Day 4 May 29, 2009

After I had finished writing last night another biker showed up at the station. His name was Jack and he was from New Zealand. He was pulling a trailer and going incredibly slow. He was an incredibly nice guy but we all agreed doomed to fail. We woke up at 6:30 a.m. and cooked a hot meal in the station's kitchen. We left and rode hard today. It was up and down hills all day. We stopped for lunch at a small gas station in the middle of no where. We biked into Charlottesville Virginia, the home of University of Virginia, in a torrential down pour. We set up camp across the street from the University at St. Paul's Episcopal church. I'm writing this entry in the library of the church left open by a very nice pastor named David. We biked 55 miles on route.

Day 3 May 28,2009

We left Mechanicsville Presbyterian around 8:30 a.m. The office worker (Carol) brought us fruit cups to take with us and led a prayer for us. We rode through beautiful farms and countryside filled with farm life and rolling hills. We stopped at a country store for lunch and bought ice cream, cheese, and crackers. After an hour break we broke for Mineral (population 432). We arrived in Mineral after some hard climbs and hard rainstorms. We were very excited to find that the volunteer fire station had room for us to stay even though they were hosting a beauty pageant and carnival that night. We were able to shower, do laundry, and utilize their kitchen. We met Charlie, an 19 year old volunteer who started volunteering at age 8, who gave us a tour of the station and trucks, and Oscar an EMS who gave us ice for our knees and interesting conversation. Our on route mileage was 52 miles.

Day 2 May 27, 2009

We woke up around 6:30 at the hotel, where we ate a carb loaded breakfast and started off. We shot out of the gates and biked 30 miles by 9:30 but slowed down due to a lack of training. By lunch we had reached 50 miles and Glendale (where we planned on staying the night). After an hour break we decided to head off for Mechanicsville. We rolled into Mechanicsville around 4:30 and knocked on a Presbyterian church door. The door was answered by two very kind women who agreed to let us camp behind the church for the night. We biked 72 miles on route today. It was cloudy today but sunny enough to where I have suffered some serious sun burns on my arms.

Day 1 May 26, 2009

After meeting up with Ben and Uncle Bob yesterday in Louisville we drove to Beckley West Virginia where we stayed the night in a hotel and woke up early to drive to Yorktown. When we woke up we realized that a crucial bike rack part had been lost/stolen in the night rendering the rack useless. We arrived in Yorktown around lunchtime and took photos of the Atlantic. Ben, Jay and I headed towards Williamsburg with no gear other than rain jackets. Uncle Bob met us at the Comfort Inn hotel just off the route and we ate at a very good Indian restaurant. After dinner we split the food and gear between us to really start biking tomorrow. We plan on going 55ish miles tomorrow .In total we biked 19 miles today.

Monday Jay, Sam and a parent will drive to meet Ben and Uncle Bob (Ben's dad) in Louisville.  We will have lunch in Louisville then set off for Yorktown, Virginia.  

Equipment list

TRIP BEGINS MONDAY MAY 25, 2009

• 3 man tent
• 3 cycling bibs
• 3 cycling jerseys
• 3 pairs swiftwick socks
• bike shoes
• front and back panniers for bike
• front and rear lights
• light weight sleeping bag and pad
• 1 micro-fleece sweatshirt 
• 1 rain jacket
• 1 leathermen knife
• 2 cooking pots
• 1 Tupperware (to be used as bowl and plate)
• 3 liter camelback water bladder
• back and front lights
• 3 summer reading books
• leg and arm warmers
• 2 pairs of bike gloves
• 1 bike lock
• whisper lite stove
• 32 oz. fuel canister
• sunglasses 
• camera
• one bike multi-tool
• 5 spare tubes
• 1 set of tire irons
• sunscreen 
• bike computer
• chamois butter
• pair of crocs
• toiletries 
• cell phone
• Frisbee