I slept very well at the church hostel. Alone. I haven’t seen a rider on the TransAm and the hostel says there have been very few riders this year.
I took my time getting on the road after eating a breakfast of leftover food from yesterday. As soon as I mounted the bike I could tell that this would not be a good day. I had lead legs. I had been using my granny gear until today but this was getting ridiculous. Hills that I would have sped over last year were brutal slogs.
And, like the last three days, the weather was perfect.
I kept at it hoping that my Warmshowers hostess would come though with a place to stay 20 miles beyond Charlottesville. She never did.
I plodded along and stopped at a gas station convenience store without the gas. It was a place out of the 1940s. While washing down a homemade brownie with a Diet Pepsi, a local came by. He’s 68 and has livestock on his land. He lives off the rent from six log cabins he built with his own hands. He spends summers on a ranch near the eastern entrance to Yellowstone. He had on a weathered cowboy hat with the sides of the brim turned up like Junior Brown. He was missing a few teeth. And he could talk a blue streak.
After a half-hour chat I took off for Charlottesville. I often have a problem with congested lungs when I ride, but today, instead of going away, it worsened by the hour. A shot of albuterol had no effect. I was coughing up gunk all morning and feeling drowsy to boot.
As I was grannying yet another hill, some local riders in Lycra zoomed down the hill, all smiles.
Must not kill.
The hills seemed to be getting steeper with each mile. Climbing past Monticello took everything I had. The climb into Charlottesville nearly did me in.
I checked a few a few hotels and they had plenty of empty rooms. So I went downtown for sustenance. When I got off my bike I was dizzy. No bueno.
I concluded that there was no way I could continue in this condition. And even if I could, I wasn’t having any fun. If Monticello was tough, Afton Mountain and the Blue Ridge only a day away would be impossible and dangerous.
I had a burger, fries, and a beer at a bar downtown. It tasted great but my head still felt out of kilter.
Back in 2003 I abandoned a tour when my brake and shifter cables froze, the sidewall of my rear tire blew out, it was raining, and I was sick as a dog. I called my wife and she rescued me.
I did not feature laying about in a hotel for three days getting over whatever it is that is ailing me.
I rode a mile to the Amtrak station and checked about getting the train home. $46. Roll on service. In bed by 10:30.
Sounds like a plan.
A Few Spokes Shy of a Wheel 
Sorry to hear about your illness. Take care.
At least I learned you can take a train to C’ville and Roanoke with a bike for cheap.
Sorry, for a second there I thought you were taking the Last Train to Clarksville. I hope you feel better soon.
Sometimes you have to listen to your body
Elizabeth Lizabetty“Life is full of ups and downs, let’s pray more ups than downs.” https://lizabettywillis.wordpress.com/
No choice. I was down to 8 mph. Truly frustrating
There’s definitely a nasty bug going around. Will you regroup at a later date, or TBD? Hey, there’s always the Sedona tour!
I’ll reconsider my options when I feel better. Right now I want to crawl in a bed. Sedona is still on the table for 2025 assuming what I have isn’t just old age cashing out it’s chips
Here’s to the wisdom of experience and age, knowing when to say when, and also to a quick recovery.
go home. Take in a few Nats games and you will feel better in no time.
Train leaves in 2 1/2 hours
Bummer! Feel better soon. How lucky that the trail provided what you needed when you needed it. A train with room for your bike. You don’t luck into those every day.
I was stunned when the clerk said roll on service and $46. I was expecting box your bike and $150.
I priced taking the train to Williamsburg last year and learned that there is a subsidized Amtrak rate intra-Virginia for VA residents. You probably lucked into that.
Oh gosh!! I’m so sorry you weren’t feeling well and have to end your tour! But, if you had to end it, at least Amtrak came to the rescue! I’m sure you’ll be happy to get home and rest. Maybe another time you can continue the tour, starting from Charlottesville. Take care!!
Getting the bike onto the train was a beast. It’s going to be interesting getting it and all my stuff off in Old Town. Had to deflate the front tire too. Hope the new pump works
Hope you feel better soon!
Looks like it’s not Covid so that’s a plus
Perhaps not the outcome you expected, but it take a strong mind to know when to call it. I hope you feel back to normal soon, no sense at all pushing forward if you’re not having any fun.
Ah bugger 😔 Not sure if it’s good that it happened so early in your journey but at least you can get home easily. Just focus on getting better now 👌
If I had made it over the blue ridge I could have limped home via the Shenandoah Valley which wouldn’t be a bad ride if I wasn’t all discombobulated . Any time after that would have been a disaster. It was the right thing to do.
Good call then 👍