After my first day riding 46 miles as part of my abandoned cross Pennsylvania tour, I’d kept my road riding in Ohio to a minimum. Part of it was that I didn’t like the roads, part of it was that my host didn’t think bikes belong on roads, and part of it was that with all the trails nearby I didn’t need road riding. But I wanted to do at least one trip from my hosts’ door and back, and so July 4 I set out on a short ride of ten miles to the Hartville Market, one of the largest indoor farmers and flea markets in Ohio.
Since I didn’t know what I’d find there, I brought the trailer too. This caused a problem when I didn’t find any bike racks at the market building. So I decided my bike and trailer were my shopping cart, and I took them inside.
Maneuvering was a little tight but I made it work. Bike, trailer, and rider walked up and down every aisle, and later visited the food court. One of the vendors gave me an American flag, which I flew on the back of the trailer.
I picked up a few items, unfortunately most of them being food a fat cyclist should stay away from. One item I regretted not having the cash or room for was the Pepsi trike. This machine has a built in cooler! I wasn’t sure what I’d do with it, and I’m still not sure, but it was a curious looking machine.
In retrospect, I wish I had gone on to historic downtown Hartville, but my host had company coming and I wanted to be back to meet him. Oh well, I’ll have to save it for my next bike adventure in Ohio….