Quite a lot happened today.  First, TheConversation.com published a piece I wrote about the safety of various activities like bicycling.  You can read the piece they published here or you can read a slightly different version in the post published between Day 31 and Day 32 (the post is here if you cannot find it).

Second, my oldest son, Josh flew out to Michigan to join me for a week of cycling.  This gave me a chance to sleep in and recover a bit from yesterday’s total exhaustion.  I am not fully recharged, but at least I can keep my eyes open.

Josh and his bike made it safely to Michigan, but his hydraulic brakes were locked shut when the bike came out of the box.  Luckily, a great bike shop was open in downtown Ann Arbor and only two blocks away.  Brad, the shop’s bike mechanic, was able to open the brakes and got the bike working like new in no time flat.  That saved the day!  Brad also recommended a great place for breakfast and we dined outside before setting off.

Our goal was Toledo, Ohio, which meant entering another state.  Now there is just Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Maryland to go.

Google Maps did its very best to show my son every type of road surface possible, from new roads to bike trails.  We even did quite a few miles of gravel and hard packed dirt.  At the end of the gravel section my son said “now I know why you are so exhausted.”

We arrived in Toledo around 5:30.  Our hotel faced the local baseball stadium and we picked the perfect night.  The local team, the Toledo Mud Hens (the farm team for Detroit Tigers),  was playing at 7 pm.  Josh picked up two of the cheapest tickets available ($13 each).  They turned out to be right behind home base.  We sat about 10 feet from a half-dozen major league baseball scouts who were watching the game with their own video cameras, radar guns and laptops.

It was a great experience watching minor league baseball up close.  I was tired so we left before the game was over.  That wasn’t a problem since our hotel room looked down on the stadium and we finished watching the game from high above.  Yes, the Mud Hens beat the Louisville Bats, but the Mud Hens led the whole game so it was not unexpected.

Overall, it was another great day on the road and we even managed to pedal about 57 miles.