BELFAST – Waldo County Judge of Probate Susan Longley said she was nervous about campaigning for reelection for the first time since she took the bench in 2004. So she took the advice of someone she met along the way.

"He said, 'you'll be alright, just be yourself,'" she said. "And I've always been a bicyclist."

Longley, who lives in Liberty, is facing some real competition in the upcoming election from former Judge of Probate Randy Mailloux of Belfast, so she started campaigning early.

In July, she got a new kickstand for her bike and took to the road between court sessions. Along the way, she learned a few things: leave a bike near the road on Route 7 and the trucks will blow it over; lots of houses have new weather sealing and just as many have doorbells that don't work; and despite the anger and frustration that has characterized politics in recent years, most people are friendly.

On Thursday, Longley was in Belfast. A basket on the front of her bike held flyers and a list of registered voters. Another on the back had dog biscuits and — at the suggestion of a child who thought the dogs were making out better — a bag of animal crackers for any children she might meet along the way. Campaign signs were attached to the front, back and sides of the bike and Longley wore a safety-yellow windbreaker.

Her mission might not have been obvious at a glance, but she was out to be seen first. Introductions could come later.

"It's very fun," she said, "to walk up to someone's door in my helmet and look like a Martian and say, 'I'm your judge.'"

Penobscot Bay Pilot reporter Ethan Andrews can be reached at ethanandrews@penbaypilot.com