An eventful day yesterday was followed by another eventful day today.
Oliver and Lynette welcomed me in the morning with breakfast and a much appreciated invitation to use their bathroom. I told them that their hospitality last night may have seemed like a small favor, but it was an enormous help to me!
The day got off to a bad start when I got a flat front tire ten miles into the ride. I didn't have a spare tube this time, but I managed to patch things up well enough to limp into Memphis. And limp I did. Several people told me not to stop anywhere on my way through the tough north side of Memphis. I was prepared to ride on the rim, if necessary. :-) Fortunately, the tire held up and it wasn't necessary. And, frankly, I have to say that the dogs from the day before worried me a lot more than anything I saw on the north side of Memphis.
On the subject of dogs, the park ranger at Meeman-Shelby Forest State Park told me that they have been having a lot of trouble with people abandoning dogs in the park and surrounding area. At the General Store in the park I saw a homemade sign with a photo of a "friendly" doberman that had been found in the area. Yeah, right. I felt like I was ready for some time in the city.
Upon arriving in Memphis, I went straight to Outdoors, Inc., a bicycle and outdoors shop that had been recommended to me by locals. The excellent bicycle mechanics at Outdoors, Inc. rotated my tires, confirmed the legitimacy of my concern about dogs, sold me some mace and a couple of spare tubes, and, in general, set my bike up for the last third of my Mississippi River ride.
After leaving Outdoors, Inc. I stopped by Sun Records on my way to a hotel in downtown Memphis. Very interesting tour. A lot of contemporary artists, including U2, have come to Sun over the past 20 years to record in the spartan studio where Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and others got their start.
I was surprised to learn that Sam Phillips, the owner of Sun Records, was not at all impressed with Elvis when he first heard him. It took a year of persistence by Elvis and the urging of Sam Phillips's secretary at Sun Records for Elvis to get a contract with Sun. Persistence does often pay.
After checking into the hotel, I went down to Beale Street to get some ribs and hear some blues. Beale Street is a lot like a miniature version of the French Quarter in New Orleans. It has clung to its blues roots -- you don't hear any country or pop music on Beale Street. And contrary to things that I had heard, it seemed to me to be very safe. And the ribs were outstanding!
One particularly interesting story from my evening on Beale Street -- as I wandered around listening to different bands and talking with people, I heard that there was an excellent band that was playing at a bar called The Rum Boogie Cafe. I walked over there and was surprised to see one of my favorite Twin Cities bands, Davina and The Vagabonds. They were great, as usual, and the Beale Street fans were definitely enjoying the show!
I am sticking to my plan to take the day off in Memphis tomorrow. After 22 consecutive days of riding, my body and mind need a short break; and there is a lot to see and do here in Memphis!
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