By the time we got to Florence, did some last minute shopping, ate lunch and packed up my bike it was 1:00. Originally I hoped to leave earlier, but as these things go, it didn't work out that way. One reason for the delay was the picture I took at the beach. I figured if I'm riding from coast to coast, I may as well have documentation of me standing with my bike over my head in the Pacific and the Atlantic. So after saying my final goodbye to Marc, I pedalled out of the parking lot of the Subway and onto rt. 126 heading east.

An hour and a half into the ride, I stopped at a rest stop/campsite to go to the bathroom. When I came out of the bathroom, there was this guy staring at my bike. He was a big guy dressed in a flannel and had crooked teeth and crooked eyes. I could never tell if he was looking at me or my bike because he had an eye pointed at each one. Ended up, he just was wondering where I was going, then kept telling me that my bike helmet wasn't enough protection if I got hit by a logging truck. Then he proceeded to tell me how he used to be the flag guy at construction sites and how he much preferred working along the highway rather than in town. He said in town when the speed limit is 25 and you get hit by a truck you'll get pretty mangled up, but if you're on the highway, you ain't got a chance. That's why he liked the highway because he wouldn't feel nothing. Then he told me again how my helmet wouldn't protect me. I said thanks.

After talking to my personal motivational speaker, I was making some adjustments to my bike when another lady came up to me. She told me that she and her family were looking at me and wondered where I was going, so I proceeded to tell her my plans. She then brought her whole family over and we exchanged our vacation stories and pleasant small talk. I don't think I've ever been as big as a celebrity as I was in that reststop and I was less than 20 miles into my ride.