We made it up the zig zag switchback mountain from sea level to over 3000 feet tired but unscathed. We made it to a mountain top restaurant in the rain as the cold was getting to us and could see our breath inside the restaurant as we drank little coffees. We made it through another all Albanian conversation in which we were trying to get coffees. We ordered food off of an all in Albanian menu and wound up with delicious meat stew, an omelet each and fries. We packed it in to our bellies. We went back out and got on our bikes in a thick cold fog, already shivering and wet. All the rest of the day's ride was downhill, so cold. We started the steep descents in the fog and had to stop occasionally to let our fingers regain feeling. On a wet, steep, slick downhill a tiny dog came running out of a roadside restaurant and after Shannon's trailer. Albanians and Greeks seem to love our Bob trailers, dogs hate them. A second, bigger dog came out quickly on the heels of the first little dog. The second dog was mad at Shannon's trailer but was just barking til it realized that I was coming along with a second evil wheeled trailer. It immediately came after me barking and trying to attack my calves which I had lifted in to the air in an attempt to keep them from being nipped. I quickly realized that this tactic wasn't going to work and so I stomped the dog in the face. This didn't seem to even faze the dog but I thought it was worth a second go and kick it in the face again. I had picked up speed because I wasn't on my brakes and it was around this time that I saw an oncoming car. I lost control of my bike/rig entirely and was down and sliding across the pavement for what seemed like a long time. The dog lost interest in the whole event and ran back home. The car stopped to see if we needed help, maybe, and I got up to get my rig out of the road as another car was coming.
In the aftermath I tried to warm my fingers up and then surveyed the damage to the bicycle and fixed what I could. Still rideable but definitely fazed.
I despise dogs. Truly and deeply. A cat never would have done that.
Sent from my iPad
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