Day 5: Mineral to Charlottsville, 57 miles (225 total)

First, thanks to everyone who has been posting comments. We can only see them when we get to a computer with internet connection, but it was fun reading through them all tonight from Maggie's. Keep them coming!

So, yesterday we got lost. Today, blows that out of the water. In a nutshell, I broke a spoke, left my wallet in the bathroom at Monticello, and as we were recovering in Maggie's very cute house, we realized that the whole thing was filling up with smoke. 911 was involved in a big way.

Let's start at the beginning, which would be where we left off last night. Free camping doesn't always mean an ideal situation. Though we didn't have to pitch the tent last night (and then put it away this morning), sleeping on a concrete floor has its drawbacks. Sleeping on a concrete floor in a Firehouse/EMT station has even more drawbacks. First, the entire building is wired with speakers connected to the dispatch office that keeps you updated on all calls made in the county. It also updates all stations on training coming up in the next months and just keys in every once in a while to let you know it is there. Throughout the night we woke up to various training updates and then the EMT calls for people having strokes, asthma attacks, and the inablity of one guy to keep any food down for three days. Though I felt sorry for all of these people, I also just wanted my rest. There was also an ice machine that sounded like a diesel engine everytime it started up. All in all, Jeff got more sleep than I did as I often laid awake listening to his snoring (allergies), the announcements, and the ice machine. I was VERY tired when the alarm went off at 5:45 this morning.

The good news is that we got off to a very early start. We were rolling by 7:15 and were back in more beautiful country-side shortly thereafter. The terrain has been increasingly more rolling in the last two days but today included some good climbs. Still, by 30 miles into the day, I was feeling great and still ready for more. We were rolling through Palmyra, VA at this point and I knew from the maps that it had a small restaurant. Still having a 30-mile stretch in front of us, I thought it would be a good idea if we stopped in for a bite to eat. We felt like we could have ordered everything on the menu! We ate all we could and for a total (not counting tip) of just over $12 we didn't think it was too bad.

Getting back on the bikes after breakfast #2 was hard. We were both feeling super sluggish and had to take a few breaks just to get back in the swing of things. By the time we hit Monticello, I was at my limit. Though only a few miles outside of Charlottsville, my legs felt like jello with no power left in them. I was also not too mentally alert. As I only carried my wallet and water bottle with me to the visitor center, you'd think I would be alert enough to carry both of them back. Nope. Left the wallet.

We arrived in Charlottsville earlier than expected, and thought we had to wait for a bit to meet Maggie after her appointment. We made our way to the pedestrian mall and just tried to keep our legs moving as we walked around pushing our heavily loaded bikes. Maggie called almost right away and we loaded our trailers into her Grand Cherokee so we would have a trailer-free ride to her house. It is a good thing we did! Jeff noticed right away that my rear wheel was out of true. When we got to Maggie's house, we called a bike shop right away to see if they could fit my wheel into their late-afternoon schedule. It was at this time that I noticed my wallet was gone. I'm not carrying a big wallet, nor is there much in it, but everything that is in it is VERY important. My heart sunk. The last place we remembered me having it was Monticello so out came the phone book again. Thankfully, someone had turned it in but we only had 20 minutes to get there before the gates closed. Thank goodness we were traveling by car now (our first time in a car since the previous Friday, today is Wednesday).

Everything was in my wallet, including the cash. Phew. On to the bike shop. Not only was my wheel out of true, but somewhere along the way I had broken a spoke. I knew my brake was rubbing, but I didn't feel out of control or anything so I hadn't checked the spokes. I'm sure it will happen again as other Cannondale owners have lamented the same problem, and the bike shop guy said their wheels aren't that great. Super.

Now we could go back to Maggie's for dinner, showers, and rest. WRONG! We got our showers but as we pulled dinner out of the oven, we both noticed that the room was filling with smoke and our eyes were really burning. The source of the smoke was somewhere in the basement so I had to call 911. They really responded! Five firetrucks (including a ladder truck), the cheif's van, a cop van, cop car, and ambulance all showed up for what I described on the phone as smoke in the house. It all turned out ok in the end but it certainly provided for some excitement! Turns out it is just the way the water heater is vented. The whole thing is shut off and Maggie's house will be just fine.

Now it is well past 10pm and we are truly exhausted. I'm pushing for a shorter day tomorrow but Jeff is worried about our finishing the trip on time. Who knows where we'll be tomorrow night!