Hello from Ely, NV!


We made it to the Shoshone Reservation after a 108.4 mile ride from Pioche (out longest day yet!).


The morning started out with a beautiful sunrise from behind the mountains and clouds. Roger, Jon, Sara and I played Contact (a word game) on the way to first lunch, barely noticing the gradual slopes – there was a great tail wind. It was an amazing morning because it’s been a long time since the wind has not been in our faces!


After first lunch, Anne, Rebecca, Kristiann, and Mandy met up with Sam, a 17-year-old cyclist riding his mountain bike on a 560 mile loop. They gave him sunblock, Gatorade, and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich to help him on the road.


At mile 80, just after the second lunch water stop, we met up at Major’s Junction for a quick bite to eat before our 1000-foot ascent. After most of the riders began to climb (including myself), the owners of the restaurant gave out free ice cream to the lucky remaining cyclists – Eleni, Sara, Rebecca, Tim, Aylin, Talia, Kristin, Amanda, Matt, and Thomas.


Our climb at mile 80 to Connor’s Pass was originally expected to be 8-9 miles long, but ended up only being 5 miles – an unexpected surprise! The rest of the ride was a descent and a flat in a valley surrounded by mountains. Light rain and cloud cover kept the road relatively cool at the end.


When we arrived in Ely, there were great food stores that many of us stopped at for a celebration snack of sandwiches, chocolate milk, diet coke, etc. We are all looking forward to the day off tomorrow and sleeping in, exploring town, and relaxing.


-Lisa

Ahlan wa sahlan!


As part of my efforts to expand the linguistic diversity of the B&B community, I offer you greetings in roughly transliterated Arabic. So, greetings and welcome to you, loyal readers of the B&BSUS08 journals!


Today we pedaled our bicycles from Kanab (farewell, sweet Vermillion Hills!) to Long Valley Junction. As my dear sweet mother might say, Long Valley Junction is not a place, but rather a location. It is, in fact, a highway junction. Alas, we didn’t camp (as I’d been hoping) on the side of the crossroads (where, according to legend, one can sell one’s soul to the devil), but at a pleasant little Lutheran Camp two miles down an insanely hilly, bumpy dirt road. But I’m getting ahead of myself.


The day began pleasantly, with some delicious brown sugar- and raisin-infused oatmeal. We rolled out with hope in our hearts and a fearsome oatmeal-induced strength in our now-bulging quadriceps. We knew that we had a short route, but any optimism we may have had was tempered by the “VERY HILLY!!!!! 5000-7500 ft” on our cue sheets. Fortunately, I weigh approximately five pounds, and I come from a reasonably hilly part of Massachusetts, so I’m pretty good at climbing hills. “Hah!” I exclaimed. “I laugh in your face, puny mountain. Do your worst!”


Most of the morning up until lunch consisted of climbing, and I more or less rode alone, so I unfortunately can’t inform you about the exploits of the other bike and builders on that morning. My ride was pretty fun, as I was feeling rested and I had particularly enjoyed my oatmeal that day. At the top of the mountain we had a glorious view, and I took some pictures (no matter how bad they are, it’s always so very much worth it once you get to the top of a climb). The ride (coast) down the mountain was relatively straight and not too windy, so I took a four-minute video going down about half of it, the highlights of which included some glorious scenery and Matt Allen passing me while shouting something about 130 million years of natural history stretched out before us. It was a glorious descent. The only other vaguely notable aspect of the ride before lunch was my first mid-ride flower transfer. Aka, I gave someone a pretty flower while riding. We pass many a pretty wildflower each day, and they are quite pleasant on the eyes (also quite fragrant).


I got to lunch and only Matt, Anne, and I were there. The trailer sat alone in a parking lot, but Zach and the van had vanished! We surmised that perhaps he had been kidnapped. Who knows what kind of psychotic person could just run up to the lunch stop, club Zach, throw him in the passenger seat and drive away with our van? It’s a dangerous world. Anyway, we missed Zach, but more importantly he had departed with the precious raspberry jam! To put this in perspective, we’ve been consuming strawberry and grape jelly for the entire trip. When we saw the “raspberry” label the night before, our spirits rose with excitement, and with every stroke of the pedal that day our hearts cried out “peanut butter and raspberry!” Anyway, we made do with what we had (including some delicious snacks from Mandy’s mom…lunch the day after mail drops is always a treat), and hung about for a while, admiring the abandoned store outside of which we had set up our lunch station. Through the glass door we could see a stuffed mountain lion head that Anne and I wanted to mount on the front of the van, but we figured that breaking and entering was probably against some sort of Bike and Build policy.


I departed lunch with Ryan and naturally lost him within a few miles (for those of you who don’t know, Ryan rides his bicycle very quickly. I do not.) However, we only had 16 or so miles (uphill) between lunch and the junction, so I only got there about half an hour after him. We were the first ones there, so we sat about sipping chocolate milk and watching country music television for a while in the junction’s gas station, before we decided to press on to the camp site. This was an especially exciting moment for me, as it was the first day that I’ve arrived at the destination before noon (I did it by 11:30, no less!) My excitement was somewhat tempered as I looked at the road down which I knew we would be riding the next day. Inscribed in cold, cruel letters on the sign were the words “8% grades, next 25 miles. Not recommended for semis.” Actually, that last part was pretty exciting. Anyhoo, that would be a problem for the next day.


Ryan and I set off down the dusty dirt path to camp Lutherwood, eager to reach the campsite and relax. Two somewhat intense miles later, we rolled up to the camp office, where we met John, one of the guys in charge. There were some others, but I forget their names. They were very nice. They showed us our campsite, which had a little roofed picnic/sleeping area, a bonfire pit, and a tremendous supply of firewood. Excitement! We stretched for a while, then got bored and started doing pull-ups on the rafters of our hut. Then we did some abdominal exercises. Then some push-ups. Then we really got bored. Eventually Brad, Jon, Sas, and Susannah showed up. We ate most of the food that we had between us. We took naps. We pontificated on the nature of life and human existence. We were bored. We contemplated what may have become of the van. Or everyone else on bike and build. We suspected that they may have decided to stay at the gas station, but “No!” we thought, “Our peaceful nature hideaway is far superior to that den of capitalistic materialism and mass-market processed food conglomerate domination!” Well, I can’t honestly say for certain whether or not any of us thought that, but we very well could have.


Anyway, about three and a half hours after Ryan and I had arrived, the van and some other riders began showing up. Apparently there had been various bicycle troubles (lots of flats and such) and most of the others had just hung around the gas station. Once everyone arrived the evening moved quickly. We set up the tents, cooked a delicious dinner (woohoo dinner crew!), and devoured it while discussing such topics as rent control, zoning, and the affordable housing platforms of Barack Obama and John McCain. It was a fun evening. Ryan built us a splendid bonfire which raged well into the night as we sat about telling stories, singing songs, and gazing into the beautifully flickering flames. I drifted off to sleep in my warm cuddly bag of synthetic fibers right next to the fire, content and at peace with the world around me. And without further ado, I bit you adieu.


Peace out,
Joe


P.S. – Check out the Bike and Build Chorus’s new hit CD “Rockin’ the Rockies,” coming soon to a major music store near you! Featuring such hits as “The Star Spangled Banner,” “Danny Boy,” “Happy Ending,” and “Bicycle, Take Me West!”

It’s not everyday you ride your bike up to one of the seven natural wonders of the world. I think many of us had never seen the Grand Canyon before so we were pretty taken a back when we first walked up. It was absolutely beautiful and we had a whole twenty four hours to make the most of our time there.


This being my first time at the Grand Canyon, I started out quite ambitious. My dreams were shattered when I learned how far we were from the Colorado River (28 mile hike, not recommended in one day) and 215 miles from the South Rim. And after three days of our toughest rides, I needed some relaxation. Some riders thought relaxing was for pansies and got a backcountry pass to hike down the canyon for the night…


I was happy with the fact that I woke up on my own at a late 7am. People had already started up the fire for our breakfast creations of hot dogs, grilled cheese and hard boiled eggs. Some people made some pretty banging sandwiches with what we had. Tim, Eleni and I decided to check out the lodge from some breakfast where we fell in love with our food. Anything with flavor these days is “the most amazing food we’ve ever eaten.” I had some of the most delicious banana pancakes of my life (which I returned for the next day).


After breakfast, we napped and read our books on the most comfy lodge couches overlooking the canyon... Tim, Shap and I enjoyed the rest of our day on a crazy edge of the canyon where we attempted to rid ourselves of our heinous cycling tan lines… you could consider us the more lazy of the riders, as some hiked down three miles and back up. Others hiked a trail that was fourteen miles long… crazy bikers.


The rest of the night was spent getting ready for our ride into a new state, UTAH! We had rice and beans for dinner, packed our bags and dreamt about our 2,000 foot decent that awaited us.


-Fear the Turtle-



Mallory

We have feared this day for a little while now and it’s hard to believe that so much climbing can happen on one sultry day with strong winds coming at you head on. We woke up at 4am, although time doesn’t matter much anymore now that we have crossed through several time zones and back again, especially in Arizona where daylight savings is observed only on the Navajo reservation. As the sun was rising most of the riders got a head start to beat the heat, but for some reason a couple of riders and I were compelled to make use of a Jack in the Box gift card and grab some instant breakfast. Must I learn this lesson over and over again? Greasy breakfast sits in your stomach and makes your muscles feel like gelatin all day.


On days like this we have two scheduled stops, one at mile 40 for lunch and then again at about mile 65 to refill and water and Gatorade. Thank you Rebecca for the added bonus of nectarines, oranges, and apples at mile 66! And so, at about mile 67, we commenced our dreaded climb of about 4,000 ft in 14 miles to Jacob’s Lake. I got nervous as we approached the ridge, all we could see were the glimmering tops of truck weaving up the mountain side only to disappear about halfway. A few riders and I just told ourselves that we would feel like superheroes at the top so to take our time and enjoy the scenery and finally some trees! It had been a while since we were surrounded by any vegetation taller than 2 feet.


As we were about to hit the 7,900 ft or so elevation sign, Rebecca, Ryan, and Patrick came zooming past us to do the climb again, although it would be the first for Rebecca since it was her van day. I thought they were crazy for doing it, but why not? I can’t express how amazing it feels to reach the top of a massive hill, all those angry or impatient thoughts that go through your head vanish only to revisit on the next rough climb, and even then you know how good the summit feels.


We reached the campsite and Jacob’s Inn, where a few of us decided on some luxury for a night and paid for a room, and most of us gorged ourselves with burgers, fresh baked cookies, and milkshakes. We washed ourselves at the outdoor water pump, prepared spaghetti for dinner, and relaxed under the stars around a campfire. Our first day of camping turned out to be one of my best night’s rests. That climb was nothing, nothing at all.


--Saskia

Ever since I got started with all of this endurance sporting and triathlon-ing, I've been passed on the bike. I'm an okay swimming and a decent runner, but my biking has always been my weakness. I hear 'On your left!' so much that it might as well be tattooed on my back. So this summer, one of my goals was to get to the point where I felt strong and comfortable on the bike. Whether or not I actually got faster wasn't really important; I just wanted a secure base so that in the future I won't groan with the entirety of my body and soul at the mere prospect of getting on the bike.



The ride from Kayenta, AZ to Page, AZ was a century ride through the desert. We got up at 4am in order to attempt to beat the heat that starts around 10am but fries you by 3pm. We started the ride with our headlights flashing and our taillights blinking, and set out to conquer the 100 miles.




The first 20 miles miles were miserable - uphill 1,000 feet with a 15mph wind in our face. Fighting to maintain a 10mph average, I wondered if the ride was manageable. The conditions were difficult, but even so, I was exhausted. We had fought the wind the entire day before, and I just didn't have it in me to do it again. I told the people I usually ride with to go on ahead and I would see them at lunch.



And so as I stopped to eat some Cliff Shots, everyone zoomed by and I felt defeated. Race setting or not, being passed just plain sucks.




But, I got back on my bike and started moving...and all of a sudden my legs didn't hurt and my mind wasn't fighting me with every stroke of the pedal. Over the next 20 miles to the lunch stop, I managed to catch everyone and even joined the pace line for the last bit. We were no longer riding directly into the wind, so that helped, but even so - I just managed to get some confidence back, and even more than that, I managed to really push myself. I didn't just spin up the hills, I got out of breath and sweaty and realized that you really can go faster when you manage to just move your legs. I was riding alone so I couldn't compare myself to other people; I just got myself from Point A to Point B as quickly as I could and was happy with the result.



The 35 miles after lunch went by relatively quickly. I rode with 3-4 other people and the miles just ticked by. The wind picked up a bit again, but there was an overall descent that made things easy-ish.




We stopped to fill up on Gatorade and water at mile 80 and took a short nap under a rock formation...and then we started to fly. There were three of us and I swear we defied gravity. We passed people that had left 20 minutes earlier than us, and I don't think I could have stopped if necessary. It was the last 20 miles of a century and we were literally riding 25-30 miles per hour the entire time. To be fair, it was still a descent into the canyon where Page is built, but we were still against the wind...and like I said, we just passed tons of people without any effort at all. It was the most fun I've ever had on a bike; I wish every day could be like that.



Just as a disclaimer, I'm not being snobby about passing people; I know perfectly well that it doesn't matter at all; it doesn't make me a better person or even biker...but it's just such a rare feeling for me that it was completely thrilling and kind of momentous. It might never happen again, so for now I'm going to savor the moment.




Page, AZ is a cute little city that has great Mexican food, a wonderfully designed church (the architecture somehow made me feel really comfortable), and a ridiculously huge potluck dinner, complete with mint-chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches and cookies as big as my head. The people who greeted us were incredibly generous and the presentation we gave went smoothly. Everyone was in a great mood, and it was just a nice evening with a relaxed atmosphere. I wish we had more time to walk around or watch a movie in the evening, but we all went to bed by 9 or so - we had a 80 mile ride with a 15 mile climb at the end to conquer the next day and I think we were all a little nervous.



This might be the first time I've really 'tried' on this trip. Of course every day has been challenging, and it's not that I haven't been testing myself - I have. It's just that this is an endurance trip (biking across the country?!?), and so I generally keep the mindset that it's better to keep a reserve instead of dying before the end. I never really push myself to anaerobic or even aerobic level, so this feeling reminiscent of a spinning class felt entirely different...but kind of awesome. I don't think I'm capable of it every day, but it's certainly a lot of fun once in a while - it's more enjoyable to go fast than slow, and pushing yourself to the limit is always rewarding.



--Susanna

This was a pretty tough day. It was really windy, but like all of New Mexico and Arizona, the scenery was incredibly beautiful. Most of the land was fairly flat, but there was always a large rock formation jutting out of the ground in sight. Some of them were called Mesas – Red Mesa (where we stayed), Black Mesa (where the coal mine is). Mesa means table in Spanish, and these rock formations were basically plateaus that just rose out of the flatness. We also passed Monument Valley, which is apparently in every Western movie ever made, but I wouldn’t know. All I know is there were some really big beautiful rock mountain things that followed us for miles on our way to Kayenta.


Just before we got to the host site, Eleni and I stopped at Burger King for a snack. It was the most crowded fast food joint I’ve ever been to! It was mostly tourists on their way to and from the Grand Canyon. We met some really cool motorcyclists who ride around New Mexico and Arizona and told us about some really amazing places that I will be visiting next time I come to this area – which will happen soon because it’s *beautiful*!


This area – before Teec Nos Pos and after Kayenta – is a Navajo reservation. We stayed at a really great little church, where the ladies made us a delicious dinner with fry bread, and the pastor gave us a really touching talk, thanking us for what we’re doing and wishing us well on our journey. He was so thankful and genuine that it brought tears to many of our eyes. Some of us also spoke with some younger Navajo people who heard we were in town and came by to talk to us. They are in charge of a youth group and are interested in setting up a RUBARB style coop for their members. (RUBARB – Rusted Up Beyond All Recognition Bikes – is a bike coop in the 9th Ward in New Orleans where a bunch of volunteers fix up old bikes and teach kids how to take care of them and then the kids get to keep a bike.) They told us about some of the problems they face as Navajo, with the federal government but mostly with the leadership of the Navajo nation. For example, they cannot own any land so they cannot build permanent homes because they might be kicked off. In addition, much of the leadership is corrupt and is only concerned with helping their own communities. This makes it very difficult to start your own business or even to attain non-profit status for an organization as simple as a youth group if you don’t have a family connection to take care of things for you.


After dinner, we had our weekly group meeting, where we were told the next week will be the hardest week of the trip - lots of long days, high ascents and heat. On the upside, we will be camping four nights. I can’t wait for the stars!


-Aylin

This route was the cause of a great divide within the B&B community. The split was between those who care about the Four Corners and those who do not care about an intersection of imaginary lines marking the arbitrary boundaries of states. I find myself in the second group.


I truly enjoyed Patrick’s reaction to the Four Corners. Patrick is incredibly excited about everything. Everything. Even waking up with our own alarm clocks! But when it came to the Four Corners, he was so against it. He was actually angry about it. Hilarious.


Teec Nos Pos is in fact pronounced Teese Nawse Pawse, but it acquired the name “Techno Peas”. This new, exciting and fun name was first coined by Jon and was soon adopted by the whole team. Techno Peas became the title of our newly planned animated series. The show involved super-human, crime-fighting, cybernetic peas from the future who come back in time for… something. The details of the show are yet to be fully ironed out, but surely, it will do at least as good as Pokemon or something.


---Roger

So we enjoyed our break from riding our bikes to help built with ECHO Housing. Since the build site was only a couple miles from our host site, most people rode their bikes to start the morning off. Our project was to remove a patio from a home and to replace it along with building a ramp. Since she is wheelchair bound, it was important for her to have safe means of getting out of her house for her frequent medical appointments.


Demolition of the decaying patio took about 45 minutes to tear down. During the tear down a board accidentally hit Ryan in the lip. Although he was eager to continue working, the gash was deep enough that he needed a couple stitches before he could get back to working. The rest of the morning was spent under the supervision of the construction leaders “Tiny” and “Shorty” as we applied finish to the wood, installed the ramp, and managed to make huge progress on the installation of the railings.


After building, riders spent their free time by watching movies, visiting the library, showering at the pool before a thunderstorm rolled in, and a group went to watch the local rodeo. The town of Farmington was especially welcoming to us, and we greatly appreciated all the support they provided.
--Anne

Today we rode from Cuba, NM to Farmington, NM which was a hundred mile day. Compared to every other of our century days, this one was by far the easiest. In the morning we crossed the Continental Divide, at which many of us stopped to take pictures. We then continued on the rest of the day which ended up being mostly downhill. Farmington is 2000 feet lower than Cuba, and the wind was with us most of the day so our century ended up being a breeze. We even had some riders (Matt, Ryan, Roger) who managed to average 20 mph the entire day, and finished the 100 miles in less than 5 hours- which is awesome.


When we arrived at the First Presbyterian Church of Farmington there was a “Welcome Bike and Build” sign outside of the church, and we felt extremely welcomed. There was a potluck and presentation with the congregation during which we had the opportunity to spend time and talk with the people of the church. The dinner was absolutely delicious, and we were all touched at the effort that the congregation made to get to know us. Overall it was a great day and we’re glad to be here in Farmington, and looking forward to our build day tomorrow!


--Mandy

Santa Fe, NM to Abiquiu, NM


Greetings again, faithful journal followers! I’m excited to be given the e chance to write in the official blog again since writing in my own blog (which has a following of my family and maybe a friend or two) is getting a bit boring. After a day of in Santa Fe (awesomeness!!!), we had a short ride today to Abiquiu, NM—only 49 miles. To make the day more interesting, Zach presented us with a challenge: a fashion show! Each rider who wished to participate could use up to $5 of his or her own money and buy anything that would make a lovely ensemble. I was a little skeptical at first since no one seemed interested in the idea. In fact, some people wanted to stay back in Santa Fe and get brunch. Nonetheless, some of us took off early and planned to look for clothes.


Around mile 15, we found out there were MORE problems with the trailer (oh no!), so we decided to explore a little bit. We found a Native American museum that was a bit depressing; it showed how their lives were completely changed by “civilization.” After the depressing bit, we stopped at a grocery store to get ice cream for $0.43, a truly miraculous event. We considered buying fashion items there, such as an inflatable pool toy for Shap or a pirate set that I wanted Joe to wear, but they cost almost our entire budget. We continued the next 15 miles to lunch, which were pretty much all downhill, and arrived to even more awesomeness—Patrick had parked across the street from a yard sale and next to a dollar store. We went crazy, more or less. Everywhere you looked, B&Bers were throwing clothes on their bodies and assembling outfits. We ended up spending a lot more time at lunch than normal (I didn’t leave till one!), but with only 20 miles left after lunch and seriously nothing but downhills, it didn’t matter much.


Upon arrival at the church, I assembled my outfit—wrapping paper, bows, a happy birthday banner, and party horns. It was possibly the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever worn. By the time more people got in, we all went down the hill to the gas station and scared the locals. After a brief presentation and a fantastic dinner, the fashion show began. Anne completely won for cheapest; she found everything on the side of the road. I can’t even begin to describe how awesome it was; the walks and the outfits were ridiculous! I think our favorite, though, was Tim and Mal’s show. Tim used an apron, cooking utensils, and some ketchup bottles to complete his outfit, and Mal wore an adult diaper. They were hilarious, and even though there hasn’t been an official vote, I totally say that they win (and Joe wins if he buys me a candy bar).


Well, Graham wants to watch a movie, and I think if I don’t give him the computer soon, he may give me a look of death, so I’ll finish up this entry by saying that every B&B group should do a fashion show because it is pure awesomeness in a bottle.


--Rachel

Do you know the way to Santa Fe?


The ride from Las Vegas to Santa Fe was one of my favorites to date. I think it was the juxtaposition of this ride with the previous few that have made me fall in love with New Mexico (“The Land of Enchantment”). While the last few have been full of raw, unadulterated nature, as we rode up, over, and through the hills to get to Las Vegas, the ride to Santa Fe allowed us to appreciate the incredible beauty of the mountains from a distance without being secluded from civilization (though there is something nice about getting out of the city).


Almost all 66 of the miles were over rolling hills, from the tops of which you can see far into the distance. You crawl up at a snail’s pace, but the wind in your face on the ride down just feels so good. We rode along service roads that paralleled the interstate (we were on historic route 66, in fact!!), which skirts the mountains so, as you can imagine, there was a lot to see. At one point in the ride Patrick routed us through “Pecos Historic National Park,” which engages every part of you: your sense of smell (pine), hearing (birds or wind or silence), sight (mountains, trees, wildflowers), taste (fresh air in your lungs), and touch (well, physical exertion). At another point in the ride we actually got on I-25 for a while and flew downhill alongside some rock walls. When we got off we climbed a ways and finally made it into the city. For the first time in a while we had a tailwind, which was just another factor that welcomed us here, on top of the bike lanes and the friendly drivers.


This city is also amazing, though touristy. All of the buildings are built in the adobe style, by city requirements… even gas stations. When we arrived about 20 of us went to a nearby restaurant called the Cowgirl Cafe and filled up on Mexican food or burgers. We hung out and showered in the afternoon (some of us napped) and then went back out at night to explore the “downtown” area. The church we’re staying at happens to be right at the heart of the city, which is really nice. In some of the previous cities (like Dallas, Amarillo, Pensacola, etc) we’ve been at least a cab ride away from anything even remotely “happening,” so to speak. Anyway, the area near the plaza was kind of pricey and touristy, though filled with live music and seemingly delicious food, and we ended up back at the Cowgirl Café for a few drinks and a chance to unwind and have fun. Bars close around midnight, and I think we all appreciated the chance to get some much-needed rest. We’re all having a blast and soaking in as much as we can. One thing’s for sure: there are no lazy bums in this group.


--Talia

Mosquero, NM


There was talk early in the morning of a mountain – that the last mile to town was a steep, steep ascent and our reward would be at the top.


You have to be careful what you believe around here. Sometimes people get information from locals, who, despite their good intentions, can’t really describe a route accurately because they’ve usually only ever driven it. Everything is magnified on a bicycle.


After devouring some breakfast burritos donated by a gas station, we set off on our supposedly easy 49-miles and difficult 1-mile-hill. The day was relatively uneventful. There was beautiful, beautiful scenery for a long, long time. And by scenery I mean “nothingness.” No towns, no traffic…nothing. It was wonderful.


…Until about mile 37, where I noticed a small mountain in front of me, and realized….that was it. That’s the mountain we were going to have to climb. It wasn’t, you know, Mount Everest or anything. I guess. I mean, I wouldn’t know, I’ve never been to Mount Everest. The point is, that it was coming up around mile 40, which was exactly nine miles before I expected it to so I wasn’t ready at all and panicked as if my blind date that I never really wanted to go out with in the first place showed up way too early. Before I knew it, I was coasting up that incline, and of course by “coasting” I’m sure you know that I mean “using every fiber of my soul and being to drag myself up that overgrown rock.”


It was hard. Really, really hard, and I wasn’t really sure WHEN it would ever end, or IF it would ever end because really, after several minutes of this torture, I was beginning to believe that it really *wouldn’t* end…


It was only two miles. Just two miles, two of the most traumatic and painful miles of my life. I got sweat in my eyes, I almost fell over because I was going so slow, when I stopped I could barely get going again because it was so steep.


***


I don’t know what I expected from the summit of mountains. A snow-capped peak? Unpaved and unchartered stone? Whatever I expected, it wasn’t what was actually there.


It’s like a different world – I felt like I had ascended into another level of a video game. It was just so…normal, like the world 5,000 below us, but at the top of a mountain, and everything was flat and spacious and at that moment I felt so much closer to the sun and sky and San Francisco…


***


Mosquero is an isolated town of under 200 people. If you wanted to, you could photograph the entire business district at once, and in the picture there would be a post office, a café, a small store and a bar.


So tell me how, in this tiny, tiny town at the top of mountain where there are more cows than people, I managed to get lost. I rode along, looking for a Jolly Roger Drive that never came, and in a matter of minutes I had ridden straight out of town.


“Gee,” I thought, “I just passed all four roads in that town. How did I miss it?”


I rode back straight out of town…again. Well, there was no Jolly Roger Drive, at least, not a labeled one. I took a random street, though, figuring the town wasn’t too big and I’d come across their (one) school eventually. And I did. What do you know.


***


We didn’t have dinner provided because we were staying in a school and not a church, but we somehow heard through the grapevine that there was a Cowboy Camp having it’s annual (that’s right, annual, as in once-a-year-and-we-happen-to-show-up-on-that-very-day-because-obviously-The-Food-Gods-love-us) barbeque.


We weren’t really sure what we were getting ourselves into as we drove down that long, dirt road to the camp. Would there be enough food? We did, after all, just increase their population by 25%...Would there be anyone there at all? There was a massive storm circling the area, lightning included, and being at a barbeque at elevation 5,500 just didn’t seem like the right place to be. And what the heck is Cowboy Camp anyway??


The rain worked in our favor – because of the storm, not as many people as usual came by, and there was more than enough to go around. It was cold and wet, but there were tents and our hosts treated us to “cowboy coffee,” and some of us learned to lasso and we all got our own copies of The Cowboy Bible (The New Testament with some cowboy wisdom thrown in for good measure) and after dinner, some men showed up with instruments and sang us Christian folk songs, and besides a few anomalies like neon rainjackets and bottles of Gatorade, the moment was truly timeless.


We had to leave eventually, and we thanked them for the amazing experience – the last thing we’d ever expected from little Mosquero turned out to be one of the most memorable parts of this trip. It’s dark now and the storm is pretty much over. When we got back to the host site, we found a stray dog sleeping in our of our leaders’ sleepings bags, which was really cute and hilarious until it got excited and peed on one of the riders’ bags….


Some people have gone to the bar to meet up again with the cowboys, and despite the fact that I’m sure they’ll have more amazing stories to tell when they return, I think I’m going to stop writing and call it a night.


--karen fig

The morning ride started out brisk and cool, most riders had the arm/leg warmers on to try and stay warm. As the sun was rising the moon could still be seen in the distance, the start of the day was perfect and the 100 miles that lay ahead did not seem to faze anyone. Within the first 10 miles we had our first big descent downhill. WOW, exciting yet nerve wrecking at the same time. I kept pumping my breaks around the turns while others just let gravity take control leading to speeds of 45+ mph! Once to the bottom of the descent we were riding on a country road which was surrounded by mountains in all directions. There were cows all around which were free to cross the road and roam at all times, thankfully cows don’t like to chase bikers as much as dogs do.
As the day carried on the wind began to pick up making the ride more challenging and as I looked ahead to the 3 mile climb that was in the near future, I began to struggle more and more with the ride. The 3 mile climb came eventually, and I survived. Even though I was huffing and puffing constantly, it was actually better than when I was riding in the wind. Once up to the top, you could hope to have a big downhill… but you would be disappointed. There were actually some hills which were steeper and more challenging than the ‘big climb’. At mile 80, a group of around 12 riders stopped to wait for the van to make it to the second ‘lunch’ stop to refill on water. After waiting for a little while, we began to wonder where Shap was with the van and what was taking so long. Eventually we saw the van coming up the road….without the trailer. It turned out that the trailer got a flat at mile 60. By the grace of god it happened in front of the only house that existed within 40 miles. The woman who lived in the house was able to help us by having the trailer towed to a service shop in Las Vegas.

After refilling water and eating a bunch of Shaps bars the group of riders set out to finish the last 20 miles of the day. I was only 10 miles out, and Thomas got a flat. I stopped to help him, but apparently this happens to him quite often. The flat was changed and Thomas and I set out the finish the ride. We ended up seeing the trailer go by…on the back of a tow truck which was very weird, yet reassuring knowing that we would have access to all of our gear.
Dinner was provided by a local hotel/restaurant in Las Vegas. It was amazing! We got to use Real silverware, cloth napkins, and glass plates!! We didn’t even really care if the food tasted good or not, but we were extra lucky and it was delicious. After an endless supply of spaghetti, salad, cake and bread most of us returned to the host site and crashed for the night…at 8:00.

Overall the day was very eventful, and will definitely be one which will stand out this summer.


~K.Fry

Dear Journal,


So long Texas, hello New Mexico! Today we left Dalhart Texas, ate a delicious breakfast, and embarked on our 70ish mile voyage. Brad and I were riding together, and a few miles in we saw a large block of brown and black shapes in the distance. We weren’t sure exactly what it is, but Brad suggested that perhaps it was cows. Sure enough, he was right. As we got closer we realized that indeed what we had seen from far away were cows, what we didn’t anticipate was just how many cows there were.
The answer: thousands (maybe even tens of hundreds of thousands…or millions?, who knows, it was literally a sea of cows…not to be confused with sea cows, also known as manatees) of cows, all crammed together with no personal space whatsoever. Later we discovered that apparently this lovely “little” facility was some sort of “feed lot” where cows are sent in order to enlarge them and the subsequent amount of meat that comes from them later on. Fun fact: Apparently 2/3 of the beef consumed in the United States passes through Dalhart. Suffice it to say, it was a strange morning.

On a negative note, my bicycle became possessed with some sort of bicycle demon, and around mile 10, one of my shifters decided to stop working. I’m not sure if it just lost the will to live or if it was trying to teach me a lesson, either way, it limited me to the use of 6 gears rather than the usual 27. Ordinarily, this gear deficiency would be considered unfortunate, but sadly we found ourselves riding uphill in the wind…somewhat tragic to say the least. We forged on, and made it to lunch. Due to a slight injury sustained yesterday, Graham was not riding his bike yesterday, and his bike happens to be almost exactly the same as mine (same model, same pedals, slightly bigger size), and he was nice enough to let me borrow it for the afternoon.
Armed with 27 gears to work with once again, we hit the road, and after a little while we saw a sign telling us that we were now in the Mountain Time Zone, and immediately after this sign was a large sign welcoming us to the land of enchantment typically known as New Mexico. We took several photos and celebrated our exit from the home of our glorious commander in chief. The rest of the day was rather windy and hilly, but fortunately we only had 28 miles to ride after lunch, so it passed fairly quickly. After a while we found ourselves in Logan, and found our way to Logan Municipal School, home of the Longhorns. Logan is a quaint little town, and all 12 school grades are housed in one building. Thanks to the wonder that is time zones, we get an extra hour of sleep tonight which will be fantastic…it’s a shame Arizona chooses not to believe in daylight savings, and will soon be stealing that hour back from us…thanks a lot, John McCain.


Love,


Jon

What can you say about the world’s best riding day? The weather was sunny, the roads calm, the cars friendly, and the wind (if only for a day) at our backs! It was the best and easiest 80 miles we’ve had yet. We left Amarillo in the fairly standard way not even realizing what the day had in store for us. However, instead of the gap between the faster and slower riders steadily increasing, it actually shrank and we all condensed together. At the lunch break, almost every rider got to hang out with every other. It was a great morning. Some were still apprehensive because it just isn’t possible for so many things to go so right but, sometimes the cosmos just line up I guess!


We left the lunch pleased to find we still had a tailwind and got to ride the rest of the trip in larger packs. We began in the standard way again but coming upon the Cowgirl Café, knew it was too good to pass up and deserved a stop. The original plan was to use their restroom. That is always a little awkward to walk into a place, causing quite the spandex-ridden scene, traipse one by one through their bathroom, and walk back out! So, we decided that the excellent morning deserved a coffee break. As we enjoyed our coffee break, more and more riders came through and stopped expanding our short pit stop to an all out second lunch. Bear in mind that this second lunch is occurring at about 10:30am. Oh the spectacle of Bike and Build. It is wonderful! After Ryan had finished his shrimp, Shap had sucked down her 14th or 15th coffee, and the rest of us were equally contentedly filled, we hit the road again. Given Shap’s coffee intake, it should come as no real surprise that we got into Dalhart in record time! It was the earliest I’d ever made it to a host site---early enough to have the opportunity to unpack the trailer---an opportunity I’ve been careful to time so as to avoid ever since!!!


Riding that day we got to try the double pace line which was many of our first experiences with it. It was wonderful and added to the whole feeling of the day. Not only were we really making incredible time, but in the double pace line you ride next to a buddy instead of just behind and in front of people. Needless to say, it was a rather chatty riding day! We got to the church with energy to spare having worked with each other and thoroughly enjoyed the company of the others all day long. A great Bike and Build day!


Peace, Love, and Pedaling,
Amanda

On the ride from Memphis to Amarillo we encountered rolling Texas farmlands, Southern hospitality and Gail force winds. The day began with a delicious breakfast of biscuits, eggs and oatmeal provided by our generous hosts at the First United Methodist Church of Memphis, Texas. After all chores were finished (and the trailer was packed, perhaps, to perfection), riders departed for the 92 mile ride.
The ride was split in half by lunch. The first half was rather uneventful, marked primarily by an unusually slow pace caused by numerous hills, a strong headwind and, to a much lesser extent, the general fatigue of riding halfway across the country. Riders stopped in Clarendon to enjoy burgers and cokes and the Sonic or a 50% discount at the Dairy Queen (which was, unfortunately, closed when the first riders passed through… the penalty for being fast). Surprisingly, there aren’t too many cities in northwestern Texas, and most of the ride before and after Clarendon (pop 1300) was distinguished by crop fields. By mile 40 most of the riders were very anxious to stop for lunch. About mile 43 there was a picnic area on the side of the road, but by some cruel twist of fate our van driver (Rebecca, today) passed it by and it seemed like we would be destined to ride on forever. However, those who doubted our intrepid leader’s judgment were soon shamed as an even better picnic area was discovered at mile 45. Countless peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, nectarines (thanks Memphis hosts!) and cookies were consumed in the shade and comfort of the picnic area.

Satiated by an enormous lunch, riders departed the picnic area with a new sense of determination and confidence. However, that new resolve was soon overwhelmed by unreasonably strong winds. Many riders did not stop on the second half of the trip for fear that they would not be able to start again. Further, it was imperative to keep pedaling when going downhill… otherwise you would be blown back up. The ride would have been very demoralizing – struggling to keep a 12-14mph pace when only days before we were effortlessly maintaining 20mph+ - had it not been for a short 5 mile stretch where we weren’t riding directly into the wind. The first riders got to the Amarillo North YMCA a little bit before 2pm and the rest of the group arrived throughout the day, with sweep (Talia and Mandy) getting in about 7:30.
A number of Amarillo youth were present at the Y and we interacted with them, telling them about our trip, showing them our bikes, asking them about their lives and playing basketball. I played one on one with a thirteen year old boy named Wallace, who beat me 11-5. I could probably use the 92 mile ride and no shoes as an excuse, but I was really just outplayed. The pool was opened to us by the Y staff and the majority of us took some time to cool off and enjoy a refreshing swim. Most of the evening was spent recovering from the ride, hanging out with kids from the Y and relaxing.


Because we would have the following day off, a number of riders took advantage of the night to explore Amarillo’s bustling night scene. Others went out to the local cinema, while the most resourceful riders set up a projector next to the pool and enjoyed a movie from the comfort of floating therma-rests.



--Matt

Imagine standing in front of the line at McDonalds and hearing that you can order anything and everything that you want at no cost. After packing up this morning and finishing our morning circle, we all headed over to McDonalds where we were given the opportunity to eat anything off the menu for the second time in 24 hours. The father of a friendly, generous man who also happens to be an avid biker, owns and operates the local McDonalds in Altus and he got us good deals while we were in town.
Before we finished eating all that we could eat at McDonalds, it began to pour. A few of the riders had already left, but the majority of the riders unpacked the trailer in the parking lot in order to dig out their arm warmers, leg warmers and water-resistant jackets.

Today was supposed to be an easier day. Overall, I really enjoyed the ride. After the first fifteen minutes I was completely soaked through and at that point it became easier to relax and enjoy the cool weather. For the next 36 miles it poured, it sprinkled and then it poured again. Eleni found a covered spot outside of a gas station in Hollis, OK where we broke for lunch. Personally, I used the restroom, grabbed a quick bite and got right back on my bike. With a body full of goose bumps I continued my voyage to Memphis. The next 37 miles were filled with heavy showers, light showers and a short bit of dry weather with numerous hills.
After arriving in Memphis, we located our host location for the night at The First United Methodist Church where Rhonda and her twin children were waiting to greet us with endless cups of hot chocolate, tea, popcorn and home made goods. We are fortunate to have so many generous hosts!

We will need lots of rest tonight because tomorrow we will bike 92 miles to Amarillo, Texas.


--Kelly

After several days in the Lone Star state, we headed north for a one day adventure into Oklahoma. The day started off with some of the worst wind that we have seen yet. Biking at the slowest pace I have averaged yet this trip I was sure I was in the back of the pack but everyone seemed to be struggling until lunch where we all arrived after hours of cursing the wind. When we headed out after lunch the wind had died down but was replaced with insane heat. The roads were flat and we were cruising through the miles pretty fast but the heat was almost unbearable. With no gas stations or shops to stop for a break we all gathered at the Oklahoma state line where we took way too many pictures and waited for the van to refill our water bottles and Camelbaks. This is also where Brad found a nice big skull with horns that he proceeded to strap to the front of his bicycle.


With the long ride and all the elements working against us some of us were not sure if we were ever going to arrive in Altus, OK but there was one factor that kept us all going: UNLIMITED FREE MCDONALDS! The manager at the local McDonalds has a connection to Bike and Build and was able to provide us with all the fast food we could possibly want for both dinner and breakfast. I have never seen so many Big Macs, Chicken Sandwiches, Fries or McFlurrys consumed by a group of people. Some of our riders (I won’t mention names) were able to consume 5 sandwiches, multiple orders of fries, several chicken nuggets, ice cream, and ridiculous amounts of fountain soda to combine for a 3500+ calorie dinner. Breakfast was another repeat of dinner but replaced with biscuits, hash browns and sausages. We justified our two large unlimited meals by saying “we have a long day on the road, we’ll burn it off”. However, I’m pretty sure we packed on a few pounds as a group and some of us didn’t feel so well at the end of the day. Other than our fast food extravaganza not much took place in Altus due to thunderstorms that continued all throughout the next day, but it was a nice quick stop that allowed us to put yet one more state on our route.

Hello loyal B&B fans! T.G.I.F.! Congratulations on making it through another grueling work week. We at B&B are still confused on what day it really is in the “real” world; I found out it was Friday a mere 2 hours ago when a nice man at the LBS (local bike shop) told me to have a good weekend. 


Today, our route had us making a once in a lifetime pilgrimage from the great Decatur, TX to Wichita Falls, TX. A grand total of 77.3 miles of glorious Texas highway lay before us as we woke up at 5:30 to head out from the Methodist Church hosting us right downtown. They had cooked homemade egg bake with either sausage or cheese alongside bagels and cream cheese (a wonderful departure from PB & J). I sent off 6 or 7 postcards at the post office directly across the street before I left, so there is no excuse for not receiving mail from your B&B rider of choice.


The route today took us on US-287 for 68.4 of the miles today, which consisted of loud semis and other traffic passing constantly. Now don’t get worried, the shoulder was plenty large to support riders riding side by side, however, on the other side there was a strong wind, maybe 15-20 mph. Coincidentally, at the beginning of the day I was riding alone thinking that the day would not amount to much to write a journal entry about, yet, no more than 10 minutes after that thought, and about 40 miles into the ride, a semi passed me very close as I was descending from a climb. I was in my aero bars, which made controlling my bike a little more difficult, so I swerved and then my front tire went sideways and I flew over the handlebars while going approx. 25 mph. All and all I am fine…a couple battle wounds never hurt anyone. I am truly sacrificing body and mind while “fighting” affordable housing.


I biked the rest of the way after borrowing a wheel that was not bent from Aylin’s bike, since she is riding Eleni’s because it is larger and more comfortable for her. Sara was amazing and volunteered to stay late at lunch for me to fix up my bike and wounds and then we rode together the rest of the way to Wichita. After we arrived in Wichita, a group of 15 of us went to a wonderful Mexican restaurant for the not-so-special-lunch-special.


Following the unlimited salsa and chips that we took complete advantage of, Jon and I went on a epic adventure to find the supposed bike shop. After going the 3 miles in the wrong direction and making numerous wrong turns, we stopped at the local steel mill to ask for directions. We were ushered to the local young person wearing a slipknot shirt who alerted us that we were only 2 miles away and hot on the trail.


At the bike shop I got my wheel re-trued and a replacement part for the aero bars that I broke the day after buying them. Back at the Y the rest of the group was giving a presentation about our trip to the itty-bitty-teenie-weeny kids in daycare. Also, a bunch of people went to a local waterpark where they went on the “cliffhanger” ride that apparently was much the rage.


Dinner was provided by the YMCA and it was an amazing amount of pasta, much more than all 32 of us B&B could eat, which is truly difficult to do. Later into the evening people found an old-school parachute toy where people all stand around and hold onto handles and you put balls and other things that fly around inside. Instead we put people into the center, wrapped them up, and all pulled back at once to make them spin in circles. This provided a good hour of entertainment and made us all feel like even younger kids than we still are.


The evening is going strong, laundry is slowly being done on one washer and one dryer, people are all laying around in the gym reading, fixing bikes, talking, giving/receiving massages, and one lonely person is writing the journal entry. I am off to go socialize, maybe play some cards, but I hope all of you enjoy your weekend and that is provides much needed relaxation and rest. As for us B&Bers, we will be up at 5:30 again biking approximately 85 miles to Altus, OK.


Enjoy the rest of the evening,


Brad

This morning started with another knock-out tournament- a basketball game that has become an obligate activity in any gymnasium we stay in. Erica had three flats before the ride even started, but thankfully there weren’t too many more through out the day. The ride itself was a nice change from our usual state highway roads. The first half was on city roads that offered more towns along the way for detouring. The group I was riding with stopped at a sporting goods store to pick up a sweat band for Brad. The roads were relatively smooth and we were lucky to have a tail wind for a while. The lunch stop was ideally located in a shopping plaza equipped with a Wendy’s, Walmart, Wachovia and more. As we entered Decatur we passed by a petrified wood gas station and Lisa got a flat tire. She road it the three miles into town like a trooper. Decatur is a very small quaint Texas town and maybe one of my favorite small towns to date. Brad, Lisa and I went exploring and found a great thrift store where I got a great shirt for 54 cents and Brad got a jersey for a dollar. We also explored the town’s courthouse and went into a great little gift shop. There was a post office right across the street (thanks for the all the mail- keep it coming!) so most people sent out the post cards they’ve been holding onto for a few states now. The church we are staying in made lasagna and a wonderful salad for us for dinner. After dinner we had both our “town meeting” and our affordable housing peer presentations that had been postponed while we were in Dallas. Aylin spoke about health care, Susana presented general housing statistics, Saskia delved into statistics related specifically to poverty and Anahita covered homeownership demographics. Then most of the group went to the town square to watch an outdoor movie and give a presentation on Bike and Build to the townspeople. Roger beat-boxed in front of the town and our choir sang “The Star Spangled Banner” as well. The movie of the night was “Little Rascals” so most people stayed for half an hour- but by 9:30 we were all tired and left the movie early. So here I sit, Roger, Joe and Mandy are singing making beautiful music together while others are reading, sleeping or eating. Goodnight from Decatur!

--Sara

Of all the wonderful days we’ve had over the course of this week, today was probably the slowest paced. We woke up at the congenial hour of 6:45 to the smell of 90 scrambled eggs, cooked by Ryan, our master chef. We felt like mad scientists as we scrambled the mixture together, but the eggs turned out all right, and prepped us nicely for our build day in Dallas.
Today’s build was a big change from previous ones—instead of working in the heat, we built in the comfortable Dallas Area Habitat for Humanity warehouse. We nailed walls, doors and windows together, and in the end built ¾ of a house frame. It’s tough to nail sometimes—I think all of us have experienced the frustration many times over of hammering in a nail sideways and needing to pull it out—but we’re definitely getting better. Our group is so unbelievably easygoing—people are able to keep at things until they get the hang of them without getting too frustrated. By now, we’re pretty experienced at building (thanks to our week in New Orleans) and I think today, to some extent, we felt like we were doing things that we already knew how to do. I think we all have a basic understanding of the steps you need to take to actually build a house, which is all any of us can ask for coming out of a trip like this.

After the build, a bunch of people came back to our church gym and passed out, while others hopped in the van to take a much needed trip to the local bike shop. Aero bars were definitely the most popular item of the day—some of us are just sick of all the pressure we put on our hands, and with the windy roads of West Texas awaiting us, their ability to make people, basically, into anti-wind machines make them a good investment for many. They also make you feel like a professional cyclist racing through a time trial, which is always an added bonus. We’re now mopping up, with tortilla chips, the zesty tomato sauce that we made yesterday with the jalapeno peppers and tomatoes that were donated to us along the road, and I’m about to go out to meet my roommate from this year, who lives in Dallas. Mostly, I think we’re just trying to rest up for what lies ahead. Personally, I can’t wait to see a part of the country that I really never thought I’d ever come to. I have absolutely no idea what to expect, and I love it.
We’re having an awesome time and getting lots of donations on the road, too, as we inch our way towards across Texas towards New Mexico (weird)


--Zach

Howdy.


On a bright, sunny morning, thirty-two warriors clad in spandex, clip-in shoes, helmets, and camelbacks, set out on the 99.1 mile trek to Athens, TX: an all inclusive package with highs and lows (around 97 and 96 degrees, respectively) and ups and downs (the first half of the ride was particularly hilly).


No but seriously now, this ride could not have been more chock-full of every blessing and every misfortune you could ever imagine. The roads were bumpy, the rolling hills did not stop rolling, the invisible enemy (wind) demoralized us with every pedal stroke, and at mile 60 I (and apparently every other rider as well) got chased up a hill by an big angry black dog that appeared out of nowhere at my ankle and before I knew it I had accelerated from 8mph to 20mph and my heart was beating out of my chest and I was screaming and hyperventalating.


BUT! at mile 70, a rest stop at the home of a bike&builder on another route came at the perfect time, revitalizing the group with every scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream, every handful of trail mix, every fresh strawberry, and every strip of HOMEMADE DEER JERKY (first time eating deer, first time eating jerky. a-mazing). and did i mention the pool!? yyyeeeeppp, there was a pool at the house... and a hot tub!! ohhhh baby.


Shortly after leaving heaven (the rest stop) things started to go downhill again and I got my second flat tire of the trip, and then ran out of liquid around mile 80! As if that wasn't enough, when we (myself and the two girls I was riding with) pulled over to check the cue sheet around mile 93, the salt and sunscreen started to accumulate in my eyes and in a desperate attempt to rinse them out, I grabbed Kelly's water bottle and squirted the liquid into my eyes only to realize that it was GATORADE. omg feel the burn.


The last six miles seemed like hell on earth and I couldn't stop wondering whyyyy I signed up for this, but alas, we arrived at the church to the most wonderful surprise and all of a sudden, all was worthwhile. Two words: Max and Minna-Jane. Instead of staying on a gym floor, members of the church congregation took small groups of us into their homes, and spoiled us silly! Max and Minna-Jane, who hosted Eleni and I, drove us to their home on Lake Athens, took us out on the lake for a boat ride and swim, and fed us eggs and bacon and biscuits and cantaloupe for breakfast in the morning. To say the least, it was the most wonderful night, and our hosts could not have been more gracious, welcoming, and friendly. To conclude, Athens rocked.


--Erica

I awoke at 5:30 to the smell of campfire smoke, one of my favorite scents. Pelican, LA pretty much feels like camp; bunk beds, a lake, giant lodge, paddle boats, soda fountain… you get the idea. And at this already splendid host site we even got coffee, a very appreciated addition to our typical breakfast routine. For those of you not familiar with the sparsely populated area of NW Louisiana, it is densely forested, hilly and truly beautiful. I expected to come off yesterday with some serious stored up energy and replenished legs for today's 73 miles, but how wrong I was- the hills are taking their toll.
I took off in the middle of the pack and started climbing. When the road finally opened up at mile 20 in Mansfield, I was ready for a break and some food. We passed the local Sonic where Roger and Ryan had stopped for shakes, but I was in the mood for something else, Kristiann, Saskia, Anne, Zach and I pulled into the local donut shop "A+ Donuts." If you are ever in Mansfield, LA, I highly recommend this place. You can smell the donuts a block away, they are cheap, delicious and directly on the route. After one glazed, and one chocolate, I chalked the spot for riders behind me.

Once back on the road, my eyes were set on lunch. As I rode w/ Zach I began to anticipate the state line crossing from Louisiana to Texas. As days go on Bike and Build, state line crossings and pictures next to the state sign are always something I look forward to. The crossing would be around mile 41, and I was expecting the Texas state sign to not only be 4 times larger then all other state signs, but I also figured that there was a good chance that this state sign might dispense guns, 20 oz stakes and perhaps play country music. But again, oh how wrong I was.
We arrived to lunch along a dirt road around mile 40. I had been on dirt for about a 1.5 miles before the Eleni came around the corner in the van and told us the road wasn't passable and we should turn around. Ryan decided to be our trail blazer and forage on, while the rest of us went back a half-mile and stopped with the trailer for lunch. I jazzed up my sandwich with goldfish, fritos and almond honey, SO GOOD. Directly after lunch we were detoured through some really rural country roads. Tim and Mal decided to break the BnB record for miles ridden without spandex (or any clothing for that matter), Saskia, Erica and I made it about 5 miles, while Tim and Mal made it nearly 7 miles. Our road adventure was rudely interrupted by the state crossing…. back into Louisiana. Yes, during the fun and picture taking, we had peddled 6 miles the wrong direction and hadn't even noticed that we had been in Texas since lunch. Oh well, no Texas state crossing, and the second time I had to double back.

By the time I made it to mile 80, I was out of water, dehydrated, starving and 10 miles off the actual mileage. I was greeted by a gas station oasis, I joined several other Bike and Builders inside to take refuge from the heat. After a few minutes and with refilled water bottles and a pro-bar, I set out with Kelsey and Graham for the last 8 miles of the trip. Maybe it was the break, or the fact that I was within sight of the host sight, but the last 8 miles flew by as I counted address numbers to
Our host sight here in Carthage is unbelievable, we are staying with Rick and Elaine McPherson in their ginormous house. The McPherson's are parents of an '06 SUS rider and have graciously offered up their home to us for the night. I was greeted at the door by watermelon, sandwich makings, and beverages. They have a large screen TV, a plethora of beds/couches and we even have access to a pool! It's a wonderful place to be after a long, hot ride.


We're finally in Texas!!!!



--Shap

It is with pleasure that I share with all of you our experiences on July 5th. We have had some great build days, fantastic riding days and fun days together as a group but July 5th from Nachitochites, LA to Pelican, LA may just have been our best.


We started late with an 8am wake up call but being used to waking up at 6am or earlier many of us couldn’t sleep that long. Maybe it was our internal clocks waking us that early or maybe the pure excitement of getting back on the road for another adventure. You see each day is a surprise when we start. We know our final destination but are not sure what awaits us on the road.


After cleaning the host site, packing the trailer and having our morning circle all 32 of us played a basketball game called knockout. Everyone got in a line and two people at a time shot free throws, if the first person didn’t make the basket before the next person they were knocked out. Now imagine a huge line of 30 people playing this game laughing, cheering and just having a blast. It went on until only two people remained, Amanda and Maegan, both from Indiana, went head to head. Eventually Amanda came out on top but there was no real prize except for pride. I hope that we have more spontaneous on the spot big group games like this and I have a feeling there is more in store on this trip. Then we jumped on our bikes and set out for our shortest riding day on the trip, 33 miles. A walk in the park compared to the 70 – 100 mile days that we are accustomed to riding.


Instead of racing through our 33 miles and finishing early we all took our time and stopped along the way at every local stop. Some of those stops included an alligator park, fields of hay, local restaurants, and produce stands. Each place we stop peoples’ heads turn, they are curious as to who we are, where we are from, what we are doing and often times how they can help The amount of generosity is inspiring and at times a little overwhelming. On this day we received discounts at the alligator park, a bag of ice to chill the water in our Camel Baks, several whole watermelons, bushels of veggies and cash donations for affordable housing. What is it that makes people so generous? Is it the affordable housing cause? Is it the enthusiasm of our group? The desire to be a part of the cross country trek in any way they can? Whatever the reason people have really opened their hearts to our group.


We stretched our day as much as possible and didn’t start arriving at our host site until after 3pm. Our host was Clara Springs Baptist Youth Camp. There was so much to do that we all kept busy with; miniature golf, hiking, fishing, relaxing, swimming, paddle boats and several other things.


After dinner we celebrated both our country’s independence and also passing our first 1,000 miles with fireworks. The festivities began with the Bike and Build Choir singing the Star Spangled Banner with fireworks exploding right at the “home of the brave.” The choir was in perfect harmony and the show was very entertaining. Afterwards we sang songs and roasted veggies at a bon fire. The fire lasted well into the night for several of us and we discussed those deep questions that often come up only at bon fires, like, “If you could change one thing in this world, what would it be?” So now its your turn, “if you could change one thing in this world what would it be?”


Then I fell asleep outside under the stars, with the crickets, frogs, mosquitos serenading myself and a couple other riders to sleep.


That was one glorious day in the life of the Southern US riders. Not all days are so great but everyday is a surprise, a blessing and an opportunity. We are all so lucky to be able to do what we are doing. If it were not for our hosts, our sponsors, our families and the people we meet along the way we would not be here. I am personally grateful for each and every rider who is dedicating themselves this summer, not only to the affordable housing cause but also to each other and America.


Until my next journal entry, take care and have a fantastic day, week and summer!


--Patrick

Happy 4th of July!


Today we rode 55.6 miles from Alexandria to Natchitoches. After a 4:30 AM wakeup yesterday, 6:00 was a welcome hour and a half of extra sleep.


The morning circle broke on “Independence” and the second round of assassins began. This time, clothespins were given out with a name of a rider to “kill”. Roger and Sara were dead within five minutes before even leaving the host location. At lunch, everyone was hugging another person or their bike to remain immune from being killed. After many deaths, a few riders remain alive and are closely watching their backs so their assassin cannot clothespin them.


The roads were very calm with friendly cars. We passed through flat farmlands and then reached some more hilly roads with thick pine tree forests. There were also beautiful bridges over small rivers which make some of the best picture/break stops during the day.


Since everyone arrived at the Louisiana School of Music, Science, and Arts gym earlier than normal (55.6 miles is now a very short day!) we had lots of extra energy. Games of knockout were started at the basketball hoops. Zach, Ryan, Matt, and Saskia had a very long streak at the end of one of the games, all making their baskets before the next person scored.


Around 7:00, groups left for the fireworks show Natchitoches holds at the Cane River. A local band was playing various oldies and blues. Highlights include dancing the electric slide and Thomas getting his groove on with the band’s lead singer. At 9:00, fireworks were lit over the water. I’ve never been to a fireworks show on the 4th of July (we usually light our own), so it was really exciting seeing all the huge explosions and an occasional misfire.


When we returned to the gym after the show, the gym was closed so we played charades outside. Joe had some impressive acting for Beauty and the Beast, Little Miss Sunshine, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Knockout games immediately started up after the doors were unlocked.


We get to sleep in until 8:00 tomorrow, so we are enjoying a later night!


Lisa

Today we had a lovely 96 mile ride from Baton Rouge to Lafayette, Louisiana. The scenery consisted of wide open fields, pretty houses surrounded by huge lawns, and giant Oak trees with Spanish moss hanging down. Basically, just another day cruising through the beautiful south.
Although the ride was a long one, there was one rider who darted ahead, more eager to get to the night’s destination before the rest of us – Susanna couldn’t wait to bike into her hometown! She rode through pointing out spots of interest, her school, favorite restaurants, etc. After we arrived at our host location (conveniently just two blocks from Susanna’s house), we had the luxury of hanging out at Red’s, one of the top health/sports clubs in the country. Thanks to Susanna’s influence, all 32 of us were allowed to use the facilities for free! Red’s is rated one of the best for obvious reasons and most of us were in awe that people use a club this huge and well equipped on a daily basis. We definitely took advantage of our time, swimming in the multiple indoor and outdoor pools. One of them even had a water slide, and if you put in a lot of effort, you could make it all the way to the bottom before stopping completely. We also really enjoyed relaxing in the hot tub (with the most powerful jets I’ve ever seen), sauna, and steam room. A few brave ones also jumped in the cold plunge – a tub of ice cold water! Apparently it’s great for your muscles, but only the muscles in my little toe know for sure, because I was not one of the brave ones.

After lifting a couple of weights and showering, I returned to the host site to find about 30 people sprawled out asleep on the floor. So I joined them. And when I awoke, it was like all of my dreams came true. If getting into Red’s for free wasn’t enough to make our day, Susanna’s parents also made us a fabulous dinner. There were half a dozen watermelons, an amazing salad, and two huge pots of the most delicious gumbo I’ve ever had. Mr. Lowey was thoughtful enough to make a vegetarian pot with tons of fresh vegetables (you should have seen these snow peas!) and another pot full of sausage, chicken, okra, and whatever else made it taste so amazing.
The rest of the night consisted of the usual relaxing activities and using the kitchen sink to brush our teeth because Tim decided he wanted to lock himself in the bathroom and not let anyone use it because he was sleeping. And we used the backyard for a toilet, but that wasn’t Tim’s fault, the actual toilet was broken anyway.

So all in all, it was another wonderful day in the Bike and Build life. I think I can speak for everyone when I send out a huge thank you to the Loweys for making our stop in Lafayette so great. And Susanna, if you always take this good care of your guests, you can expect to see me a lot after Bike and Build.

Greetings, dear reader. Welcome to the month of July. Named after some Roman Emperor, it is a month of danger, intrigue, excitement, and watermelons! Especially in the south. Watermelons are sweet.


In BnBSUS08 (Bike and Build Southern United States 2008) News, today we set sail from the fair port of New Orleans, laying a course for the less well-known but more state-capital-ish “Red Stick”. Nearly 70 of the 78 miles were on the same highway, so the scenery left a little to be desired, but there were some nice trees and swamps. Also a really cool overpass system that had at least four different levels criss-crossing above our heads. I didn’t really stop to admire it for long, though I did spend a while contemplating how it would be portrayed in architectural schematics.


Today we had our first bike-automobile incident. To all of you concerned parents, let me first emphasize that everyone is safe and ok! A few miles out of New Orleans, about half a dozen of us were riding in a spaced-out line along the shoulder of a four-lane divided highway. Without warning, a pickup on the opposite side of the highway turned, went through the two lanes on our side of the highway, and went into a parking lot. Unfortunately, this involved cutting off Erica, who was the second rider in front of me. There was no way for her to stop in time, and she crashed right into the passenger door of the pickup. The rest of the group pulled over immediately and called 911 and Shap, who was the van driver. The van was there in a few minutes, followed shortly by the ambulance. Erica recovered quite quickly and said that she felt fine by the time the ambulance got there, but the leaders took her to the hospital to be safe. In the end, both Erica and (surprisingly) her bike turned out to be all right. This incident served to remind us that even when we are being careful, obeying all laws, and being alert, careless motorists can still come out of nowhere. I don’t want to frighten people reading this journal-as this incident demonstrated, Bike and Build is very organized and safe-even when accidents do happen, help is on the way almost immediately, and we’re always looking out for each other.


Because the van was taking Erica to the hospital, lunch was cancelled, so we had to fend for ourselves. The group that I was riding with decided to stop around mile 45 or so for our meal. In the mid 40s we began to see signs for what appeared to be a small town. Soon, an establishment of some sort appeared in the distance. Signs and painted walls! Exciting! “Let’s stop there to eat!” exclaimed Talia. Our hopes were crushed by Thomas: “Uh, I think that’s a strip club.” Alas, the sign came into focus: “lingerie Wednesdays!” Thomas was right, our meal was not to be found there. We stopped at the gas station of this “town” where we were assured that there was another “town” about seven miles down the road. (I use the word “town” questionably, because a gas station, strip club, and RV park do not seem to constitute a town. Nevertheless, I’m sure that there was a thriving local community living further away from the highway.)


Anyhoo, after Aylin got a flat while standing still, off of her bike, at the gas station, we trekked on to the next village, where we stopped at the lovely local dining establishment “Mama’s”. The vegetarian options were quite limited, but everyone seemed to enjoy their meatburger thingies, and the service was rather pleasant. We even got to chat with Mama herself, who was newly imported from Florida, and who spoke of her difficulty adapting to the Louisana culinary peculiarities. We took a group picture with her and went on our merry way.


The last stretch of highway was difficult, and with the end so close we could smell it, Zach and I made a break for the freedom of non-highway. I discovered that I could go at 24 miles per hour on flat terrain if I really wanted to. And if I was inspired by someone really fast right in front of me. Just not for very long. We made it to the church/gym, where we discovered, much to our delight, 500 lbs of Whole Foods bakery products! Woohoo! Tasty multigrain bread and tasty cookies and slightly tasty artificial cherry pies! The church folk of Baton Rouge were amazing, providing us with a veritable feast, including (to my delight) much fruit and milk. I’ve been worrying about the lack of fortification in my bones that this low-milk road diet may lead to, so I’m excited whenever one of our hosts provides us with that white tasty goodness.


Some sort of camp/daycare type of thing was still going on in the gym when we got there, and a bunch of kids who seemed to be ages 5-14 or so were running around like the unstoppable little maniacs they were. We played with them for a while, including a very spirited game of duck duck goose, in which Ryan was taken down by two kids who couldn’t have been much past kindergarten.


Also to my delight, this church had several pianos, so we had a brief rehearsal of the BnBSUS08 Chorus. The Star Spangled Banner is getting pretty good, and some of us have started working on Danny Boy. If you haven’t heard about the Bike and Build Chorus yet, ask your Bike and Builder why he or she isn’t telling you about the hottest musical group this side of the Mason-Dixon line. Also, if you have any good choral sheet music, send it to us!


The evening passed quickly, and I went to sleep by 10 or so. For the first day back riding after our week in New Orleans, the day went pretty well, and my leg muscles were feeling surprisingly ok. What a difference a good week of rest can do!


Also, I guess it’s somewhat amusing that I’ve been put into the mindset where five days of building houses is a break.


Bike and Build is so awesome! I love everything about it. I hope that you do to.


Ancient Japanese Haiku Proverb:
River flows gently

Rain rushes down the mountain
Bike flies like eagle


That’s all for today.


Many hugs,

Joe

Today we began bright and early at the usual time after getting to sleep in on our day off the day before. Following breakfast, we went back to our morning routine and headed off to our build site for our last day in New Orleans. Upon arrival, we immediately went back to the task of mudding that we began on Saturday. After a brief tutorial from our crew chief Valerie on how to put tape in the corners of the site, a group of us spent the morning putting yet another coat of mud on the walls. Lunch came quickly and some ate the usual pb & j while others ordered enormous po’ boy sandwiches from a shop nearby. They were 32 inches long and came in a bag that took two people to carry. After we had sufficiently stuffed ourselves and recovered with a group digestion nap on the floor, we got as much mudding and flooring done as we could before the day ended at 3:00. I was helping to clean some tools outside, minding my own business when I felt two hands on my neck from behind and huge clumps of the mud all over me. I turned around to find none other than Joe “the evil mud slinging genius” Maurer making a glorious facial expression that only he is capable of pulling off. It turns out that a group of people inside had conspired to undermine the good work that the cleaning crew was trying to accomplish. After I gotten my vengeance and an enormous group cleanup effort was completed, we filled out evaluation sheets for our leaders, said goodbye, and made our way back to the house. The rest of the day flew by as we savored our final hours in New Orleans with one last run to Café du Monde and a huge group gelato run. Everyone went to bed early as we prepared to hit the road once again.

New Orleans has instantly become our home as we settled in the beautiful blue house of the Episcopal Diocese in the Garden City district. Here we have access to clean sheets, beds (for some… survival of the fittest I guess), high-pressure showers with free shampoo, a fully equipped kitchen, personal laundry facilities, and of course the beautiful streets of Garden City and beyond. In our pseudo-commune style living we have cooked meals and completed loads of laundry for each other, as well as shared some wonderful conversation and jokes on the porch.


For the first three days of building in New Orleans our group split up between two homes, one in the upper ninth ward and the second on the opposite side of town and closer to our host site in Garden City. A group of four Bike and Builders and I joined Josie and her team of enthusiastic flooring interns as they completed tiling and linoleum floors for a woman in her nineties. According to the interns, this woman was passionately engaged in the civil rights movement and possesses countless documents and books pertaining to the events revolving anti-segregation efforts, which have remained stranded on her small cement porch since the flood. We were invited to take a look but the stacks stood in precarious piles and almost seemed to melt together from damage.


The home now is looking quite well. Her son has carefully chosen a humble color scheme for the walls and tiles and we were lucky to see the final product today. Linoleum flooring is quite a difficult skill and I can only say that getting frustrated with these flimsy boards only results in piles of wasted material; I have certainly learned to be patient with it and a little bit of pride comes with completing three bedrooms and celebrating with sock sliding to test the smoothness of our work.


This evening, when most individuals our age in New Orleans spend the night on Bourbon street catching beads off balconies and purchasing overpriced drinks, most of us called it a night after watching just one or two hours of Spike Lee’s When the Levees Broke, an incredibly detailed documentary revolving Hurricane Katrina. Our impressions of the hurricane and flood have deepened as the images in the film and on the news in the past are now physical places where most of us spent time biking around and taking pictures after a build day.


Tomorrow the five of us will be reunited with our greater family of Bike and Build to finish sheet rocking and mudding in the ninth ward before our day off on Sunday. Our time is flying by here but we are so appreciative to stay in one place for more than a night or two and really get to know the city. I hope to leave a more educated and grounded person as we witness the progress, or lack there of, since Katrina.

Today was our first build day in New Orleans and it was awesome! We are working with the Episcopal Diocese, who guts and rebuilds homes around the 9th Ward. The majority of us are working on a home for a family that has recently returned to New Orleans since being evacuated after the storm. When we arrived this morning, the house was basically walls, a roof, and a bunch of studs. By the end of the day we had put up several walls of sheet rock. I can’t wait to see all of the progress we’ll make in a week!
This is my first time in New Orleans and around where we are staying (the Garden District) is in great shape. There are lots of beautiful homes with gardens and wrought-iron balconies. But when you go to the 9th Ward, one of the hardest hit areas, it’s a totally different story. I’m sure you all remember the footage after the Hurricane, but it’s shocking to see blocks and blocks of boarded up houses with spray paint marking houses with the date they were searched and what not. It is so amazing to be helping people coming back to their homes.

Tonight we had a delicious dinner provided by Kelly’s friend. It was BBQ chicken, green beans with bacon, mashed potatoes, and sweet rolls with cinnamon butter. Then we had our Affordable Housing meeting, where Kristiann, Talia, Kelsey, Rachel, and Ryan told us about the history of affordable housing in the US. It was very informative and we had a great discussion about how to make our organization and our trip more effective.
Tomorrow is Patrick’s birthday, so some of us went to Igor’s – a bar/restaurant/Laundromat down the street to pre-celebrate 

I can’t wait to ride to the build site tomorrow and keep working to change lives!
--Aylin

Biloxi, MS to New Orleans, LA


This ride turned out to be about 87 miles or so, but we had predicted it to be around 100 and wa\oke up at 4:30AM to give us all time to get to New Orleans. This is a truly wretched hour and I would advise everyone who reads this to avoid being awake at this time at all costs. I am a morning person myself, but 4:30 is ridiculous.


This was a great ride. We most stayed on US-90 again which skirts the coast most of the way. It was particularly scenic. My favorite part of the ride was Fort Pike Bridge which was huge and crossed a gap next to Lake Pontchartrain. Coming down the other side of that bridge permitted a fantastic view of the small community on a very interesting piece earth.


Check out this Google map to see what I am talking about: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=biloxi&ie=UTF8&ll=30.151065,-89.752121&spn=0.070359,0.10643&t=h&z=13


Riding next to, above, or surrounded by water is my favorite. I like the huge bridges down here especially because they give a challenging climb, a great view, a splendid descent, and truly surreal feeling while suspended many feet above a massive body of water.


After finally getting to New Orleans that afternoon and settling into our host location, I got food poisoning and stayed up all night vomiting. It sucked.


Cheers,
Roger

Biloxi, Mississippi


Our 70 mile ride today was a huge relief after our century ride yesterday! We enjoyed relatively warm weather with the afternoon topping off at 95 degrees. In the morning several riders were able to spot a couple alligators from an overpass we were traveling on. It was exciting to see them in their natural habitat, and it was comforting to know we were far enough above them to be safe. The creative minds in our group were once again able to come up with interesting creations to chow down on at lunch. Examples included PB&J on tortillas as well as peanut butter, pretzel and chocolate syrup sandwiches! Anything tastes amazing after a morning of hard work.


While completing the ride, many of the riders stopped to enjoy the public library, cool down with a slushy from a gas station, or take a dip in the ocean! The roads were pretty bumpy today with a couple flat tires along the way, and construction lead the way up to our final destination just off US-90. Most riders were excited to arrive just to have the opportunity to jump in the water to cool off. Being right across the road from the beach, we definitely took the time to enjoy the sand and water while others headed down the road to test their luck at the casino. The day was pretty relaxing, and tonight we had a group meeting to discuss the upcoming week as we make our way into New Orleans tomorrow!


-Anne Klein

The Century of the Century


So today we started our day in Pensacola, FL and ended in Mobile, AL. It was our first century (about 100 miles!) And between those two places there were many adventures in between.


We were told the night before that we would be waking up at 4:30AM (after being given the option to vote between 4:15 and 4:30…which of course everyone voted for 4:30) We were awaked at 5:30 (an hour after we expected) and we were all called to a group meeting which consisted of everyone viewing a Google Maps representation of the storm that was moving right along our route for the day. There were thunderstorms and rain along much of it. Just great, right?! Not only were we going to be doing a century, but we were going to get the amazing opportunity to do a century amongst thunderstorms! Man we’re so lucky.


So we ended up leaving later than expected to give the rain in our starting destination a chance to clear, and then we began our long ride! I have to say that out of all our rides so far, today was my favorite. My first goal was to get to lunch which was at mile 40. I didn’t let myself think about the 100 miles yet. Just lunch. Just that delicious peanut butter and jelly sandwich that I knew was waiting for me in the trailer (which I now equate with being a beacon of hope because it is the home of all things peanut butter and jelly and delicious.) The ride to lunch was beautiful and some of it was along the Gulf of Mexico, which I had never seen before.


After lunch the next destination was the ferry across Mobile Bay. We were going to have to catch a ferry in the afternoon at mile 60 in order to continue on and were given the option of catching the one at 1:15 or 2:45. I know that I personally am not a fast rider so I left with a group of people who are similar to my pace after I finished eating. We started with the mentality that we’ll try to keep a good pace, but if we don’t catch the 1:15 it’s no big deal. We can just wait relax and wait for the next one. But hah! That mentality didn’t last. As we got going, we started realizing that if we just kept a certain moderate pace we just might make it. And keeping that moderate pace went well for a while, but 20 miles of it was a lot and it definitely began to take its toll. But it was still really obvious that we all wanted to make it there, so we pushed ourselves. I think at some point we all said out loud, “I don’t think we’re going to make it in time.” But luckily none of us would say it at the same time so we had each other to say that it IS possible. So we pushed it.


And to paint the picture of what happened: We saw the ferry in the distance, rode right past Eleni offering us food and water (that takes a lot), and rode right on to the ferry. One minute later the ferry pulled out of the dock. At that point we collapsed on the boat and if you can imagine a ferry boat about ¾ full with cars and in the back some bikers sprawled out on the deck because they don’t want to move- that was us. I have to say that it was a great moment for us. Joe, Talia, Rachel, and Jon were a part of it too and I have to give them a huge amount of credit for getting us there! Great job guys.


Mandy

So yesterday, after hearing that we could take a very scenic, beautiful route to Pensacola, our cue sheets were changed to adapt. Seventy eight miles later—our first long day—we pretty much were all wondering where that easy, scenic ride was. Although today’s ride was long and exhausting, I think we’re all finally feeling confident in our riding. Okay—so most people already WERE confident; I just happened to be the one slow one at the back barely going 10 MPH. Fortunately, I’ve proved to myself that it is indeed possible to go from being the slow kid in the back to one of the first into the host site (though definitely not the first).


The rest of the day was a lot of pretty gulf coast—whenever we could see it—after we got past some insanely bumpy roads. This trip has taught me that a lot of roads just really aren’t paved very well. It’s better than riding in the grass, but it’s still pretty painful to soar down a hill when you’re flying all over the place.


What else to say? We all have some pretty sweet tans, and we definitely all have cuts, scrapes, “cat 5 tats,” and various marks from falling (which everyone definitely does at least once). The weather might be hot, but you don’t really notice it when you’re riding, so hooray for that.


I’d write longer, but I’m already using up an extra 15 minutes to check my mail after this, so I guess I’ll just cut if off here. New Orleans in a few days, hooray!


--Rachel

Today we woke up early to the smell of a home cooked breakfast made by some of the amazing hosts at Trinity Baptist Church in Marianna, Florida. Gene, Joanne and friends arrived at 5 am to prepare a breakfast of pancakes, sausage, fresh fruit and all the juice you could want. After our team meeting and packing up the trailers we had a special police escort from the local deputy Brad. Then we started another exciting day on I-90 with 54 miles ahead of us. About 18 miles into the ride most of our group attempted to find Florida’s Falling Waters State Park. However, only about 12 of us made it to the park and saw what would have been Florida’s tallest waterfall but it was not our lucky day because of the drought so there was nothing to see but the deep pit. So instead we headed back across the park to the swimming hole where we all ran in wearing our biking spandex. After spending about 30 minutes swimming and playing we headed back to I-90 realizing we had added an extra 10 miles to our otherwise short day. It was our longest day yet because of our detour but well worth it. Around mile 39 we met up a the van for lunch where we ate peanut butter and jelly yet again  Back on the road the last 24 miles to De Funiak Springs was excruciating with some of the biggest hills we’ve seen. We finally made it after some of us were cruising at an impressive 6 miles an hour because our legs could not get us up the hills any faster. After arriving at the Community Center of De Funiak Springs many of us headed over to the Boys and Girls Club across the street where we gave a short bike clinic to the kids. After answering their questions and staying to play basketball with the kids we headed back where dinner was provided by one of the local steakhouses. With no presentations or plans we all cleaned our bikes, wrote in our journals, hung out as usual and prepared for our longest day yet of about 80 miles into Pensicola.


--Kelsey

Hey there, lucky readers of the SUS ’08 journal! You’re in for another adventure…


We left Quincy this morning, bright and early, and embarked on another surprisingly refreshing day in the life of a B&B cyclist. Though it’s only been 5 days, each one feels surprisingly new and different. We’ve seen the scenery change drastically multiple times in the course of a single day, let alone 5. Today, as we rode up and down the hills leading out of Quincy, we passed lots of stores and gas stations, as well as some small homes and food trucks. We continued on the rolling hills (still on 90, for the nth day in a row), leading us to wide open spaces with horses and a blueberry picking field. A gallon of hand-picked blueberries later we decided it might be time to leave the sweet old lady and her dog Booger and get moving again. After lunch in Chatahoochee (“a great place to live”) we passed a dam and entered Sneades (“home of the pirates” – did I mention that all of the city signs had really catchy phrases?) and grabbed a lunch break before passing some fruit stands on the side of the road, where we bought the sweetest and juiciest Georgia peaches there have ever been. Did I mention this was 40 miles in? Maybe I’m exaggerating a bit... After a 50 mile ride through what felt like a dozen entirely different places, we finally made our way into Marianna. I guess just being on a bike and watching it all slide by so “slowly” (though it feels so fast!), you really get to appreciate the subtleties. Also: I can’t believe it was that easy to condense 7 hours on the road into a paragraph, but I have no idea how to fill in the blanks! Imagine hanging out with some awesome friends with nothing to do but get from point A to point B. At some points in your ride you think it would be fun to really push yourself, like up hills to get over them. At other points you just want to enjoy the wind in your face, like on the downhills. At still other points, you and your friends break out into uncontrollable singing at the top of your lungs, and at others you just have some great conversations. It’s sort of like a roller coaster: physically, mentally, and emotionally. It’s so cleansing!
We had a really nice dinner tonight provided by the church we’re staying at. Everyone we’ve met has showered us with nothing but love and hospitality. They cooked up a ton of food: meat, vegetarian (there are 5 of us on the trip), a dozen types of dessert, and a huge pitcher of sweet tea (a new favorite of mine). Some regular church-goers also had dinner with us and we got the chance to get to know them and talk about our experiences, which was a nice change; at some of the previous host sites, even if they cooked for us we didn’t get to chat with them. By the way, I can’t overemphasize this southern hospitality; this church made us feel incredibly welcome.

We just got done with our first round of affordable housing presentations, which sparked some really great conversations about what the cause actually is, the relationships between poverty, mental illness, homelessness, and discrimination, and how building affordable housing fits into the bigger picture. These conversations lasted a lot longer than any of us expected, and resulted in what I think we all believe to be some productive ideas.
For all the parents out there, we’re all happy, healthy, having a great time, and truly supporting each other! You can stop worrying 


Love love love love love….


Talia

Day 4 of riding – a distance of 45 miles. The shortest distance ridden to date, yet it was the most challenging ride of all. The day started out well, even though we were not as well rested due to people snoring quite loudly last night. The ride began with rolling hills that were bearable. The rear was not in as much pain as the day before. The weather was perfect. The route was beautiful with a canopy of trees creating shade for the first half of the ride. By the graciousness of Lisa’s parents, we were able to stop by her house and eat tons of cookies (if I remember correctly the record was Anne eating a total of 12) and taking a dip in the pool with the shamies on.
After leaving Lisa’s house, many riders went into Tallahassee to explore the city. However Anne and I continued to ride on to the destination site trying to survive the heat. The road that we were on was very busy with cars and semis which was very unnerving at times when the cars are flying by you in all directions.

As the ride continued the hills became more frequent, the heat more suffocating, and the bum more sore. The last 10 miles was a personal struggle to keep on going and to push through the pain. I can only imagine what the mountains are going to be like…we are only on the small hills of Florida at this point….eek.
After 5 stops along the side of the road and countless hills, we finally arrived at the destination which was air conditioned (you gotta love the south!). It’s funny to think that at the beginning of the day I was thinking that this would be a light and easy 45 mile ride. It definitely did not turn out as expected, but it felt good to make it to the end and stretch out the muscles!

People began to slowly file in after our arrival red and sweaty from the ride. We did our usual abs workout and pushups. After the long day of heat and hills others went outside to run! I may be crazy, but not enough to do that.
As usual, the day did not end with the ride. A news station came after dinner (which was provided by Lisa’s parents- it was delicious!) and interviewed a couple of the riders. It’s exciting to think that we are spreading the word of Bike & Build and affordable housing this early in the trip.

The night came to an end with half of the crew going into town to go to a movie theatre while the rest of us entertained ourselves by shaving the guys legs using water bottles and hair conditioner - definitely a once in a life time experience for me.


Overall, the day was rough but definitely a good one still. The biggest lesson I have learned about cycling these past couple of days – it doesn’t matter how nice the seat or the shorts- your bum will still be sore at the end of the day.



~Kristiann

Day 4 of riding – a distance of 45 miles. The shortest distance ridden to date, yet it was the most challenging ride of all. The day started out well, even though we were not as well rested due to people snoring quite loudly last night. The ride began with rolling hills that were bearable. The rear was not in as much pain as the day before. The weather was perfect. The route was beautiful with a canopy of trees creating shade for the first half of the ride. By the graciousness of Lisa’s parents, we were able to stop by her house and eat tons of cookies (if I remember correctly the record was Anne eating a total of 12) and taking a dip in the pool with the shamies on.
After leaving Lisa’s house, many riders went into Tallahassee to explore the city. However Anne and I continued to ride on to the destination site trying to survive the heat. The road that we were on was very busy with cars and semis which was very unnerving at times when the cars are flying by you in all directions.

As the ride continued the hills became more frequent, the heat more suffocating, and the bum more sore. The last 10 miles was a personal struggle to keep on going and to push through the pain. I can only imagine what the mountains are going to be like…we are only on the small hills of Florida at this point….eek.
After 5 stops along the side of the road and countless hills, we finally arrived at the destination which was air conditioned (you gotta love the south!). It’s funny to think that at the beginning of the day I was thinking that this would be a light and easy 45 mile ride. It definitely did not turn out as expected, but it felt good to make it to the end and stretch out the muscles!

People began to slowly file in after our arrival red and sweaty from the ride. We did our usual abs workout and pushups. After the long day of heat and hills others went outside to run! I may be crazy, but not enough to do that.
As usual, the day did not end with the ride. A news station came after dinner ( dinner was provided by Lisa’s parents- it was delicious!) and interviewed a couple of the riders. It’s exciting to think that we are spreading the word of Bike & Build and affordable housing this early in the trip