7/17 35 miles today. When I got home the heat index was 99* and my computer was reading 108 in direct sun light.

390.5 miles this month
3870 miles this year
122 ride days LY vs 123 ride days TY
3629 miles needed to hit 2010 goal (7500 miles)
I am @ 51.6% of my goal. I need to be @ 66.6% (5000 miles) by the end of August
325 miles ahead of last year at this date

Today’s ride thru the eyes of my bike…
I got out a little late today and the temp was already on its way to 85*. About a mile north of the SR 434 tunnel 3 deer jumped across the trail about 30 yards in front of me. I tried to get a picture of them but I think I had screwed the camera too far down on the mount and the bolt was interfering with the electronics inside the camera. I figured I had ruined the camera but when I took my break at Panera Bread I remounted it and it seems to be working fine.
Those deer sure would have made a nice photo.

I continued north on the International Parkway to the Rinehart bike bridge over I 4 then turned south at Rinehart Rd to the Cross Seminole Trail. This took me over to The Big Tree Park the home of The Senator and Lady Liberty.

The Senator is the largest Bald Cypress tree in the United States, located in Big Tree Park, Longwood, Florida. It is 125 feet (38 m) tall, with a trunk diameter of 17.5 feet (5.3 m).
The Seminole Indians and other

Native American Indians who lived throughout Central Florida used this tree as a landmark. In the late 1800s, the tree attracted visitors even though much of the surrounding land was swamp; reaching the tree was done by leaping from log to log. A walkway was later constructed by the Works Progress Administration (WPA). In 1925, a hurricane destroyed the top of the tree, reducing its original height of 165 feet (50 m) to its present height. The Senator is named for Senator M.O. Overstreet, who donated the tree and surrounding land to Seminole County for a park in 1927. In 1929, former president Calvin Coolidge visited The Senator and dedicated the site with a commemorative bronze plaque. The plaque and portions of an iron fence were stolen by vandals in 1945 and never recovered. Because of its unusual size, considerable controversy as to The Senator's true species has existed. In the 1950s, the tree was reclassified as a Pond Cypress, only to be reverted back to the classification of Bald Cypress some thirty years later.

Located 40 feet (12 m) from The Senator is another old cypress in the same Big Tree Park named Lady Liberty. It is 89 feet (27 m) high 10 feet (3.0 m) in diameter, and is estimated to be 2000 years old and one of the oldest tree's in the world.

After a stop to see The Senator and Lady Liberty I headed on out the CST to another of our fine bridges that crosses SR 17/92. I can get up to about 35 mph on the down ramp but you need to have both hands on the bars so I opted to slow down and take a picture or two. If you try real hard you can visualize yourself in the yellow jersey screaming down some of the switch backs in France. (well that may be a stretch)

The photo with all of the high power poles shows good use of the power Company right of way but it is not the most photogenic area. For some reason this is a good area to see armadillos but none were out today for some reason.

Photo #7 is what I see as I exit my favorite tunnel under SR 434.
I hope you enjoyed my ride.