Today we had a late wake up because it was expected to rain until 10 am. After waking up around 9, Max, Daniel P, Daniel G, Sean, and I went to breakfast at the Big Boys across the street from the hotel. This late wake up messed with most of our eating schedules because we are used to biking around 20 miles to breakfast. We were hungry for most of the day so we had a couple snack breaks throughout the day to refuel. We hustled to eat and get ready. We left the hotel around 10 and started off on rolling hills. Because there was a storm the previous night, there was a brutal headwind for most of the day. Early into the day there was a beautiful view of Lake Michigan and stairs that led to beach access. The water level is very high this year however, so the stairs basically led to the water. The waves were breaking at your feet, which was very cool. 20 miles in we had a brief Gatorade break to eat and drink.
After our Gatorade break we took a detour to go to a state park that had sand dunes and Lake Michigan access. We all frolicked on the dunes and beach. This detour involved a small hike, which was a nice change of pace from biking all day. We ended up spending around an hour at the state park. We decided to continue biking until Grand Haven where we would eat lunch and grab stuff for dinner then bike to our campsite 10 miles away.
We biked most of the day on a bike path directly adjacent to road. Because of this we would have to cross over the side streets often. However, during one of these instances, a car was turning left into a side street and didn’t look where she was turning. She came into the turn while a group of 8 neon clad cyclists with large panniers happened to be crossing the street. She barreled towards us at around 13 miles an hour, hitting both Max and Daniel Price. Both are relatively unharmed, with Max having minor scratches and bruises and Daniel not having any injuries. However, the frame on Max’s bike was bent, totaling it. Daniel cracked his helmet, so he had to get another one. After calling the police, the EMT was called to make sure that Daniel didn’t have a concussion and to check on Max. Then a full size fire truck pulled up, that did very little other than direct traffic. The policeman was very helpful and filled out an accident report for us. The driver of the car, an elderly woman, had to pay to either repair the bikes or get new bikes. We then were taken by the fire department to a local bike shop, Loose Spokes. Because of the frame damage on Max’s bike, he had to get a new bike. The only bike that fits our purpose and Max was a Masi bike, a very fancy Italian brand. With a promise that she would pay in hand, the decision was made to fix Daniels bike and for Max to get a new bike. However, when it was time for money to talk, the lady flaked out and became hard to reach for Mr. Hird and the bike shop owner. Currently, the new bike and the bike maintenance are being done by the Loose Spokes team despite not having been paid yet. After this debacle, we rented hotel rooms to allow the victims to recover. Some of us had dinner at a very filling Chinese takeout restaurant. The new bike and the repaired bike should be given to us tomorrow at 11:00, so there will be another late wake up for us.
Even though a lot of things are still in the air, we are thankful for all the first responders who responded to the scene and helped us handle the situation. We are also thankful that everyone walked away ok-a busted bike is much better than a busted rider.
