Gator Blog: Day 5 The 2006-2007 Tour

In Florida they have another phrase for rain. They call it Liquid Sunshine.

And so today, our fifth day in The Sunshine State, we awoke to buckets of sunshine pouring down on our heads. But on a tour like this, the ride goes on. People have often asked me, "Hey Nick, what happens if it rains?"

"You get wet."

But it was a warm rain, and most of the heavy stuff had abated by 8am. We were thus left with a couple of hours of light rain as we headed northbound for 23 miles on the Withlacoochee State Trail, and then turned east toward the city of Lake Panasofkee. By the time we hit I-75, the roads were dry.

Not bad for winter. Seventy degrees and rain is a treat for many folks.

In a twisted routing move, I took the longest way possible to get from Brooksville (I-75 and FL Rt 50) to Winter Garden, a suburb of Orlando. The sign on Rt 50 outside our motel last night said it was 50 miles to Orlando.

But I managed to squeeze 105 miles into the day (or 110, if you opted to do the optional ride up Sugarloaf Mountain near Clermont).

So much for taking the easy way out. This is Hell Week, remember?

The storminess preceded a cold front that is supposed to pass tonight, and thus stirred up the wind most of the day. Between the wind and the rain, our speeds were slower. But no one seemed to mind; in fact, the dry, cloudy afternoon with temps in the 70s suited everyone just fine.

Of the five days thus far, today's route is the favorite. After lunch in Center Point we gradually got into the rolling hills that make Clermont such a famous place for cycling. The hills and numerous lakes make for top-notch scenery, and also provide some opportunities to stand up to pedal.

And after five days of riding, that's not a bad thing. A butt can only take so much, you know.

The afternoon rest stop in Minneola gave us a chance to refuel as well as ponder the Sugarloaf Option. About half of the crew elected to do the extra five miles, a hard-earned, thigh-burning bonus that was made even more difficult after almost 500 miles of riding since Fort Myers.

Sugarloaf rises 207 feet from its base, and from the top spectacular views of Lake Apopka and downtown Orlando beckon cyclists to click out and take a breather. One resident at the top even has a permanent water stop for cyclists at the end of his driveway, testimony to the popularity of that route among cyclists.

Finally, in a nod to Gator Week tradition, six of us stopped in Montverde with only 10 miles to go. Totally self-indulgent and decadent, our purpose in stopping was to slam down a pint of Mississippi Mud from its unique bottle that looks more like a jug of moonshine. The gator on the label makes it all the more appropriate for our tour.

While this morning's rain made for mud and grime, our afternoon "mud" left us all in good spirits. Let's just say that we found a different kind of liquid sunshine.

Nick "Here's Mud In Your Eye" Gerlich