Mike & Tod - Day 11

As the boys wave good bye to Suwannee/Munchkin Land....

....they head into the forest.

Gulp....

Them is big trees.

So they have another day of inland riding. And they need to be brisk about it.




Lunch Anyone?Now where's them grits get to?


Perhaps monsieur would like a side order of Armadillo?

It's very nice.

Well, they're still in the middle of nowhere (Perry, if you need to know) but slowly getting closer to somewhere.

Personally, I might have kept going straight at Ocala on Day 8 and headed right for the Gulf.

Of course, I'm not dodging gators amd possums, so there's a lot of things they're dealing with that I'm not. Thank goodness.

So one more day of the real Florida, then hit the panhandle and get the hell outta there....

Mike & Tod - Day 10

Hooo weeeee!

If it looks like they is in the middle of nowhere - it's because they is.

Swamp.

Ain't no prettying that up.

But it ain't all bad, as they were actually way down upon the Suwannee River.

No kidding.

And it's the state song of Florida.

No kidding.

They even ran into some of the fellows coming back with their catfish catch.

Shore beats possum!

They also were, somehow, able to find a place for an office break to celebrate 1,000 km's on this trip.

Way to go, guys.

Sign in the "office" was thus;
"Our credit manager is Helen Waite.
If you want credit here, you can go to Helen Waite."

And I believe them.

The locals told them to be staying on their bikes - not to be getting off in these here parts. Chomp, chomp....

And the local boys in blue stopped by during a break to remind them of Florida's drinking and biking rules.

They were still on their game enough to wait til they left before ordering another $6 pitcher of Florida's finest.

Of course, Florida's D&D laws may be a little different than yours...

"Aw see u boys don't have a beeya in yor hands and youse is on yer bikes. You gonna fix that, rat?"

And they were lucky enough find a town in the middle of all this.

And they were also uhhhhh....."lucky" enough to find an Inn.

The very aptly named, Steamboat Dive Inn."

Special effort was expended on the dive part, I assume.

I think Jesus might have enjoyed his accommodations more.

So this whole place was a learning experience for them.

Now you might be wondering why Mike has his bike in the door of their Dive Inn room.

Correct.

Here Tod is doing the honours fixing Mike's flat.

And now they have a wee problem. He tells us....he has no more inner tubes. And they's about to head out to where the locals told them to stay on they bikes.

Uh oh....lions and tigers and bears. And gators....

And I think they both felt a bit like Dorothy "I don't think we're in Boca Raton anymore, Toto."

Mike & Tod - Day 9

After the disappointment of the previous day's lowly 40 click's, the lads were determined to make up for lost time.

Now without official confirmation from either Mr. Guinness or Mr. Ripley, the boys claim they did 40 clicks yesterday - by 9:10am! Clearly some kind of record.

Mike stands in awe of their achievement.

And 81 km's by lunch.

Which, of course, demanded an office break to celebrate. And rehydrate. And likely recalibrate.

And more of the finest Florida has offer was on sale here, too.

In case you're hard of reading, the menu board contains the following;

"Tuesday to Saturday, any and all you can drink drafts for just $10".

I repeat; THEY LOVE AMERICA!!

As Alan Jackson and Jimmy Buffett sing;

This lunch break
Is gonna take
All afternoon
And half the night.
It's 5 O'clock somwhere.

Let's see what that afternoon brings.

Well wouldn't you know it.

D'oh!

Mike gets a double flat five miles from the campground.

I thought he threw that damn thing in the canal.

But even with that setback, they covered a gruelling 151 clicks.

Roaring across the state. Good idea to keep on moving in them there parts.

Tod here's cookin' up a mess of possum and grits.

Mmmmm mmmmm......

Now this looks like someone you'd find in the scrub brush of Central Florida.

But in the 1880's.

Looks like these guys are starting to fit right in.

They might not be coming back....

But now we're starting to see some real progress.

Now just up the road from them is a natural next stop; the San Felasco Hammock State Park.

But I think they might continue west, to try to get to the Gulf Coast, and back to the water, as quick as they can. Then along the panhandle.

Stay tuned.....

Mike & Tod - Day 8

Another day, another set of blow outs.

Looks like the Space Centre boys didn't help much.

Tod had another two and here Mike is dealing with one, after he and his tire lost a battle with a big hunk of glass (I think that's what's in Tod's hand - lower left).

Here Mike has just thrown his bike in the canal.

Hey, hiking is also good exercise.

Uhh...thanks guys. Always room for one more searching for Uranus joke on this trip.

But finally made it to Daytona Beach.

Here Tod is determining whether beach riding is the way to go.

Bet you won't get many flats riding on sand. Although with these guys....

I guess they figured that decision might take a while, so might as well get comfortable.

I think they were selling 2-pint draughts for $4.

THEY LOVE AMERICA!!

So with the aforementioned technical difficulties and the impossible to pass up office breaks, they only made 40 clicks yesterday.

But tomorrow, our adventurers must leave the coast, taking a left at Ormond Beach, and head inland.

Now they'll find out what Florida's all about.

I can hear the theme from Deliverance starting already.....

But first, some last quiet contemplation of the ocean.....

Mike & Tod - Day 7

More good news! [The blogosphere is harsh. It will eat its young.]

Two more flats for Tod and this time, one for Mike!

I mean, another tough days for the lads.

So with all the bycicular difficulties, only covered 40 94 (oops...) clicks yesterday.

Made it to lovely Edgewater.

Tomorrow - Daytona. And beyond!

But first, more pedalling.

Great weather, but crappy roads.

Now we're talking.

Maybe them fancy space boys can provide some mechanical help to our gutsy gauchos.

You can do it!

Mike's thinking, I could fly that thing!

And do you see any damn tires on that thing? Perfect!

Harder to land in a parking lot, I know, but definitely doable......

Actually, easy to land. Harder to take off.

And for good measure, one more flat to end the day.

Mike & Tod - Day 6

Okay!

Tod had two flat tires and Mike hurt his back.

Now we're talking!

Throw in that alligator and we're all set.

I think this is the fourth flat for Tod.

He is either praying, thinking about doing something with a long rope and the branch of a tree, or regretting that he's not home at work right now.

So what to do after that?

Time to talk things over at the office.

Luckily Florida seems to have a never ending supply of offices.

With lots of those good office supplies.

So our band of bikers made it to Cocoa Beach yesterday before both tires and patience finally wore out.

I believe they rode out on a series of barrier islands up the coast. Very cool ride.

Saturn?

I wonder if you can see......never mind.....

[Thanks for the lob-ball, boys.]

Good luck tomorrow....

Mike & Tod - Day 5

I thought you needed lime green pants and a polyester shirt to be allowed into Boca Raton.

At least that's how I've dressed when there. And a few other places...

Apparently never too early for an office break.


Again the fellows made good time yesterday, getting all the way up to Vero Beach.

Nothing wrong with the Knight's Inn either.

So good progress so far.

But we need something more - maybe a hurricane or alligator thrown in to the mix.

Try and work on that guys.

Mike & Tod - Day 4

Okay. A mea cupla is due to the lads for me saying they only got as far as Hollywood by the end of Day 3. Turns out Hollywood was only an "office" break.

Which, on the positive side, however, did open the door for some gratuitous slagging of the Country Mice with cheap Jethro and Jed references.

But nevertheless, they covered a lot of asphalt on Day 3. As.....

....the boys did make it all the way to Fort Lauderdale.

And through the miracle of not-so-modern technology, here they are, together on the beach.

Okay, so I'm no Gord "Photoshop" Tripe.

But it could have happened.

Morning has broken on the sun dappled beach. Ahhh....must be almost Miller Time.

So yesterday, they made it all the way to Jupiter.

Which also allowed us to trot out all the tired, old chestnuts of;
"Can you see Uranus from there?"
"No, but it hurts like hell!"

And at least someone is on their side - the Florida Department of Transportation.

I'm guessing the motorists on A1A aren't....

And a shot from a day or so ago - Mike in Miami Beach.

They grow 'em big down there. Palm trees waiting to be planted.

According to local sources, they go for a cool 100k$ each.

So let's see what tomorrow (or today) brings.....