Resuming The Quest

As has been well documented, my journey from Kitchener to Vancouver to San Diego to Florida didn’t really end the way I had originally planned – or hoped. Today, it was time to change that and get things back on track. Sure, it was about seven weeks later than planned but it’s also been pretty well documented that things don’t always go according to plan. And late is better than than never – well, generally speaking.

The plan for the day was to get the bike loaded and be back on the road somewhere between 9:00 and 10:00 am. I suspected my departure time would end up being closer to the 10:00 am option. Not surprisingly, my destination du jour was Quest Air in Groveland. A flat ride which Google estimated would take about 3.75 hours.

My morning began with a final breakfast with my aunt and uncle before the process of loading the bicycle began. It was at about that time when it occurred to me that I probably should’ve given my recently repaired bike more of a test ride than I did. Of course, it was too late for that and I would simply have to hope for the best. Spoiler Alert: I’m happy to report that hoping for the best worked out. Whew!

Before I left, Adrian and his wife stopped by for a final farewell. Adrian (a fellow cyclist) lives down the road from my aunt and uncle and I first met him when I was here during my east coast ride of 2014. Yesterday, he was kind enough to take me to a local bike shop so I could get the proper spoke for my bike. And he was kinder still when we ended up at Mojo’s for a beer (or two) on the way back. Thanks again Adrian.

As suspected, my departure time was in fact 10:00 am. I’ve mentioned on more than one occasion that I have a general aversion to backtracking. Okay, that might be a bit of an understatement. Well, today I didn’t have much of a choice. Okay, that might not be entirely true. However, the most practical and cycle-friendly route to Quest Air would require me to backtrack along the same trail which I followed last year when I departed Quest. For the record, I still have a strong aversion to backtracking but I’m a little more lenient when said backtracking occurs more than a year later.

After two solid days of rain, the sun returned today which made my first day back on the bike rather enjoyable. There was even a hint of a tailwind. A small hint. The temperature was a bit chilly (12C) at around 9:00 am but I opted to be brave and went with shorts and a t-shirt. Fortunately, it wasn’t a decision I would regret as the temperature rose rather quickly and I had a very comfortable ride. Well, I had a comfortable ride from a temperature point of view. The result of having spent the past seven weeks NOT on a bicycle seat would come back to, well … bite me in the … well, suffice it to say there was a bit of pain management required today.

Other than gluteal discomfort (yes, I know … too much information), the ride to Quest Air was smooth and easy. I likely should’ve stopped to eat but I didn’t – even though my aunt made me sandwiches for the road. I started to feel the lack of food during the final hour but I pushed on and powered through and pulled into Quest Air shortly after 1:00. Not bad for the first ride of 2016. Of course, this part of Florida is VERY flat which certainly aided today’s effort. Side note: I ate the sandwiches shortly after my arrival.

After a quick photo marking my arrival at Quest, I rode down the driveway to Quest where I was surprised to have my arrival welcomed by Greg who was here last time I was down here. It was a great surprise as I really didn’t expect to know anyone here (there have been some changes at Quest since my last visit). I later found out that my friend Tracy from Texas would also be returning to Quest next week. It’ll be a great reunion from last year’s Quest visit.

The rest of the day was pretty much spent setting up my tent, watching people fly, retrieving the occasional launch dolly, and meeting and visiting with everyone. I probably could’ve flown today but I was mildly tired after my first ride in two months and midday weather conditions tend to be a bit rougher. I figured that was a bit less than ideal for my first flights in over a year. In the meantime, I flew vicariously through Greg who had a great flight of over two hours. Fortunately, the conditions are supposed to be good for flying tomorrow so that is my current plan. Of course, I don’t always have the best track record when it comes to plans working out but I’ll worry about that tomorrow.

Unrelated to anything, is wrong that I had shortbread for supper tonight? Actually, never mind. I don’t like to ask questions to which I might not like the answer. For what it’s worth, I had M&Ms for dessert. I think it’s safe to say I’ll need to do a grocery run sooner rather than later before I end up with scurvy.

As would be expected, my night ended with a return to camping. Having not slept in a tent for a while I have to admit that it’s a bit chilly tonight. On the upside, I can always retreat to the clubhouse if things get too chilly – hopefully it won’t come to that.

Today’s totals:
Distance travelled: 72.11 km
Ride time: 2:58:30
Average speed: 24.24 km/h
Maximum speed: 31.40 km/h