A Good Deed and a Small World
As I told you in this morning’s blog post, I completed a 64-mile bicycle ride yesterday that began and ended in Marana. Because this ride was sponsored and supported by GABA, there was an entry fee and a wristband and all that stuff – and food! Not only were there three well-stocked SAG stops, but at the end of the ride they had a wonderful lunch buffet from Eegee’s. There were several types of sandwiches/grinders/subs/hoagies/whatever-you-want-to-call-them; gobs of Eegee’s drinks (similar to slushies or Icees elsewhere in the world); cookies; fruit; and the usual coolers full of soft drinks and water. (Water in bottles, as well as water from the melted ice.)
I finished my ride a little before 1:30, and took my time to eat my reward. Around 2 PM, I decided I had had enough of eating and sitting, so I packed my bike into the back of the truck and prepared to leave. As I was doing all this, I heard a nearby voice ask someone, “Do you have jumper cables?”
Naturally, I looked up at that, to see who was asking whom. I saw two pickups in the parking row ahead of me and a group of people standing there. I saw one of the others shake his head no, and then he and his passengers got in their truck and left. Then the other guy, who had asked the question, saw me and asked me if I had cables? Well, of course I do! I’m an Eagle Scout, after all, and I’m prepared! I also had my Antigravity Micro-Start kit with me, so I pulled that out first (it’s on top of everything else in the emergency tool kit, so it was the easiest thing to get to anyway).
As I started toward the non-starting truck, explaining what I have, the guy sort of does a double-take at the Micro-Start, pauses for a moment, and then says, “You’re Gonzo!” I replied, “I am!” while thinking “who are you?” He then said, “My son won the other one of these at the club meeting last month!” So then I knew that this man’s last name, at least, was DiMaria. He never introduced himself, but that didn’t really matter.
When we got to his truck, everyone wanted to see the Micro-Start, so they all crowded around as I pulled out the battery and the leads. None of us were sure it would start the truck, because the truck was a diesel with dual batteries, but we decided to give it a try. [I *did* tell Mr. DiMaria that I also had jumper cables if the Micro-Start wasn’t sufficient.]
Mr. DiMaria hooked the Micro-Start to one of the truck’s batteries, got in, turned the key, and it fired right up with no problems at all.
So not only did I ride 64-plus miles yesterday, but I also did my Good Deed. And to a family member of someone in the Tucson Rough Riders, no less. It is, indeed, a small world.
The Peripatetic Traveler 
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