Day 90 ~ Cracked Rim

E-Town Restaurant floating on the Ohio River

The State Owned Rose Hotel across the street from the River Rose Inn B & B

Making phone calls on the Inn porch before take off...It was a chilly 46 degrees but we were toasty in our many layers.

Gregory checks out the steel tie off rings down on the shores of the Ohio.

Bruce takes one last picture of us in front of the River Rose Inn

8 miles down the road we got a cracked rim and were done for the day and probably the week...

Major Jim Walker kindly drove us back to Elizabethtown and the River Rose Inn

Date: October 17, 2009

From: Elizabethtown, Illinois

To: 2 miles outside Cave In Rock, Illinois (and back to Elizabethtown via truck)

Route: Hwy. 146

Miles Today: 8 miles

TOTAL MILES: 2, 616 miles

Top Speed on this trip: 54.1 mph

Weather: 46 degrees with a brief glimpse of blue sky

License Plates Collected: 5 Montana, 8 Wyoming (2 motorcycle) and 1 Idaho (found in WY), 2 Colorado, 1 Kansas (gifted from David of Baldwin City), 1 Missouri (To be sent to Grammy’s by our new buddy, Kansas City firefighter Shawn), 1 Illinois

Flats: 8

Broken Spokes: 3

Cracked Rim: 1 (Today!)

So much for making it to Kentucky today. We got 8 miles down the road and were just 3 miles from the ferry at Cave In Rock when Gregory and I heard a tick, ticking sound. We stopped to check it out but the spokes looked fine so we hopped back on. The sound immediately got worse turning into a tick, tick, whap, whap and I said to Mike that something was definitely wrong and to stop at once. It didn't take long for Mike to discover the 2 inch crack in the rim. We were done for the day. Actually we are probably done for the week. We can't ship the wheels out to be rebuilt until Monday and with shipping and repair time we could be here until Thursday or Friday.

Though still a cold 46 degrees this morning, we were actually enjoying our first glimpse of blue sky in over a week and having a lovely ride. We'd also had an enormous bald eagle swoop out of a tree right beside the road and soar right over our heads taking our breath away. He was truly magnificent and we watched in awe as he flew further and further off into the distance. Gregory mentioned that he read somewhere that a bald eagle can have a wing span of up to seven feet.

After we discovered the damage to our rim, we sat on the side of the road for a while contemplating whether to hitch a ride up to Cave In Rock or back to Elizabethtown. Though we don't like to go backwards I felt going back was the better option because we at least knew Bruce at the River Rose Inn where we'd stayed last night. We knew he had no vacancy tonight (a Saturday) but he had already offered us camping on his property if we wanted to stay over another day. We knew it was predicted to be 32 degrees tonight and we figured worse case scenario he'd probably let us hang out in the sitting room until we were ready to crawl into our tent. When we called Bruce he generously offered to set us up downstairs in his living quarters. He has a room where he houses family when they come to visit. It is affectionately known as "the dungeon". With two comfy twin beds and room on the floor for Gregory's air mattress it was perfect for us and we were thrilled to be out of the cold.

As Mike was talking to Bruce and explaining that we would try to get a ride back, I flagged down the first truck I saw and was able to hitch a ride with Major Jim Walker and his family who were headed just up the way to Rosiclare to visit family. Their 4 door truck was packed with people but we said we'd be happy to ride in the back of the truck with the bike. It was alot chillier riding in the back of the truck than riding the bike because we weren't working up a sweat. We hunkered down and were back in Elizabethtown in no time and putting our bike back in Bruce's garage.

Bruce offered Gregory the job of folding some brochures he just printed so we figured we'd do that while watching a movie. Well, I think I overestimated the ability of a 9-year old to fold a tri-fold brochure while watching Robin Hood. He was frustrated after doing only a few since I was insisting on precision. Mike and I ended up doing most of the folding and then after we finished the brochures I excused myself to do some reading while the boys finished their movie. The reading didn't last long and I was soon in a deep sleep.

The boys woke me around 6:45 P.M. to go get a bite to eat. We walked up the road to try Lizzie's Restaurant and just as we cleared the rise in the road to see the house, they came out the front door, turned off the "OPEN" sign and went back inside. Bruce had warned us that sometimes folks around here close early if it is slow. We then went back down to the E-town Restaurant where we'd eaten the night before but they looked closed.

Back up the street we found the Subs & Sweets shop open and had some pretty good nachos. The owner explained that just 2 hours prior someone had broken in her back door. She left briefly to run some things up to the middle school and must have had someone watching her. Fortunately, she keeps no money on site and they took nothing. She seemed pretty calm about the whole thing. After talking to her for a while we knew she was a glass half full type of person. She has a beautiful southern accent and was just a friendly as could be.

Back at the house Mike and Gregory watched NASCAR with Bruce and I caught up on my reading. Then we nestled down in our warm beds, once again thankful again for the kindnesses we continue to encounter and the generosity of others.