Day 9 - Sopchoppy, FL

once again, a long and steady ride today thru rural BFE Florida. rode on hwy 98 west all day with a light tailwind and very light traffic. loving these nice smooth roads with clean shoulders. a little shorter ride of 70 miles. traffic was so light that I broke protocol and put on the MP3 player to jam to. nice. set up camp at holiday campground in Sophoppy, FL. cheating a bit on the camping by indulging in a restaurant meal and a few holes of the masters.
really loving the go-as-I-please of this trip. daily destination goals have been within reach; it's just nice to ease and enjoy the ride. nice change from IM training days. easy day tomorrow.

today: 67 miles
to date: 460

Day 8 (April 9) - Perry, FL

after a rainy night, I awoke to a clear and dry day, perfect for a ride. expected some headwinds today. after bagels, banana and perced coffee, I was on my way. finding that going slow and taking my time agrees with me - getting late starts !! headed north on hwy 98 toward perry, fl. again, an uneventful ride; long stretches on smooth roads, nice shoulders and light traffic. geared down to keep my pace, but slower today. another great ride ! making camp at a KOA campground. nice. got to do laundry. a quart of chocolate milk did me in !

today: 78 miles
to date: 393

- first night camping in Chiefland, FL at lake manatee state park

Day 7 - Chiefland, FL

rather uneventful ride of 89 miles to chiefland FL. had a nice tailwind most of the day, always a welcomed treat. got in feeling reasonably fresh, in fact. camped at lake manatee state park. cooked up a pot of orzo, black beans and chicken. nothing like camp cooking after a hard ride !! had a good rain thru the night, but the tent stayed nice and dry. good sleep. note to self: improve on the pillow.

aim for tomorrow is perry, fl, about 75 miles.

today: 89 miles
to date: 315

Day 6 - Brooksville, FL

long truck from epcot to brooksville, FL. I had managed to lose my map for the first stretch of the southern tier route, which I expected to reach in gainesville. rob (my brother-in-law) and I worked up an alternate route to closer hug the FL coast. will be much more scenic along the beach, works for me. looking to hit pensacola and rejoin the ST there in 4-5 days.

today, a bit of traffic west on 50 early on, but it thinned out on the way.
stayed in an over-priced flea-bag of a hotel. had a plate of not-bad lasagne in a place that had beatles and red sox paraphernalia prominently displayed. that made them good in my book !

today: 91 miles
to date: 226 miles

Leaving Epcot on to Brooksville, FL

Day 5 - Magic Kingdom

day off at magic kingdom

Day 4 - Cape Canaveral to Epcot Center

after a late evening of laughing and Dom mimosas, dave, tiff, young dave, dylan, and I got up early to drive to cape canaveral to see the shuttle launch. what a great surprise to both add AND cross off a bucket list entry! it was quite the sight up close! after breakfast, we said our goodbyes and I was off and away towards epcot to see my sister and fam. had a great ride of 65 miles with a little tailwind, always a welcome thing. met up at epcot and munched on sushi. was proud to see my 16 yr old niece, Emily, mature into a polite and very well-spoken young lady.

i managed to lose my southern tier ACA map off my handlebar today before i even used it. smooth move, donnie......
today: 65 miles

to date: 135

Day 3 - Day Off

Day off to chill out in ft. pierce, FL.

went for a short spin with friends Paul Paradis and Dave Hanley.

The Good Deed Award for today goes to Paul for giving me 3 new Polar water bottles to replace the ones i just left at my dad's. saved me some $$ plus a trip t othe bike shop.


today. 15 easy miles
to date: 70 miles