A race against the rain @ Daegu, South Korea

After waving goodbye to our host, we set off at our fastest pace so far. There was rain in the forecast and we were determined to avoid as much of it as possible. Morale was high, but then only a few miles into the ride we hit an 18% gradient hill. Adam charged ahead not bothering to look back until he made it, convinced that if he gave himself any time to think about what he was doing that he’d roll back down to the bottom of the steep hill.

Adam was first to the top. He parked his bike and walked to get some good pictures of everyone struggling (documentation must be accurate), but to his surprise no one was there. Adam yelled to make sure he hadn’t lost the crew. Helen yelled back from the bottom of the hill “Eduardo lost a spoke!” Certain he had misheard her Adam shouted “Eduardo lost his phone!?” Helen, frustrated and out of breath from pushing her bike up the hill, repeated herself “no his spoke!” We did this several times before Adam finally accepted that Eduardo had in fact, lost a spoke. 

We weren’t sure how but as soon as Eduardo started pedaling up the hill, a spoke detached and got bent so badly it was sticking out of the bike. We removed the spoke and examined the wheel. It still spun true, meaning nothing was significantly broken. Good thing bikes tires come with a few spare spokes, because we (aka Eduardo) decided to press on, optimistic that we could find a bike shop before it got any worse.

By lunch we knocked out about 40 miles of riding. In desperate need of fuel we walked into a noodle restaurant that, judging by the packed tables, looked to be a local favorite. It goes without saying that we stood out, but that was okay. We did the familiar Google translate and point at things on the menu dance. When we pointed at the spicy noodles the waitress expressed concerned. “Spicy,” she warned. We nodded our heads, “Yes.” “Spicy.” “Good.” The waitress reluctantly accepted our order; clearly not sure if she had heard us correctly, but willing to let these odd foreigners sign their own fate.

Like any well run restaurant the food quickly came out. We took our first bites. The noodles were absolutely delicious but to everyone’s surprise they weren’t spicy enough. Luckily there was a jar of red Korean spicy sauce on the table. Adam reached for the spicy sauce and scooped some into his noodles. As he scooped the waitresses behind him shook their heads in disbelief. By the end of the meal the jar of spicy sauce was half gone. Here’s hoping we reset their spice expectation for American palates.

With the much needed food stop complete we pedaled onward. About 10 miles out from Daegu, it started to drizzle. We pulled over to put on our rain gear and as we continued to bike the intensity of the rain grew. Soon Matt could be heard complaining that it was hailing. Everyone collectively agreed that it was not hailing and his skin might just be a little more sensitive from his years living in SF.

At about 5 miles out at this point we paused underneath an overpass to plan our hotel stay for the night. We kept biking and Helen and Adam looked to be having a little too much fun. We would periodically look at each other and shout “rain ride!” In reference to one of our first bike rides together two years prior. By the time we made it to the our hotel our shoes were soaked and even Adam was excited to get out the rain.

We checked into the Hound Hotel and instantly felt a wave of joy as we walked into our room. The room was a whopping 80,000 won (~$70 USD) per night, almost twice as much as our love motel, but it was worth every penny. The bed was soft, the room was new, they had a bidet (much to Adam’s glee), and they even had a fancy steamer closet that we’d never seen before.

The steamer closet was shaped like a skinny fridge and when you opened it there were 2 hangers beneath a steamer. With a little help from Google translate we located a drier function; which would be perfect for our wet clothes, but that was a problem for tomorrow. It was time to find some chicken and beer. 

After 4 consecutive days of biking, we agreed to take a well-deserved rest day. Needless to say we slept great.