Day 13: Pacific to Louisville – Flexibility

Sitting on a motorcycle for hours in heat and humidity does not make the inside of one’s motorcycle jacket smell nice. It’s like a cross between a gym locker and a gym locker. So, I am starting off with a “Thank You” to my girl Letitia for hooking me up with an amazing deodorant spray, which is her own concoction. She fave it to me when I was in Colorado and I love taking off my motor cycle jacket and smelling all citrus-y and woody and desert-y. Not that I want this to be a plug, but I am gonna plug Brown and Green Botanica just like that anyway. I smell pretty and I like it.

On the last night at my cousin’s house in Pacific, a cold front came crashing through with some insanely gusty winds, downpours and probably some hail. And just like that, the daily highs went from the mid-90s to the upper-70s. But the storm front was scheduled to sit over Memphis the next day.

So, I ditched the plan for Memphis and opted for Louisville adding another state or three to my ride.

I hit the road a bit later than usual to avoid post-Labor day return to work traffic. I wish I could say something profound or even interesting happened on this day, but it was just a long and tedious ride. I left Missouri and crossed the entirety of Illinois then the entirety of Indiana before getting into Kentucky.

Sure, St. Louis is on the very eastern edge of Missouri and Louisville is in the very western edge of Kentucky and both Illinois and Indiana are somewhat narrow at this crossing, but it was tedious. Wind didn’t help. I alternated between big slab and country roads trying to balance time with interesting scenery. I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but riding through Kansas was more interesting than this. Big Slab was clogged with trucks and so we’re the country roads. Towns weren’t cute and unique, they were full of dollar stores and fast food restaurants. After circling a town, I nearly gave in and went to Subway, but I did finally find a nice Main Street for lunch.

So, with that stellar description of my ride through Midwest, I leave you with my sights in Louisville. I scored a pretty fancy room for a last minute reservation, indulged in a few too many Bourbons and at some amazing BBQ.