Day 7: Elizabethtown — Leland

Oct 7, 2014 • 43.7 miles

Empty parking lot

A future housing development’s parking lot. If I wasn’t tired when I got there, it would’ve been perfect for cruising around.

Disclosure: I am writing this from Wilmington. I took a cab from Leland into town because pedestrians are forbidden on the 17 bridge I’d eventually have to take. I’m a fraud! But the mileage quoted above was all skateboard and walking, I promise.

And what an easy, fast day for skateboarding. None of the route was on the ECG, but a new route I made up last night. The majority of it was on highway 87, which was smooth asphalt, moderate grade, and low wind. Even the traffic was considerate; trucks and cars moved over even though I could stay on the wide shoulder, and one guy even slowed down and asked me if I needed a ride. The 28 miles on 87 flew by.

The very last leg of today’s route was apparently on a dump truck circuit, because a group of maybe ten kept passing me in both directions, carrying dirt and gravel to one place and returning to another for more. They were not as friendly, often honking for me to completely get off the road and let them pass.

But now I’m in Wilmington, so close to the Atlantic and the state line. I’m taking a rest day here tomorrow to recover — I hate to admit it, but I’ve settled into muscle memory on my dominant leg. While I’m passable on my other leg, it requires me thinking about how I’m moving, and when I’m also listening for traffic or looking for a turn, I don’t like to be thinking about where to move my foot. So I’ll probably use one leg for kicking the rest of the way, now that those muscles are being conditioned and specialized, and come back asymmetrically proportioned. Apologies in advance to anyone who’ll have to be seen with me.