid the heat of the day.

And now there are three.

Meeting Tim For The First Time

Jim

Cycledog (Ride the extra mile!!)

© 2005 - JNS

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