The group at Bushwood Wharf
Leader: Steve Palincsar
Members: Lou Dall'Orso, Joan Oppel, Dave Van Amayden, Pat Walthers, Patricia Sanders, Ellen Goodwin, Stephen Cohen, Walt Roscello
Guests: none
Route: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/52275528
Weather: Sunny, cool (63) at the start, rising to 80 by late afternoon
AMS: 12.7 for me
Mechanicals/Mishaps: It seems as though it's been quite a while since there's been a decent story for the Mishaps & Mechanicals section, but today makes up for that deficiency. All was well until the lunch stop at Murphy's Store at mile 27, but leaving the rest stop I noticed the familiar thump-thump-thump that means no one no good. Oakley Rd is no place to fix a flat: even though there's plenty of shade, there's no shoulder to get off the road, and no place to put your stuff, never mind sit down.
We'd only gone a few yards, so we turned around and headed back to Murphys. There was even a place to work on the flat in the shade, albeit right next to where they keep the dumpster. Although the dumpster was gone, its fragrance signature lingered onl.
Normally stopping to fix a flat isn't the best of times, but today we had Lou and Joan. After Lou found and removed the thorn that had caused the flat and replaced the tube, Joan produced her electric pump (see my Road Captain's Report in the August Newsletter) and painlessly, albeit not quickly (my 650Bx48mm tires take a lot of air) fixed the flat.
While they were doing that, I thought this would be an opportune time to swap out my drive battery. We were halfway done with the ride and I was 60% through the charge. No worries, I had a spare with me that, when I checked it last night, was fully charged. Except that when I swapped it in, I found it was 80% depleted. Oh oh; even dialing the assist back to the minimum that wasn't enough charge to finish the ride.
Plan B was to skip the out-and-back on Cobrum's Wharf, saving almost 4 miles, reduce the assist to the lowest practical level, and stop at Baggett Park and wait for the group to return to the ride start, and wait while someone put their bike in their car and drove mine back to Baggett to pick me up. Lou to the rescue once again!
Report: A chilly-feeling start, but beautiful clear skies and gorgeous St Marys County scenery we haven't visited in several years made for a beautiful ride.
End of the road at MD-520 (on the Yellowbank Peninsula)
Lunch in Avenue, MD
