Rack Your Brains?
Don’t rack your brains for ways to transport your bicycles! A bicycle rack on the rear of your car seems like a great way to carry your “wheels” to a trailhead.
However, this article caught my eye today. We sometimes need to take bicycles somewhere by car; but be sure your license plate is not obscured. I don’t know whether the authorities in the USA are as particular about this as they are in Canada; but why risk big fines? You don’t need to rack your brains to know that you’d rather keep your money!
Anyway, if I could drive somewhere else to ride, where would I go? That depends in part on how much time I have at my disposal; and also how much ready cash I have! If I wanted to ride, say, the Natchez Trace ; I have to get to the trail first. Natchez is a bit over 168 miles from home; and even supposing I could drive, several hours behind a steering wheel leaves me exhausted.
Feeling Adventuresome
It isn’t a good idea to start a long ride when you’re already worn out; so I would want to go up there the day before hitting the bike trail. Here is where the money comes in! If I don’t want to camp, I need a motel; and accommodations/meals get expensive. That’s on top of the cost of the gasoline required to reach Natchez. If I do camp, I have to pack along a tent, cooking equipment, and so on. Merely thinking about it makes me tired!
The Tammany Trace is much closer to home; but it still takes at least an hour’s driving to reach the trailhead. I’ve ridden part of the Trace while participating in Tour de Cure; but the TdC route includes only about six miles of the trail. So far I never had the chance to ride the entire Trace.
Of course the MRT is right out there; and I ride that all the time. It sometimes gets monotonous, though; and every time notions of relocating poke at my mind, I always think I want to be close to a variety of bicycling trails. I’ll have to rack my brains for some good ideas!
Wait, didn’t I just say, Don’t rack your brains? Maybe I should listen to my own advice.