Trying out the new carrier for the dog.

Button didn't seem to like his homemade bike carrier, a wire basket with a nice cushy pillow to ride on. It even had pipe foam covering on the edges, so it was cushy there too. Bought a little harness to strap him in with..just in case he decided to jump out. He must have thought it was an invitation, the first time we went riding with him in it, we hadn't even gone a mile before he bailed. I was glad the leash was short, I stopped the trike, got off and hurried to the back, sure enough, there he dangled. I picked him up, and put him back in the basket. He cried, squeaked really, that's his version of crying. He is very persistent at it, and it is irritating. He is glad to be along, his problem is: he wants to be by his Mama...me. Not possible, our trike has OSS steering, which means "over the seat steering." quite a misleading term, since the steering is actually next to each side of the seat. Anyway, there is no handlebar to fasten the carrier to, so he has to ride in back, on the rear carrier. He loves his little travel crate, but it won't fit on the bike. After doing some research I found one that comes with a base that zip ties to the rear carrier and has latches that the dog crate attaches too. The carrier can be enclosed, by zipping it up and zipping mesh panels in the head opening, or Button can stick his head (and 1 foot) out of the front or rear opening. Half way through the ride, we stopped and I zipped the mesh into the openings. Button was then unable to get next to Tony's ear and squeak, and squeak, and squeak. He could also stop putting one foot out, a move that made Tony very nervous, even though Button is fasten inside the carrier by a short leash. I think having the carrier enclosed makes Button feel more secure, he doesn't squeak as much when he is zipped in, snug as a bug in a rug.

I took the panniers, which hold my supplies and tools off to mount the new dog carrier. Once I got the carrier mounted (of course) I saw that the panniers would not fit on. Didn't want to figure out how to remount the whole thing, so we rode without the panniers, trusting the Lord to keep us free of flat tires or any other problems that might require the tools. Tony carried the thermos of hot chocolate and only dropped it once. Oh well, at least it's been initiated with a dent now. I'll stop by the bike shop tomorrow to see if I can get some brackets and figure out how to have the panniers and the dog carrier on the trike.
It was a misty rain when we started our 16 mile ride, about 5 miles later, the mist let up and the sun snuck out from behind the clouds every now and then. We rode to church, stopped and chatted with our Pastor and a friend that works part-time at the church, had our hot chocolate, let Button entertain Lori and Pastor for a bit, and then headed back home. Decided it would be good for Button to walk along side the bike for a bit. He didn't really care for that idea much, and put his brakes on several times, by simply refusing to move his feet forward, kind of like water sking...only on the pavement, and without skis. Not the best for the pads of his feet, so we stopped and loaded him back in the carrier. He was much quieter now that he knew what the alternative to riding in the carrier was.(he is such a smart dog.) A few squeaks on the way home and a bit of barking when we met someone who was walking and rode by some kids that were out in their yard playing. Other than that he settled right in and seemed to enjoy the views from his little carriage.
I babied low gear along and got it to work without slipping, but still can't use the lowest ring on my right shifter without the chain slipping. We will be glad to get the trike to WI for the work that needs doing. Got the camping trailer out of storage on Thursday, so will be getting that ready to go this week. Mountain drive, here we come.
Saw a beaver by the edge of a pond on the way home, and heard the peacock "meow". That is what it sounds like. A very loud "meow." Other times when we ride by, it sounds like a child crying out, but today was the "cat call." The seagulls were flying over a farmers field, and we heard the cows mooing. Things are still pretty brown around here, hopefully we'll be seeing some green on our rides soon. It was very windy today, head winds of 25 MPH much of the way home. Didn't set any speed records, but we got our 16 miles in. Planning a longer ride tomorrow after church. Total miles for the week so far, 44 miles. If we can do 30 tomorrow we will have 74 in. Our riding week goes from Sunday to Sunday. It was a blessing to be out, enjoying the country side.