Biking Through a CRAZY Storm

It was 2014, I was 20 years old working as a product photographer. I had the urge to do a bike trip from Cincinnati, Ohio to Cleveland, Ohio. So I took the time off work and planned the trip up the Ohio to Erie bike trail. I had a fixed gear bicycle (for those of you who don't know, a fixie is a bike with a fixed gear so you cannot coast. If the wheel is moving the pedals are moving. At the time I rode without brakes because I could brakes with my legs/pedals) and a milk crate. I packed up some camping gear and a backpack full of my equipment, like computer and camera. Being a photographer I wanted to take pictures on the trip and being a product photographer I wanted to work while on the trip. Terrible idea, clearly I didn't think this out because it was so much unneeded weight on my bike back.

Nonetheless I said peace and hit the road. I got to Yellow Springs, Ohio which is about an hour and a half drive from Cincinnati. I was going to go further but I did not know that the bike trail broke up in different little towns. I thought it was a straight shot. I couldn't figure out where the trail started next because I had no phone service. I pulled off the trail and set up my hammock in the woods to sleep for the night. It was definitely a nervous experience sleeping in unknown woods right outside a small town in the middle of nowhere Ohio. I woke up at about 3 AM to crazy thunder and lightning, and in a split decision, I decided fuck this trip! I quickly packed up everything and hit the bike trail back to Cincinnati. It's pitch black and windy as fuck! I had shitty rubber bike lights and I was bookin it! All I was thinking was I don't want to get stuck in the woods in a thunderstorm. I ended up out riding the storm for about three hours until the sun came up. At that time I was exhausted so I set up my hammock to take a nap right next to the bike trail.

3 hours later I awoke to thunder yet again. I poked my head out my hammock and see cyclists bombing the trail trying to get away from the storm. Yet again I pack my stuff up and hop on the trail and right when I do, it starts pouring rain. I was riding next to a couple of bikers on the trail and this was crazy intense! Thunder and lightning everywhere! The wind was blowing our bikes back and forth. Giant tree limbs were crashing all around us. I kept thinking "what if one of these branches lands on us?!" All you hear is thunder and trees cracking all around you. I hear cracking right behind us and quickly glance behind and I see a giant tree limb feet behind us on the trail. Luckily the storm was moving east so we were in it for about 40 minutes, but that was an intense 40 minutes.

The other two bikers I was with stopped and said: "Damn that was crazy, we just experienced something."

I replied, "Yea, glad I was not alone there, good riding with you guys. Safe ride back."

I hopped back on the trail and went straight home. A two-week trip turned into a 2-day trip, 20 hours of riding with easily 50lbs of gear through a crazy storm. Two days after that, my brother's friend randomly hit me up and we went down to Smoky National Park.

It was a scary experience but damn it was fun!