The Day of Four Flats

Last night’s foray into wild camping ended up working out rather well. I had no further visitors and enjoyed a relatively good sleep. My plan to get up extra early this morning also worked out very well – although, getting up before the sunrise is not my favourite thing to do. On the upside, the sunrise was beautiful and waking up to the sounds of the ocean’s waves is not unpleasant.

When you wake up before the sun, you really have an opportunity to get the most out of your day. Or at least have the most time to have a lot happen. Today was definitely a case of the latter.

I was on the road by 6:00 and by 6:09 the adventures began. I was cycling past The Beachcomber Inn which had a large sign and a life-size deer next to it – as I got closer to the sign I was very surprised to see that the deer was in fact real! I’m no expert on deer but this one seemed pretty impressive with a full set of large antlers on display. Sadly, it wasn’t interested in sticking around for a photo. Oh well, I enjoyed the moment and continued my ride to Montauk Point.

At 6:24 I had my second deer encounter of the morning. I had stopped at the Montauk library in the hopes of finding free WiFi – which I found, sort of. I could connect but there was no actual internet access. They did have an outdoor power outlet though so I took some time to charge my phone. It was during this time that deer #2 appeared. This one was a little more curious and stuck around long enough for a photo.

With the photo taken and my phone somewhat charged I once again continued down the road to Montauk Point. The ride was very pleasant and the sunrise backdrop didn’t hurt matters. By 7:00 I reached the Point and the lighthouse. Of course, the downside to getting such an early start to the day is that everything is closed when you get there. That was true for the lighthouse. So, I took a few photos from the road, then wandered down to the beach for a few more photos. There wasn’t much reason to stick around after that so I began the ride back to Montauk for breakfast.

Breakfast was good – once I found a place that would serve me. The first place I went didn’t exactly have the best service in the world. I’ll skip the details. Suffice it to say I walked out. It’s not like it was bad service – it was just no service. I ended up at Joe’s Pancake House. Afterwards I found free WiFi at the Montauk Bookstore where I was able to post yesterday’s update. All that was left to do was fill up my water bottle for the ride. If you’re ever in Montauk, don’t go to Montauk Bake Shoppe if you need a water bottle filled. Apparently they “don’t give out tap water.” I had no response. None.

I eventually got my water bottles filled at a 7-Eleven and was officially on my way again. The next few hours travelling along Route 27 were very pleasant. Wide shoulders and reasonable traffic. The misadventures began shortly after 2:30 when my new rear wheel went flat. My first flat in over 5,000km. I began the repair process and within 15 minutes I had the tube changed and ready to put back on the bike. That’s when I heard a pop and a hissing sound. Somehow, the tire had blown out again. It was right about that time that a car pulled over and I met Fintan. As it turns out, Fintan owns a cycling company and was a great help in fixing flat tire #2. He even gave me some Power Bar products and a cycling jersey from his company (Reilly Cycling Tours) – he said it was to help me remember the name of his company but I think he may have also sensed (ie. smelled) that I could use a clean shirt!

With my wheel once again inflated, Fintan resumed his drive and I resumed my ride. Actually, Fintan was heading the opposite way on the highway when he saw me and turned around to assist. I was on the road for about 40 minutes when my next misadventure occurred. I should preface this by saying that, since leaving Montauk, highway 27 had gone from being a cycle-friendly road to a busy multi-lane highway (occasionally lacking in any shoulders). I had just passed exit 65 when I had my first encounter with a New York State Trooper. He was interesting in hearing about my trip, where I’d started, and where I was going. But, as he said, “There’s just one problem”. The problem was that I wasn’t supposed to be on this section of the highway. Who knew? Well, apparently he did.

It turns out that at some point along the way highway 27 turned into a controlled access highway (ie. a highway with on/off ramps). When that happened, the road was no longer friendly to bicycles and pedestrians. The State Trooper was very understanding and seemed genuinely concerned for my safety – especially when he found out that about 20 minutes earlier I was cycling along Highway 39 which had no shoulder and heavy traffic. He gave me directions for an alternate route and sent me on my way – but not before I asked if I could get a photo. I mean, I had to ask, right? He said I could get a photo with the car but not him. Sounded like a good deal to me. I even got him to take the picture for me. I’m pretty sure he thought I was crazy.

So, within about one hour I had fixed two flat tires and had a run in with the New York State Troopers. What next? Well, it turns out another flat tire was next – about two hours after leaving the State Trooper. Fortunately I was able to find the hole and patch it this time but I have to say my trust level in my tire is pretty low after that.

With all the delays of the day, I once again found myself racing the sun in the hopes of finding some place to set up my tent. The search did not go well. As I get closer and closer to New York there is a severe lack of wild camping options – again, maybe I’m just looking in the wrong places. I’ll skip the part about me once again biking in the dark looking for a place to stay and jump to the end where I end up in a somewhat shady looking motel in a somewhat shady area. The upside to the motel is that there’s a Wendy’s about a block away. The downside is that as I was about to pedal over to said Wendy’s my rear tire blew again. My low trust level in my rear tire has now sunk to a very concerned level. Plus, the lack of wild camping options is suddenly making things very expensive.

Assuming I can get my tire to cooperate, I’m still planning on stopping in Philadelphia for a few days. During that time I may have to reassess things. Maybe I should buy a PowerBall ticket.

Today’s totals:
Distance travelled: 120.83km
Time on bike: 5:42:36
Maximum speed: 54.29 km/h
Average speed: 21.14 km/h