An Expensive Day (WTF?!)

Well, day 3 has not turned out so great, although I am shiny side up so it wasn't too bad.

It started around 02:30 when my body woke me up by shivering. I got out of the tent and plugged myself into the bike. Oh yeah, nice and toasty. 20 minutes later, I was back in the laundry room and an hour after that, I got some more sleep on the bench.

I woke up shivering again (WTF?) at 05:20, so turned off my 05:30 alarm, broke down my gear, and rolled out just after 06:00 under a gorgeous full moon.

Like yesterday, today's ride was just about hitting dealerships and collecting park stamps, all around the greater Atlanta area.

I must have been on every interstate in Atlanta today at least once...except I-285E that was completely closed for a multiple car crash with at least one fatality (the privacy screens were set up on the road). Anyway, I made it to 3 HDs then went to the Martin Luther King Jr National Historic Park. Everything was closed because of COVID except his house, which is where I got my stamp. No tours were happening though, so off I went. Oh, when I left it was warming up, so I changed gloves. Remember that.

I hit a couple more HDs then I stopped briefly at Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park. It was packed, so I just got my stamp and left.

When I got to the next dealership, I saw I had missed a call and received a voicemail from the KOA campground I stayed at last night. Apparently, my tent--which is on my bike--was still in my tent space, and I hadn't checked out, so they charged me for a second night. WTF? I called, of course, and told them I left before anyone was awake and took all of my stuff. They didn't believe me, but they hadn't actually looked at my site either. WTF? I held the line while someone drove to my tent site to confirm I wasn't still there. "Yes, you are correct, Miss Webb. You're not still here. We'll refund you the charges." Remember that.

I was already hungry and now I was mad, so I stopped for gas and food at Kroger. When I got off the bike, I realized what I had done. Or rather, not done, when I changed gloves earlier. I didn't secure my heated gloves. I left them laying on top of my gear and actually found one still wedged between my bags. I called the closest Cycle Gear and they incredibly had a pair in my size in the store. The girl held them for me and I reprogrammed my route to backtrack 25 miles and cut out two park stamps 😭. An hour and $130 later, I had a new pair of heated gloves. Ouch.

On to the next HD...where I saw two emails from the KOA, one billing me the extra night and the other refunding me SOME of that extra night. WTF? Again I called. There was a new staff member on duty and she had no idea what was I was talking about. She just kept telling me what I paid for my one-night reservation. OMG she was so stupid. Anyway, when she said she wasn't going to argue with me, I hung up on her and called Corporate to lodge a complaint. Who knows if companies do this stuff to scam people. Am I the first or is this a trend? I always file a complaint. Anyway, Corporate told me the KOA had already refunded me the difference. Why didn't that stupid girl just say so. WTF?

I'm back on the bike in beautiful weather and am finally reaching the best riding of the day...except it's 17:30, the sun is setting, I'm climbing altitude, and rush hour traffic is peaking. WTF? I was looking forward to Georgia's 50 Rides 1 Nation ride, but overall it was a bust for me. I did get the photo, which gets me the 47th coin, but it wasn't the fun ride it should've been squiggling through really tight turns on the side of a mountain 😉. At least I had my heated gloves.

Because of the dark, my left hand cramping from so much shifting today, and being another 50 miles away in the cold, I forwent (have forgone?) my KOA reservation and and opted for a warm hotel room, in which I sit now.

Between the gloves, the battle for my money back, and the hotel room, it's been an expensive day, so after a little catching up on the computer, downloading my photos and GPS tracks, and connecting with friends, I'm snuggling down under the covers...without my boots.

So long [for now], and thanks for all the fish! ✌️

Day 3 mileage: 454.2 (total 1553.7)
HD Dealerships: 8 (total 54)
National Parks: 2 (total 14 in 7 states)
50 Rides, 1 Nation: 1 (total 47 of 50)
10 Rides for 2022: 0 (total 0 of 10)
MCGTTX Stops: 0 (total 0 of 50)Read more