Dateline: Meridian, MS
Quiet parking @ bike shop turned noisey w/ cement trucks about 6:00AM. Plan was to get up @ 7:00, dash over to Lake Lurleen for ride & back into Tuscalosa for Zag game @ 2:30.
Drove to TH, beautiful AM & getting warm. Paid $3.00 entry & parked @ S. TH. Pushed off just after 11:00. Ran into a guy about my age shortly after starting who fed me w/ trail info. Trail system works its way around fingered lake w/ several wanderings. Nice trails. Tread was rooty & lots of sand from lots of sandstone. Good place to ride after rain as it drains well. 14.34 miles & 1488’vert. Little climbs over & over again.
Van temp outside was 86. Checked out showers on ride. Bath house is usual cold h2o. One in XG was better but restricted to campers. I parked just outside gate & walked purposefully to shower and returned unscathed.
Drove back into Tuscaloosa looking for a place to watch game. Saw a Hooters sign that said all games would be on. Burst in the front door just after 2:30 and the Zags weren’t on. I asked the manager to check the schedule. He said they play @ 6:30. I subtracted instead of added time zones. I only would have googled the girls during commercials.
Drove rt 11 SW into MS. Hit big box stores, parked in building shade, & walked over to Chilles to learn if they would have games on. Miss & UW were playing w/ UW ahead. The bartender was pulling for local team. We parted on speaking terms. Went back @ 6:30 but Zags were not televised. Shit. Poor beer choice & food was iceberg lettuce & fired stuff. Zag score was text score update. TV coverage was not going to be. After start of second half I walked across the parking lot to Best Buy hoping they might have game on. They turned it on for me. Zags struggled early but picked it up & squashed Akron. Zags make 2nd round. I suspected the bar tender was pissed @ me for rooting for UW but Best Buy guy said they had all the super channels.
Going to find a parking lot in this big box mecca. Tomorrow is a local ride.
Elevation is less than 400′.
Driving out of Tuscaloosa I pulled over to fire up the gps. A toy truck pulled up alongside and the driver, Lee, struck up a conversation. he asked if I needed directions. I said no I was driving back roads. He said he is active in trail work @ Oak Mtn. We chatted about rides elsewhere.