July 29 - Jeff

Leftovers from yesterday.  Jack wins the Good Samaritan award of the day for yesterday.  On the way into Lexington, Jerry spotted Jack helping a little old lday.  He was pushing his bike and carrying her groceries.  He thought at one point he may have to carry her too.  Probably Stonewall Jackson’s wife.  Jack also saw a shepherd.  An honest to god shepherd with the turbine and leading sheep across a pasture.  I think Jack may be hallucinating.

We have had bad luck with campgrounds.  Now it could be that we turn in about 8-8:30 each night.  But we seem to have noise every time we camp. Last night it was a party at the campground followed by dogs barking endlessly into the night.  Then thunder and lightning started but I guess the rain gods were smiling on us because the rain never did appear.

We all got off between 6 and 6:30 to attack the last mountain.  On the way toward Vesuvius, the daily mailbox winner appeared.  A beautiful brick pillared mailbox with a huge concrete turkey on top.  One thing missing, no house.  It sat next to a creek and we looked around and saw no evidence of a residence.  Also on the way, you know how we have talked about the dawgs.  Well, this German shepherd suddenly appeared next to me.  And he ran with me for about 3 miles.  Just accompanying me along the road.  Kind of strange.  He’d sprint ahead, stop at a tree, catch up to me, stop for a poop, and catch up again.  He moved at a good clip.    Lost him on a downhill.

The mountain was much ado about nothing.  Not nearly as bad as we anticipated.  Jack and Jerry didn’t even stop on the way up.  I stopped twice. Even used my granny gear.  I guess I get the pink tutu.  I just felt, why kill myself.  After the “climb”, we went along the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Very nice.  Highly recommend riding along this road in a car or on a bike.  Great scenery if you like mountains.  We could even see the ultimate, flat land below.    We went through Reeds gap, Rockfish Gap, and then into Afton which was our tentative destination.  Well, we got there about 10:30 and Afton was no more than a post office.  We decided to head for Charlottesville. We went through Greenwood and White Hall.  Jack stopped for a fresh peach.  Hard as a rock.  Jack was not happy.  But he was happier before when we stopped at the Rockfish Gap Country Store.  Popcorn.  Jack was in hog heaven.  Jerry and I got coffee that came out of a one cup dispenser.  Not the same or as good as gas station coffee.

After a lot of confusion, we ended up in a Red Roof Inn for lack of a place to stay.  Charlottesville is the home of the University of Virginia.  I didn’t realize that until we entered the city.  Looks like the college is the entire town.

Tomorrow, we head out hoping to be able to finish the trip in two days.  We are on flat land!!

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 28 - Jeff

Left around 7:00 this morning. Hotel had a continental breakfast.  Pretty weak.  No bananas.   On the way out going back toward the trail, went past Lord Tortboute High School.  Looked like it rained during the night a little, but it did not rain the entire day.  Sunshine as we speak.  Little humid at times.

Went through Troutville, pop 431, Buchanan, pop 1,178, and into Lexington, pop7,042.  Stopped at the Mountain View Grill just outside of Buchanan just  across the James River.  Had pancakes and a bonus, fresh fruit.  Had no choice. All breakfast had a number.  Ours was number 3.  Talked to a couple from DC in there.  Very interested in our trip.  Nice people.  Her husband was an avid watcher of the Tour De France.  Last Monday at dinner, when Joan and Dave and Jay ere with us we talked about there being no Tour for the women.  This guy said there is one in the planning stages.

Went past a church with a slogan.  It said, “Lifeguard on duty”.  We thought great, Kylie Von Handorf came to join our trip.  It wet on to say, “see John 3:16”.  Lexington was a cool town.  Lot of history there.  Could see Stonewall Jackson’s tomb from the road.  Was talking to a guy at a church.  Took me in to show me where Stonewall actually sat in the church.  So I can say I was in the church that Stonewall Jackson attended.  What a claim to fame.  We stopped in quaint little restaurant called Macado.  Lot of character and they had Shock Top on tap.  We could not participate because we had 8 more mils to go.  Lexington is the home of VMI and several other colleges.  Went by a football stadium.  Very small.  They may not have a football team or there could be another stadium somewhere.  I hope so because it was pretty dismal.

We ended up in a place outside of Lexington called Mallard Duck Campground.  Showers and restrooms.  Jack and I got lost on the way.  Did a few extra miles. Drying out our tents and shtuff.   Jack also did extra miles earlier.  Rode up a mountain to the  Blue Ridge Parkway.  Jerry and I declined to participate.  He is an animal.

Mailbox award today goes to the Swartz’s in Virginia.  Not really different, but there were about 10 mailboxes.  It appeared that the entire family lived back on this land, everybody had their own house.  I can see the Von Handorf’s doing that.

Early in the trip, Jerry and Sue’s stove suffered a painful death.  Had to be replaced.  Jerry and Sue bought a new Coleman stove at a Kroger type place.  It began falling apart soon thereafter.  Screws would appear beneath the stove after a use.  Duct tape became our friend to keep the stove together.  Jerry e-mailed Coleman about the problem.  Last week, Coleman mailed a new stove to Jerry at his old address on Monroe Street.  Kudos to Coleman. 

Tomorrow, we head over the mountain to flatter land.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

A Note About Aly, our Silent Partner

As I mentioned in an earlier blog entry, one of the major factors in getting us this far in our trek has been the commitment that Jeff has had to completing the journey as a way to raise awareness of the children experiencing genetic diseases such as the San Felipo syndrome that his daughter Aly has.  Along the way, every night he has talked to his wife Mary and most of the time it seems they have discussion about the various medical issues or care issues going on with Aly.  No special needs child could have better parents than Jeff and Mary, along with Aly’s sisters, Nicki and Becky.  They are an inspiration to all of us.  If perhaps you have enjoyed following us on this unlikely dance across the country, maybe smiled, or laughed, or groaned, or shed a tear at our misadventures, and if you are so inclined, you can still join in with a donation to the MPS society that provides support to Jeff and Mary and the other parents of MPS children by going to Aly’s website at www.mpssociety.org/donor-pages  and go to the Aly Von Handorf Courage Page.   Thank you!

   Jerry and Sue

July 27 - Jeff

July 27, 2013

Leftovers from last night.  We had our second campfire of the trip last night.  Jack needed to be a firebug for a while. He struggled a little, citing the “green wood”.  I played a few games of solitaire, going winless.  Sue played once and won.  Sue made a dinner with asparagus in it and strawberry shortcake for dessert.  Good shtuff.  At our campground, a little kid started crying around 9-10:00.  Didn’t stop until about 12:30.  Don’t know what they did for him or to him.  Then as soon as he stopped crying, the rain began and didn’t end until about 8:00.  Tents all wet.  Those of you who camp know what a mess it is to pack up the tents wet.  Yesterday, we saw a store called Shultzie’s.  Wytheville wins the award for the best water tower so far.  Painted like a hot air balloon, multiple colors.

Today, we left later than usual, waiting for a break in the rain.  That ended up being about the only break all day, as we rode in the rain almost the entire day.  As long as you didn’t stop, you really didn’t realize it was raining we were so wet.  Had to ride a little slower around the curves, but all in all, a good day of riding.  About 60 miles.  Beautiful countryside.  Streams.  A couple of rebel flags.  Several anti-Obama signs left over from the last election.   And a lot of nice homes.  Some so far up, you wonder if they airlifted them in.  We went through Radford, pop 15,140 home of Radford University.  Coach, I kept looking for signs commemorating your career at Radford.  Didn’t see any of those, but there was a “Whoa Nelly” real estate sign.  Then it was on to Christiansburg, pop 19,373. Beautiful subdivision jsust before the city. Then it was onto Ellet.  Stopped at a little gas station/food mart.  No lights on.  Power was out.  Coffee was not too warm.  But they were nice people and had free walter for cyclists.  Lot of nice homes on the way out of Ellet.  On the way to Ellet, there is this phantom bridge that looked like it was an expressway bridge, but one thing missing.  No cars.  Jack asked a local yokel about the bridge.  Dubbed the Smart Bridge.  The bridge cost an estimated $2 Billion according to the local, built with tax dollars by  Virginia Tech.  Different driving and weather conditions can be simulated on the bridge, from ice to snow, etc.  Toyota uses it for test drives evidently, or they used to.  The local was none too happy about the bridge being a taxpayer.  He said the bridge is referred to as the “dumb” bridge.  After Ellet, there were no services whatsoever until we got to Daleville, pop 2,257.  Trigger and Roy were nowhere to be seen. 

Today’s mailbox award is actually a repeat from one in Montana  or Idaho, a big fish with mouth open.

Traffic was almost nonexistent for most of the trip.  For a Saturday, I guess the rain kept people and dawgs inside.

We decided to Super 8 it tonight with the rain, wet tents, and wet clothes.  And we did Pizza Hut.  Really hit the spot.  So we are living large tonight besides no tents.

Tomorrow, we head for Lexington, about 50 miles.  Having a hard time locating a place to camp tomorrow.  Then, we are in position to attack our last major climb of the trip finally.  Just past the city of Vesuvius.  We call lit Mt. Vesuvius although that may not be the official name of the mountain.  Once we cross the mountain, we have smooth sailing into Yorktown.  Topography looks really flat compared to everything we have done.  Hopefully, it is not a delusion or a mirage.  Should take about two days to do the last part of the trip if all goes according to plan.  Landing in Yorktown sometime Wednesday.

We think rain is forecast for tomorrow.  Could be more of the same as today.

Thanks to all who recently donated to the Courage page.  Keeps me going.  Thank you.  Very encouraging.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

Testing the Limits

It rained quite a bit during the night, where we were camped at a very nice Virginia State Park called Clayton Lake.  It was still raining around 7 am, and I had a hard time getting up the resolve to ride in the rain.   But we have been very fortunate in that regard, and Jack was inclined to ride so after some hesitation we got started around 8 am.  What would it be to ride the across the country, and never ride in the rain?  We faced the winds of Kansas, monumental climbs along the way, cold weather - what's a little rain? The rain seemed to be tapering off for awhile, but then began drizzling and then raining off and on.  I rode the 20 or so miles to Christiansberg and stopped for a breakfast sub and coffee at Subway and then headed on.  The rain seemed to pick up from there, but the roads were nice and traffic light.  Although it was sort of miserable conditions, after you accepted the fact that you were wet it didn't really matter.  Just like I was able to hike in the rain on the AT, riding in the rain became just a mental challenge to be overcome.  Once I got over that, the ride was marvelous.  The scenery was beautiful, the road was good, almost no traffic, and I felt good.  The route goes through Catawba,  and the AT was just up on the ridge above the road, and crossed at one point.  There are two of the best "photo-ops" on the AT near Catawba - Dragon's Tooth and McAfee's Knob, and of course The Home Place which is a restaurant that is famous among hikers, and I have vivid memories of the delicious feast about 18 of us had three years ago on the AT, but unfortunately they are not open until 4 pm so I had to pass it by this time.  All in all it was another absolutely marvelous ride and I felt great, and it sure was good to get to Daleville where Sue had gotten us a motel room where the hot shower and dry room were very welcome.  Hopefully the weather will  be dryer tomorrow and we can dry out our tent and stuff for tomorrow night.
    Jerry

Virginia

Virginia.  Wow.  A few days into our trip, way back in Oregon, I was pretty well convinced that we would never complete the adventure.  I rated our odds at about 5-95, maybe less.  We were discouraged about traffic, unsure of our resolve and commitment, and on the verge of bailing out.  Now we have entered the final state, we have a manageable distance to cover, and there are only a few tough mountains to climb in our way before we hit the flatlands of Virginia headed for sea level at Yorktown.  How did we get here?  It’s almost as if we were transported from those bleak days back near the Pacific Ocean to this place, and all in between is a blur.  I think one of the biggest factors getting us here was the resolve and commitment that Jeff has had to finishing what he started regarding his commitment to the MPS group.  I was ready to throw in the towel, but he has always wanted to carry on.   Thank you Jeff for persevering.  

     In the next few days, we will be covering some familiar territory.  The Transamerica  route roughly parallels the Appalachian Trail in this area, and we will be going through some of the Trail Towns that I went through three years ago.  That will be a bit surreal.  Will I recognize the road crossings?   Remember the convenience stores and DQ’s that I may have stopped at?  Lately we have been staying at a number of church-sponsored hostels, which reminds me a lot of the hospitality I experienced along the Trail.  Many generous people have opened their doors to bikers along the way, just as people did on the AT.   On the AT, the last stretch is the Hundred Mile Wilderness in Maine, from Monson to Katahdin.  It kind of feels a bit like that now, as we prepare for the final push.  Here’s hoping the roads are friendly, the weather favorable, and that our bodies remain strong for the remaining days. 
      Jerry

July 26 - Jeff

Odds and ends.  Last night, I made my world famous Penne Pasta with Sun Dried Tomatoes.  We had vanilla yogurt and peaches for dessert which was Sue’s concoction.  We then added chocolate chip cookies to the mixture to make it more healthy.   I mentioned the Portolet we had.  It was actually level.  We had one in a [previous city that rocked and rolled when you got in there.  We have been shimmying portopotties and picnic tables all over the country.  Shower we had last night actually had a roof over top.  Earlier in the week at Elk Garden, we had an outdoor shower with no roof.  Saw our first Rebel Flag in Virginia today.  Kentucky had several along the route.  Last night we got into a horseshoe match.  Jack won  two and Jerry won one.  I scored a total of 2 points in my two matches.  We only played to 5, win by 2.  Pits were bad and  we seem to have no upper body strength anymore.  Maybe we should have played soccer.

We all left Troutdale this morning around 6:00.  Jerry left first followed by Jeff and then Jack.  Ride went through Sugar Grove, pop 792, Cedar Springs, Rural Retreat, pop 1,396, Wytheville, pop 7,762, Max Meadows, pop 532, Draper, pop 2,363, and Newbern.  We ended up in Clayton Lake State Park putting up tents for the first time since Monday.

The ride consisted of some great scenery through the Shenandoah Valley with the Mountains on both sides.  Virginia is as pretty a state as we have been through.  Pictures just don’t capture the scene sometimes.  We are at a point in the trip where sometimes I just want it to end.  Tired of riding, but today was rolling hills and little traffic and just great scenery.  Didn’t want it to end.  I wonder if I might feel that way at the end of the trip.  The riding is just hard to put into words.  Relaxing and mind clearing.

For anyone interested, there is a beautiful golf course on Route 11 on the way into Wytheville on the right had side coming from the west.  Had our pancake and coffee in Wytheville at the Virginia Heights Restaurant. People who ran the show there were very nice and we talked to them about how pretty their state was.  They had been to KY recently and said he same about our state.   We all agreed that we take  out states for granted.   Service was great and pancakes get an A.  Jack got his coffee at a coffee shop in the same city. 

On our way to Draper, we got stopped by a guy with a bike strapped to his roof.  He was trying to map a bike route to Bristol and needed some help from or maps.  Talking to him further, he and his wife were a relay participant in the Race Across America.  It is bike race that people do.  He and his wife did it in 8 days and 14 hours.  They ride day and night and get about an hour sleep at a time.

Mailbox award for today goes to the Riggins, outside of Wytheville for their mailbox that was a lighthouse.  About 6 feet tall, red and white striped like a candy cane.

Had lunch outside of Draper at a stop on the bike trail that goes through the woods for 57 miles.  They seem to have way more of that stuff out west and in Virginia than they have in KY.  Virginia is a very friendly bicycle state.  Jerry stopped and picked some wine and blackberries today

We saw a lunar moth today which is unusual because they usually only come out at night.

We rode about 70 miles today.  We are positioning ourselves for the climb over the Big V.

Went by a baseball field in the city of Max Meadows with a poem- like story on the dugout about sportsmanship.  I took a picture of it on my phone, but I can’t read the words until I hook it up to a computer.  I’ll try to publish that later.  It was very insightful about adult behavior at little kid’s sporting events.  Saw a house with shtuff growing in their gutters.  Interesting idea.  Never have to  clean out   your gutters.  Rode along a road that paralleled the expressway I- 81 today.  Those people sure drive fast.

Tomorrow’s ride looks a lot like today as far as the topography goes.  Then we get Vesuvious  on Monday.   And then it is smooth sailing into Yorktown, hopefully.  The “76” signs are still guiding us along the route.  Wish all the states had these signs.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

july 25

Shout out to our brother Jim, 45^th bertday today. 

Last night I said we stayed at Elk something.  It was officially Elk Garden, United Methodist Church.  We have seen zillions of churches.  You will see Regular Baptist, Freewill Baptist and they are distinctly different.  Some even involve hiccupping during the services.  And no notes when addressing the congregation. 

                                                                                                                                                     

I have seen more  bananer trees.  I saw one in a pot bigger than the ones I have at home.  Lots of kudzu still.  It is like a weed taking over our country.  It grows over our shoulder on the road many times.  It covers and smothers trees. 

We left just before sunrise.  Had a major climb right out of the chute.  The other climbs were  not as bad as anticipated.  Very gradual even though they were high.  Rides were beautiful.  Lots of streams again and mountains, Blue Ridge.  Beautiful backdrop.  Saw a couple waterfalls on the streams.  Last major climb is Mt. Vessuvious, a couple days away.  Glad to be finished with most of the  climbs.  Our goal is almost in reach.  We can almost smell the ocean.

Went through Hayters Gap, Meadowview, pop 967, Damascus, pop 1025, Konnarock, and then into Troutdale, 464.  We are in a hostel that is for hikers and bikers.  It is along the Appalachian Trail (AT).   Damascus is a big stop on the AT.  The hostel is at the Baptist Church of Troutdale.  Has bunks and showers and a Jobsite Johnny Portolet.  No tents.  Jack stopped in Meadowview for coffee and shook some babies and kissed some hands.  Jerry and I and Sue stopped in Damascus.  We thought there would for sure be a café there, but they were not open and we had to settle for some “pancakes” at a place called Cowboys. I will give them a C-.  We crossed the AT several times.  Jerry recognized many of the places from his trip on the AT back in 2010.  Damascus a trail called the Virginia Creeper Trail which is a bike trail made of crushed limestone.  It provides things to do for tourists.  Couple of bike rental places in Damascus for anyone interested in a day trip to Damascus.

In Virginia, they actually recognize the Transamerica Trail.  There are these signs with a bike and the year 1976 on them.  They are like markers along the trail telling you when to turn and reassuring you that you are on the right road.  The only state that has had them.  1976 was the first year the trail was traveled as part of the bicentennial.

When we got to the hostel, Jack said that it was a great ride, but he wanted to see the last hill from the other direction.  I thought he was only kidding, but he got back on his bike and road back up the same hill he just came down just for fun.  Needless to say, I didn’t accompany him.  We have a beautiful view from the front porch of the hostel of the Blue Ridge Mountains.  Quiet and peaceful and no bugs.  The last couple days and nights, it seems like the bugs have disappeared.  Can’t figure it out, but why question it.  Live for the moment.

While Jack was riding backwards, he ran into a guy whose buggy was off the road.  He helped him get in all the way off the road until  horses cam to pull him back.  He gets the Good Samaritan award for today.  Jerry helped a turtle across the road earlier in the week, so kudos to him for doing that.  Jack thinks the turtle needs to learn  about the traffic and the consequences of walking so slowly across the road.  Darwin would be proud.  I saw two horses being ridden on the road.  Just like they were supposed to be there.  They also left some bonus material on the road. 

Tentative plans are to head for Radford tomorrow.  Closer and closer to the promisesd land, Yorktown.

Today  we did about 60 miles, 76 to Radford.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 24

Just when we thought it couldn’t get any better, it did.  Today, we are in Rosedale, Virginia, at a little community church called Elk something.  They have been putting up bikers for over 30 years.  We have a shelter with picnic tables, a kitchen inside, refrig, stove, and a place to put our air mattresses and Jack’s pad.  Again, no tents.  These little “gold mines” have been an unexpected bonus.  Last night’s place even had an ice machine.

Little bit of rain early this morning.  Our plans were to leave about 6:15.  Jack left soon thereafter, but Jerry and I waited until about 6:50 to make sure the rain was officially over.   None of us saw rain the rest of the day.  Right out of the chute almost we had a hill, but it was a “kitten” compared to the hill we ended with yesterday.  Roads were wet, climate was humid.  We went through the towns of Hellier, Ashcamp, Elkhorn City, pop 1050, the last city we saw in KY.  Then it was onto Breaks and Breaks Interstate Park, Hays, pop. 186, Birchleaf, Bee, Davenport, Council, which had a beautiful city park, Honaker, pop 907 and onto Rosedale, pop 667.  Right before Honaker, there was a mountain that was pretty “challenging” called Big A.  We think the A stood for Big A#% Mountain, pardon my French.  And then there was a little surprise mountain just before we made it into Rosedale.  Honaker is the Redbud Capital of the World and the Honaker Lady Tigers were 2013 Virginia State Softball Champions.  Breaks Interstate looked like a good place to return to maybe.  Beautiful river and canyons and rock formations.  Bad thing today was that there was no place to get a pancake and a cup of coffee.  Today we went 62 miles.  We are now in our 10^th and final state.  It seems like the middle part of the trip is somewhat of a blur.  Seems like we were in Montana and now we are in Virginia.  Today was our 46^th day on the road.

Seems like the poverty is not as bad now.  Just crossing into Virginia seemed like it all changed.  I called Virginia the Mountaineer state yesterday, but I’m told that is West Virginia.  What is Virginia called then?

Thrones.  We were in a restaurant the other day where you had to go up a step, a big step, to get into the little boy’s room.  And then you had to go up another step to sit on the throne.  Of course, they had a disclaimer on the door saying “they weren’t responsible for injuries”.  Yesterday, along the road, I saw an outhouse with the door open that had two thrones.  How about that.

We have of course seen thousands of street signs.   Have not really mentioned a lot of those.  Today’s highlights were Patty Loveless highway (I had no idea who she was) and Frying Pan Lane.

Jack had an interesting conversation with a truck driver who had a ticket in Pike County and had to take a class to get rid of points.  Conversation lead to cyclists, who he thought did not belong on the road.  He had other political type opinions about various topics.  Jack, knowing the guy would not hear anything he said, just nodded and conceded.

Tomorrow, we had for Troutdale.  Could be the hardest day we have had for a while.  Some major climbs.  After tomorrow, we have some flatter terrain before we get to Mt. Vesuvious, the granddaddy of them all.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 23

July 23, 2013

Well, we decided to stay and camp and not do the lodge.  Real troopers.   Rain held off.  Dave prepared a great meal of spaghetti and salad and Chips Ahoy Chocolate Chip cookies that he claimed to have baked.  Jay provided some beet salad.  Ate like kings and queens and shared a lot of good conversation.  Dave was given a lot of good friendly criticism, and he took it like a champ.  Besides his “Cadillac” tent, he also provided a tarp for the tables.  We tried to hire him on as “extra” personnel for the remainder of the trip, but he declined. How he could pass on that opportunity, I can’t figure.

So Dave and Joan and Jay deserve a shout out for taking care of us for the evening with food and good companionship.  But there is a disclaimer, Dave did not leave the extra spaghetti sauce like he said he would.

Most of us took a walk to the top of the dam to view Buckhorn Lake which is about 40 feet below the top of the damn.  The three of them got to view firsthand how our day goes and how we prepare for the next.  They were of course amazed.  Of course, everyone got to witness my new air mattress.  I brought an air mattress down that Mary bought.  It has a remote control for deflating and inflating.  It barely fits in my tent.  Little story about my tent.  Back in Missoula, our tents were wet from the night before.  Jerry and I thought it would be ok to put my Coleman, $69.99, special tent in the dryer for a short time.  Well, it went in a 3 man tent and came out a 2 man tent.  The plastic shriveled up on part of it.  Lesson learned.  So, the air mattress goes wall to wall.  But it is a dream.  All got a good chuckle out of the exhibition.

We left just before the break of dawn around 6:00.  Went through Chavies.  Had three “climbs” very early.  Went though Dwarf, but never really did see a sign.  It was probably really small.  Continued on through Emmalena, and Carrie (remember Sissy Spacek in that movie) and Hindman, pop 798.  Hindman was a cool little city.  Very artsy fartsy.  Little café that I wish we had stopped at, but we already had coffee earlier.  Neat little art town for those of you who like that sort of thing.  Would be a good day trip.  We went through Mallie and then into Pippa Passes, pop 295.   Pippa Passes is where Alice Lloyd College is located.  Nice little college.  It was 52 miles out.  We had talked about staying there.  They have a cycling course there evidently and we thought maybe we could talk them into letting us stay on the grounds.  But we decided that 52 miles was too short of a day and decided to move on toward Lookout which we did.  It was 90 miles total today.  Mountain just before Lookout was a de ja vou experience of Missouri.  Toughest mountain so far in KY.  We also went through Melvin where we met a guy sitting outside the gas station.  Said he used to go to Cincinnati to see the Redlegs play but hasn’t been back since the Big Red Machine days.  I couldn’t talk him into coming back.  Even offered my brother-in-law’s ticket.

Few dogs today.    No attacks.  We don’t seem too phased by them anymore.  Sue bought us some air horns to ward them off just in case.  We have whistles, air horns, and pepper spray.  We’re packing  and we’re loaded.

Scenery has been good.  Going through some Appalachia territory.  Lots of poor folks.  People living right on the road with their front doors open to get air.  You can look right in.  Kind of sad.  Places these people live in are just….. Hard to put into words.

We stopped or coffee in a gas station near Hazard.  The young lady behind the counter offered to give us free water out of the fridge because she said even she doesn’t drink the walter out of the tap.  Her accent did not fit her, but she had some good stores about bicyclists who had stopped by in the past.  She was very entertaining.  We saw a  lot of kudzu  on the side of the road overtaking an entire hill.

Jerry used his whistle to scare away some dawgs today.

Found a cemetery spelled “cemetary” .  Janet, there is a need for reading teachers in Eastern Kentucky if you are interested.  I also saw a sign the other day that said”krunchy kreemes.”  I am a little worried.  I have seen misspellings all across the country.  We also noticed most of the cemeteries (?) in Kentucky are located up on hills.  Strange.  And they have names on them.

In Lookout, as we approached the destination which we weren’t sure of where it was, a little girl flagged us down and said we could stay  there.  It was the right place.  It is a pastor and his wife who have like a gym/community center that they make available to bicyclists all the time.  It has AC, a kitchen, showers, a pantry filled with food and treats.  A fridge stocked with shtuff.  And they just do this out of the kindness of their hearts.  This isn’t the first time it has happened.  Tomorrow night we already have a place lined up very similar.  Sometimes these places are a little “dirty” from the bicyclist the previous night.  Jack and Sue are currently doing a little sweeping.  Best part is "no tents”.

Sue had to get creative tonight since Dave did not leave his “special” sauce.  No one went away hungry.

Tomorrow, we head toward Rosedale.  60 miles.  Some biguns between here and there.  Our last day in the Bluegrass state.  Onto the Mountaineer state, our final state.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 22 - Jeff

Jerry and I made it to NKY and spent time with our families and slept in real beds.  Jack stayed in Berea and his family came down and visited him.  Everybody enjoyed the two days off of recovery and was ready to ride Monday morning.  Our bikes were stored in the basement of the Boone Tavern.  We met our sister Janet and her husband Don and son Adam as well as Christie, Jerry and Sue’s daughter, in Berea on Sunday and we had dinner together.  The four of us stayed at the Fairfield Sunday night so we could continue back on the trail on Monday.  I got to attend an MPS Regional picnic in Columbus on Saturday.  If you haven’t donated yet, try to do so.  Donation site is up to $2,400, with a goal of $5,000.  So far 39 people/families have contributed.  Thank you so much on behalf of the MPS Society.

Shout out to Drew Von Handorf (my godson) for winning the “Feed the Fork Folk Music Trivia Contest in G” during his stay in Berea.  How many people do you know who can say that?

We left the hotel parking lot a little before 6:00 and got back on the trail in front of the Boone Tavern about 6:05.  Went through cities Bighill, Sandgap, McKee, pop 884, Booneville, pop 112, and ended up near Buckhorn, pop 154 which is where our campground will be if it stops raining.  Otherwise, it could be on to the lodge at Buckhorn Lake.  The campground is just below the dam of Buckhorn Lake.  Ride today was beautiful.  Hills were not as bad as anticipated.  Few dawgs, but no attacks.  Felt good to be back on the bikes.  Today’s ride was 64 miles.  Light traffic today and trucks that were present, were all very courteous.  Hope that continues.

We met our brother Jay in Booneville for breakfast at a little café.  Pancakes were maybe a C+.   Coffee was not as good, but it still tasted good.

Our sitter Joan and her husband Dave met us at the campsite.  Dave brought his special spaghetti sauce for dinner.  Those plans may change with the current rain.

We are seeing a lot of old abandoned cars along the way.  Collector’s items.   Every time I go to a car show   which is about once every 5-20 years, I see the ’57 Chevy section, the Mustang section, the Camaro section, but never the Chevette section.  Well, guess what, on today’s ride there it was, the ultimate prize rusting in the tall grass somewhere between Booneville and Buckhorn, a ’79 or ’80 Chevette, white.  I may have to get my brother-in-law, Paul and go back and get that baby.

Tomorrow, trying to make it to Melvin (they’ll be no Melvin’s on this job) or if we get real brave, Breaker’s State Park in Virginia.  Not a whole lot of places to stay between here and there.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 19

July 19, 2013

 

Packed up the bikes and rode in the car back to the route where we left it yesterday.  Started riding about 6:50.  Ride was a little more hilly than yesterday.  In cycling terms that means some good climbs.    Several dawgs.  Problem with the dawgs is the person ahead rides through and pulls the dawgs out and the second person gets nailed.  Jerry hates me today.  Had pancakes and coffee in the Village Café in Burgin, pop 965.  Talked to some of the patrons, and they were very nice.  Maybe our opinion of Kentuckians will change.  We went through Harrodsburg just before that.  They had a café called the Blue Moon for future reference, but it didn’t open until 10:00, summer hours.  Rode through Herrington Lake.  Lots of boats.  Noticing that a lot of the state parks in Kentucky have golf courses.  Last couple of miles into Berea were flat   .  Nice to have some flat and some tail, as in tailwind.  And again, we have a beautiful state.  We just take it for granted.

Got to Berea and met Jack and Teri who were already in town.  We were able to store our bikes in the Boone Tavern until Sunday.  Then all hell broke loose.  Mary called me and suggested that she come and pick me up and bring me home and she would drive me back on Sunday.  We have an MPS event on Saturday and she and the girls were going to attend and get to Berea late on Saturday.  She thought this would work better with getting to spend more time with family.  So I agreed.  Then Jerry thought maybe he would do the same thing.  So we were able to cancel our rooms for Saturday night and we’re now on our way home in the van heading toward  NKy.  We will come back on Sunday and begin riding on Monday morning heading for Yorktown.  It should take us about 10 days.  We have about 750 miles over some good climbs.  Last couple days are flat heading for the Atlantic and our ultimate goal.

Back on Monday.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 18

July 18, 2013

Time changed on us again.  Makes a difference in the sun and departure times.  Left around 6:00.  Great sunrise.  Beautiful ride and again not many hills. Beautiful ride through Sonara.  Jerry had pancakes in Sonara.  Jerry found some nice Kentucky folk there.   A few dawgs.  Big hill just before Heaven Hill Distillery.  Ended up in a city called Springfield, home of St. Catharine College.  In the city park.  No showers but there are some available at a local aquatic center. Once we thought about all that, we remembered that there was a state campground at My Old Kentucky Farm.  So we packed up the bikes and rode backwards in the car.  We went and had a beer in a place called Mammie’s in Bardstown to toast our making it to Berea which at times seemed remote and impossible.   Tomorrow we make our ride into Berea.  Hallelujah.  Ride should be about 70 miles.

Still not finding the Kentucky people to be overly friendly.  Out west, it was so different.  Today we came over a route 150 that is not on the route.  Tried to shave a few miles.  Trucks and cars would not get over at all.  No shoulder to speak of.  Some deer today.  Still in Amish country.  Arnold from last night, the guy with all the schtick, was talking about the Amish and how they farm and how they like their beer.  Didn’t know that.

Camping was hot again.  Not sleeping very well.  Lots of cars on the road next to the campground.

Not much else to report.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 17

July 17, 2013

Great sleeping last night.  AC was great.  Brutal outside with the heat.  Sleeping in the tent would have been no fun.

Got an early start today.  Left around 5:10, but I had to go back.  Forgot my cell phone.  Went through Whiteseville, pop 552, where they had a high school called Trinity.  I always thought it was in Louisville and was much bigger.  Then it was onto Fordsville, pop 524, where we got a cup of coffee.  Went through Rough River State Resort.  Beautiful lake and dam.  Lots of boating.  Resort place.  Golf course nearby.  Then it was through McDaniels and Madrid (?), and I have no idea what city we are in or even if we are in a city.  We are staying at a hostel.  Lady has a store and she allows cyclists stay for a donation.  You can set up a tent in her backyard and she even provides a meal.  She has been doing this for 22 years.  Her daughter went to Elizabethtown High School.  Just one of the nice people we have met on the  trip.  She has like a side porch on the store where we can sit in the shade and just watch the cars go by.  Or she has some couches and tables inside to get out of the heat.

We did about 70 miles today.  Thought there would be more hills than there were.  A good ride.  About 170 miles from Berea. Looking forward to seeing friends and family.  Saw some dawgs  today.  Got chased by two.  No real wildlife.  Saw a sign advertising “fast rural Internet service”.  I saw that as maybe an oxymoron.  Not seeing as much UK Wildcat fever as I thought we  would.  Saw some Amish shtuff yesterday.  Saw a couple Catholic Churches. Overall, we have seen thousands of churches on the trip.  How do they all stay in business.  Saw a restaurant called The Knotty Pine and one called Boogie’s.  Climate is very humid just like home and very hot early.

One thing we have noticed is that the people we are seeing in the diners and places we stop are not nearly as friendly as earlier in the trip.  Not sure what that means.  Either we are getting grumpy or the people are  not as friendly.  I think it is the latter.

The meal was out of this world.  She made mashed potatoes, mixed  veggies, green beans, pasta salad, chicken, and we had sweet pickles that this local guy in the provided.  His wife cans pickles.  His name was Aaron and he reminded me of Andy Griffith.  He was funny and had that accent.  Arnold, Lucy’s husband was a hoot also.  After dinner, her daughter  Lauren engaged us in a game of foosball.  She and her dad were pretty good.  It was me and Arnold versus Lauren and the guy Lyle room Hawaii.  We split, each winning a game.  She wouldn’t let us help with dinner, so it was soon off to bed.  Hot as Hades.  Difficult sleeping and there were motion lights going off and on all night.  Like Chinese water torture.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

;

July 16

July 16, 2013

Packed up today and took the ferry to the Bluegrass State.  A good feeling.  But it’s weird because we are in our home state, but it seems like a foreign land.  None of us have ever been in this part of the state.  Lots of farms and lots of green.  People we have met that went east to west talked about how beautiful Kentucky was.  We were scratching our heads saying Kentucky?  Now I know what they meant.   After seeing the rest of the country, Kentucky is really a beautiful state compared to much of the US where many parts look like the moon.  I don’t think we appreciate it sometimes.

Hills are again part of our day.  Lots of them.  Not huge ones yet like we saw in Missouri.  Went through a city called Marion.  Had pancakes and coffee in Clay.  A place called Jeri’s.  Good food and service but not as friendly people as we have experienced other places.   Stopped for lunch in Sebree.  Then it was onto Utica, our destination.  We are in a volunteer fire department.  Since 1976, when the trail originated, they have been providing space for bicyclists.  It is a room about 20 X 60.  We have AC, washer and drier, showers, stove, fridge, but no Internet.  It is a godsend.  No tents again tonight.  Two other guys are staying here also.  This is their second night here.  One is a 19 year old from Pennsylvania.  The other is a 65 year old retired teacher from Hawaii.  They are both going east like us.  And two more guys just walked in.  Going to be a full house.

Few dogs today.  Only one seemed vicious.  Actually Jerry got chased once also.  Jack is feeling better and rode about 60 miles today.

Tomorrow is unknown currently.  We have to find somewhere to stay.  Not much available.

Saw a logging truck today.  Saw one two days ago also.  Brought back memories of Idaho.  Thought we had made a wrong turn.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 15

July 15, 2013

As much as last night was a debacle with no bathroom within half mile, tonight we feel like we died and went to heaven.  Like in “all dogs go to heaven.  We have a campsite with showers and a bathroom within walking distance, there is nobody else in the campground, and better yet, there is nobody to collect money for payment.  And the flies are not as bad.  We are in the town of, and I am not making this up, Cave in the Rock.  Jack could not find a soul in town to talk to.  A true ghost town.  We can see Kentucky.  Tomorrow we take a ferry across the Ohio into the Bluegrass state.

Our day began about 6:15.  Jack did not ride today.  Food poisoning.  Mexican food.  I am partly responsible because I picked this “friendly little place” for us to get out of the sun yesterday.  Our trip today took us through Carbondale, home of the Southern Illinois Salukis.  Reminds me a lot of WKU.  Directions are getting tougher on our maps.  Lots of twists and turns.  Today, we missed a turn because the street was unmarked.  We turned later, and all worked out, but there is that fear of turning in the wrong place or direction and having to go back.   Not the same as in a car.

We stopped for coffee in Goreville (guy in the café said it was the bicycle capital of Illinois), at a place called Delaney’s.  Great service and hospitality and a bonus.  Bikers get free desserts.  We opted for chocolate milkshakes.   One of the best ever.  Finally got a pancake and coffee.  They even had a “Jack stack”, but Jack couldn’t partake because of being ill.  Back on the trail, we took an alternate route along a bike trail that was less hilly than the normal route and eventually got us back on a road on our route.  Nice change of pace.  It was part of a national program called “rails to trails”.  We went through a city called Elizabethtown, pop 299 and into Cave in the Rock, pop 318. Total mileage, about 107 miles.  Climate is changing, ore humidity. 

Saw a church slogan today, “God does not have a plan B”.

We stopped at the Chocolate Factory.  Good sthuff.  Couldn’t take any with us because it would melt immediately.  Had to eat it there.  Saw more correctional institutes today.  Across from the chocolate factory was a boot camp for inmates.  They were doing drills and carrying logs. 

Road are ok.  Still not much shoulder.  But better than Missouri where it was so common to put the rumble strips right on the right line which is where bicyclists ride to stay out of traffic.  Made no sense, but you would not know that if you don’t ride on the public roads.  Not many “knuckleheads” lately.  Cars and trucks have been very courteous.

Tomorrow, we head to Utica.  Going to stay at a volunteer fire department.  Payment is beer in the fridge.  About 80 miles closer to Berea.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 14

July 14, 2013

We left Farmington at 5:40 this morning.  Great sunrise. Ride was beautiful in beginning.  Not too bad as far as hills. We saw a few dogs today.  Sue had bought whistles for us as a deterrent against the dogs.  A shitzu came at us; Jack said if I used the whistle on the Shitzu, I had to wear a pink tutu the rest of the trip.  As we went up the last up and down, before us was the most beautiful sight—flat land down below.  The Ozarks were behind us.  Missouri may have been the most difficult state with the hills/mountains.  Went through St. Mary, pop 360, (there were no bells in St. Mary’s) and then we crossed the Mississippi.  We left the Mizzou state and entered the Land of Lincoln.  When we crossed into Illinois, we crossed the bridge into Chester, pop 8,856.  If you didn’t know, Chester is the home of Popeye (I yam what I yam).

You would think that a city of that size would have a place to get a pancake and a cup of coffee.  Not.  We ended up at a Hardees.

We decided to do a n alternative Mississippi levee alternative route from this point.  We expected to see the Mississippi.  Not.  We got a glimpse of it early and then it was marshland and corn and soybeans.  I half expected to see Shoeless Joe Jackson come out of the corn patch.  The alternative route wasn’t too great.  We did see a coal drop.  We got to see a machine in a little house actually turned a coal car upside down to get the coal out of it.  Amazing.  Never had seen so much coal.  Then we ran cross some guys fishing.  They were fishing for catfish, but there were these fish called Gars jumping out of the water.  They were good ol’ boys.  We proceeded on to parts unknown.  At times, we were t 4^th and Plum.  Four miles out and plum in the   middle of nowhere.  Ended up in a bar in Neunert, called Bottom’s Up.  We just wanted to get walter.  But they had popcorn, so Jack had to have some.  Watched the NBA Developmental League.  Then it was onto Murphysboro for the night.  We are in an RV Marina Campground.  We have no running walter, no electricity, and the restrooms are several hundred yards away.  And it just rained.  We went to a laundry mat.  Then, to get out of the heat, we went to a Mexican Bar and had a round of beers on the Greely’s.  They spotted us some “fun” money.  It rained dogs and cats while we were there.  We decided to stay and have dinner there.  Had to be about our 5^th time for Mexican food.  Back to the campsite.  Could rain again.

Saw some banana trees today.   Not nearly as big as the ones I have at home.  Seeing lots of road kill, many times a double hit.

Ended up doing about 85 miles today.  Saw some turkeys, rabbits, a deer, Gar fish, and dawgs.  407 miles to Berea.  Tomorrow, 95 miles.

Gotta stop here, the flies are driving me crazy.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 13

July 13, 2013

We went out tonight at Cozumel’s last night.  You guessed it, Mexican food.  I got a combo; Jack got a fajita and couldn’t eat it all.  Being the good brother I am, I assisted him.  All had a good time.  Clair’s farewell. As I mentioned before, she couldn’t stand all the excitement.  Houston Natives around the city park were restless until about 10:30.  Not a very good night’s sleep.  Like Clair said, you get what you pay for.

Left around 6:00, headed for Ellington (the Duke).  Lots of hills, if I can describe this.  We were going 3.2 miles per hour and our front wheels were coming off the pavement at times.  I was worried about tipping backwards.  If you don’t believe me, believe me this time.  Missouri is one big hill in the southern part.  The Ozarks are beautiful. Reminds us a lot of Kentucky. Evidently, according to Jerry, Daniel Boone moved to Missouri when Kentucky got too crowded for him and Missouri reminded him of Kentucky.

Got to Eminence our first stop for coffee and pancakes.  Line too long at Ruby’s, so we moved onto Ellington.  Asked people on the street were we could get a cup of coffee and a pancake.  The common answer was “not in this town.”  So we headed to a deli and got samiches.  First turkey samich for me on the entire trip.  And chili for me and Jerry.  Jack got potato.

Then we made an executive decision.  Jack’s gears were out of sync and he needed derailleur work.  Nearest place was in Farmington.  So we loaded up the bikes and moved to Beverly.  I mean to Farmington.  We obviously had to drive.  Mission accomplished.  And had our chains looked at.  Good to go.  Of course, Jerry can’t leave a bike shop without buying something.  Sorry Sue.  Birthday, 2023.

In a city park again tonight.  Hopefully, we will have a better experience than last night.  No showers and no pool tonight.

Today’s mileage, 68 miles.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

Deep Dish Rumble Strips, and Two Dimensional Animals

You have to respect the guys at the Missouri Dept of Highways, who developed the specs for the new paving they have done recently.  The have provided a bit of a shoulder where there was none, maybe 20 inches wide, pretty stingy for bikers but better than nothing.  Then they decided to have a rumble strip in the shoulder, to wake up drifting drivers.  If you imagine a cross section of the Ohio River from Mount Adams, down through the river, up the other side to New Cath, that is approximately the profile of the rumble strip, shrunk down a little bit.  It is about 16 inches long, extending from the white line across the shoulder.  This leaves about 4 inches of shoulder.  The depth of the rumble strip is such that it will shake your fillings out if you must run over it to escape traffic.  Fortunately, traffic has been pretty light recently, so we can ride the road most of the time.  And in general, when traffic is light, motorists are courteous and swing wide.  Please spread the gospel to all your friends - swing wide for bicyclists, slow down a little, take your foot off the gas pedal, give us a break.
    Another interesting feature of the rides lately has been the armandillos.  I've always thought the armandillo is sort of disrespected.  People think they are ugly.  I think they are quite unique and fascinating.  Sort of a plump possum with body armor.  Anyway, we first spotted one leaving the park back near Toronto, MO.  One was crossing the road early in the morning.  Since then I have seen maybe a dozen of them, but unfortunately all have been victims of encounters with automobiles - roadkill, sadly.  But some of them have been truly flattened on the pavement, unlike other critters without the body armor, which wind up just a bloody mess on the road.  The armandillo retains a certain dignity in it's flattened state.  It sort of reminds me of stuff I read years ago in physics books, trying to explain higher dimensions by describing a two dimensional world where the inhabitants are unable to conceive of a third dimension, just as we have a hard time imagining a fourth dimension in our three dimensional world.  
    Today, we've had  a bit of a change in our game plan.  After Clair's visit, Sue is going to take a bit of a break and go home for a few days, until we get to Berea.  I have been getting pretty fatigued lately, and have also developed some "saddle sores" from our riding.  So I am  taking a day or two off to heal, and will be driving the support van.  I have some big shoes to fill.  Sue has done an incredible job of supporting us, and I am just beginning to realize how much work she has done each day.  We will see if I can do the job.  Jack and Jeff are riding through the hills of the Ozarks today, one of the toughest stretches due to the repeated ups and downs.
     Jerry

July 12 - Jeff

July 12, 2013

Leftovers from last night.  Clair made us a delicious meal and dessert.  Enjoyed by all.  The dessert was vanilla yogurt, strawberries, grapes, and granola.  It was deeelicious.  Easy to make.  Try it you’ll like it.  Some went to the pool, some sat in the AC, looked at Clair’s pictures from her last adventure, a three month sat on a tropical island in the pacific, and Jack found a café where they served him salsa and chips, free of charge.  He must have a silver tongue.  It was a place that catered to bikers.  We changed out our tires.  Jeff got a lesson in tire changing.  I did ok.  Give myself a C-.  Sleeping in AC was delightful. 

Since we didn’t have to take down tents, we got away early, about 5:30.  Went through Walnut Grove, pop 665.  Had coffee in Fair Grove, pop 1,393.  Gas station coffee.  Went through Marshfield, pop 5,720.  Had a Wally World, McDonald’s, had it all.  Even had a car dealership.  They sold pre-owned cars not used cars.  Gas was $3.27.  Lowest we have seen.  Had lunch in Hartville, pop 613.  Sue and Clair were there too.  They ate in a café.  We stopped in a town called Bendavis, pop 353.  We stopped there to cool off.  The owner and two other gentlemen were in there.  We asked about the population.  He said it was currently 5.  Jack, me, him, and the two other gentlemen.  We asked if we could get walter out of the restroom.  He said sure but he wouldn’t drink it.  He had one cold walter in the cooler.  And at least thirty open slots and cases of walter next to the refrigerated cooler.  I guess he was too busy.  We chatted with them for about 20-25 minutes about everything from Richie Farmer, to some guy named Armstrong who played for the team that beat Kentucky in the 1966 game where the tam had 5 black starters.  Armstrong was the guy who got benched .  He was from the area.  And we talked about bikers, and other miscellaneous items.  Interesting stop.  Then we headed to our destination, Planet Houston, pop 2,081.  City park.  Pool but not free and closed at 5:00.  We did 114 miles today  in spite of the hills.  A very good/exhausting  day of riding.  Since we all got back late and Clair is probably leaving tomorrow (she can’t take all the excitement), we may go out to eat tonight.

Mailboxes have been interesting.  There was the tin man mailbox.  Of course, the airmail mailbox.  The fish mailbox. 

Lots of hills today.  More than you can imagine. Southern Missouri is where we are guessing the Ozarks are and that is what we are confronting.  Like a roller coaster at times.

Tomorrow we head toward Eminence.  Traffic could be bad with the weekend activities around Eminence.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 11 - Jeff

July 11, 2013

Shout out to Joanna Von Handorf for sending out bread for our dinner last night.  Good shtuff.

This morning, we left around 5:40.  Got to see the sun rise during the early stage of our ride.  Saw some longhorns on the way out.  Hookem’ Horns.  Made some turns on some strange roads.  590^th Avenue, 200^th Street.  Strange numbering system out here.  Later on in Missouri, it was A and K Roads.  We went through Pittsburg early.  Three Rivers Stadium was brilliant.  Just kidding.  Pittsburg had a pop of 20,233.  Looked like it may have had minor league baseball.  Had coffee in Golden City.  Pancakes too.  Waitress offered to fill water bottles with ice and cold walter.  We were at Cooky’s Café.  Cooky passed away about 10-15 years ago.   Nobody could agree how long ago.  They were making pies out the wahzoo.  I’ll bet they had 15 different flavors of pies.  We considered getting one but didn’t think it would be able to fit in backs we had.  Moved on and went through Pennsboro and Everton, pop 319 and ended up in Ash Grove, pop 1,472.  Pool and city park wit showers again with an added bonus.  They have a house on the grounds for bikers.  AC and no tents tonight.  Hooray!!

Everybody got back safely again, thanks to all your prayers.  Clair has offered to cook tonight. 

So we have crossed into the Mizzou state.  We are not in Kansas anymore.  Roads have been a mixed bag.  Some good pavement, no shoulders.  We are on roads less traveled, so it makes sense I guess.  Hills have been not too bad.  Headwind a lot today.  But cooler temps.  We are confused why we are going east and very seldom experience a tailwind.  Maybe tomorrow.

Guy in the café warned us that we may begin to see more dawgs.  Have seen a couple that chased us but no real dangers.  All rat dogs and today, a lazy  St Bernard.  Supposedly, Kentucky is the worst for dawgs.  Sue bought us some whistles.  We have talked to other bikers coming west and they suggested air horns or whistles.  We’ll give it a try. One group had a rider get bit in Ky. 

Did about 80 miles today.  Clair brought some replacement tires with her for us.  Probably going to switch those out tonight.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 10 - Jeff

July 10, 2013

Shout out to Adam Schmidt on his 20^th bertday today!!!!!!!

Another shout out to Teri Von Handorf who recorded a hole in one at World of Golf last night!!!!!   Wish we got ESPN.

Our visit to the Hilltop Café last night was a huge success.  We got cooled off and the home cooked food was good.  It was a cultural and a true dining experience.  Think almost Anchor Grill. Jody the owner treated us great and her kids did all the serving and dishes.  I volunteered Jack, our head dishwasher, but they said they had it covered.  All got ice creams as well.  The café had bait, hardware, and even puppies for sale.

Storm hit during the night.  Some of the thunder and lightning felt like it was hitting right on top of us.  Hot night again.  You just sweat in your tent until it really cools down around midnight.  Rain and lightning ended just in time for   us to get off on our ride.  We slept in until almost 5:00 and left about 6:04.  Beautiful sunrise over the lake.  Had to ride out of the park.  Saw an armadillo cross the road.  Saw a lot of dead ones on the side during the day.  Went through Coyville, pop 66; Benedict, pop 96 (Jack had to get a picture with the Benedict sign, his middle name.  Jack Benny?); Chanute, pop 8,738; Walnut, pop 219; and onto Girard, pop 2,710.  We are in a city park again.  Showers and a pool!!!!!  A lot of these little towns have pools.  God bless America.   The people at the pool can’t do enough for us.  We usually have to register with the Police when we get to the park.  They asked Jack if there was anything we needed.  What’s wrong with this picture?  Are we really in America?  We had coffee in Chanute.  Gas station coffee but good.  We missed Jerry and he went to a different diner.  It was a combination expresso/computer repair shop. He ended up taking a different route.   On our way out, we hit a “road closed” sign.  We had to walk our bikes through part of the construction zone to get back on our route.  Stopped to get walter at a golf course.  Lady there took our water bottles, emptied them out and filled them with fresh walter and ice.  Again, people couldn’t be nicer.  Had lunch in Walnut.  And then here we are in Girard waiting for Clair, Jerry and Sue’s daughter, to show up to meet us and travel with us for a few days.   Pool feels great.  Rode about 80 miles today.  Temp is about 98.  “Talking about a heat wave”.

Girard brought up more movie notes.  Sam Girard (Gerard?) , played by Tommy Lee Jones.  Jack has not seen the Fugitive or the US Marshall movies.  C’mon Teri, let this guy out sometime.   Guess you are too busy polishing your golf swing obviously.

Almost out of Kansas.  Although the wind has died down.  Missouri map shows a lot of up and down.  We’re not quite sure how  bad it is going to be.  May have to put our climbing legs back on.

Sue bought a walter melon for us tonight.  Should be good.  Pool open until 9:00.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 9 - Jeff

Shout out to Kylie Von Handorf for being the most awsomemest life guard at Summit Hills CC.

Shout out to Adam Schmidt who has a bertday tomorrow.  We think he is 20.  He may want to be ready for a big important phone call from a very famous people.

We saw the Arkansas River in Pueblo.  Vibrant river.  Just saw a sign for it yesterday.  Drier than a dog bone.  No walter.  Amazing

Left today about 5:45.  Got about one mile and Jerry proclaimed the worst words a bicyclist can utter, I have a flat tire.  Not a Fat Tire because those are good words.  A little story behind the flat tire.  In Sheridan Lake, the pastor’s wife, Vonnie, warned us about a weed that grows in the area.  It is called Goathead.   She bought some in from the yard and showed it to us.  We had seen it along the road earlier.  She showed us the berry on the weed.  Sharp and strong.  Able to puncture tires.  We took note.  Today, when we were leaving the campground, rather than ride our bikes across the gravel, we lead them through the grass.  Guess what was in the grass in this area too.  So when we looked at Jerry’s, we found a little sharp berry that was the culprit.  After further examination by the three geniuses, we found one on Jack’s tire too.  But it had not yet punctured his yet.  It was Jerry’s first flat of the trip.  I guess he was due.

Got to a city called Cassaday.   Nothing there.  But  it is the Prairie Chicken capital of the world.  Went through Rosalia, nothing there.  Getting low on walter.  We had to stop at a high school (nickname, Mustangs) and interrupted volleyball or cheerleading practice to get walter.  Moved onto Eureka which was a booming metropolis of 2,483.  Got fueled up and headed out for the last leg of the trip to Toronto,  pop 262.  Found a state park around Toronto Lake, huge lake.  Shower and bath are open air. I kind of liked it.  Jerry said he needed to use suntan lotion during his shower.

Ride today had some wind, both good and bad.  Rode about 99 miles. Tomorrow, we ride 75 miles to Girard.  Clair Von Handorf is coming out tomorrow to spend some time with us.  She is bringing us tires and other supplies.

No more grain elevators.  Seeing more water towers as landmarks.

Wildlife report.  Dead wabbit  in  road.  Cows in ponds.  A goat.  And a horse of course.

Tonight, we head to a café here in thepark.  We need to get out of heat for a while.  Café is a little rustic but it has AC.  Let you know how it works out.

Ranger said to not walk around barefoot.  Rattlers.  Four bites a year.  We will walk gingerly.  And the skipper will too.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 8 - Jeff

Left Nickerson about 5:30.  Rode a little in the dark and saw the sun rise as we were riding.  Pretty short day.  Went about 55 miles.  Ended up in a town called Newton.  We needed to get some laundry done.  Newton is a pretty big town.  Even had a Wendy’s.  We stopped in a down called Buhler on the way and got our coffee and shtuff.  Cute little diner.  Good hospitality and Jack proclaimed the best water and ice combination he has had the entire trip.  He also said his blueberry pancake was the best.  Life’s little pleasures.  There was a kid in the corner of the diner who looked like he was taking the day off school.  Wind not too bad.  Couple of headwinds for a while.  Little up and down. 

Wildlife report today.  Deer, blue and white heron red headed woodpecker (named Woody of course), donkeys, cows, horses of course, and a zebra (no we are not drinking in the morning yet and we are not on safari).  There was an exotic aminal farm in the city that we passed on our way out this morning.  He supposedly has giraffe and other exotic aminals.

We are staying in Harvey County Park.  A lot like AJ Jolly Park in Campbell County.  Shower and campsite on a lake.  When Sue got here, the lady said it was free camping because we had no electricity or water at our site.  But she said, let me talk to my husband.  He said $9 but let me talk to shmo.  Well shmo said $9 per tent.  So we went from free to $27.

We have some neighbors camping next to us.  After I got out of t he shower, I walked past his site and he was struggling putting up his tent.  Said he just got it at Wally World for $35.  So here I am helping him put up his tent.  It was like the blind leading the blind.  Jack and Jerry got  a big kick out of me helping him.  The city boy who hasn’t been camping in umpteen years before this trip.  I was doing ok, but the “two experts” came over and assisted me in being a Good Samaritan.  We got them all set up.  Kind of a sad story.  I think he may be homeless.  He said his wife just left him, but he has some female with him along with 2 cats and a dog.  Said he can stay there for 14 days before he  has to move his tent.  No sleeping bags, just carpet to sleep on.  Don’t know how they will survive.  Jack sees a reality show in my future.

The last couple of days we are seeing strange things.  Creeks and rivers with walter in them.  Yesterday we saw a lake which was the first big body of walter we had seen in  about 4-500 miles.  Nice to see walter again.

We are beginning to see some Transamerica Tour signs on the road.  Also are seeing signs that instruct drivers to keep 3 feet distance between bicyclists.  What a great sign.

Laundromat was a fun thing.  Had a Ms. Pacman and pinball machines.  Ms. Pacman was still a quarter, but the pinball machine was 50 cents.  What is wrong with this country?  Going to the Laundromat makes you appreciate your washer and drier.

On to Eureka tomorrow.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

ExtraExtra: Superman Humbled by Kansas Winds

On Sunday, we rode to Frisco, Colorado, where we camped by Lake Dillon.  We had a delightful dinner with Sue’s cousin Ken and his wife Kate who live in Grand Junction, CO.  Ken was one of the pioneers on the TransAmerica  route, doing it in the inaugural year of 1976.  We shared memories of some of the major climbs like White Bird.  The next day, we did the climb up past Breckenridge (which is a major ski destination) and over the pass, which was a bit over 11,500 feet and the highest point on the TransAm route.   A long slow climb especially for me to the top, but then it was down and down and down. It was an exhilarating descent.  I felt like we could just go on and on forever.  We were invincible.   We covered a hundred miles and felt great, finishing the day in a nice RV park that Sue found which had a pool and laundry and showers and ice cream sandwiches.  The next day we headed further down and down and down, to Pueblo. Another great descent.   We were anxious to get as far through Pueblo as possible due to the upcoming 4^th of July.  So we did about 95 miles that day.  The next day was mostly flat across the last stretch of Colorado, and we did about 90 to Sheridan Lake, where we were welcomed by the church in Sheridan with a great example of unconditional hospitality.  Also, lucky for us, being the 4^th of July, they were having a town parade and a pot luck supper.  Jack did a dish for us to share, and we partook of the feast with about 60 townspeople.  It was great to talk to them and  hear about their farms, and how the drought has affected their lives.  Someone said they haven’t had  a really good rain since 1999.  But they continue to farm and each year is a new cycle of hope for enough rain to grow their crops.  From there, we did a fairly short day to a city park, which we got to in the early afternoon, but the way the winds move in during the afternoon makes it difficult to cycle far into the day.  The next day, we did about 75 miles to a rest area near a small town, and got there about 12:30.  After so many days of good distances and favorable conditions, I felt really enthusiastic and suggested that we should not stop for the day, but target a town about 42 miles further.  Only 12:30, right?  Plenty of daylight.  Go 10 mph for 4 hours and we would be there by 5 pm, no problem.  Just one problem – about 18 miles was going directly south.  Into the wind.  And the wind picks up in the afternoon.  We did about 10 miles east which went fine, and then…turned south.  Jack and Jeff were several miles ahead of me.  The wind was blowing at about 30 mph, with gusts that surely were 40 or 50.  It was brutal.  I was slowed to 6 mph, sometimes 5, pedaling as hard as I could.  The temp was about 100 degrees, although the humidity is low.  Fortunately, Jack had to presence of mind to call our Lifeline.  Sue brought us water along the way.  Otherwise I don’t know what we would have done.  Finally, I got to the end of the south run and turned east, and the wind became a crosswind, which was still tough but a bit more manageable.   I had to stop every mile of so to rest and regroup. I finally made it to the city park where we were going to camp about 6:30 pm, completely exhausted.   So, my advice to all  is, never get involved in a land war in Asia, and never underestimate the power of the winds in Kansas.

    Jerry

July 7 - Jeff

July 7, 2013

Congratulations to Nicki and Tom Scully celebrating their first wedding anniversary today.

We left Lander later than usual, about 7:30.  After yesterday, we got to bed late and we needed some recovery time.  Pool and shower at Lander felt good.  Pizza we ordered was great.  Really hit the spot.  Even had some left over for today for a snack.

I think yesterday took a lot out of us mentally.  And as you know, I don’t have a lot of extra, so I was at a distinct disadvantage today.  I don’t think any of us felt much like riding today, but the show must go on.   We quit after 58 miles and  ended up in a town called Nickerson.  Still in Kansas.  We are at another city park and it has showers and a water park!!!!  Temps will be about 100.  No humidity, dry heat.  So it does not feel the same as home 100.  Lots of shade and Sue bought some Shock Top.  Just going to hang out here today, get rehydrated from yesterday’s ride and get ready for tomorrow.

The ride today wasn’t too bad.  Wind  is still present, but  some of it was favorable.  Two deer crossed our path today.  A momma and her bambi.  We  also saw some cows and some hawks and a horse of course.  Along the way we found a Good Samaritan house.  Jack spotted it, old eagle eyes.  A  sign along the side of the road, “water for bicyclists”.  A godsend because the stretch of road we were on had no services whatsoever.  Water can become an issue.  Corn is getting taller the further east we go.  Even saw some hills.

Met a group of bicyclists last night at our park from New York.  Three younguns who had never really done much cycling before.  But they are doing it unsupported and it looks like they are having fun.  Their cause is for migrant workers. 

Jack got his haircut the other day in Scott City.  He was talking to the boys in the shop and somebody made the comment that it was good we were going west to east even though the wind is bad.  He said that if you are on the other side of the road (the wind comes from the South remember) riding when a stock truck comes by,  you get hit by the pee from the cows or other stock.  Now who would have ever figured that out?   So there is a silver lining in every cloud.

In our current city of Nickerson, we stopped at the Sunshine Diner.  Had coffee and blueberry pancakes.  People were really nice.  The mayor’s wife sat down and talked to us for an extended period of time.  She offers  her guest house to bicyclists.  We haven’t decided whether to take her up on her offer because it is hot, but  we do have the water park to keep us “cool”.

Nickerson is another of those places we refer to as “little pockets of the world” we are running across that most people we know will never see.  We are seeing America from the inside out.  Part of the great experience we are having.  I’ll get a little sentimental here and say that the only thing that would make everything better is if my lovely bride was here to experience it with me.

Moving on tomorrow to more parts unknown.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 6 - Jeff

July 6, 2013

Shout out to my daughter Nicki and son-in-law Tom.  They are celebrating their first anniversary tomorrow, July 7. I think they are celebrating in Louisville.

Wind finally died down in the city park last night.  Still hot though.  Lots of noise in park during the night.

Crossed a time zone yesterday.  Now only one hour behind.  Left about 6:15 new time.  Rode a little in the dark.  No traffic.  Good riding.  Got to a diner in Dighton.  Pancakes for the first time in at least a week.  Met our acquaintance Josh again on the road.  He is neuro scientist at Columbia University.  He never heard of Aly’s disease.  He wears Sesame Street shirts.  A great guy.  Scenery is getting greener and seeing more things growing.  World is a little less depressing as we move east.  We ended up at our destination, Alexander around noon.  Our camping plans were in a rest area.  As far as rest areas go, it was pretty nice.  Jerry got there and suggested we move on to Lander, 42 miles away.  He was feeling spunky.  So we had gone 75 miles and he wants to go 42 more.  Do the math.  One big problem though, the wind comes from the South in 30-35 mile per hour gusts.  Our route took us 19 miles due south.  I think you get the picture.  For 19 miles, the best we could do was 6-8 miles per hour. It was brutal.  Hardest day we have had.  Against the wind took on a new meaning.  The little engine that could would also apply.  Inch by inch life is a cinch also took on new meaning.  You really can’t imagine.  Those 42 miles were the toughest of the trip.  We were ready to kick Jerry’s #$% for suggesting this except for the fact that the city park Sue found in Lander had a pool and showers and they were free.  So Jerry gained a reprieve. So we are pooped but we are cool.  Of course, we were already “cool”, but now we are really cool.   Pizza Hut is cooking for us tonight.

Couple Tom Hank’s connections.  I think in Kansas, I have seen that place where he is at the crossroads in the middle of nowhere in the Castaways movie at the end.  Kansas has a lot of places like that.  Also, some people ask us why we are doing this.  Then the quote he makes in Forrest Gump comes to mind about running to the end of the driveway and he just kept going. 

Saw our second train today.  We have seen a lot deserted trains just rusting, but only two that were moving.

Short entry tonight.  We are whupped.  117 miles today.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue

July 5 - Jeff

July 5, 2013

Last night we went to the parade.  It was Americana at its best.  No Kahn’s Wiener wagon though.  Bikes, a float, a BMW, an ambulance, a water/fire truck, and some kids on 4 wheels and dirt bikes.  Then there was a flag burning ceremony that was very powerful.  Really neat with the boy scouts placing the flags one by one into the fire.  Went on for about 25 minutes with patriotic music and stories being played while they did it.  There were no fireworks because Colorado has a no burning policy in effect.  Then we went to the potluck dinner.  Jack made rice.  It was a smorgasbord.  For 3 hungry bikers, it was like heaven.  People could not have been more accepting or nicer.  Lots of people talked to us.  After the dinner, like true Von Handorfs, we helped clean up.  Then a lady who writes in the local paper starting talking to us.  She wanted to get our story and get our picture.  She went back to our place at the Church and interviewed us.  We felt like celebrities.  She is going to send a copy of the paper to Jerry and Sue.  She said it would be emailed to several other local newspapers.  It was without a doubt a Fourth of Jooly we will never forget.  Hard to put into words how unique and rewarding our experience was in Sheridan Lake.

We left Sheridan Lake reluctantly today.  It was a nice place to stay.  We left about 5:30.  Went through Tribune (pop 741) and Leoti (pop 1,534), and ended up in Scott City (pop 3,800).  We are camping in a city park.  Got showers at a local athletic club for $4. We are now in the Land of Oz (Kansas).  Roads have been good.  No café in Tribune.  Gas station coffee again.  Ran into a guy heading East like us from San Francisco. His name was Josh.  He had a broken spoke and needed a tool.  Fortunately, Sue was just ahead and Jerry and Jack helped him out.  I talked to an ex John Deere salesman who sat down next to me on the curb.  When he was ready to leave, I had to pull him up.  He couldn’t get up on his own.  Landscape is getting greener.  Wind is very heavy.  Mostly from the South, so it was more of a crosswind today.  I think tomorrow, it may be a headwind.  No fun.  Lots of stockyards along the way.  Traffic picked up later in the day.  Another musical note, “against the wind”.  Saw a wind farm.  I thought I saw about 100 windmills.  Jerry said he counted 33.   At the park, I talked to a guy, Hugh, who was 88 and going to walk 3 blocks.  He was from a nursing home nearby.  He said he liked to talk, and when he got finished, he said “thanks for listening”.  He told me about getting lost as a child, his experiences in WWII, his daughter and son, and how the wind only dies down at night.  Jerry, Sue, and I went to DQ to get ice cream.  Jack went to get his har cut.. Guess he has plans on going to a prom or something.  I don’t get it.  Going to be hard to put up tents in this wine.  Jerry is going to grill brats and metts that we didn’t get to use for the 4^th.  About 75 miles today.  Not sure what tomorrow will bring or where we will end up.

Jeff, Jerry, Jack, and Sue