Sleep interrupted about 4:30AM by tractor trailer doing trailer switches like right outside my fender. Slept late to make up for the interruption.
Plan was to drive to Cave Run Bicycle & pick shop brains for local ride. Arrived b4 10:00 AM opening & sat in parking lot waiting. casual winter time opening. Chatted with owner John about rides and conditions of trails & USFS involvement or lack thereof. Short of it was: wet spring, 3 month drought & 100 of horses mixed in damages the trails. Biker community participated in trail use meetings with their recommendation of separate trails for user groups to protect trail quality. FS lacks funds & perhaps where with all to make separate trails. John offered more of same trail systems and I bailed making a generalization of horse affected trails & snotty clay.
Took advantage of cold & windy weather to drive South towards Tennessee.
Last night I bought an eastern US map and am marking on the map the potential rides I have found. This presents a graphic picture of networking locations to maximize ride time and reduce drive miles. Plan is to drive tomorrow into Knoxville and do a local ride then over to NC down into SC, back to TN, and then down to N Georgia. Still quite a bit of wandering seeking out desirable rides.
Stopped in Williamsburg, KY for night. Diesel $2.54 / gal. Found bank parking lot @ edge of town. Cleaning up after dinner and looked out front window across a field from me and saw about 10 police cruisers w/ lights & sirens flashing plus 3 meat wagons bracket in a house right on the corner. In dark i was unable to view activity. Shortly a helicopter with a search light joined the action. I am parked in the next accessible road. At first I thought they were coming across the field for me and that something happened at the bank but there were no flashers in the bank parking lot. And the police rigs turned to face the house on the corner. Shortly a meat wagon left with flashers on. A while later the helicopter left; it might have been an evac flight and i couldn’t see if it flew a victim away or left empty. And then the cops turned off their flashers and drove away. I am still here in the parking lot and there are some people somewhere that they did not plan on being. Story might be in newspaper tomorrow.
So, scoot to Knoxville for ride and then over to Asheville, NC area for a longer visit.