1625

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A few minutes ago I finished my final bike ride of 2011.

My total for the year comes to 1625 miles, pushing my all-time miles ridden to 28,449. Today I rode my usual route on the county road from Bissell Baptist Church over to the Natchez Trace. For the last two years they’ve been working on the extension that will bring Highway 6 all the way in to Tupelo. The work on the main bridges is almost done so I was able to ride under the Trace and go on to Palmetto Road and then further along a country road for a few miles. It’s one of the best rides in the area because there usually isn’t much traffic once you cross Palmetto Road. I actually like riding the Trace better because it is so scenic, but the traffic zips along and there is almost no shoulder so if you have to swerve off the road, you’ll end up in a ditch. 

As a general rule those who drive cars and trucks don’t like bikers. I don’t think most drivers would admit to that, but I believe it’s true nonetheless. Since bikers are at best an annoyance to most drivers, I operate by the following set of rules:

1. They don’t see you. 
2. Even if they do see you, they don’t see you.
3. If they really do see you, they don’t like you.

Keeping that in mind has kept me alive for over 28,000 miles. Meanwhile I’m glad to have safely finished another year of biking. It’s my one form of regular exercise, and I keep it up because it’s good for the body and the soul. 

Tomorrow we zero out the odometer and start all over again.