If you read this blog even occasionally, you know that we are huge bike lovers, so of course one of of our first tasks here in Playa del Carmen (here's our first post from here if you missed it) was to purchase inexpensive beach cruisers to ride during our time here. Even long-term rentals, assuming we could even find decent rental bikes, would not make financial sense. For the length of time we're staying (six months), it's much more cost-effective to buy. There are quite a few local bike shops clustered within two blocks or so on Avenida 30 Norte, a busy commercial street a short walk from our rental. So on our third day in town, we headed up there, walked into one of the larger shops, BiciPlaya II, and hoped for the best. As expected, the guy who helped us spoke no English. But of course he was anxious to make a sale. Fortunately, another customer in the shop with a flat tire spoke both English and Spanish and was able to serve as an impromptu translator for a few minutes as we started looking and explaining what we wanted. That was incredibly helpful. All the beach cruisers were equipped with knobby mountain bike tires, and we wanted smoother tires as we'd be riding on pavement most, if not all of the time. In Belize even though we often rode on the beach path or unpaved dirt roads, we had smooth but wide tires, and they served us well. Our "translator" was able to explain this to the shop employee so he could swap out the tires for us. We started with my bike. I picked a color I liked in a ladies' beach cruiser, Crema (a pale yellow), and the shop guy got to work changing out the knobby tires. I also picked out a basket, a different saddle (narrower than what it came with), and later, different hand grips and a rear-view mirror, all of which were installed over time. The shop got busy, so this all took awhile, but that was okay -- hanging out in a bike shop is not the worst place to spend a morning! Barry's bike was next. By this time, the "translator" was long gone, but Barry was able to get his desires across pretty well with lots of pointing, nodding, and a few words of Spanish. He found a used red bike he liked that was actually made in the US. Although a single speed, it had hand brakes like we're used to (I am envious!), but he needed the tires, handlebars, and saddle changed out; and pedals, a water bottle cage, and a rear-view mirror installed. Here he is going on his test ride on the side street outside the shop, a smile on his face! When it came time to pay, I tried to bargain and ask for a descuento (discount) since we were buying two bikes plus accessories, but our little guy wouldn't budge much, especially once he discovered that we intended to pay with a credit card. Either our bargaining skills aren't very good, or this just wasn't the right shop to try them out in! Our total price for both bikes was $4429 MX, which sounds like a huge amount but is only about $325 US. Compared to what we pay in the states for bikes and bike parts, it was a deal. And considering how much we'll certainly ride these bikes, they will prove to be worth every penny and much more, I am sure. We've already had a blast on them and have found some excellent places to ride, but I'll save those for another post. In the meantime, here's a better look at my pretty new steed at our home base. And Barry's red racer, out enjoying a ride!
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Barry made a big plan for his 12th century (100+ mile) bike ride of the year. I'd drop him off at the start of the Chief Ladiga Trail in Anniston, Alabama, and he'd ride all the way to the Georgia border. From there he'd ride the connecting Silver Comet Trail to Atlanta, where we were staying for the next two nights. Even better, his childhood friend Lowell was traveling in the same area, and the old friends would meet and ride part of the way together. Everything went off without a hitch. We had spent the night in nearby Oxford, about 10 miles away from the trailhead, so in the morning I dropped Barry off at the trailhead. And he's off! From here, I made the drive over to Atlanta, and Paisley and I waited for him to arrive hours later. He and Lowell met up as planned and took photos at the state line. Here's the other end of the Chief Ladiga Trail at the Alabama/Georgia state line. And here's Lowell! Here's an attractive former railroad depot in Georgia, now a Silver Comet trail stop. Late in the afternoon, Barry made it to the end of the Silver Comet Trail. He still had a few miles to ride over to our hotel on the Silver Comet Connector. He made it with a total of 102.... miles! The next morning, I got to ride part of the Silver Comet Trail myself. I'd planned on about 40 miles but ended up with over 50 as the trail was so nice! Finally back in the Eastern Time Zone again, we'd next head to western North Carolina to visit my mother and step-dad and pack for our next adventure. Stay tuned to see where we end up!
The day after our long ride on the Tanglefoot Trail, we wanted to do a short recovery ride. Turns out that there was an access point to the Natchez Trace Parkway around four miles from where we were staying in tiny Houston, Mississippi. So, on our second full day, we pedaled over to the Trace on another beautiful (shorts weather!) morning. The Trace had light traffic even for a weekend (would likely be much lighter on a weekday) and a lower speed limit than most highways. It's flat to lightly rolling in the part of MS we rode in, perfect for a ride. I thought the name of this rest area along the Trace was interesting so had to turn in to see what it was all about. Next up: We move east into Alabama and Barry meets up with an old friendl
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Emily & BarryWe're a long-married, early-retired couple who are currently traveling as nomads with no fixed home base. After years of living in North Carolina (Emily's home state), we spent 18 months living oceanfront on Ambergris Caye, Belize, a year road-tripping the US in a Honda CR-V, a year in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, and are now roaming North America in our 32' motorhome, Pearl, following warm weather whenever possible. Archives
July 2019
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