Thankfully though, that couldn't be farther from the truth. Kentucky is absolutely beautiful! It's mostly farmland, with lots of rolling hills and forested areas. When I get up in the morning everything is foggy, giving a soft edge and lending an eerie beauty to everything, even the most boring trees and telephone poles.
I have had some interesting experiences, to say the least. Here's a sample:
I was riding and this guy waved at me, stopped his car, introduced himself, asked how I was enjoying riding through Kentucky, asked if I was riding alone, and if I had a girlfriend/boyfriend. He then said it was a pity (I answered no), said I was good looking, bid me a good afternoon, and drove away. I was flattered? I might need to stop biking around wih my jersey completely zipped open.
I've gotten in the habit of waving to absolutely everyone on the road, be it cars, pedestrians (not many of those), motorcyclists, porch sitters, or lawn mowers. However, a few days ago I was absolutely exhausted and out of it, saw a pair of moving eyes, and waved... to a horse. I felt silly. The horse probably felt confused (and I hope, important).
Outside a grocery store, this man came up, introduced himself as Newby, and got super excited about what I'm doing. He then insisted on buying my groceries, and went around the store talking to absolutely everyone and telling them what I was doing - I felt like I was shopping with André.
As I was camping at Lincoln Homestead State Park, a gaggle of Amish folks showed up on a wagon. They came over and chatted, and one of them (age 16) mentioned he biked over with some friends. We talked biking for a while, he left to let me have dinner, and came back with a $3000 full carbon Specialized road bike. The juxtaposition between his suspenders, bowl cut, traditional garb and the fancy bike was fantastic. He's riding down to Tennessee in a few weeks. Woo!
Also, that same night as I was sleeping on a picnic table under the pavilion, I woke up in the middle of the night to a pack of cayotes yelping all around, a pack of loose dogs barking at them, and the most stars I have seen in years.
I met Chelsea, the second solo female rider I have encountered so far. From South Carolina, enjoying her ride immensely, and got super excited when I mentioned the treehouse available for bikers to spend the night in (more on that later). One beautiful thing about this tour is that while meeting other riders, the dynamic is completely different from meeting strangers. We're all a part of a big family. There's no ackward small talk. We wave, one person veers into the other side of the road, we stop, and chat. We swap stories, exchange tips on the road ahead, laugh about some shared experience, even if we're going in opposite directions. It's incredible how many people you know in common, considering you're stuck in a 60 mile "bubble" of bikers. You part ways after only a few minutes, but I always feel like out of all these people, given the chance to spend some actual time together, I would be firm friends with most of them.
Every person I meet deserves to have way more than the paltry line or two I write about them. Everyone has such different reasons to tour, outlooks on life, philosophies, and values that are apparent even in a few minutes. My one wish about his tour is that it would be possible for me to see all the wonderful bikers I meet again. I mention this because Chelsea is the first biker I see in about a week, and I've had a lot of time to think about my fellow tourers and how amazing every single one of them is. And crazy, too. You have to be a bit insane to hop on a bike and ride all day for two to three months.
Oh yes, the treehouse. This lovely man owns a house on stilts he built in the woods near his house, and makes it available for bikers to sleep in. It was fantastic (pictures when I next have a computer).
And currently I am spending a rest day in Berea, KY at this awesome dude Aaron's place! I have been wiped the past few days, so it's nice to relax, listen to music that's been stuck in my head for weeks, eat a lot, and sleep inside.
Woops, I just realized how long this blog post has been. I hope you enjoyed it and didn't tl;dr.
Love,
Malcolm
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