Shaun Rides His Bike

Today was a pretty uneventful day, as far as Route 66 attractions.

I had no wind, or a tailwind, practically the entire day, and, despite a high chance of rain predicted, not a single drop materialized! 13 MPH has never felt so fast!

I’ve noticed I haven’t seen many cyclists on the awesome trails I’ve ridden on since I left Chicago. Practically zero! I saw a group of three today, but they didn’t stop to chat. However, I ran into Dan heading the opposite direction on a quiet road in farm country, and we chatted for a while. It was fun talking to another cyclist for the first time!

The only other notable event was that I found a magnificent Black Rat Snake! Three cars passed me in quick succession, after scooting all the way on the other side of the road (thanks, Illinois drivers!). The lead car gave me a friendly honk when I waved at them.

As the third car passed me, I noticed a large snake in the middle of the road. It had barely been missed by all three cars. I held my breath when I saw it a fraction of a second before the third car passed. I immediately stopped to shoo it off the road. I took a picture of it, then nudged it with my foot. It bit my shoe over and over again!

A Jeep came by, and I waved at him to slow down so he wouldn’t hit either of us, and he stopped in the road. As soon as he did, the snake tried to bite the Jeep’s tires. The driver and I laughed at it. As the Jeep driver slowly started again, I picked the snake up by his tail. He was trying to stretch and bite me continuously, so I didn’t get great pictures.

When we got close to my bike, he started striking at my panniers, and, finally, I carefully grabbed him behind his head, so he couldn’t bite me (but he tried). Then he decided to constrict my hand and forearm, so I was able to get some good pictures.

After I put him in the grass, far away from the road, this grumpy snake tried to bite my feet some more. He was magnificent!

Video: https://www.tiktok.com/@a.shaun.ivory/video/7085468059259063598