TNGA, Dog Bites and Driving, OH MY!

More from Shey later......

 

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First, huge thanks, again, to Dave Muse for putting together a great route for the Trans North Georgia. This year someone found some great yurts for the riders to stay in the night before the ride started, so we would only have a 30 minute drive or so to the SC border. Andrew from Mulberry Gap cooked an awesome breakfast.



When routes are this long (300+ miles), there will be reroutes over the years due to changes in the land itself, ownership, damage from storms, etc. This year there was a reroute around the Mocassin State Park area and as riders completed it the consensus was: It was brutal!

The gang listens as Dave gives info on the ride and reroute.

The start.

 Cruisin' through the first few miles of the route.

A storm hit at Unicoi and the leaders rode the trail that quickly turned into a muddy creek.  The lead group played leap frog all the way to Mulberry Gap, about 220+ miles into the route.

Jason headed into Helen for food, Shey rode on.  Then Shey bivyed at the top of Wolfpen and four guys rode by.  Shey got up and later passed others as they bivyed.  And so it went. 

 

Dave Muse and his girls on the right.  They were trail angels giving encouragement to all.

I got to hang out with Sherri, as we watched hummingbirds fly around until Ardie came rollin' down the road.

 None of us Lindners have smartphones, so the only time I knew Shey's location was when I was at Mulberry Gap.  Otherwise it was a guessing game.  His digital phone was dead, so no text for a pick-up time.  I called MG to let them know I was waiting at the border and could pick up anyone coming in soon.  Diane was brushing her teeth and said she would check on the trackleaders page and call me back.  Shey and Jason would be coming in soon.  I doubted that Shey knew how close they were to last years finish time.  They said the rails to trails section was rough and it was good to finally hit the pavement.

(It's interesting how smartphones have changed these type of races.  It was surprising to me after the Huracan ride to find out how much these phones are used to check positions, find stops and stay in touch.  I think Shey and I will probably get a smartphone soon for when we are traveling/flying, but I don't want it to interefere with that away-from-it-all feel on the trail.  During a ride/race we just need it for emergency calls and a pick-up call at the end.  Nothing else.  We keep ours turned off.   Jason just wants a waterproof phone, since our phones always get wet inside, not a smartphone.  He already has one picked out.)

 

There were so many friends riding the Ellijay area that the guys stopped often to visit.  I keep finding pictures of them stopped on the trail, talking.  It was a beautiful day to ride!!  I asked Shey about losing time doing this and he said he would "do it again".   And I know Jason would do the same, because during the ride in Florida he would veer off the track to offer words of encouragement and an invitation for a Subway meal to a bikepacker he didn't know, who was stopped and looking tired.....these guys are just that nice.



Shey's gps fell of on the snake creek trail and when he went to look through the foliage for it he was stung by yellow jackets....so if anyone finds a gps on the side of the trail, please let us know. 

 

 

Jason and Shey finished together and were very happy with their rides.  Jason just did this as a time trial a few weeks ago, then raced the Colorado Trail race recently, then was on the start line for the TNGA this weekend!  Crazy!!  Shey has been super busy with the boys and the shop this year, so I wasn't sure he would find the time to be prepared for this ride, but I guess he was!


After loading up on cold water and chocolate milk from the gas station, I took them to eat at Waffle House, so they wouldn't look out of place in their cycling gear.......oh, yeah, they blended........



Now for the dog bite.  Shey and I had planned on taking Friday to spend together and head up to the yurts early to relax.  Before we left, Everett called me to tell me that a dog bit him on his commute to work.  These dogs have been a problem and he was worried because the dog was eating a dead oppossum right before he was bit...yuck!  I called animal control and the police.  We were told that he would have to ride his bike, with his injured leg, back over the county line to file a report.  Then they said he could file a police report with the animal control over the phone.  We got that taken care of and headed out later than planned.  Then he called again saying that animal control had quarantined the dog because it was not up to date with it's rabies shots, so we stayed and took him to the doctor to find out what the correct protocol was for this situation.  He is on antibiotics and they will monitor the dogs before they decide whether he needs the shots or not.  Man!  So we got to the yurts well after dark and Shey was tired and grumpy.


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Driving.  Everett had the car for the weekend while we were out of town.  So instead of riding his bike to work and his dental appointment, he drove, by himself, for the first time.  It's probably very good that we were out of town.....


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Typical Saturday

I steamrolled Everett (think Strange Brew in their straight-jackets) out of bed and we went for a morning paddle.  There was a fish jumping frenzy and we found one of these:  http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/conn.river/bryozoa.html  

After the morning on the lake I dropped Everett off at work and headed over to IHP for a lovely trail run.  Next, it was home for a quick shower as Jansen rolled into the driveway from his road ride.  Then we picked Everett up from the shop and headed over to Farmburger for lunch before the Roller Derby Play-offs.

Denim Demons vs. Apocalypstix

 At the Yarab Shrine

 With Jazz music playing in the background

Shey rode the Drama Queen route near Ellijay in the morning and cut it a little short to meet us in town for the derby.  Fun was had by all.

Kari L.

Twenty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's Roller Derby TIME!!!!!!!  The Atlanta Rollergirls playoffs are coming up next weekend and we will be there!  This has become a tradition for Everett's birthday and I can't believe he is turning 20.  We still stay up late hanging out, laughing and telling stories of all the absurd stuff we have done together.  And our friends and family know there are A LOT of stories.......    But man, he will be TWENTY.  That is just crazy!

Here's to many more birthdays and insane L4adventures!!!!!!!


Kari Lindner

Stinging Things

Everett and I went for a trail run at IHP after work on Thursday.  We were trotting down a dirt trail on the granite side of the park when  a dog came running down the trail.  He was excited to see us and wanted to play so Everett petted him and talked to him, while that was happening something hit me on the lower back and it started to burn.  I grabbed it and pulled it off.  I turned and asked Everett if something had stung me through my shirt.  He said he didn't see anything and it was then that they started to hit us.  The insects were too fast for me to see what they were, but they flew at us hard and their sting hurt like hell.  Definately not bees or yellow jackets.  I yelled at Everett to run and I took off. 

Everett headed the other way to let the guy with the dogs know that there were "bees".  The guy thought it would just be a couple bees and kept heading down the trail when he was attacked.  He dropped his glasses and ran, yelling and swatting.  Everett yelled from the woods to let me know he was okay.  We met the guy and his dogs at the parking lot and he said his vision was very bad, but there was no way he was going back for his glasses. 

7 stings kept me from playing for a few days, but some steroids and benadryl helped a lot.  I didn't think to get pictures the day of the stings, but here are a couple after taking the meds.  Thankfully Everett got away quickly, but still had a couple stings on his back.

My side felt like it was bruised from this one little sting.

Felt better by Sunday, so Jansen and I loaded up the boat, while Everett slept in on his day off.

 Lake Varner was smooth and fun.

 Lovely day!

 Then home for some yummy Ben and Jerry's!!

Too Much Again

Getting groceries for four on a bike isn't the easiest thing in the world, especially when you live with three grown men that eat like they are storing up for the winter....year 'round!  I tend to get more than I can fit on the bike....every time.

My goal for this year was to have a commuter bike set-up with panniers, box, etc to jump on at any time to run my errands.  My normal route is between 32 and 37 miles.   My B.O.B. trailer is awesome, but I tend to fill it to the full weight limit and riding home feels wobbly and unsafe.  I chose a Giant hybrid/cruiser style bike.  (It is taking alot of adjusting to get it to feel similar to my mtb or road bike, a cross bike may have been a better choice.)

I stole a nesting box (milk crate) from the coop to zip-tie to the rack of my bike.  The Betties looked at me like this......

Of course when I walked out of the grocery store I had way too much to fit in a backpack and milk crate.  In the end, I hauled this load home.

 A watermelon, gaia melon and two liter diet root beer (that I was craving) fit in my backpack, along with my bike cable and lock, etc.  Milk jug, large cans of tomato sauce, meats and cheeses in the milk crate and bread, cereal, etc tied in bags to the outside of the milk crate.  It felt more stable than the BOB trailer and though the backpack was heavy, I didn't have a problem with balance.  I am really ready to order my Banjo Brothers panniers this fall!!

After groceries, I got a call from Shey.  He had been riding a two day route, with his friend Thomas,  through the surrounding counties and had camped at Hart Farms trails.  He was now on his way back to Covington and wanted to meet up for lunch. 

He and Thomas had been riding through some pretty hot temps and I was sure he was needing some salty food.  So, we chose Bullritos.

I rode into town to meet him and we ate yummy tacos while he told me about his adventure and we laughed about all the fun summer stuff we have done with the boys this year.  He was surprised the boys didn't ride into town with me, but I snuck out the door so they could have the house to themselves.  We are lucky parents for sure!!

Kari Lindner

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