Dauphin Island AL

3 miles out in Mobile Bay reachable by a causeway with an 8% grade that looked incredibly intimidating but turned out to be very doable. Actually the ride down was more of a terror than the ride up. The view was spectacular and including the most amazing diving pelicans who seemed to be successful with each effort. I stood and watched them for quite a while. The whole ride was quite lovely with much of it along water. It was warm,in the low 80swith a nice breeze and or cloud cover most of the day. I rode 70 miles and enjoyed most all of it. My arm was aching a little so I decided to try to schedule a massage when I got into camp. Ken was able to fit me in at 3. I asked for 4 but he said , " I have Ken, the rider, at 4:30. Anyway as I was getting my massage I heard Clutch talking about someone having been released from the hospital . Turns out Ken the rider was hit by a panel truck-his side-view mirror got Ken in the shoulder and toppled him. His pedal clips were still connected to his bike when Clutch reached him.
An off duty policeman and his bike were behind the truck And immediately called the ambulance. The panel truck driver turned around and stayed with Ken until the ambulance came. Turns out he was trying to pass Ken when he saw an approaching car coming and pulled back behind Ken but wasn't able to clear him completely . He was o f course very upset. Ken , ever the southern gentleman was reassuring him that he would be fine.
Turns out he is feeling pretty good today considering he cracked his clavicle and got a bump on his forehead. He was in good spirits when he returned it camp and was able to tell us what happened. He didn't take any of the prescribed analgesics. He is wearing a sling, icing and resting. The Orthpod told him he could ride if he could stand the pain, so Ken is going to wait until tomorrow to see if he is able to continue with us.
Today has been overcast and lazy. This is our off day so it was kind of nicer to have it a little rainy and cloudy. I slept in until after 8 this am. Felt really nice.
The highlight of the. Day was Skyping with Marna and the Gillilump. When they first got on the phone Gillis smiled a Big smile. Then Marnie said say GG and he said it on demand-my heart leapt. Only 10 days until home coming-I can't wait. The trip is getting prettier by the day and flatter so the pedaling is easier. I am over 2000 miles to date and the bike is holding up and so is my bottom. I have been wearing 2 pairs of shorts to double the padding but now I truly understand what is meant by getting my panties in a twist. It does not feel good. Tomorrow I will try starting out with only one pair and carrying a pair with me and see how it goes. In the am we
Will start our day crossing the bay on a 30 Minute ferry ride and after riding 10 miles on the other side we will be in Florida. Only a couple of more days on central time.