Season 6. Episode 7. Danijela medicated me.

October 3, 2026. Orebic to Ston, Croatia. 36 miles. 2,997’ climbing.

After my accident, I was a bit out of it and off my game as the “Trip Director” who organizes logistics and keeps us going forward in our itinerary. Normally, the night before we take a ferry,  I check to see where it actually leaves from by walking to the actual site if possible, or asking our server at dinner. Last night I forgot to do that. So in the morning we biked over for what we thought was a 2 minute ride to the port where we had arrived.  We were running late on account of my slow morning movements, and were shocked to learn from some dock workers that the ferry out leaves from another port about 2-3 miles away, with a climb up then descent. We had 15 minutes to make it, or wait another few hours for the next ferry. Not a disaster, but would mess up the day. We raced there as fast as possible with a climb on top of it, and it was a sweaty, stressful start to the day, and a sign of things for the week to come that things wouldn’t run as smoothly as they had up to now. At least we made the ferry by 2 minutes. 

When we got off the ferry in Orebic on the tip of the Pelješac Peninsula, my bandaid to cover my cut and protect it from dirt and the sun would not stay on. I had sweated so much already that it was sliding off. The solution was to shave on the sides of the cut so the bandaid would stay. 

So on the side of the road, I did some shaving cleanup to help my bandaid stick.

I was lucky yesterday that my sunglasses didn’t shatter and only had 2 small chip damages. One, lucky they didn’t break causing an eye injury. Two, they’re prescription and progressives so not something I could replace on the trip.

Heather was also a bit scattered today. Probably from worrying about me and she was also doing more things for me. She forgot both her water bottles and the cheese in the fridge at our Airbnb. (She bought water after the ferry.) And later in the day when we arrived in Ston and we each locked our bikes up to walk around, we returned after about an hour to find that Heather actually forgot to lock her bike and had left it completely unsecured. 

My teeth, lip, left leg, and left hand hurt. I was feeling sore in several places and had I been at home, I’d be curled up in bed or on my sofa with Netflix. But I was intent on continuing. I did allow myself the thought that if it really proved too difficult, maybe we’d go home early from Bari, Italy instead of doing the 10 Day Puglia loop. Our flights were booked home from Bari, so it would be just a matter of changing dates. I kept this thought to myself and did not share it with Heather.

The ride up from the port in Orebic is a long uphill one.  It was immediately a struggle for me being less than 100%.  I’ve written in our initial blog that we dedicate our rides in honor of our friends, Lenny and Ernie, who suffer from paralysis and inspire us. I’ve mentioned that we think of them often and as we deal with challenges.  Today was definitely that day and, in addition to Lenny and Ernie, I was thinking of 2 other friends, Alan and Ron.

Alan works for the Reeve Foundation. He had suffered an accident over 30 years ago that left him paralyzed. He welcomed us in Saint Augustine, Florida at the end of our Southern Tier ride and then in Key West, Florida at the end of our East Coast ride. He also greeted us as part of the group that welcomed us back to Larchmont at the end of our Northern Tier ride. We’ve learned so much from Alan about paralysis. We’ve also witnessed his positivity and on social media we see his persistent exercise in the pool, very motivating to us. 

Another person we thought of is Ron.  He experienced a horrific bike accident when hit by a vehicle about 13 years ago that left him paralyzed. I had seen his TEDx talk even before I met him. We’ve gotten to know each other at various Reeve Foundation events, and Heather and I read his weekly blog that delivers valuable insights. I biked with him a few months ago - he uses a hand cycle. We happened to see him speak just before we left on this particular trip and his message of personal agency resonates deeply with me. 

As I cycled up the mountain, I slowly repeated their names in a very slow beat. Ernie, Lenny, Alan, Ron. Ernie, Lenny, Alan, Ron and so on. It was actually more slowly to match my pedaling cadence and sounded like Er-nie, Len-ny, Al-an, Ron.  Er-nie, Len-ny, Al-an, Ron.  Repeated through each climb for the day. They got me up both big climbs for the day.  And in subsequent days.

After a while, my bandaid continued to fall off because of sweat, and maybe also from sunscreen dripping into the area. The solution was to ride with a bandanna covering the area.

Wearing a bandanna is an annoyance and hot, but manageable. Aside from it being hotter to breathe, it also means I could not simply drink while riding without stopping and dismounting.  As a result, I drank less. This led to some dehydration issues on a subsequent day.  As well, when I did stop to drink from my water bottle, as a result of my fat lip, the water would dribble down my chin a little bit. 

(I travel with two bandannas since I’ve had to use them in previous rides.  Once to protect against smoke from fires out west and the other time when my lip was cracked from the sun also out west.)

At some point, Ride With GPS (our route mapping App) took us on a route that is not a road. We were walking and riding, walking and riding…. Heather doesn't do well on this type of surface so she was walking more than riding.

Heather hates these dirt and gravel roads especially as the road soon narrowed.

Heather is quick to get off her bike in such cases where she’s not comfortable rather than risk falling. At one point even I walked and questioned where the hell we were and where we were going. We came to a house where there was no more road. Only a trail moving up a dirt rocky slope, clearly for hiking not biking. There was a woman, probably age 40 to 50, carrying a package into her house. I asked her about directions and how we get back to the road. With broken English she explained the way and said it’s about 200 meters to get around that section. And she quickly said I’ll show you. She picked up both my panniers like they were nothing and I carried/walked my bike. I asked if she’s Croatian or I joked Amazon? She laughed and replied “neither, I’m Polish, this is our summer house”. Wow, she was strong and fit. I went back to help Heather and saw she was very unhappy!!  Very!!  

For the next few miles of dirt road, I rode and every so often left my bike on the ground to walk back and help Heather who was walking her bike with both panniers over the rocky, steep road. In a way it forced me to rally and forget my own issues since I needed to rally Heather over this hurdle. 

We eventually got to paved road and had a climb, that would soon reward us with an incredible afternoon descent by the sea.

Back to the coast of the peninsula.

After a grocery store lunch in Trstenic, a town sheltered in a beautiful cove.

As I rode today, I certainly was replaying yesterday‘s accident like a video reel inside my mind, playing it over and over again trying to think what could I have done differently. And wondering when did I actually see the wire and what do I remember. I remember seeing the wire and then being on the ground. I don’t remember actually flying over the handlebars, which is what Heather saw. I wish there was video replay. 

Our destination for our ride was the medieval town of Ston. As a sign of my maturing and evolution as a rider, I was heeding the advice of Isabel from Bike Odyssey and not cycling the road from there into Dubrovnik. I’d decided that a month ago and arranged for taxi transfer from Ston. The road from there to Dubrovnik is windy, without a shoulder, and even in the low tourist season is heavily trafficked. There are people who cycle it. And five years ago, I’d have been one of them; as in my mind as a purist, one cycled every stretch. Now wiser. It was great relief to me that I’d arranged the shuttle. In my condition, I doubt I would have the fortitude for that kind of ride today. 

Our first glimpse of the Wall of Ston. aka The Great Wall of Europe. (More impressive to me than Dubrovnik’s would end up being.) I was not up for walking them which was a very steep climb. Even when 100%, it’s odd that I can ride up a steep mountain, but struggle then to walk up stairs.

I must confess and this may be an unpopular statement, but I’ll go out on a limb. Dubrovnik as a city itself, left me disappointed. I’m not sure if it was because of my physical state that it affected my mental state, or if I’d feel that way on any other visit.  Maybe it was because of all the other old cities and walls we have been fortunate to already see. 

The major issue to me is what i will call the “Disneyfication” of it.  It is a very small area and the cruise ship passengers who pour in by the thousands on top of all others (like us) staying there makes for a crowded, unpleasant experience. My apologies to all who like Disney experiences. 

Don’t get me wrong, I liked our 2-hour, guided walking tour. One takeaway was Dubrovnik was a city of middlemen and diplomats. As the latter, we were told they were nice to everybody, and honest to nobody. But what I liked was the history lesson more than the crowded groups of people all herding through tight spaces on top of one another. 

There was a bonus that we bumped into our cycling friends we’d seen in Split, so grabbed lunch with Adrian and Donna, and dinner with Seth. 

But my main order of business was to heal. And some readers (Sam, Kate and Steve, & Alex P) have wisely advised me that my injury required gelato as a balm. 

After scouting the many Gelateria, I decided on MOSTRO. Their display looked most enticing. Spoiler alert, I picked right. 

After reader comments about ice cream tasting and sampling in episode 4, I’m reluctant (or is it embarrassed ?) to fully share these details. But will share as your honest reporter. 

One reader friend suggested that in the words of Larry David himself, I may be  a “Sample  Abuser”.  I think not as in Larry’s case, he was only annoyed because he was waiting next in line. If nobody’s behind me in line (do I sound defensive?), then I think there’s no abuse. 

Danijela, one of 4 servers working the counter at MOSTRO Gelateria, kept on encouraging me to try new flavors. Seriously. Maybe all the tourists have conditioned MOSTRO to have a generous tasting policy?  Anyways, as I would ask about a flavor, she said “here try it”. At 3 samples, I dared not ask about other flavors, but couldn’t help myself.  It continued as she told me about her personal favorite, blueberry cheesecake. 

Danijela medicated me with 5 sample doses.

As a result of her generosity, and good salesmanship, I went for the larger serving which meant a double dose. Dubai Chocolate paired with Blueberry Cheesecake. There’s an art to the pairing, like wine with a meal course.

I know the other day I said don’t get cheesecake in your ice cream, however, since it was her favorite, I gave it a chance. I was rewarded for trusting her. It was unbelievable. The pieces of crust were extra joy. 

I'm also not normally a chocolate ice cream guy, but this was astounding. 

There are probably 20 ice cream stores to choose from in the old city of Dubrovnik, but I made sure I showed my loyalty. I came back the next day.  To my disappointment, Danijela wasn't there, but then another girl was pushing her favorites. Together we set a new record: 6 sample doses. 

Night 2 in Dubrovnik and another double serving. As a bonus, in the little cone adornment, you choose a filling. My go to was liquid melted Nutella.

Some people medicate by the bottle. I medicate by the scoop. Cycling allows me to eat without weight gain but I still have to keep tabs on my A1C, blood sugar levels. Losing that battle today, and my cholesterol meds need to work overtime.

Heather doesn’t go for gelato, but not to be outdone, she binged on 3 chocolate covered bananas in about 30 hours.

By the way, after you have an accident and fall on your bike helmet, you’re supposed to replace the helmet. It’s thought to have one crash only and then considered compromised. The bike store was closed as it was Sunday, so no new helmet yet.  The funny thing is before our trip, Heather wanted me to buy a new helmet as mine is 7 years old and considered to be old in the amount of riding we do and thus sun exposure on it. I think it’s a good thing I didn’t replace it. This one proved to be very reliable and saved me from a TBI!

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We ride to raise funds for the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation. They are dedicated to curing spinal cord injury and improving the quality of life of those impacted by paralysis. Thank you to so many of you who have already generously donated an amazing  total over $24,000! If you’ve not yet had a chance to support the Reeve Foundation, please consider making a gift at Heather & Mark Ride for Reeve.

© Copyright Mark Segal 2026.