Michael Richardson
After packing up this morning at the abandoned Girl Scout Camp, we decided it would be best to make breakfast down the road somewhere with access to water. Ironically, many seemingly inconsequential decisions we make during the day end up having significant consequences, and this one was no different. We settled for an outdoor patio in the middle of Sodus Point because all the stores appeared to be closed. We later learned that the wait staff in Sodus Point take this day off every year as their 4th of July replacement—aptly named “Blow-Off Day”, complete with a party down by the beach.
The crew chatted with numerous locals out for their morning errands and one gentleman, Mike, asked if he could sit down with us. He kindly offered us sourdough cookies and told us that he organizes several endurance events in the area, noting the heftiness of our setups. After cracking a few jokes, Mike mentioned his many connections throughout the Adirondacks and asked what route we planned to take. After finding out we’d be staying in Old Forge the following night, he insisted that we hit up the popular water park on the edge of town. In fact, he said he could get us four free tickets if we promised to get there early and take full advantage of the attractions. Consider it done, Mike! Additionally, Mike offered to share BikeLoud with the thousands of race participants that subscribe to his mailing list, and we were ecstatic to see the donations spike over the course of the morning. The fundraising momentum has really picked up these last few weeks, and we’re so close to reaching $1 per person per mile, so keep it coming!
At a gas station pit stop, Friend bought a temporary tattoo that caught his eye and promptly stuck it to his forehead. I got a kick out of watching him interact with strangers the rest of the day, often forgetting about his new forehead decal.
Friend’s new ink
Things took a turn at a later pit stop when a gas station employee found us filling our water bottles via the side spigot and gave us a life lesson about nothing being free. We offered to pay for the water, but he insisted it was more about the principle. Ultimately, he wished us a safe trip and we were on our way, but I was still shaken up and feeling a little guilty half an hour later. The group discussed what went wrong and we agreed to get approval before filling our bottles in the future, especially in New York where people tend to be more direct than I’m used to. The logical next step was to talk about all the shameful and mischievous things we got up to during our school days, and this made the afternoon a very fun bonding experience.
A typical afternoon in upstate New York
We visited an Aldi for our dinner shopping, and I can see why people love these stores so much, especially Brian. We lucked out with a quiet campground just above the Salmon River and a host that was happy to accommodate four cyclists. As is now our routine, we watched the Tour de France highlights for the day, shared our high-low-buffalos and hit the hay!