Matt's LifeLine: Day 41: Lagunitas to Bodega Bay, Ca

Hey Everyone!

Well today I headed out right from the camp ground right on the bike path!

Well towards the end of it my bike was making a squeaky noise and it turns out one of my Tweedy knobs wore out basically it fails to hold the fold joint together effectively. So I had to replace it luckily I had two spares! Well then I hit the road again and got some great scenery.

Soon after that I hit the town of Point Reyes Station a small little town and decided to stop into the local shop.

I then hit the local Grocary market and chatted with some guyes that were doing a 200k (about 130 miles) Randoneering ride.

So when I headed out I ended up riding along side them and chatted some more and then they eventually turned off the road and we parted ways. I then had a feeling somthing didn't seem right and it turned out I had gone about 6 miles the wrong way! I got so chatty with those guyes I didn't pay attention to whare I was going! Well I looked at the map and figured out my way back but I did get some nice country scenery!

We after that I got back to Point Reyes and got back on route for some more nice country scenery.

Shortly after that I passed by a group of college kids on the side of the road and they wanted me to stop so I did! I chatted with them for a few and got one of them to take a pic of my for some reason I forgot to take a pic of them oops oh well.

Well I then after a bit made my way to the Town of Marshall,Ca with a population of 50 and decided to take a short break.

Then I pedaled on and not too long after this it started getting dark and I still had 20 miles to go with no campgrounds before Bodega Bay. That 12 mile detour really ate up my time!

Well if there's several things I learned about having to ride at night:

First is don't panic! That's an easy way to get yourself hit by a car you gotta stay calm check your mirrors frequently. I love using a third eye mirror cause I can look back without having to turn my head all the way back. Cause when you look back you can't see whats in front of you especially at night. Also a lot of people claim they can just hear the cars comming which is true but I found you can't distinct between a car passing by you and one that's comming up right behind you just by hearing. You have to get a visual and using a Mirror makes this a lot eaiser and safer.

Second is always be aware of your surroundings. Frequently check what's on the shoulder for an exit strategy in case a car does comes right up behind you so you can then just veer off the road if needed. This is especially crucial when riding on shoulderless roads. I'd rather fall in a small ditch then get hit by a car!

Third is Take your time! It's already dark out and hurrying there isn't going to change that! Take frequent breaks but keep them short or you'll get chilled. And speaking of getting chilled and taking your time Don't sweat! Cause when it comes to biking in the cold, sweat will get you chilled so take your time and on the hill climbs especially! And last but definetly not least is visibility wear reflective gear and also have several rear lights as well cause reflective gear only works when light shines on it so if for some reason a car doesn't have their lights on they can still see you and of course good front lighting is important for you to see as well In addition I like wearing a head lamp the ones that strap on your head cause it shines light where you look unlike a mounted light. Also always carry spare batteries especially on tour it's not fun having your light die out in the middle of using it at night.

Well I eventually made my way to valley ford,Ca I was less then 10 miles away at this point.

There was a neat hotel so I stopped to check it out.