The GoNzO TrANs FLoRiDa

Living out your dreams, to me thats what its all about.


One day, Long ago, Rob Roberts put an idea in my head of a wheel dip to wheel dip coast to coast dirty ride.

And I looked.

AND he looked.

And as it stands there are probably several ways to get across the state, but being impatient as I am, I mapped something out.

SO sometime Last year, Rob and I took off from my house and we did a version of the route.

This particular version included the St. Francis to Paisley wagon trail. I like it, but Rob HATED it. Hate is not a strong word for it either. For a brief description of what its like, for those who have ever ridden Billie bay wilderness fire road, picture 11 miles of that with more hills.

Anyhow, I reworked the route. Finalized an east coast to Deltona connection and used a portion of the Huracan to get to the ONF without using the St Francis to paisley wagon trail.

Months and months went by, and I decided I wanted to go and do the route, this time go coast to coast all the way and finish. I invited a select few.

Rob was out of town on Business, the others either said NO or didn't respond and Jeff Tomassetti said he would go.

After working and re working the departure plan, we finally figured out the logistics and got dropped off a bit late on the coast of New Smyrna Beach. It didn't matter really to me, we dipped our wheels made a video as proof and rolled out.

Pavement soon gave way to back roads.
Back roads soon gave way to parking lots.
Parking Lots soon gave way to double track.
Double track gave way to super buff skinny trail.
So buff that you couldn't see around corners and it was all a surprise.
The big surprise was how nice it was. I had only mapped this using the satellite maps and had yet to ride it, but it was NICE!

A fence hop here, a canal crossing there and before I knew it we were on more dirt roads leading to more fences. But it seemed that each fence just stopped cars from passing thru cause on either side there were roads that dead ended at that point.

We finally reached what appeared to be the ultimate dead end that blocked what looked like an overgrown doubletrack road. Dogs were barking in the distance, howling, carrying on. I admit a little panic set in, but we hopped the fence quick and I encouraged Jeff to go, go, go.

AND he did, but grass got caught all up in my cassette and I was skipping my way all the while to the paved road.

We finally made it to Old Maytown road marking the Longest stretch of pavement for the night.

This turned into my first experience with the Tomassetti Train.

I learned that JEFF is no JOKE. HE can hammer. The road was his home and It took all I had to stay in his draft. When he cleared way to let me pull, all I could do was a little baby pull, and then I would let him back at it. BUT, I hung in there, and all the work payed off and we made it to Osteen real quick, where I needed food and a stretch.

Now we were in familar terrain, I no longer needed to look at a GPS for the next 20 miles.
Pedaline we were, fast and quick along the route. We hit dirt again only to discover the prediction of them building a bike path had come true and the usual old rail bed we ride was a sandy tractor ravaged mess. Sad, but this is something I knew was coming for about 5 years.

Before long we were on Old titusville road, then along the morality trail, and then I look back and No Jeff. I figure he must have had something tangled in his cassette, cause Jeff is an animal.

AND sure enough that's what happened.

I give Jeff this, HE talks and keeps things interesting. BUT I am learning that I have lost my ability to be a good communicator. Shortly after the 7 eleven restock, I thought I communicated that we were going straight on 46. But Jeff took off on the old route. So after several minutes I noticed the mix up, I had to chase him down on International and pedal my butt off, when I was already dead tired, UGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHhhh...

What did this all equate too...

Bonus miles. But, it also made the ride in a way safer and more dirtier as we took the bike path out to get closer to our planned camp for the night, the Seminole Forest Hiking Shelter.

We made it. I had got a bunch of food and cargo netted it to my aero bars, it was so HOBO, but it didn't matter as I didn't plan to leave any further than camp with my meal. Knowing the Shelter was there, made it so I didn't have to set up my bivy. It made it so that I could get right to work.

My clothes were soaked after riding the Tomassetti Train for 63 miles. So I first laid down my old emergency blanket. Then I laid down my clothes. Covered them with news paper I had poached from the store, then Laid my sleeping bag to use my body heat to dry all my gear. I sat there happily and chatted as I ate an enormous meal of calories and left my drinks out in the grass to chill naturally overnight. AND it wasn't freezing that night, but it was very chilly out.

I slept as well as you could. I admit,I like sleeping in my hammock, but I am all about trying new things.

The next morning all my calories were liquid.

We decided we would roll through the singletrack and then take the green line as soon as we came across it. I took liberties that morning to show off to Tomassetti my secret Naked Indian Powers. I heard voices in the distant and was able to predict what the men looked like perfectly, I astounded myself even.

Jeff really enjoyed the trail and the sights and the beauty of the seminole forest and we constantly chatted all the way to Paisley which seemed to come very fast. At the store we stocked up for the impeding forest crossing. It wasn't till long after that I realized that I didn't eat the Ice cream I bought and I left it in the fridge.

Along the Paisley MTB trail we went, then Into Billie Bay finding the Oddest thing I have ever come across in the forest a 20 Jeep rally. I never expected it.

As we kept going, they stopped and we apparently got too close as we got sprayed with wet dirt. Disgusting. It was everywhere. I learned in the military long ago to HTFU and instead of trying to clean my filthy self I told Jeff that we could clean up at Buck Lake.

We made our way to Buck lake and the oddest thing happened.

I have come to buck lake many times. It is a beautiful place, remote and secluded. NOT TODAY, there were at least 50 college kids. Girls and guys everywhere.

Immediately upon Arrival a guy and a girl approach. They tell us that they have reserved the site, blah, blah, blah. I tell them that we are here to clean up and get water.

Their response...."I guess that's Ok"...

In my head I thought, "you Guess?, You Guess? M-------ah there is no potable water for 20 miles..." LMAO...

Anyhow, the guy, who's name was Mario or something just as cheesy, was a douche, SO, I decided to turn on the Naked Indian Charm and start chatting with his girl.

They quickly walked away after that. AND I cleaned up.

I have been to the Lake many times, but never have I ever gone in the water. The water was frigid, making me think this lake must be spring fed. Which is good.

Anyhow, I cleaned up, ate, got some water and we rolled out on more singletrack. Eventually we made it to Forest road where the Tomassetti train fired up again and I had no interest in jumping on, LMAO. I was pooped and my legs were cramping. I have just started training and my legs were very smoked, chasing Jeff was just not in the cards.

I could see him get smaller in the distance. I was hoping he was enjoying the rolling terrain, eventually we saw a small dot in the distance in the middle of the road. As we got closer I realized it was a man. Shirtless, in Sandals.. Walking in the middle of the ONF. WTF, is all I Thought. Even more surprising was that Jeff stopped to speak to him.

In my head I was thinking, NO JEFF, but, anyhow. When I finally got there I had to interrogate him.

What are you doing out here, no water, no supplies. He assured me he was some sort of kick ass wanderer by telling me about his last wandering session. "I went from blah blah blah to titusville and back, blah, blah, blah." ALL I could think was either he was insane OR he was a drug addict.

Jeff gave him water, which was nice an we tried to give him directions, but in retrospect I think I told him wrong.

O well.

Eventually we emerged from the forest, onto pavement, I was hurting pretty good, I cannot lie. We pressed on, I was tired, I wanted to rest, but forward and onward and cramps and all, we made it to Greenway, then onto the 12 hour where I found my team mates, and called it a day. Sure we could have pressed on, but I thought, this is a good place to stop, a good place to rest, a good place to recover. I spent the rest of the evening, drinking water and eating anything and everything.

It was awesome, finally catching up with my team mates, it had been so long since we had seen each other face to face. So we talked and laughed and had a great time. Eventually they packed and I cleared a spot on the ground and slept like a stone on the soft earth.

The next morning I had a handful of nuts and an apple.

I needed more than that to ride the entire epic plus beyond Haltapa. I didn't want to go to wal mart of course. I have grown stubborn in my bikepacking. Often I don't want to stop for water or food, not a good habit to have.

We were being good 'Leave no trace' campers and throwing away our garbage, when I saw Dave Hawkins and begged him for food. He obliged and we stocked up and rolled on.

The track rolled great, and before we knew it we were about to start the Hell track section. Now to Clarify, the Hell track is only about 1 mile and we call it that cause a mud and over growth form that makes grass and brush taller than you are on your bike. It also has mud that's impassable, whether dry or wet. BUT, one time in the past and including today, there was nothing hellish about it. It happens.

We stopped at subway and had breakfast. I knew we had 30 odd miles left, we notified our pick up and rolled on. Time for the Tomassetti Train. We worked, and at one point, the cramps came back and I had to roll my pace. WE went off road, marveled at the oddity of a western version of Deltona. Which is weird. Up and down we went. Into the soft sand, where Jeff got to witness my sick and well developed sand skills. I waited, and then once again, when I thought Jeff saw me, he didn't and he went off course, this time pretty far. I sat under a tree for a good while till he came along. I felt bad for assuming he had made visual contact with me when he indeed hadnt.

We eventually made it after too much pavement to the start of the final bike path section and Jeff spotted a possible way to get here in the future eliminating some of that road, I took mental Note and on we went to finish with another ceremonial and well deserved wheel dip. 213 miles, some 18 or some odd hours of ride time 44 hours of total time, making US the first official wheel dip to wheel dip off road Transflorida finishers.

RAD!
A dream realized.

Eventually after waiting too long we got picked up and celebrated over drinks.

Jeff did a great write up, which I recommended he submit to a magazine. This is more of a journalistic write up, his was downright poetic. I enjoyed traveling with Jeff, but damn he is fast and it hurt to ride with him. Next time I take him on a trip it will be all singletrack that way I don't have to make him wait so long.

I also learned on this trip that I am a bottles guy, camelbak equals cramps, I forget to drink. Lesson learned. Also learned that I am hammock guy, bivy is not going to work for me. Not at all. The recuperative rest I get from hanging in a hammock is worth the weight penalty. What can I say, its probably genetic, the hammock thing.

Take care,

Laters,

The NakeD InDiaN