Keep A Knockin'. Day twenty-five, Troy to Bainbridge.

Today's ride was a repeat of yesterday's slog, only slightly-less grim. Headwind: check. Hills: check. Heat: check. All present and correct:excellent! Oh, and we'd lose an hour upon crossing into Georgia too...

Er, might be time to wash it? Nah, salt is good for you.

File under 'slog'. Again, hah-hah!

I had a message this morning from a friend and retired colleague about the passing of another ex-colleague. I can't put it any better than Dick's e-mail did:

"Mike became ill with a rare blood condition called Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) about 5 years ago and unfortunately this very recently progressed into an acute form of Leukaemia. He fought his illnesses very bravely, putting up with frequent blood transfusions, chemotherapy and a failed attempt at a stem cell transplant which was so nearly successful. He was a lovely friend, great fun to be around and a true gentleman."

I am really sorry for Mike's wife, Lesley, as they were devoted to each other and of course his family and friends. He was a gentle man and fun to be around...

Thought of Mike on crossing this bridge- he was a keen angler.

Anyway, the day passed by as per...no dramas thankfully and a couple of beeps late in the day to boost morale. Cheers Georgia, needed that!

Really? Which brought this to mind...

I defy you not to laugh.

Dozens of these have been chowed down so far. Wouldn't touch them normally!

Now that's how you sell second-hand cars.

This would even put me off. What on earth?

Time for 'Ride Of The Valkyries'?

Beetles are immortal.

True, but just not at that scary clown McDs, okay?

I could have leapt right in. A tad warm.

Right-hand down a bit...

The other item on the agenda was, and is Hurricane Matthew. When I saw the devastation that it had already brought to Haiti and also The Caribbean I realised that my farty little bike ride is way down the pecking order.

This how pleasant 'Matthew' looked earlier today.

Nobody wants to cycle into Miami and pour that tiny little bit of The Pacific into The Atlantic more than me, but if there is a State Of Emergency and it is basically unsafe and illegal then that is that.

It's not like me dodging around a few bollards to cut through a 'Work In Progress' and riding across fresh tarmac. Not that I *would* have done that, you understand, ahem...

Uncanny.

I know that I have enough left in the tank, energy-wise, to finish the job, but it all depends on Matt's progress. Thoughts go out to those evacuating already: be safe.

Actually as of now, I can't even book a room for tomorrow night anywhere more than fifty miles from here, which is a dilemma in itself! I'm gonna have to resume the search in the morning and come up with plan Z...we ain't finished yet. I hope.

Georgia looking fine so far!

In a headwind, this is the view from the office sometimes.

Aww, isn't that lovely? Hang on- you've stolen an hour!

Right down near to sea-level now.

These eejits weren't fazed by  the traffic at all!

Glad to see you!

Okay, so a trip through town it is, then.

Glad that it was, thanks. 

Always great when you request a ground-floor room and...

So-so dinner was at a faux Irish sports bar near to the motel. Yep, as good as it sounds, hah-hah!

Just medium strength on the wings, please.

Georgia's finest- it has to be this version too!

PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR TODAY'S NUMBERS!

CLICK ON THIS TO RELIVE TODAY'S RIDE!

Please see if you can spare a couple of quid or whatever to help Bloodwise and Combat Stress. Here are those links if you are able to donate:

- To donate to Bloodwise, please click 'here'!

- Please click 'on this bit' to support Combat Stress.

I know that the two charities and the people that they help appreciate all your help. Good on you!

ps if you are kind enough to donate, and select 'anonymous', I can't 'see' who you are, unlike on JustGiving. So apologies if you were thinking that the miserable tw*t hasn't even e-mailed me to say thanks, hah-hah!