Day 9 – Monday 6/6/22

Bay Minette, Alabama to Grove Hill, Alabama – 88.5 Miles

So far, I haven’t had any trouble getting motivated to ride. The weather has been good, and my body has been adapting well to the task of getting a little further down the road each day. Still, when you’re the driver and the engine, you tend to pay a little closer attention to environmental variables that have an effect on performance.

I always look at wind speed and direction forecasts before heading out on any ride. Guarantee a cyclist a 20-mph tailwind and you’ll see a lot of riders taking advantage of it. Give that same group a 20-mph headwind and most will park their bikes. Same thing with hills. Ask any rider if it’s more fun to go up a hill or down one, and the answer will be quickly delivered. That’s not to say there isn’t a feeling of satisfaction in riding up hills or into the wind, but that typically comes at the end of the ride, after you’ve completed the task. When you’re battling the weather and local topography there’s no time to pat yourself on the back for what you just did, since there’s always another obstacle dead ahead.

Each of my maps has an elevation profile on it. That is, a graphic representation of where the hills are along the day’s route, as well as a total figure for vertical feet climbed. Vertical feet are measured from a lower starting point to a point above that point. So, riding up from a lower elevation to a higher one gives the rider credit for feet climbed. Another factor is the percent of the grade. That’s a way of indicating how steep the hill is. Gaining one foot of height over ten feet of distance is a 10% grade. That’s not flat, but it’s easily handled. If you gained five feet of height over ten feet of distance, that’s a 50% grade, and you’re not going to climb that on a bicycle.

At the beginning of the day, I was looking at 4,300 feet of climbing, but not spread out evenly over the distance I was traveling. Imagine a ramp at the starting point, whose other end rests on the top of a 430-story building 85 miles away. That would be easy. Unfortunately, nature didn’t design the world like that. So, hills are randomly spaced, either to challenge or annoy.

The Sun’s always shining in the morning, and the first miles are easy. At this point I’m just trying to get into a rhythm and not push too hard.

Before people start going to work, the roads look like this. Even though I travel back roads as much as possible, Alabama drivers, particularly truck drivers, seem to know all of them.

I usually don’t have a formal breakfast before leaving the hotel. After 10 or 15 miles, I’ll stop at the first convenience store for drinks and snacks.

Whoever designed Alabama roads must not ride a bicycle. They’ve created a rumble strip by removing asphalt on the shoulder of the road. This is exactly where any cyclist needs to ride when traffic is approaching from behind. In the country it’s not too bad as there isn’t much happening. On major roads, it’s unsafe, since the placement of the rumble strip either forces the rider towards the traffic or into the grass.

As I mentioned, truck drivers seem to like back roads. I haven’t had a bad experience with any driver, but I’m always watching out for them. There are three types of trucks that can appear at any time: logging trucks, container trucks and tanker trucks. The logging and container trucks usually pass by loaded, then return in the opposite direction unloaded. The tanker trucks are only seen once. Sometimes two or three will travel together, which is when I pull Ishmael off to the side of the road and watch them go by.

With all the dodging of transport vehicles, there’s still many things worth seeing. I’m interested in learning how people live in sparsely populated rural areas and why.

Even in the back country there are convenience stores. This was a good one! Lots of choices and friendly staff.

I’m not sure if the river was downgraded to a creek, or if they meant creek but didn’t want to scrap the sign.

You can’t throw a rock without hitting a Baptist in Alabama. On the most rural of back roads, there’s usually a small church. This is a nice one.

Ishmael and I stopped for lunch under the pines. I had a granola bar and Gatorade. He had chain lube.

The scenery is a mix of scrub, pines and ponds. I don’t see any sign of farming but have seen tractors and equipment going somewhere.

After more pedaling in the heat, it was time to take another break at Perdue Hill. Behind me is the road I took, which drops significantly towards the Alabama River. As I descended the hill I could have easily hit over 40 mph, but trucks and the positioning of the rumble strip had me on the brakes the entire way. Getting out of control with a loaded bike can happen quickly, so I’m cautious whenever I’m in a situation that might lead to a wipe out.

Some old Alabama buildings on the hilltop.

At the bottom I found the Alabama River.

After going up and down hills, avoiding trucks and enduring 93-degree heat, I was ready to call it a day. Grove Hill kept announcing itself on signs and buildings long before I got there, which was frustrating because I didn’t seem to be getting any closer. Finally, I did. It’s a town that must have thrived at one time but has lost population and looks like it’s hanging on because it’s the county seat for Clark County. There are two hotels, and the one I chose was at the far end of town. I thought I’d missed it, but when I’d passed everything else, there it was. It was a nicely kept place, but I think there were only two guests that night.

I ate at a good Mexican restaurant, with the other option being Burger King. In a town of 1,800 people there aren’t many choices.

Walking around town afterwards, it was hard not to notice all the places that had closed either for the pandemic or lack of customers. Grove Hill was thriving at one time, but it’s difficult to imagine it coming back.