Originally Posted by
RobbieTunes
Today, I passed a guy on a nearly deserted road 1/4 mile from the Ohio River. He was sort of staggering, sort of walking, 6'2, maybe 190, couldn't tell with all the clothes he was wearing. I was 2.5 miles into my ride, after a week of thunderstorms. Bearded, disheveled, head down, so I gave him plenty of room and waved.
3 hours later, I'm back near that road, at the end of a dead end with a gate to a quarry. He was lying in the road, had something for a pillow, sleeping, I think. I did a U-turn and another 5 miles, came back to check on him, he was gone. No idea where he'll be sleeping tonight. Puts things in perspective.
I'll never forget a frigid night 20 years ago. The snow that stings your face coming down sideways around 10 pm. On the way to a club with friends to blow $40 and someone pushing a shopping cart with their whole life inside. Some in the big cities may say no big deal, but around here it certainly was. I've never forgotten that there is no rule that says it couldn't be me.