The First Cut

Day 1: Astoria, OR to Rockaway Beach, OR

Distance: 57 miles

Other stats: hmmmm, only the new Garmin knows

Those of you on FB will know that the day didn’t start too well, suffice to say that in an encounter between an extremely sharp knife and the tips of my index and middle fingers on my right hand, the knife won. Indeed, it left a splatter pattern across Valerie and Paul’s kitchen worthy of an episode of Dexter, who would have struggled as much as I did to understand how this happened. But it did.

And so I set off to catch the bus to Astoria for the start of my ride not only feeling like a complete idiot, but also sporting a rather fetching blue surgical glove to stop the blood dripping…

So, just a couple of observations about the day, since it’s late and I’m shattered.

The natty cycling sandals with cleats on the bottom to clip into the pedals, which I had hoped would become my footwear of choice for the trip, were shit. Although they did allow me to show off my pedicure...

...it was certainly not worth the feeling that each of my three middle toes on both feet had been gripped by six separate rusty pairs of pliers, and then pulled as far apart from each other as possible. Nuff said. They will not be accompanying me and the team as we depart Rockaway Beach tomorrow. The traditional cycling shoes are in pole.

Second, the Garmin. Perhaps as a protest for not naming her yet, the Gamine decided she wasn’t going to talk to me for the first quarter of the ride, requiring me to move her mount from the stem of the bike to the handlebars for better viewing, and of course opening up the wounds on my finger tips as I grappled with the plastic bands that keep the mount in place. And then the experience of me sharing not only sweat but actual blood drops onto the screen seemed to trigger something in her and she chirruped up for the next half of the ride, shutting up shop towards the end just around the time when my legs were ready to do the same. 

But in any event, I got here in one piece and despite being fit to drop, it was a beautiful ride, on lovely roads and in perfect weather. Photos will be uploaded tomorrow once I’ve worked out how to use the camera.

83 miles tomorrow means an early start…good night zzzzzzz

Me x