Day 15: Odessa, FL to Bradenton, FL; 68.2 miles, 1,000 ft of climb, 83 degrees

We waited out the rain this morning that moved through the area and were on the road by 9 am. We had a dry and sunny ride. The later start had us out during the heat of the day and everyone agrees that this felt like the hottest day riding.

What did we see, you ask? Well, we rode through parts of Tampa and went by the Babe Zaharias golf course, Busch Gardens, Adventureland, University of South Florida, and a few other sites. No time to stop and take in the excitement and we did not see the Buccaneers or any sign of them.

We started the day on a busy road with no shoulder and had more than one driver yell at us – that’s always a great way to start a ride. When we got to lunch a few of us were encouraged by the route direction that said it was two miles to the Tamiami Trail. When I hear “trail” associated with cycling, I think of a trail that is separate from the road. Nope, “Tamiami Trial” is the name of a road that was put in during the 1920’s to connect Tampa and Miami. I guess it really “changed Florida.” So, we continued on Highway 41 (apparently, it’s the new Highway 98) on a four-foot shoulder. Not quite the “trail” we were hoping for.

We did cross a couple of rivers…so that broke up the monotony today.

And there was this lady hanging off the strip mall sign.

After stopping in a CVS parking lot and an Exxon station, our final stop was at Waypoint Bar and Grill…a welcome stop with seats indoors, as well as boat storage in the back. I know Bill will be happy that I included the photo of him with his Ginger Ale.

Bradenton is in Manatee county Florida and we passed lots of things named after the manatees. There was the Manatee Correctional Facility (I wonder what the manatees have to do to end up there), Manatee Memorial Hospital (I bet a bunch of manatees got their money together so they could have the hospital named after them) and Manatee Performing Arts Center (we didn’t stop long enough to see if the Manatees are performing tonight).

We passed this guy coming into town. Maybe he is mayor of the manatees?

Finally, we have a room with a view. Too bad we arrived later in the afternoon and leave early tomorrow morning. No time to enjoy the area.

The shower here is a 7.5. It’s a tub, so it can’t score above an 8 and it has a funky handle, so it lost half a point.