Special Report: GOBA 2022 Day 6 Rest Day

Thursday, June 23, 2022. Great Ohio Bicycle Adventure.

It’s not the number of miles you ride, it’s the number of friends you make.

Thursday, Day 6. I’m laying in my sleeping bag on this air mattress. The robins are out waking up the entire campground on another blue sky morning. My watch is showing 5:00 AM. Do I get up and ride today? Weighing my options. Who am I kidding? Rest day! My legs have gone from limpy licorice to burnt bacon. My poor tortured arms are a deep shade of roasted red chili peppers. I can get off this air mattress without pain so I am grateful for small miracles.

Didn’t see any notices for breakfast here in the city park turned campground. Everything here seems so spread out. The baggage truck at the front of the park and the GOBA information desk in a pavilion on the far side is about a quarter of a mile away and where the shower truck is stationed. I’m right in between. One huge plus here in the park is there are lots of trees, large aged maple trees providing shade most of the day. Picnic pavilions with picnic tables are scattered about and each has a double AC outlet to charge our precious electronics. Phones, Garmin GPS, USB-powered lights, and what is becoming more prevalent, big lithium batteries for eBikes.

Love ‘em or hate ‘em eBikes are here to stay. Being a member of the baby boomer generation we are slowly fading into oblivion. It’s unfortunate but the fact is our bodies are only built to last for so many years. Mother Nature’s planned obsolesces. If an eBike can extend our outdoor pleasure not by 1 more mile but by one more hour who are you who would deny us that satisfaction.

Until they become more affordable and go further on a single charge I will use my own pedal power. Off to town and the restaurant I looked up on Google.

I set my Google maps to show me the way to K’s Hamburger Shop. Today I load the bike pannier with clothes that need to be laundered and set off on my bike across the Adams Street Bridge into town.

This family-owned restaurant has the sights and smells of eating establishments every little town had back in the late 50s. The early morning riders had arrived early and all the booths were occupied. Only the counter with a few round padded swivel seats were available. I sat next to an elderly couple who lived nearby. Dan and Delores said this is one of their favorite eating places for breakfast. The elderly waitress quickly strolled by and said it going to take a while because of all the orders they had. I said that quite alright, I am in no hurry today. She asks if I want coffee and I shake my head yes. She placed a paper placemat in front of me. A few minutes later another waitress drops a cup and saucer and returns to fill it with hot coffee. I ask for a couple of creamers and sweeteners, and no sooner did she turn around they were in front of me.

Dan talked about having a winter home in Florida and they spend the summers back here in Troy. They seemed overjoyed the city was hosting GOBA for the next 3 days. Delores had on her broadest smile talking about the colorful ‘shirts’ the cyclists all had on.

The elderly waitress returns, “What will it be, dear?”

“Just a couple of eggs scrambled with rye toast and a refill of this delicious coffee”, I reply.

Dan and Delores finish their breakfast, pay their bill, and thank me for the conversation before leaving for the day. I take my time because I’m in no hurry today.

The weather was beautiful today, sunny and not too hot, yet. I rolled down the sidewalk taking in the sights of the little shops. Not many people were out on foot, so I stayed on the sidewalk around the traffic circle. I set my Google Maps to the laundromat Sunset Cleaners and it’s over a number of blocks.

The Sunset Cleaners was easy to find as I pulled over and locked my bike to a bollard next to the building. The place wasn’t busy and had a couple of patrons drying their clothes in the dryer. I had with me a lot of quarters and I sure did need them. After making sure the machine was a washer and not a dryer I placed my entire load of t-shirts, socks, and underwear in the front loader basin. I brought my own laundry detergent, Gain seems to work the best as Tide has caused my skin it itch. The company that manufactures Tide must have known that for now, they have come out with a Tide Free and Gentle Detergent that is hypoallergenic. I have no desire to try that as I like the scent of Gain on my clothes. A silly note: on my solo sailing adventure aboard the 22ft Sea Marie my lack of domestic engineering got the better of me. After traveling 3 months and over 1000 miles on the mighty rivers to Mobile, Alabama I noticed I was using not Gain detergent but the smaller bottle of fabric softener for all my washing. Oh, they came out smelling great and clean for all I knew.

I set up my quarters on top of the machine in piles of 4. The cost to do one load was $4.75. That is 19 quarters. I had to fight the urge to look for and pull the side arm as the old 3-reel Las Vegas slot machines had back in the day. The only consolation was the business offered free drying to GOBA participants and that saved me $0.75.

One of the nice things about laundromats is that they can be a place to meet interesting people. Not many locals here on this day. A middle-aged woman with a bag of clothes to wash arrived soon after I did. She didn’t make eye contact and that is usually a signal they don’t want to talk. I’m ok with that. Later when I was in the dryer mode another woman a little younger than me did engage me in conversation. Her name was Faith and resided in Chagrin Falls. She had been on numerous GOBAs and was a member of the Buckeye Trail Association like I was. I had attended 2 of the TrailFests before the pandemic put a halt to it a couple of years ago. She had been to both of them as well. We were both looking forward to attending the one coming up in Sept this year at Camp Manitoc near Peninsula.

I strolled with my bike over to the CVS across the street. Got some acetaminophen for my achy joints, Gatorade, and an AC to USB adapter to charge my battery bank.

Well, the morning sure did fly by. I rode back to the campground at the city park and put my clean clothes away. I spent the afternoon and evening working on my laptop adding to my journal. While at one of the picnic pavilions I had pleasant conversations with an assortment of people. I welcomed the diversions from my journaling.

Something to look forward to.

Here one of the GOBA photographers checking his notes while these GOBA youngsters wait for their eBike batteries to charge.

Flashback: This happened on Monday. Now, I have a long history of high blood pressure and it’s under control with medication. I like to keep tabs on my BP because I know a long bike will usually lower my BP but not to the point I feel dizzy or have any other symptoms. I didn’t pack my BP cuff knowing the medical RV will or should have one ready to deploy. After my easy Monday morning ride, I took a stroll to the medic shelter and was greeted by Karen and a few of the other nurses volunteering that afternoon. I met Dr. Osborn who is a veteran of many GOBAs. I explained my rationale as Karen wrote out a report. They do this for anyone that requires hands-on care. Being an active RN years ago I did volunteer for one year and it was a very enjoyable experience. I would encourage any active RN or EMT to sign up. You do meet some wonderful people.

So all I needed was a blood pressure reading to see where I stood. No one knew where the BP cuff was located and Dr. Osborn pointed to the container next to the RV. One of the nurses reached in and found it laying on the bottom. She then applied the cuff to my right arm and proceeded to pump up the bladder. It wasn’t working. The cuff refused to inflate and the source of the problem was the bulb had weakened over time and had fallen apart. No functioning sphygmomanometer. That’s pronounced sfig·mow·muh·naa·muh·tr.

Dr. Osborn explained in years past GOBA had a squad present at all times that was well equipped with BP cuffs but due to cutbacks this year, they didn’t have any EMT vehicles on site. The kind doctor thought it would be wise to purchase one to have at the ready and I would return the next day. Tuesday arrived and after I finished my grueling ordeal. I walk by and Karen stopped me and said they now have a battery-operated BP cuff. I sat in the chair under the canopy and this guy with tattoos on his forearms applies the cuff to my arm. He said his name was Ed and I asked him if he was a nurse. He said no, he was the janitor. I turned to Dr. Osborn! Are you having trouble finding volunteers?!!! Ed was kidding of course and the reading was well within normal for me. So remember to call on Ed next time there is a spill in aisle 6!!!

I hear the bugler playing Taps again. Time to call it a night. Until tomorrow.