The last Sunday ride was perfect in that I got to ride with a smaller, faster group.  We met up with some Thai cyclists who were doing an 800-km 4-day ride from Krabi.  We met at the top of the pass and they learned we were going to a lesser-known waterfall which convinced them to follow us and delay their second 100-km of the day with a 50-km diversion. Our day was only 115 km.

We didn’t know at the time, but they had a support truck with a wife and daughter who met us at the waterfall with 3 watermelons. We each ate 3 of those large slices as our lunch in the upper pools of the waterfall.  The rider on my right is 65 and was an equal riding companion on the hills with me.

I didn’t think to check my Garmin until the last hour of the ride home when it showed 103°. No wonder chillin’ in the waterfall for an hour was wonderful. Interesting to note my Thai friend Mr. Yao started shivering in the pool after a half hour (no body fat and he had on his wet jersey).

In southern Thailand the numerous waterfalls serve as one of the major recreation attractions for families.  It’s probably the reason most Thai don’t swim since sitting in a cool fresh water pool doesn’t provide much opportunity for the crawl or backstroke. To say that hundreds visit each little waterfall on weekends would be an understatement.  We arrived just before 10 AM and hardly anyone was there, by 11:30 there were over 100 people in the pool below ours.

We’re retiring the bikes two days before we leave just to forestall any last minute problems and store them in good condition for next year, or whenever we return.  This year I invested in an extra set of wheels so that I’d have a set for off-road touring as well as the early morning sprints.

Would you believe Thais sing “Happy Birthday” in Karaoke English at their birthday parties, or was it just that we were there? Nevertheless, we sang three rounds of Happy Birthday (changing Dear XXX to just another chorus without the personalization). Our friend Mr Wat and his wife Jel-li invited us to celebrate her 49th along with 30 other family and friends.  The blind-alley BBQ was the perfect setting for tables and chairs and having several carport woks available to cook the numerous courses.

Wat and Jel-li run the soup stand we frequent weekly. He’s also an avid mountain bike racer (despite his 95 kilos) and we’ve done a number of bicycle overnight island trips with them.