The decision to have a Flanders road bike with disc brakes was made, and I contacted Ronny Assez to order a new frame. In the past, each time he had a new frame for me, he would only send it when someone he knew was traveling to the States and was willing to bring it. The past two times I needed a frame, they were brought in by Paul. He happened to live in St. Augustine, so I would simply drive up and pick them up each time.
My plan for this frame was for Ronny to pack it, and I would make arrangements for UPS to pick it up for delivery to the States. I shared that information with Ronny along with the frame, size, and color I wanted. As he gathered information to prepare the frame, he never commented on my idea for UPS to ship it to me. He then asked if I was coming to Belgium, and I thought, why not, as long as he could find a low-cost place for me to stay.Thirty-four years have passed since my last visit to Oudenaarde, Belgium, and I don't think I've flown since the inception of TSA in 2001. The flight I booked with Delta went from Orlando to Atlanta to Brussels, and the layover was long enough for my bags to make the transfer to the plane for Brussels.
Boarding began for Atlanta, thunderstorms were building, and after pulling away from the gate, takeoff was put on hold. After 15 minutes, the pilot announced a return to the gate. Everyone was asked to unboard, and departure for Atlanta was delayed three hours.
Knowing that I wouldn't make the flight from Atlanta to Brussels, I wondered how soon I would be booked on another flight to Brussels and if my bags would be transferred properly. The next flight to Brussels was scheduled to take off in seventeen hours from Atlanta to New York, and then a connection to Brussels. I immediately began moving around the different gates, trying to sleep in chairs and on the floor. Fortunately, I found a seat cushion that worked as a pillow. As the departure time for the flight to New York approached, a delay was posted, and worry set in again as the arrival time was 6:05 p.m. and the departure for Brussels was 6:55 p.m.
Take off was fifteen minutes past the scheduled departure, and as we approached our landing in New York, I knew I needed to disembark quickly. My seat was three-fourths of the way toward the rear of the plane; fortunately, I was in an aisle seat. As soon as the plane stopped, I stood and rushed down the aisle, letting others know I needed to catch a connecting flight. Reaching halfway, the aisle was full, and the wait for others to disembark began. I made sure I knew the gate I needed to go to for my connecting flight.
Moving walkways allowed me to quickly travel past 38 gates for the departing flight to Brussels. When I approached the gate, I was cheerful to see a line for my seat section. Knowing I made the flight, I began to wonder if my bags made it as well. While in flight, the Fly Delta app allowed me to discover that my bags were not in the cargo hold. I was also able to see that they were scheduled for the next flight to Amsterdam and from Amsterdam to Brussels.
My flight landed in Brussels at 8:45 a.m. After disembarking, I immediately went to the lost/delayed baggage area and learned my bags would arrive at 3:30 p.m. for me to pick up or that I could have them delivered. I immediately opted to pick them up, but then said I'd like them delivered. When I learned delivery might not be until the next day, I stayed with the pickup decision. Anxious to see Ronny and knowing the train depot is at the airport, I contemplated taking the train to Oudenaarde and returning in the afternoon for my bags. After converting enough dollars to euros for a train ticket and purchasing a ticket, I decided a better decision was to stay and wait for my bags.
The desire to ride today prompted me to immediately start looking for my bags at 3:30, even though I
Fifty-eight hours had passed since I left Ocala, and I was now at the Oudenaarde train depot. Texting Ronny that I had arrived, he responded that the shop closed in about 20 minutes at 6:30, and he would pick me up.