Four down, eight to go, and stuff to remember… again…

(Note: I really should have written this ten days ago… we’ll see how much I remember from then…)

As April doesn’t have any “naturally occurring” holidays, I decided not wait until the last minute again, checked the weather forecast, and took a day off work to do my ride.

The ride from Durham to Siler City was great. Wooded back-roads laid along smoothly rolling hills. Of all the rides I’ve done so far (not just counting my 2009 century rides), this is the ride I’d most like to do again. Last month was nice enough, but was a little busy; the previous two ended with me riding south on 501 from Roxboro to Durham… I hate that road. Anyway…

Got started at a *very* late 9:00 AM. I actually wasn’t sure I was going to do the ride at all… the forecast for the following Monday was a bit better (a la “warmer”), but I had sorta forgotten that Monday was my eldest daughter’s “half-birthday”. (I decided, very early on, that if my daughters’ birthdays were a special day with everyone, their “half-birthdays” would be a special day with just me. No school, no work, doing whatever they want.) So, I hemmed and hawed and took my time getting started (until things were a bit warmer). As such, and knowing this was an out-and-back ride as well, I didn’t stop much on the way down, planning to stop and take pics on the way back.

Had to stop for this one though:

Made it to Siler City a little after 1:00PM and started heading towards the center of town (and the 50-mile point), keeping an eye out for a good spot for lunch. A bit shy of the target, I found the place… the place where I was to have my repast: Johnson’s. Johnson’s is a little hole-in-the-wall, looking very much like a boxcar-style diner, with gen-u-ine retro fixtures and an extra helping of Southern hospitality. They’re open only four hours a day and there’s a 30-minute wait for a booth! Thankfully for me, counter seats are open to anyone as they become available, so I did not have to wait long to receive my serving of the house specialty: cheeseburgers.

[Stuff to remember, again, #1: Meaty, greasy sandwiches do not make for the best ride food. They are quite tasty, though.]

So, after polishing off an “all the way” cheeseburger masterpiece and a couple of sweet teas, I availed myself of the facilities, asked them to re-fill my bike bottles, and was back on the road a little before 2:00PM. Almost immediately, I heard sirens, and watched as, for the next 15 minutes, law enforcement and emergency services vehicles sped past me (as I dutifully pulled over to the side of the road and stopped, of course). It wasn’t long before I found out why…

At 1:55 p.m., 22-year-old Anthony Shane Ferguson of Silk Hope Gum Springs Road was traveling on Silk Hope Road on his motorcycle.

A vehicle driven by Kristine Linn Keeter of Burlington was turning into Silk Hope Grill when she failed to yield right-of-way to Ferguson’s motorcycle and the two vehicles collided, the Patrol reported.

Ferguson, who was a firefighter with the Silk Hope Fire Department, was ejected from his motorcycle and died as a result of his injuries.

(Quoted from the April 23, 2009, edition of The Chatham News. I’d link to the article, but their archives are subscriber-only. Oh well… their loss…)

The incident served to remind me that I must remain vigilant while out on the roads because others will not always do likewise. I ride with a helmet-mounted mirror and probably spend a quarter of my time on my bike looking backwards. I also check out the size and conditions of most roads I ride on before my ride via Google Maps’ “Street View”.

Continuing on, I came across the following…

• Houses I want to live in…



• Athletic bovines
• Music lovers
• Typically North Carolina middle-of-nowhere street names
• An apparently dangerous mineral formation:


To me, this says "No Trespassing! Beware of Rock!"

• “Het Landhuis” and the “Het Landhuis Barn”, whatever they are…



• A Funny home sign and a cool mailbox:



• That gargoyle (and his twin) again:



• And, finally, a new housing development, perfect for someone who had better leave a comment on this blog entry…

Some thoughts had while riding home…

• A framed review in Johnson’s said that their cheeseburgers “sell like hotcakes”. Where and when were “hotcakes” ever so popular as to be a fast seller? Anywhere? Anywhen?
• Riding through North Carolina pasture land on a warm, sunny day is simultaneously beautiful and revolting. The same rolling fields that are a joy to look at smell absolutely atrocious. Also, bicycles do not have windows you can roll up.
• I am finding that a firmly delivered “STOP!!” appears to do more to dissuade a chasing canine than planning a firmly delivered foot.

Oh… and I almost forgot…

[Stuff to remember, again, #2: Sunscreen.]

(I arrived home once again bearing the solar markings that could be left only by a cycling helmet on one who has been facing the same general direction for most of the day.)

Until next month…