South Carolina to Santa Cruz Journal

Hello and welcome to my artful account of our joyful jaunt from Aspen to Rifle
Colorado.

Today was our first full day following our triumphant transversal of the continental
divide. With the booming bulk of the Rockies behind us, we enjoyed our time in Aspen
hosted by the Christ Episcopal Church of Aspen and Reverend Bruce and Kelly Pazar.
Alas, our stay in alpine Aspen was brief- just for the night. So, following an afternoon
and evening of gleeful gallivanting, it was time to move on. Atop our respectable rides
we began our journey to Rifle. Replete with lighter wallets, magnificent memories of the
area, and altitudinous aspirations for Rifle, we departed. The weather that morning was
cool and clammy, but we were Rifle bound.

Much to our enjoyment, our fearless leader, Travis ‘Big Cat’ Hall, had 40 miles of
our path plotted out of Aspen by way of the Rio Grande Bike Trail. We were excited
to discover that this bicycle boulevard was not only free of all motorized traffic and
traveled through some scintillating scenery, but the entirety of those 40 marvelous miles,
out of the ~70 total miles, was down hill. This left ample time for some side-splitting
shenanigans and side adventures.

My ride group that day consisted of: Scott Burger, Sebastian Estenssoro, and Michael
Carroll (our resident hipster), there was also a guest appearance made by the classy
Katie Karas. You are probably wondering just how exactly we took advantage of these
fantastic fourty miles of dizzying downward-sloping terrain. The most entertaining
example was our 2 mile ‘coast off’ outside of colorful Carbondale. We all took one brief
but perfect pedal stroke and “raced” to decide our champion of careful coasting. Despite
the perplexed postures of oncoming cyclists, we all persevered in our attempt to fight
the frustrating effects of friction and dastardly drag. As the competition concluded, Mike
Carrol emerged as the definitive defender of coasting.

The remainder of this doozie of a day had us riding through glorious Glenwood Springs,
simple Silt, and remarkable Rifle. Despite the momentous morning, the later half of
the day was dishearteningly daunting. The 90+ degree heat of the day produced some
calamitous cross-winds and heavy headwinds. To help combat these challenging
conditions, we explored the area around the route in Glenwood Springs. Many of the
group, including myself, swam in the robust Roaring Forks River. Despite some taxing
trials and troublesome tribulations, we rode into resplendent Rifle.
This evening we are staying at a fine fire station in the company of some welcoming and
funny fire firefighters. Tomorrow we have a bonanza of a build day with the Rifle Habitat
for Humanity chapter- I can’t wait!

-Ryan Miller

In the morning we woke up to our first day of really cold temperatures, so we all put on our arm and leg warmers and hit the road. By the time we made it to our first climb it warmed up dramatically and it was time to start shedding some layers.

Then the first climb of the day began. At the top we were greeted with a long descent through a mountain pass into Buena Vista, Colorado where B$ greeted us with our lunch stop for the day.

After lunch Paul, Brian N., Jess and I rolled out together to finish the ride. We had a little bit of a head wind and we started climbing again following along a river. The scenery was amazing with huge rock walls above us and white water rafters in the river below.

When we turned onto the road that lead into Twin Lakes the wind picked up and the head winds were killer. When we finished those last 6 miles and rolled into town it was all worth it when we were greeted with a beautiful lake that were surrounded by the mountains. Our hosts were great greeting us with open arms.

A few of the guys went to explore the town and found a local restaurant where we had burgers for lunch. Then we headed back to the dance hall where we were staying to clean bikes and get cleaned up for dinner.

We ate spaghetti for dinner with some of the members of the community then left for the lake to watch the sunset of the mountains. One of the most beautiful I have ever seen. Thank you to the Twin Lakes community for making us feel so at home and taking such a large group of us in. Without people as generous as you none of this would be possible.

-Zac

Goodbye, Colorado Springs! You were fun and I had a fantastic time visiting, but all good things must come to an end. Today we packed up and straddled our saddles once again, pushing west for Hartsel and the eventual west coast.

Today's route took us over two mountain passes today, Wilkerson (9507 ft elevation) and Ute (9165 ft elevation) and just imagine how tough two passes can be after a week off! But the ride was absolutely lovely and along the way we ran into the Honey Man, who looked like Santa from the Woods. Thank you, stranger, for the free honey stick and pointing me in the direction of lunch! You'll forever be part of my Bike and Build memories. Other honorable mentions: Woodlands Park, the City Above the Clouds, with your dinosaur museum which offered up great photo ops for tired bikers looking for fun away from the saddle. Another shout out goes to the park station at the top of Ute Pass, who just so happened to have a scavenger hunt going on and rewarded riders with stickers, badges, and temporary tattoos of Smokey the Bear. Kudos!

Rolling into Hartsel I met up with an antelope with whom I had a staring contest with for several moments on the road side, and just miles from the destination I ran into a chilly rainstorm which I was sure could have produced snow if it so pleased. Brrrrr! But after many ups and downs (literally) I arrived safely at Hartsel, a small and cozy town locked away in the Rocky mountains at 8,864 ft of elevation. Chilly chilly times... And what do I see as soon as I roll up to our destination? Riders by the dozen hose showering, aided by the local children who were enjoying themselves by watching us jump around in our skivvies and lathering up as the mountain winds made the moment even more memorable. It was quiet a sight for sore eyes.

Inside the town had cooked up a huge meal of pasta and amazing bread, salad, cookies... and they've even brought us a huge batch of doughnuts for the mooorning! Hoorah! So here we are, bundled down and keeping toasty with each other, looking forward to warm sleeping bags and some much needed sleep.

And before I sign off, I must have one final shout out: HAPPY BIRTHDAY RYAN KERN!



- Kimberly Korzym

On the last day of the blitz build in Colorado Springs we all split up into our groups from the day before to finish the shingles on the roof, the windows on the side of the house and to begin the siding on the back of the house. I ended up working on the inside of the house with Tim, Kelsey, Kim, Sarah, and Lizzy. Throughout the day we worked on various projects to get the inside ready for drywall and cabinets. By the end of the day we were able to finish the siding on the back of the house, put in the final window on the right side of the house, nearly completed all of the shingling on the roof and also finished putting up all of the plywood and blue board on the outside of the house. After we finished for the day, we wrote messages on the studs inside the house for the family. We also had a cake provided by pikes peak habitat to celebrate the blitz build. All in all, we accomplished a lot in a week and I am really proud of what we were able to do.

Karen

Colorado Springs – Build Day #5
We built a roof today! I was on the ground crew, cutting plywood to sheath the roof, and
from my vantage point it was pretty spectacular to see the trusses go up one by one. We
are making a time lapse video of the whole week, taking one photo every ten minutes,
and I’m sure the roof construction process will be a fun part to watch (when we get
around to actually stitching the thing together).

Downstairs, we finished sheathing the house with plywood and blueboard, and cutting
out the openings for the doors and windows (lesson learned: the sawsall is an extremely
fun tool to use). One crew was working their way around the house with this project
while the roof crew was hammering away above their heads.

Obviously, lunch was a highlight of the day, and today Jenny brought us sandwiches
from the California Pizza Kitchen! Not sure how we’ll all adjust back to peanut butter
sandwiches when this week of her spoiling us will be over.

The end of the day was pretty hectic for me, as measurements were being yelled down
at me from the roof faster than I could cut the wood and send it back up there. When the
rain started and cut our afternoon short by a little bit I think we were all a bit disappointed but also ready to collapse after a super productive and super hectic day on the build site.

Super pumped for our last build day tomorrow!

-Eugene Korsunskiy

“Work stops at sunset. Darkness falls over the building site. The sky is filled with stars. “There is the blueprint,” they say.”
-Italo Calvino Invisible Cities

Build day 3 in Colorado Springs. We have finished the flooring, still tinkering with the frames, and beginning to haul the roof trusses on top. All in all things are going along quite smoothly. At this point I have forgotten about the biking aspect of this trip and focused solely on building (my badly hurt buttocks has also forgotten about the two wheeled torture machine tucked nicely away). The building is becoming routine at this point, and everyone seems to be enjoying working together on various tasks.
On another note, the church we are staying at has a consignment shop within it. A few of us cheap crafty and adventurous 18-20-something-olds have taken a liking to the place. It isn’t open but anything we take we just leave the correct amount of cash and a note next to the machine. One thing that captured our attention was a telescope. A fellow soon to be chest-hairless rider named Kern (check further entries to gain more details) acquired the telescope. Although the moon doesn’t rise until 3:30, it has been a catalyst for lying outside in the grass and star gazing. During the nights, Katie K, Kern and I have been falling asleep outside while these wonderful works of nature glide slowly above our heads and lull us to sleep.
So far we have seemed to tackle any task thrown our way by the construction managers, been fortunate with wonderful food at every lunch and dinner, and been blessed with some beautiful nights here in Colorado Springs so that we may slow down and contemplate the galaxies whirling both in our heads and the heavens above.

“Till rising and gliding out I wander’d off by myself,
In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,
Look’d up in perfect silence at the stars.”
-Walt Whitman When I heard the Learn’d Astronomer

-Craig D. Johnson

Every morning on Bike and Build is a joy (who doesn’t love 4:30am wakeups?), but today’s was particularly spectacular because, rather than being roused by fluorescent lights shining into my corneas, my eyes first opened to see the lovely sunrise vista surrounding Colorado Springs. Kern, Craig and I have been taking advantage of the chilly but clear Colorado nights and sleeping outside where we regale each other with stories about the constellations while sleep overtakes us.

After such a glorious morning I was sure our build day would be marvelous, and my expectations were more than met. We got a lot done – almost finished putting plywood and blueboard insulation up around the framing, added the porch supports, started putting up the roof trusses. But, even more exciting than the work we did today was that the family that will be moving into the house came by the build site again and I got to spend some quality time with them.

Jorge and Maria moved to Colorado from Cuba two years ago with their son, Daniel. Seven months ago their second son Javier was born. Though I confess I don’t normally get along with infants (they scare me – judgmental eyes), Javier is adorable. He and I hung out for ten minutes or so until I had to give him back to his mom because he started crying when I wouldn’t let him pull my hair anymore.

Unfortunately, the family hasn’t been able to bond with the group very much because their English skills are limited. Fortunately for me, I speak Spanish fairly well, so today I got to team up with Jorge and learn a little bit about his family. Memo, our site supervisor, also speaks Spanish well so he’s been able to communicate with them about the house’s progress.

While working with Jorge today on blocking between the trusses I learned that in Cuba he worked as a veterinarian. His favorite animals are dogs and horses. He was pretty vague when it came to why they decided to leave Cuba, but he made it clear that he didn’t agree with the politics of his homeland. Now he works for a housekeeping service. In order to be a practicing veterinarian in the US he would need to take a certification test, and before he can do that he needs to improve his English. He understands things pretty well, but isn’t able to go to English classes to improve his speaking skills because of his work schedule. As is frequently the case with immigrants, it’s sad to hear that Jorge isn’t able to practice the profession that he loves, but he says that he’s much happier here than he could have been in Cuba.

I wish I had gotten to talk with the family more, but they were only able to stick around for the morning. The little time I did get to spend with them though was enough to give me that warm good feeling near the heart that Habitat work always gives. It makes me so proud to be on this trip.

Build days are wonderful, but my loins long for a saddle seat.

-Katie K.

We began our blitz build today, and had one of our most efficient days of building so far on this trip. Some of us were still a little sore from climbing Pike’s Peak yesterday, which took most of us about 7 hours to hike the 13 mile trail and climb about 7,000 feet to the summit, but it was totally worth it. The site coordinator split us into 3 groups so that people were not standing around with nothing to do for long periods of time. One group worked on preparing the foundation for the floor joists to be laid, while another group separated the prefabricated walls so they will be ready to be positioned once the flooring is complete, and the last group worked on cutting the floor joists to the correct size. We had an excellent taco salad lunch provided by a woman named Sarah, which we all agreed was probably one of the best lunches we’ve received at a build day so far on our trip. After lunch we started to lay the floor joists, while another group worked on removing the bracing from the recently poured foundation of the house next to the one we are building this week. By the end of the day we had all of the floor joists nailed in place, and we will be able to lay the flooring first thing tomorrow morning. Since the walls were all prefabricated by a church group, we should be able to get all of the framing up tomorrow as well and then we will be able to start building the trusses for the roof. Michael Carroll has his camera set up and is taking pictures every 10 minutes or so to show the progression of our build. He is planning to put together a time lapse video of the build which should be cool when it is finished. It definitely feels good to be out of the saddle for a few days to let our muscles recover and break up our typical daily routine.

-Brad

Walsenberg to Pueblo

Today we biked 116 miles from Walsenberg, CO to Pueblo, CO or as I like to call it, “Pwuebla”. This is the longest day that any Bike and Build trip will have this summer followed closely by our 112 mile day later this summer. Because the Colorado interstate I-25 is too dangerous we have to take a circuitous route through the town of Westcliffe on our way to Pueblo. The trip would have normally taken about 50 miles up I-25.

We woke up at 4:30 in the morning and had a quick breakfast of cereal and yogurt. There were some amazing views on the way to first lunch at mile 40. We had the Spanish Peaks behind us and a major player of the Sangre De Christo Mountains in front of us. There was one mountain with a cloud just sitting on top of it like a blanket “the nom cloud”. As soon as we were 5 miles out, we were hit by gale force head winds that knocked most of our speeds down to around 7mph (while traveling downhill!). This was one day that I was glad my odometer was broken so I couldn’t see how slow I was moving.

There were some reports of forest fires to the west and we passed a large caravan of fire fighters on their way out. I took to the habit of giving ever car that passed by a thumbs up or a wave (all of which were returned in kind). I even got a “hang lose” and “rock on” signal. The 40 miles into first lunch were the hardest experienced on this trip. We had one cyclist bonk and throw up and four other people decide that they could not continue at first lunch. Michael Carroll hurt his knee during the first 40 miles and was forced to van himself. However, later in the day, like the champion that he is, he toughed it out and finished biking to Pwuebla.

After first lunch, the next 15 miles were infinitely easier. We had a slight tail wind (or lack of headwind?) and easily biked to Westcliffe. There, we turned right and headed up into the Wet Mountains. We had another climb to around 7,000 feet through these mountains and then a descent in to Pwuebla.

On the descent, one of our riders took a turn too fast and hit a guard rail going around 40mph. She was airlifted out and took major damage to her knee and cracked her helmet. As I type this, she is undergoing emergency surgery on her knee. Dinner was very somber and I think that a lot of us are pretty shaken up about the accident. Our host graciously supplied an amazing spaghetti dinner, but we couldn’t fully appreciate it, with the event looming over us. I hope that the rider will be alright and able to continue on the trip. I know that we miss her presence already and are all thinking about her.

-Seb

Update: Our injured rider is doing very well. As of this posting, she is still with the route and will remain with us until we reach Santa Cruz, knee brace and all.

Hello All!!

We left Trinidad in the morning which was a great town to peruse on our day off. I even rode the Trolly for a tour around town to learn about one of Colorado’s most historic towns. In the morning we rode to the Trinidad State Junior College where the dining hall had provided us meals for several days prior, and a great breakfast before our ride out. I was taking time eating breakfast and wasn’t really feeling up to the day, knowing there was a ‘big bambino’ on the route, and by that I mean, MOUNTAIN PASS! Nicole and I were both on the same frequency in that respect so we left together, the last 2 riders before sweep left which was Ryan Miller and T.Hall.

The ride was gorgeous and the climb wasn’t too bad, although my attitude adjusted when I got my 4th flat in 3 days, especially after changing my tires the day before from the Kenda stock tires to my Armadillos. Nicole stopped whilst I changed my flat and when sweep caught up I was trying to hurry. The ride carried on, flats happen, they are a nuisance but alas, just a fact of biking. There were some really neat mountain town shops along the way which Nicole and I stopped at. Shortly before lunch sweep caught up to us and B$ who was the van driver that day was riding a few miles before lunch to get some riding time through Stonewall. It was a gorgeous part of the mountains where there was a massive stone wall tucked upon the base of the mountains. I am in such awe of the landscapes and how majestic they are. The shapes and lines are so fascinating and throughout the day my thoughts are often centered on how I would paint what I am seeing, the colors, whether I would use a palette knife or a particular brush be it filbert or angled perhaps. Its fun to daydream paintings all day.

Continuing on! Lunch was near one of the two lakes that were situated on the route. This lake was especially beautiful because the road curved around it as the mountains sat strong and stalwart beside it. The scent of pine was particularly potent which I found to be refreshing. After lunch I was wondering where the summit was. I had started out riding with Nicole but she had gone ahead after a short while with a burst of energy. Climb after climb, the summit was nowhere near, which is a feeling that can really manipulate the mind at that point, which then becomes more difficult to surmount than the physical activity of biking up a mountain to reach the pass. Eventually I found Kim who was in pretty bad shape in terms of how she was feeling on the bike that day, and had already made a call to the van. After some hootenanny and singing of a particular cheerful song that delighted her, we both, probably in 20 foot increments, made it to the summit. We both exclaimed into a loud echo, HELL YEAH!, then down the mountain we went. Goodbye Cuchara pass!

The descent was especially exciting in regards to a wildlife sighting! The road down was peppered with little mountain towns and log buildings, as well as a BEAR! I was ahead of both Kim, and Jillian by that point, and as I’m descending at maybe 33mph., a brown shape sauntered into the road. It took a few seconds to register that it was a full sized brown bear, at which point its steps became hesitant, and I was slowing. My snap judgment told me that this bear was either going to chase me UP the mountain, or DOWN it..and my only thought was to scream and pedal FAST. I yelled “GOOoooooo” to Kim and Jillian, and scared the bear who ran off into the woods. It took me a good 4 miles to calm down from that surreal and scary and awesome incident which included screams and yelps and all sorts of every emotion at once, yet in a good way. As serendipity would have it, I knew it was going to happen that day. Before we were ready to leave in the morning I said to T.Hall that I had a feeling I would see a bear [today], hmm! We stopped at a little village of shops shortly after and spoke to some shop keepers who assured me that the bears are more scared of me than I am of them. At any rate, in the name of precaution, I”ll probably get some pepper spray. I also recently got a snake bite kit for the same reason on account of the rattlers being especially ferocious this year. My dad also recommended this accoutrement, so I took heed to his advice. While in Colorado Springs for the 4th I even found a little sculpted pendant of a bear to commemorate my sighting. T’was a pretty unique day, which is how each day in beautiful Colorado, has seemed to unfold.

Melissa Danielson

You could say we rode into New Mexico that day, but I would say we left Texas. The roads were always a slight uphill, and always cast alongside a headwind that carried the smell of manure or feed or slaughter. Grain silos ros out o the horizon periodically, their size camoflauged in the morning haze and only when you were upon them did you truly understand their monstrosity.
I had remarked that it was perhaps more impressive that these fields used to be wrought by hand not so long ago, rather than the mile long booms that rotate in huge circles, sprinklering the fields per their computerized orders, but, this is how we feed the country and the days past have left nothing but abandoned homes left to grey in the mid-day sun.
The State line between Texas and New Mexico fell adjacent to a rusting irrigation boom on a stretch of divided highway and no sooner had we passed the stretch of land that was once a farm did the wildflowers and grasses appear. The oil derricks and grain silos were replaced with distant peaks and rock outcroppings, the mile long booms with mile long freight trains, and the headwind with a tail as our route turned Northward. There were rolling hills for the next 70 miles, but the grade was such that they were pleasant and you could study the rock faces thoroughly from a distance, rather than putting your head down and trying to sprint the hills. Each crest was about a mile up, then a mile down, such that our long, serpentine path wove its way around the surrounding plateaus faster than we expected given the length of the ride.
We only passed two towns that day. The first was Clayton where the State visitors center was though I didn't stop, and the second was Des Moines because we rode through it expecting it to be larger. The original church was built in 1917, with some subsequent additions in the 50s if I had to guess. I still don't know what people who live in this town do for work as there was nothing I could see being undertaken aside from the highway expansion and the breaking of a few horses. It was off to see homes in such despondency and disrepair set amidst the the sprawling breadth of the landscape. I wonder if Des Moines will ever share the fate of that farm by the State line...

-Michael Carroll

We woke up at 5:00 AM in Spearman pretty sore and generally not too excited to get on our bikes. The ride into Spearman had been pretty rough due to headwinds and a dirt road. We cooked up a lot of eggs in the kitchen of the Union Church, which was neat cause we rarely get fresh eggs. We got on the road at around 6:45 and I rode with Tyler Bowers and Ryan Miller. We rode around 18 mph for the majority of the morning and it was neat because there was no one on the road. After lunch we hit a really nice tail wind, which was a relief. Ryan, Tyler and I averaged about 25 mph after lunch. It was a really fast and easy ride. We missed a turn in the city so we stopped at a gas station to get chocolate milk and ask for directions. Everyone was very nice to us and very helpful, gotta love the south. We got to the First Baptist Church around 11:45, and service was still going on. When service got out we were welcomed by many of the churchgoers. Everyone was very nice, and one man (whose name I have forgotten, but some people referred to him as Doc) offered up his house for us to stay at. I am constantly amazed by people’s generosity. Kurtis showed us around the ROC (the gym area where we stayed). We kept our bikes in the gym and showered up in some of the nicer showers we’ve had this trip. The United Methodist Church came by and cooked us an amazing spaghetti dinner. I know spaghetti is simple, but there was something so right about this spaghetti; it really hit the spot. After dinner we had affordable housing presentations where we learned about education and homelessness. It was a pretty interesting discussion topped off with a nice example from Preston and Karen. A few people ran over to the store and got every one Blue Bell ice cream (aka the best ice cream on the planet). We played volleyball and had a really enjoyable evening. Hit the sack early for a long ride the next day.

-Scott

A rriving to a warm, welcoming sign in the front lawn of the court house.

R ewarding ice cream awaiting our arrival. A first thus far and an absolutely amazing surprise after a long ride.

N apping after a day of battling strong headwinds and blazing hot sun.

E xperiencing the exceptional generosity of our hosts and a phenomenal meal.

T esting our tolerance in scolding hot showers. Group consensus: we will stick with cold showers!

T eaching kids the biking basics at a local park and test riding recumbents.

-Saraaaaaaah Barry

The ride from Oklahoma City, OK to Watonga, OK was fantastic. There was
an awesome tailwind, and so all of us riders arrived fairly quickly to lunch. Everybody
arrived into Watonga by 1:30ish. We also received some food donations (thanks Natalie
and B$’s mom)! Natalie got $25 worth of food donated from Walmart and Brian’s
mom brought a food donation from Jumbo food. We had our town hall meeting and a
Jeopardy-themed Affordable Housing presentation from Melissa and Sebastian. Sadly,
this was the last day for Brian’s dad (Mr. Money) to ride along with us in the VW bus
and set up his $ Stops. We will all miss seeing the spray paint on the highway, and
the sliced oranges, Oreos, and Cliff bars. Thank you so much for doing that for us!
Thanks also to the Habitat office in OKC for providing our meals and
May Avenue UMC in OKC for providing us a place to stay, and for the First Baptist
Church in Watonga for providing us a place to stay for the night.
- Jillian

Nichole here

Build day two in OKC started with an amazing breakfast of homemade buttermilk pancakes made by Captain Gerry and Arlene at the beautiful yaght club.

Once at the build site there were a myriad of projects to complete so we all started by laying sod at a home that would be one of two dedicated that Friday. The sod comes on a pallet rolled up in a manor so that when you lay a bundle it all is set down the same way, which made it possible for the larger group to sod the whole yard in one to two hours.

While the majority of the group finished laying sod, Karen, Kim, Melissa and I were finishing interior work on the second house that would be dedicated on Friday. When we walked in, the carpet still had to be laid throughout the house, half the trim had to be caulked and the majority of the trim had to be painted. While we were inside, there were a couple people working off their sweat equity finishing the garage and gutters. By lunch we had completed most of the caulking and painting and the crew was there getting ready to lay the carpets, along with the soon to be homeowner.

After the larger group finished laying sod, they split up to blue board and wrap three homes, one of which was the house we had framed the day before.

It was a really productive day for the whole group, and the first time we all were able to maximize the usefullness of a group our size. I believe we even put them ahead of schedule for a day or two!!

Feeling good from our build day we were once again treated to dinner by David and Habitat and then it was my chore groups turn to do laundry. And quite an experience it was!! There really is nothing like taking over a laundry mat to clean 4 days worth of clothes for 32 people. While waiting, we got to witness a heat lightning show and some colorful characters which made the time fly.

Next stop watonga, ok....

Although most of us would have enjoyed a little more sleep after a rough, difficult ride into OKC yesterday, we woke up early to head over to the yacht club at Lake Hefner for breakfast. Our Habitat host is a member of the club. He has a sailboat at the marina and he races every Wednesday. Before this trip, I would have thought OKC would not be the most ideal area for sailing. But after facing the Oklahoma winds on a bike, I understand why the sport is popular in this area.

We were all stuffed with fresh bagels, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, and fruit. The meal was prepared by a retired elderly couple who were part of the Habitat "caravan" program, which organizes two-week builds for people visiting town in RVs. The couple that worked with us were from San Diego, CA, but one was originally from OKC. Based on what they told me, I thought the caravan program was very interesting. After getting to know the personalities of people on this trip, I could potentially see many Bike and Builders becoming caravaners in the future.

Once we were a little more energized by breakfast, we headed off to the build site. The house we worked on was located in an area that was all Habitat houses. About 100 houses were in the neighborhood and about half of them were already complete. All of the houses were made from brick. Although bricks are considered expensive building material in most places, the Habitat leader told us that the necessary components for brick are abundant (and therefore inexpensive) in Oklahoma.

Upon arrival, we found out we would be working on framing. For the first couple of hours, we had to put together the wall pieces. We all worked very efficiently because the parts were already marked. Some of the specific pieces (i.e. door frames) were spraypainted a certain color and we simply matched the colors together like a puzzle. Each group had to hammer together their section of the wall. I worked on a section with B$,Angela, and Sarah. Fortunately, there were plenty of hammers so everyone could work. We were ready to raise the first wall by about 10 am and raised a second wall shortly after. At noon, we put down our hammers and ate our burritos that were donated by Chipotle. After lunch, we completed the rest of the walls and raised the remaining parts. This was a very successful build day because seeing a build site go from foundation to complete framing was amazing. Knowing that we helped build the "backbone" of the home was very gratifying. Before heading off for dinner, we put up some plywood on the corners to add extra support. I hope we can progress tomorrow as much as we did today!

Today's ride was supposed to be around 96 miles but for me, I knew I was going to add a few extra miles to make it a century. The day before (which was our scheduled century) I had a terrible migraine and only ended up biking 70 miles of the 106. So basically I just wanted to get my first century down this day. Preston and I rode together just like most other days. For the longest time we were waiting to see this flat and windy Oklahoma that B$ was talking about. Well, we definitely got some of the wind and did a ton of climbing all day. We had B$'s dad still setting up $ stops for us at miles 20 and 80 with two lunch stops at 35 and 70. Without these little pit stops, it would have definitely been a much harder couple of days.

I was a hot day and I could tell it got to a lot of people. Kelsey and Kim were getting spacey towards the end of the ride heading into the city. Coming into town was pretty annoying with all the traffic lights and the last mile was especially brutal with a direct headwind. Preston turned into the church but I was still 4 miles away from the 100 mile mark so I went head first into he wind for another two miles and turned around and flew back with the tailwind to hit my century. All in all it was a good riding day.

After arriving at the host we were immediately shuttled to dinner without showers. Dinner was provided by a friend of Habitat for Humanity. I arrived a little late and ended up eating a Chipotle burrito in the van on the way so I skipped dinner at the house. However, the blueberry cobbler they had for dessert was amazing. I'm pretty sure I ate 3 plates of the stuff.

After dinner it was time for showers and then getting prepared for the next two days in OKC working with Habitat doing some framing and yard work. Everyone was a little worn out from the two really long days back to back so we were excited about finally having a couple of days off of the bike.

-David

So I just want to start off by thanking the Knights of Columbus for hosting us in Russelville. Everyone was really kind and the hospitality was above and beyond.

They day out of Russelville and to Fort Smith started out as usual with some music to get the packing started. Followed by everybody doing their chores to get the trailer packed, coolers packed, eat breakfast, and get the host site cleaned. Once all those were done we were out getting the the bikes ready for the 79 mile ride ahead. Todays ride entailed the longest stretch of road that we would be on so far. About 67 miles of the 79 were going to be spent on AR-22 W.

The weather once again was going to be hot, so an early start was key. We hit the road a little after sunrise and had an awesome morning ride. We biked by some scenic lakes and some cool bridges. Have B$'s father out there between lunch stops was extremely helpful with the long stretch of roads. It kept my mind sane, as I had intermediate destinations to shoot for. I biked most of the miles in the morning by myself as a I stopped to take lots of pictures of the gorgeous lakes we were biking by. Catching up the people at the first B$ stop was nice. I rolled in and saw Katie, Craig, and Jessica getting their groove on having a blast and tons of people just relaxing eating oranges and sipping on some gatorade.

Trying not to get to comfortable I continued to ride with a couple of other riders. Chatting and pacelining a little bit helped get to the next lunch stop and the second B$ stop quickly. Following those pit stops we reached a crossroad, whether to continue riding and get out of the heat or go Paintballing! The group determined that it was an opportunity that we could not give up, PAINTBALL. I had never done it so I was super excited. We got 10 people to come and do it so we could get a nice discount. We divided up into 2 teams: Paul, Katie R., Brian, Zac, and Angela vs. Craig, Kern, David, Katie K. and myself. We decided to play 3 hit kill rule, which seemed to be a good idea as long as people were honest. At the end I think some people realized that was not a very a good idea.

The first game went to the opposing team (Paul, Zac, Brian, Katie R., and Angela), with Paul really causing some damage. Many times I got out because things seemed to be stagnant to me with everyone staying at their position and just waiting for the other team to attack. I didn't get to bruised up in the first 3 rounds as I got hit in the face almost every time. David and Katie got a couple of bad ones as I nailed Katie in the arm up close and David got shot in the butt by Paul at the end of a round as he was trying to retreat.

So after the first 3 games Angela and David left, creating a 4 v 4 situation. This last game we got Paul back for all the damage he caused us in 3 games. Things started off the same with people taking a position and holding it. Kern and I crawled to the right side hiding behind some pipes and opened fire when the other team was not expecting it. We eventually had Paul trapped in the middle with Craig firing from one side and Kern and I firing fromt he other side. He decided to rush us for some reason, which lead to about 9 bruises as Kern and I lit him up with paintballs rapid fire. From there it was pretty much over with Katie running out of pressure.

Following this last game we handed in our equipment and continued our journey in dirty spandex and even sweatier jerseys. It was enjoyable though as we talked about all the funny battles during paintball making time fly by. We arrived at the Wood Memorial Christian Church and got settled in. Some people decided to lift weights and do ab exercises. The ab exercises routinely happen but after the hot day we had just endured it was a little surprising. The host provided a delicious dinner putting many riders in food comas. The rest of the day we just relaxed and got ready for 106 mile century to Henryetta, OK.

I would like to thank all the people who have support the SC2SC riders and are following our adventure. It means a lot to everybody to know that we have so many people supporting us. It keeps us pedaling and motivated, and I thank you for that.

-Varun Sehgal

Everyone wanted to say it. We all couldn’t wait to ride it.

The Big Dam Bridge.

This bridge that is alit in rainbow florescence at night is the pride and joy of Little Rock. The local cycling club, who graciously hosted a marvelous BBQ the night before our ride out, energized us with stories of how we’d have the opportunity to cross the longest pedestrian bridge in the USA. Travis, our fearless driver and leader encountered a curious dilemma when he tried to cross the PEDESTRIAN bridge with Cinnamon (our van) and Pierre (our trailer). He got creative and re-routed, as did our favorite on the road support Hippie Shag Wagon, Mr.$, or Butch. He made Money Stops for us on the road, marking the mileage in brilliant fuchsia. Oranges, Oreos, mints, jerky, Clif bars and Gatorade! He set up paradise stops that tempted us to stay and mingle longer and longer each day. THANK YOU SO MUCH BUTCH!! We could never have done it (nor enjoyed the rides as much) without you!

The day was one of the longer rides I’ve had. Arkansas was experiencing an intense summer heat wave and we had the luck to ride through the thick of it. (It is often difficult to enjoy the beautiful country roads when you are sweating profusely.) The day became a delirious memory, passing the time joking with B$ (Brian), Craig, and Katie K,, playing 20 questions, the ABC game or asking deep delving inquiries (like edible underwear, yes or no?). Our day, already tortuously long and hot soon took a turn for the worst. Roughly 8 miles from the destination, we attempt to turn left onto our desired street across train tracks and are stymied by a train! We are forced to find refuge under a tree. In the shade of some person’s tree, I remember, today is a very important day! My brother’s graduation had occurred that morning! Distraught I shot up and made a quick phone call. Even though I was off on the summer trip of my life, I was still not excused from congratulating my little brother at graduating from high school. Yet again, another dilemma about this summer, you love life riding your bike every day, but it complicates your connection to those you love who are far away. All of us struggle to find a balance, to foster relationships with our fellow riders and yet to also show our love to our friends and family. During the call another train came from the other direction and also sat idle on the tracks and street crossing, causing us to continue napping. The fantastic sweep, Kelsey and M.Dee caught us while we lounged waiting for the trains to move out of our way. Soon enough, but not too soon, the trains sallied away. After a distressing re-route along country roads and a quick snack break so we wouldn’t bonk for life, we made it to the elusively located Knights of Columbus! They served us a delicious BBQ and baked us a delightful chocolate cake! We kicked back, watched some TV, made a Wal-Mart run and generally passed out very early, exhausted from the day’s ride. A last highlight was that Mr. Money made us all good luck bracelets that adorn all of our bikes. It means the world to me when I look down at my handle bar and I see the beaded chain and I know that I am loved. Thank you again for all your support, everyone who has helped us along the way!

Today we had our 2nd day off in Little Rock, AR. I started out my day by sleeping in until 8:30. It is amazing how early we wake up even when we don't have to wake up at a specific time. Some people rode bicycles downtown and others (like myself) were shuttled downtown in our van. When we got downtown Karen, Brad, Angela, Sarah, and I all went to the Bill Clinton Presidential Library. I learned today that Bill Clinton started Americorps because he believed service at a young age was important. I think Americorps is a really cool program and I've definitely thought of it as an option for my year off from school next year. After the presidential library we walked to the River Market area and I ate my beef pad thai, Jillian's tofu pad thai, and Zac's chicken pad thai. (They were both too full to finish theirs, so I had to eat it.) After that I got a call from my dad and he came to visit me and follow our route for a week. I went back to the community center and invited him to come along with us to Heifer International. My dad, Brad, and Eugene took a tour of Heifer Int and I was really impressed by their organization. The tour highlighted the Green Building they implemented while building their headquarters. Their ceiling is at a slant so it will collect the rainwater in a 30,000 gallon barrel to be used in the bathrooms and other non-drinking water locations. It is cool to see how you can make adjustments like that to save money over the long term. After that my dad, Varun, Katie R, Lizzy, and I all went to the Flying Saucer to have one of their 200+ beers on tap before dinner. For dinner Natalie got Olive Garden donated and, after speaking with Tyler, a local gent bought us 12 pizzas. Now we are currently sitting around watching Game 7 of the NBA Finals. A few people bet on the game but I just want the Celtics to win.

-Brian P

Today we rode, hard and dirty. We began our journey in Stuttgart, Arkansas (Kansas with a preemptive “ar”). It all started much like any other day. Alarms began sounding promptly at 6 am, followed by the sound of thermarests deflating immediately after, and glossy eyes on dazed faces staring blankly at unpacked luggage. The day had begun.

It was difficult to leave Stuttgart. Our hosts treated us better than they needed to, helped make a community pool open to our team of riders, provided a delicious taco bar dinner, and treated us to a movie that I am predicting will be a monumental piece in the cinematic world – The Karate Kid. With that being said, I need to take a minute to thank Austin and the Grand Avenue United Methodist church for welcoming us into their facility, giving a bunch of us awesome church softball t-shirts, and making Stuttgart a memorable stop on our trek across the country. We will wear your softball shirts proudly across the country. Go team.

But now back to the beginning of our post-chlorine/post-cinematic morning. Tensions ran high early. A combination of exhaustion from the 95 mile ride the day before and having to face the fact that, yet again, the heat index for the day was well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Yikes. The trailer crew – those responsible for packing the trailer in the morning – was feeling the heat early as they had to stand outside in the already sweltering heat. We may have been awake before the sun was up, but the wrath of his heat was still very present. Well done trailer crew for braving the outdoors early. After the trailer was packed, coolers were filled, and breakfast was eaten, we all started looking forward to the “short” ride to Little Rock. It has started to seem more and more humorous that 54 miles is now considered a short ride, but in the shadow of our 94 miles the day before those 54 miles seemed like a cake walk.

During the ride we experienced some of our first real encounters with head winds. All of us pounded through our reserves of water that are so conveniently strapped to our backs in an attempt to stay hydrated and cool down while the sun beat on our backs. However, everyone seemed to be in good spirits about heading to a major city, and having a manageable ride for the day. The scenery through Arkansas is spotty, but mostly gorgeous. We passed over rivers, rode through small towns, and finally came across the large bridge into the city of Little Rock.

After getting to our host location the search was on for food. A bunch of us meandered towards downtown Little Rock and found ourselves at the farmers market - a wonderful place that has food from several different ethnic cultures including an Indian cuisine, a heavenly burrito stand, and of course your standard American grill. We were overwhelmed with variety, and in the end we all settled for what we knew best - cheeseburgers. Downtown Little Rock is a very interesting place to find yourself. Between the multiple dueling piano bars and the other hipster joints to explore, it’s easy to get lost and indecisive about what to do. A large group of us headed to a park on the river that was doing a showing of The Blindside. I don’t know that I have ever sat and watched a movie with that many people at once. We were all gathered on the side of a hill facing an amphitheater that had the Arkansas River for its backdrop. It was gorgeous, and also fun to be out doing something and feeling involved in a city as opposed to sitting in another church or community center. It’s easy to get in to ridiculous routines of biking, showering, sitting in the church, eat dinner, and sleep. That is not an experience I’m willing to have. Put me on the town or on a mountain that we didn’t need to climb in the first place. No more mundane schedules!

All of us are anxious for our day off in Little Rock tomorrow, there is so much more to explore. I hear that the Bill Clinton presidential museum is a must see attraction. I can’t wait. But for those of you who are still remembering to check up on our SC2SC crew from time to time, thank you for your interest in what we’re doing. It means more than you will ever know to have your support.

Till the West Coast,
Paul

Hello! We biked 96 miles from Clarksdale, MS to Stuttgart, AR today—our first day requiring 2 lunches! Everyone did great, and our host Austin Hayes at Grand Ave United Methodist Church provided a delicious dinner and breakfast,in addition to taking us to see the new Karate Kid in a real movie theater. Very exciting! Here is a more interesting version of the day. Enjoy.

Once upon a morning cheery, while I awakened sore and weary,
Over many a snarling and stuffy Bike & Builder snore,
While I started slowly packing, noting the clean chamois that are lacking,
Suddenly there came a rapping,
And of some one gently clapping,
Rapping from my laptop’s core.
‘Tis some Lupe Fiasco,’ I muttered, ‘rapping from my laptop’s core –
Only this, and nothing more.’
Ah, distinctly I remember, it was 6 months from December,
And each separate B&B member felt the sun’s rays upon their limbs four.
Eagerly I ate my breakfast; vainly I had sought to swallow – swallow the day-old
bagels
That were donated a week before –
For the rare and radiant baked goods which cafes often provide
Are rarer still in Arkansas countryside, for evermore.
And the whisping whooshing sounds of each Giant bike
Thrills me – fills me with fantastic pride never felt before;
So that now, to still the burning in my legs, I stood repeating
‘Tis 96 miles to Stuttgart, Arkansas – just 96 miles to Stuttgart; -
That is it, and nothing more.’
Presently, my will grew stronger; coasting then no longer,
‘Karas,’ said I, ‘or Karen, truly your company I implore;
But the fact is I feel like chatting, and so this road you keep attacking,
Attacking this route until the hour four,
And so we continue to pedal, and of our life stories we explore,
That I scarce was sure we could continue on
And Karas and I did a century by biking an extra four.
As downtown Stuttgart was a-nearing, long we talked of a Sonic appearing,
Fearing, doubting, dreaming dreams every hungry cyclist has dreamt before;
But our terror was soon abated, since four blocks was equated
To be the distance between Grand Ave UMC and the Sonic door.
Then we rode off to the drive-thru, rejoicing together as a vegetarian crew,
Ordering grilled cheeses and ice cream, as is now tradition to do.
Back into the gears we’d been grinding, Karas and I left in search of finding
The public pool that Austin Hayes gave us access to.
As we dunked into the aqueous clearing, our brains relaxed and our muscles
stopped searing,
We recognized nothing about this summer was a bore
And that we could bike centuries evermore.

The day started well with the company of some very impressive cyclists from the wonderful Oxford Cycling Club. After getting to know them quite well the evening before at a much needed pool party, we were very comfortable to accept them into our pace lines as they led us through the back country of Mississippi. Now, if you haven’t learned already, us bike and builders are tough as nails and we can conquer pretty much any obstacle on the road but these next few it were definitely an interesting test for us. Country roads turned into patchy macadam and macadam into gravel patches but we simply gripped our handlebars just a bit tighter and enjoyed the beautiful farmland passing by. Sometimes all you need to do is take some time to smell the roses along the road and enjoy the scenery and the roughness of the road seems to disappear entirely.
That day also marked the introduction of a new concept to the crew; long, straight, flat, headwinded roads that seem to go on and on without end. This seemingly simple 38 mile stretch that completed our ride today tested the metal of most of us as we trucked along at a steady 8 to 12 miles an hour. Some of us stopped various times to slip into coolers at gas stations and to refill on some ice to help make the heat more bearable and to break up the monotony of the ride. We eventually all arrived victorious in Clarksdale after a long day in the Mississippi sun but I think I can speak for everyone that it feels good to know that we had it in us to keep pedaling and to complete a day that seemed like it would never end.

Lance Nissley

Today started out as usual. We woke up to the sound of someone’s alarm going off fifteen minutes before our actual wake up time. While most of the team waits for the lights to turn on and MOB’s music to start playing before considering getting up and starting the day, others, specifically those on trailer crew, get up and get moving earlier. We did our normal routine of trailer loading, clean up, and last minute degreaser and chain lube to our bikes. After the trailer was packed, we had an amazing breakfast consisting of cookies, muffins, and pastries donated by a bakery in town. We eat a breakfast of champions here at Bike and Build. We also had cereal and bagels that the Habitat for Humanity of Tupelo provided for us. Thank you so much.

We had our cue sheet meeting as usual and Kelsey McKinney was chosen to do the dance move of the day. She did the “cold shower” dance; however she did not perform the preceding moves. She instead proposed doing only the most recent in order to speed up our departure process, yet this caused some tensions with prior dance choreographers. So after that debacle and a good laugh we left the church and started our 55 mile trip to Oxford, Miss.

Once again Mississippi roads were amazingly vacant. We got to ride on the Natchez Trace Parkway for six miles. This is a famous bike route in Mississippi which had newly paved road and a generous shoulder. It was actually recommended by the Oxford Cycling Club because the other route planned was known to be dangerous to previous cyclists. (We took the safest route possible… don’t you worry.) During the ride, we were on an extremely deserted road for 27 miles, which allowed riders to spend time talking and enjoying the ride without worry of passing vehicles. Our lunch was on this road as well. We used both shade tents for the first time and it was great. The route today also included some hills which created some excitement along the country roads. Some Oxford Cycling Club assisted in adjusting our cue sheet entering town, cutting off a mile or two on our way into the host location.

We stayed at the Oxford-University United Methodist Church, two blocks outside of the Old Miss campus. After showering and getting some food to eat once the coolers and bins we’re unloaded, some of the guys went to watch the World Cup game at a local restaurant. I headed into town with a few others to buy Mississippi post cards and books at a local bookstore called Square Books. Then Jessica, Ryan Miller, Sebastian, Nichole, MOB, and I went to a frozen yogurt place called YaYa’s. It was self-serve, so it allowed us to continue our food binge in public. “Pretty baller” but that’s just what Jessica had to say about that.

We had our first pool party hosted by an Oxford Cycling Club member’s house. We played Marco polo and lounged around in the floats, in order to cool off after a very hot and humid day of biking. We may or may not have gone swimming during a thunderstorm, but don’t worry we had certified lifeguards AND noodles incase rescue was needed. Dinner was delicious. The cycling club provided lasagna along with amazing southern deserts.

After dinner ended, we went back to the Old Miss campus for a free concert at their amphitheater. Some of us played Ultimate Frisbee while others took a nap in the quad. I stayed at the concert for a little while, but then headed back to the church with a group of riders. In the words of Paul Paino, “[Brian] wanted to take in the sights and sounds of the city from [his] thermarest.”

Overall, today was a lot of fun and we only had two flats during the ride (way to go B-rad and Angela). Thanks to Lance and Melissa for sweeping.

-Brian Nahas

We rolled out of Hamilton UMC stuffed to the gills with eggs, hash browns, bacon, sausage, biscuits (some covered in “chocolate gravy”) and OJ. Special thanks to the guys in Hamilton who volunteered to come in early to fix us all breakfast.

We had a short ride (50 miles) into Tupelo, Miss. – the birthplace of Elvis Presley. But the roads made the ride seem a lot longer. A 3 ½ mile stretch of US 78 was a nightmare. I figured the fastest way to get off that road was to avoid a flat. I just pedaled up the hills and did my best to swerve around nails and the ridiculous amount of debris cluttering the shoulder.

Rested at the lunch spot but was too full to bother even after 35 miles. Went to a small grocery store just off the freeway – I think Don’s Grocery – where Tim gave us two heaping bags full of bananas, apples and nectarines. He’d seen some of the faster riders pass by earlier and asked me what we were all doing.

The next 15 miles went by pretty quickly, especially on the high of “donation magic.” A nice rain helped cool me and Lizzy Whittemore down as we rolled into Tupelo.

We were anxious to get to St. Luke’s UMC to hear about the condition of another rider – Jessica Crumpler – who’d fallen after her tire got caught in a groove. Turns out she just needed five stitches in her elbow. She has a nice wound to show for it but is fine. She even road the remaining three miles after falling.

My ride was nearly uneventful. Then, this old man in an equally old Caddy turned left across my lane of traffic in Tupelo and nearly mowed me down. Lovely!

I was a little on edge after that close call but only had a few miles left. The warm showers at the church and pizza provided by Northeastern Mississippi Habitat for Humanity made everything better.

Awesome quote: “Put a little South in ya’ mouth” – printed on the menus of local restaurant Romie’s Grocery.

-Kelsey McKinney

We woke to a breakfast put on by our hosts at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Decatur. The kids from the boys and girls club joined us as we prepared ourselves for the ride at hand. From all of us a huge thanks to everyone at St. Luke’s for everything they did for us. After breakfast we went through the normal pre-ride routine and hit the road.

It was a perfect day for a ride although there were few things exciting about the route. Katie took an arbitrary detour and missed the lunch stop but somehow ended up meeting up with us on the correct road. After about ten miles I saw Sarah pulled off the side of the road with a flat so I helped her put in a new tube so she could get on with her ride. The rest of the day consisted of navigating a few hills and potholes until we arrived in Hamilton, AL at our new host location Hamilton United Methodist Church.

Our hosts greeted us we cots to sleep on, which is a luxury for us, and extra padding to put under our therma-rests. After cleaning ourselves up at the local high school we had a spaghetti dinner back at the church which was phenomenal. Thank you so much to Hamilton United Methodist for such a great dinner and for taking all of us in. After dinner we gave a presentation to our hosts, did some bike maintenance, then went to bed so we can do it all again tomorrow.



Zac Maas

Sweet Home Alabama-- Decatur, that is. Now let me start off with two things: One, Alabama is an amazingly beautiful state and two, the people that we have come across here are amazing! I am so glad that SC2SC has come through Decatur. This morning we set off for our build site and work quickly got under way. Today's major job was siding a beautiful habitat house that is nearing completion, along with caulking the interior and a few other odd jobs. Unfortunately we did run into a small hiccup when it started raining half way through the day, but we kept on working nonetheless. In the end the house's siding was close to the finishing mark and the interior completely sealed.

I must say that I am quiet jealous of the future homeowner! You can tell right off the bat that the house will be quiet a stunner when it's finished, and to that I believe the women of Decatur's Habitat for Humanity deserve a big round of applause! Those ladies have done a fantastic job. I would also like to sincerely thank everyone that helped make the day such a blast- especially to those who baked all those cookies! I know that I enjoyed my fare share of those, that's for sure. The packed lunches and veggies were a great hit as well, and I am positive that not one person went hungry.

So once again, thank you to everyone who helped make Decatur, Alabama such a great stop!

And without further ado, a Bike & Build tribute song set to the music of Ole by Bouncing Souls:

Bike and Build, no one can beat us
We drink Nuun and pedal clipless
Anywhere we get the urge
We're off to find the Pacific Coast
Grab those helmets and yo chamois
Off we go to ride about
Day or night we're having fun
We won't stop until we're done
We have heart when we bike
Take you on any night!

Between brushing your teeth and pumping up your tires every morning, between breakfast and lunch, between pedal revolutions and hammer strokes, between point A and point B, between the myriad of tiny mundane proceedings that have filled every day of the past two weeks, it’s been easy for me to forget the epic nature of what we’re all doing. Even the phrase “biking across the country” has been used so many times recently that the accomplishment it signifies seems to have been equated with something like “reading a book” or “making a sandwich.”

Every now again when I’m riding, I catch myself drifting off into this losing-sight-of-the-awesomeness-of-Bike-and-Build, and then make a point of reminding myself and those in the immediate vicinity just how amazingly lucky we are to be doing this. We’re barely two weeks into the trip and I’m already sad for when it will be over. But that bridge can be crossed later.

We had a wonderful day today. Before we left Scottsboro, of course, we had to swing by Alabama’s number one tourist attraction – the Unclaimed Baggage Center! It’s a unique place – kind of like a thrift store, except all of the stuff comes from baggage left unclaimed at airports for more than 90 days (so it’s actually nice stuff). While I couldn’t find any item that called to me, several of us walked out with some killer American flag bandanas, hats, fabulous sunglasses, Sesame Street books, shoes teleported from the 1980s, etc. Needless to say, we didn’t get on the road for a while.

Once we finally managed to get out the door, we were in for a beautiful ride. The weather cooperated, as did the terrain. (Which is to say, there were no thunderstorms or 4000-foot climbs.) All day we were riding through rolling hills of rural Alabama, getting barked at and/or chased by the local canine population. Good times.

When we got into Decatur, unloaded the trailer at our host church (many thanks to St. Paul’s Episcopal for the hospitality!) and scrubbed off multiple layers of sweat and sunblock, we headed to dinner at the world famous Big Bob Gibson’s BBQ (thanks to Habitat for Humanity of Morgan County for our meal!). I opted for the stuffed baked potato – an enormous spud filled with sour cream, cheese, and a mound of pulled pork deliciousness – and we had a game of “let’s see who shall conquer whom.” I think it was a draw.

After dinner, we made it back to the church for a surprise cake-and-ice-cream birthday celebration for Sarah Barry, who is 22 today! Somehow, I magically located a secret compartment in my tummy which the potato had missed, and squeezed some sugary goodness into it.

Happy birthday, Sarah!

- Eugene Korsunskiy

Today we were riding from Rome, Georgia to Scottsboro, Alabama. This segment of our journey, in my opinion, has been our most physically daunting and mentally taxing yet. As I sit here typing this journal entry, I am nursing a sore knee and very very sore quads, but I think I can manage a few more lines!

The morning started off great. It was cool and significantly less humid than the previous days. Most of us were sore from the long ride the day before, so getting a spin was pretty tough. The first half of the day started off with more rolling hills which eventually tapered off in to a long stretch along a valley floor. Leading up to lunch the terrain changed almost instantly. The ride went from pancake flat roads to a serious mile or two climb, thankfully the trailer was waiting at the top.

Following lunch at Cliff’s Point, the summit of Lockout Mountain which was our longest climb yet, the group went down to the Little River State (National?) Park about a half mile down the road. After a short but tenuous decent down the side of the mountain in our cleats, everyone got a chance to relax and swim around in the Little River and explore a bit. In all it was a welcomed respite from our bike saddles and the climbs.

With a good lunch, a little swimming, and a baaaad case of lunch legs, part two of our day kicked off. Once we left lunch, the terrain did not let up. The rest of the afternoon saw the group grinding it out through rollers and more, but mercifully shorter, hill climbs. Everyone was getting measurably tired and fatigued, but I can assume that everyone in the group got a serious second wind about 12 miles out of Scottsboro. Just when the hills felt like they were never going to stop a beacon emerged from the trees in the form of a blinking yellow light and a sign that said ‘13% grade for the next 3 miles’. Never in my life has a road sign brought me so much relief. For the next three miles we were treated with an exhilarating white knuckle decent. Most of the riders hit speeds well over 40 mph. Yet as with all decents, it ended too soon and we were still a few miles out of town. Thankfully we were through with hills for the day and the remaining few miles into town were relatively easy.

The ride today caught my by surprise. Not only was I surprised in terms of the difficulty but also in terms of the variety of landscape. I am from New England and never did I expect parts of Georgia and Alabama to remind me so much of home. The route had us rolling through some impressive countryside, climbing some serious grades, passing through some dense canopy roads, and crossing open pasture and farmland. I guess it speaks to my lack of knowledge about the topography of our country, but I would not have thought before this trip that this area of the South could look so much like New Hampshire or Vermont. In addition to raising awareness for affordable housing, this trip gives you a great opportunity to avoid the interstates- explore back roads and take the road less traveled.

Tonight we are staying at the St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Our hosts graciously provided the group with a fantastic pulled pork dinner, with all the fixins of course, and plenty of snacks and drinks. The barbeque was amazing. Although I am a yankee by blood, I went to UNC Chapel Hill for my undergrad and consider myself to have a good appreciation of the art of barbeque. During my time, I had some great vinegar-based Eastern North Carolina barbeque- arguably the only real style of barbeque. Now I have sworn on many occasions that no other style can even compare, but I have been proven wrong. There is a new super power in the world of barbeque, and it is from Alabama.

On a lighter note, my bike, Tina, named after a waitress in Greenville, South Carolina at one of THE BEST breakfast places around ‘Gene’s’, has been holding up well. After these past few days of climbing the headset has been making some pretty crazy sounds (bad sounds), so I will probably have Travis, one of the leaders who dabbles in fixing bikes, take a look later tonight/ tomorrow.

Tomorrow morning we are heading to Decatur, Alabama and our third habitat build day, and hopefully saying goodbye to the hills. In all, the day was long, filled with a few impressive climbs and disappointingly short decents, but it was still a great day in the world of Bike & Build. At this point I am not sure as to what tomorrow may bring, but I am definitely ready for it, hopefully my legs will choose to cooperate!

-Ryan Miller

There comes a point on every tour when preparation and planning come to an end, when the road opens up before you and you find yourself thrust into the present. Some say these moments are where adventure truly begins. Those people, the ones that say that adventure begins where preparation ends, are wrong, for the most part. I think that the trip thus far, leading up to Rome has been entirely adventurous. We’ve come together and explored one another, we’ve gained trust and worthwhile fulfillment while enjoying ourselves to the fullest. Regardless some pause needs to be had to recognize a few unexpected yet majestic moments from our ride to Scottsboro.

Te begin, my bike, Mephistophelese suggested that the day would be best if my belly was met with a cup of coffee. I gave in and found myself in a local coffee shop talking with a friendly and jubilant gentleman. After some time, with caffeine dancing through my brain the man let loose a theory that all woman were secretly plotting against men. This was followed by a self deprecating comment about schizophrenia and directions to, “always take out the trash and remember to change your socks”. At that point Mephistopheles called me to ride. It was time to get on and see the day.

So we rode. We rode comfortable and enjoyed the lush countryside of Georgia as it mingled with Alabama, “the beautiful”. We paralleled a small mountain range for a ways until we put it directly in the cross hairs of our shifters and powered forward. Implicitly we all knew that there was no tunnel under this range, yet I think we still had room to hope. This was, however foolish and we began a grueling accent in the mountains, slowly slowing as we climbed higher and higher. At the top of the hill? Lunch. It was stellar.

Even more cosmically fantastic were the water falls that were nearby. The slowly rolling waters leaped over a short set of falls and made the water look as though it were a slow churned ocean surf, ripe for the playing. So we played. The scene was lethargic and glutinous as all feasted on the natural wonders, and basted on the rocks.

Back on the bikes we got lost. A road that was said to exist, did not, or at least the road did not exist in a manner in which we so desperately wanted it to. Although a minor hang up we have become quite resourceful with finding new paths and gained the confidence to direct ourselves on those paths. Mephistopheles is helpful, too. In the end we all arrived at our host location by the end of the day. A broader metaphor perhaps?

All in all it was a great day of riding and passing the time adventurously. Many of the riders felt that the day was the best day of the week. Our hosts in Scottsboro and Rome were also fantastic and gave us a full service experience that we are grateful for and will remember indefinitely.

Play Love Create
Ryan Kern & Mephistopheles

Today we were riding from Rome, Georgia to Scottsboro, Alabama. This segment of our journey, in my opinion, has been our most physically daunting and mentally taxing yet. As I sit here typing this journal entry, I am nursing a sore knee and very very sore quads, but I think I can manage a few more lines!

The morning started off great. It was cool and significantly less humid than the previous days. Most of us were sore from the long ride the day before, so getting a spin was pretty tough. The first half of the day started off with more rolling hills which eventually tapered off in to a long stretch along a valley floor. Leading up to lunch the terrain changed almost instantly. The ride went from pancake flat roads to a serious mile or two climb, thankfully the trailer was waiting at the top.

Following lunch at Cliff’s Point, the summit of Lockout Mountain which was our longest climb yet, the group went down to the Little River State (National?) Park about a half mile down the road. After a short but tenuous descent down the side of the mountain in our cleats, everyone got a chance to relax and swim around in the Little River and explore a bit. In all it was a welcomed respite from our bike saddles and the climbs.

With a good lunch, a little swimming, and a baaaad case of lunch legs, part two of our day kicked off. Once we left lunch, the terrain did not let up. The rest of the afternoon saw the group grinding it out through rollers and more, but mercifully shorter, hill climbs. Everyone was getting measurably tired and fatigued, but I can assume that everyone in the group got a serious second wind about 12 miles out of Scottsboro. Just when the hills felt like they were never going to stop a beacon emerged from the trees in the form of a blinking yellow light and a sign that said ‘13% grade for the next 3 miles’. Never in my life has a road sign brought me so much relief. For the next three miles we were treated with an exhilarating white knuckle descent. Most of the riders hit speeds well over 40 mph. Yet as with all descents, it ended too soon and we were still a few miles out of town. Thankfully we were through with hills for the day and the remaining few miles into town were relatively easy.

The ride today caught me by surprise. Not only was I surprised in terms of the difficulty but also in terms of the variety of landscape. I am from New England and never did I expect parts of Georgia and Alabama to remind me so much of home. The route had us rolling through some impressive countryside, climbing some serious grades, passing through some dense canopy roads, and crossing open pasture and farmland. I guess it speaks to my lack of knowledge about the topography of our country, but I would not have thought before this trip that this area of the South could look so much like New Hampshire or Vermont. In addition to raising awareness for affordable housing, this trip gives you a great opportunity to avoid the interstates- explore back roads and take the road less traveled.

Tonight we are staying at the St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Our hosts graciously provided the group with a fantastic pulled pork dinner, with all the fixins of course, and plenty of snacks and drinks. The barbeque was amazing. Although I am a yankee by blood, I went to UNC Chapel Hill for my undergrad and consider myself to have a good appreciation of the art of barbeque. During my time, I had some great vinegar-based Eastern North Carolina barbeque- arguably the only real style of barbeque. Now I have sworn on many occasions that no other style can even compare, but I have been proven wrong. There is a new super power in the world of barbeque, and it is from Alabama.

On a lighter note, my bike, Tina, named after a waitress in Greenville, South Carolina at one of THE BEST breakfast places around ‘Gene’s’, has been holding up well. After these past few days of climbing the headset has been making some pretty crazy sounds (bad sounds), so I will probably have Travis, one of the leaders who dabbles in fixing bikes, take a look later tonight/ tomorrow.

Tomorrow morning we are heading to Decatur, Alabama and our third habitat build day, and hopefully saying goodbye to the hills. In all, the day was long, filled with a few impressive climbs and disappointingly short descents, but it was still a great day in the world of Bike & Build. At this point I am not sure as to what tomorrow may bring, but I am definitely ready for it, hopefully my legs will choose to cooperate!

-Ryan Miller

ny other.

I biked today, which was quite like most others. The loveliness of this ride, however, was far from ordinary.

It started out with hills. How they rolled! Up, then down, back up again! My legs pedaled, my heart pumped, my legs burned: I felt alive.

The day was so magnificent, so light that I feared it would become unbearable. I glanced at my cue sheet – Lead Mountain Road. It struck fear to the core of my being. A mountain. A leaden mountain. Flashes of Orks and Mordor haunted me. Would I make it? Could I surmount such a climb?

Yes and yes and boy oh boy was it fun. The dreaded mountain turned out to be nothing but a mile or so climb of a grade that left my thighs lightly roasted but far from burning. The descent went on and on, slow drops fading into fleeting flats.

Things seemed like they couldn’t get any better. I was sure my contentment had reached a climax. But…what’s that in the distance? A sign for the Elowah Indian Mounds?!?!? I kid you not, fair reader, this route – to whose loveliness my words cannot do justice – actually took us past an amazing Native American monument.

I paused at the sign and waited for my trusty pal Craig, knowing he would surely join me in such a venture. We chalked a sign urging any followers to join us and headed on our way.

A mile down the road the mounds came into view. Such mounds as I’ve never seen! Rising from the ground in looming shapes above us, supple and firm as well-formed breasts. We thrust our legs with increased fervor, urged on by the sight of these mounds.

But, alas, the mounds were fated to elude us. Today, being a Sunday (What? We don’t keep track of days on Bike & Build.), the park was closed. We stopped. I looked at Craig. He looked at me. We knew what we had to do. We slid our bikes between the fence posts, prepared to take whatever steps necessary to sate our appetite for the mounds. An inconveniently located park ranger, unfortunately, drove by at just this moment, thwarting our mound-passions. Mumbling a hardly-believable excuse about needing to fill up on water, we fled the scene, hearts shattered.

With images of mounds floating before my eyes, I finished out the ride. Arriving at our host in Rome, the Westminster Presbyterian Church my disappointment melted just as the buttery granola cookies that greeted us melted on my tongue. A bike mechanic that a member of the local Habitat affiliate had hired was on hand to do some minor repairs on our bikes, and a fellow cycler who doubles as masseuse stopped by to give some full-body massages. Life was good.

Having stuffed myself with cookies, I worried I wouldn’t be able to fit in any dinner. Upon seeing the feast laid out before us by Habitat members and a few Rome cycling enthusiasts, I knew this wouldn’t be an issue. I filled my plate, ate my plate, went back and refilled my plate, at my second plate, went back and refilled my plate with dinner, and then was promptly hit by nausea. Then I went back for more dessert.

Well-fed, rested, I leaned back in my chair, ready to spend the rest of my evening in a relaxing food coma. And then, in came the chiropractors. A Habitat member, sensing the tenderness of our bodies, had called a chiropractor friend of hers who just so happened to be at a barbeque – with a bunch of other chiropractors. They came over to the church and readjusted all of our backs, necks, and hips that had been wrenched out of place.

Back aligned, body relaxed, stomach full, and heart brimming over with joy, I now prepare to sleep, happily wedged between several of my new best friends. As I sleep I am sure to dream dreamy dreams of gratitude to all the kind folk we’ve met today, whose generosity seems to know no bounds.

-Katie K

Athens is a wonderful town. It is even better when visiting with 31 of your closest and personal best friends of whom you have previously met a week prior to arriving. Home of the B-52’s, REM, and many other bands, it is also home to the Georgia Bulldogs. College atmosphere, delicious food HUGE shout out to Holy Cross Lutheran Church, and southern hospitality—I was sad to leave.

The Athens to Norcross ride was a very special one to me. Why was it special you ask? Well, that is because I was sweep that day. What is sweep you ask? Sweep is when you are paired with another rider and carry a first aid kit, along with inner tubes and extra tires (and if you are daring and hungry like myself, you might substitute a water bottle for a cup of boiled peanuts in your water bottle holder). It was a longer day due to the amount of heat and hills, but it was a blast nonetheless.

I was sweep with Jessica Crump (J. Crump) as she is known. The ride was long and hot but we made the most of it. Soon after lunch we passed a Fire Station. One look at each other and fifteen minutes later Jessica and I were dressed up like firemen and walking out with t-shirts (pictures will be up soon). After singing, screaming, and groaning at the hills we decided to stop in at one last gas station for something to tie over our sanity. I decided on a red slushy and a frozen snickers. Upon giving the cashier my “bike and build schpiel” I walked out without paying a dime J. We then commenced on tackling a few more hills, made yet another stop except this time at Wendy’s for a frosty and fries, and finally arrived at the A. Worley Brown Boys & Girls Club in Norcross. Then it was nothing but a van ride to the YMCA, shower, followed by a wonderful provided dinner at a local restaurant in Norcross consisting of brisket (amazing!), eggplant parmesan, and bunches and bunches of noodles and cookies. Following dinner was a suprise twentieth birthday cake celebration for Karen.

I would now like to end this journal with a quote from one of my favorite books, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance written by Robert Pirsig. I believe he touches at the heart of what we are experiencing here out on the road.

“You see things vacationing on a motorcycle in a way that is completely different from any other. In a car you’re always in a compartment, and because you’re used to it you don’t realize that through that car window everything you see is just more TV. You’re a passive observer and it is all moving by you boringly in a frame.

On a cycle the frame is gone. You’re completely in contact with it all. You’re in the scene, not just watching it anymore, and the sense of presence is overwhelming. That concrete whizzing by five inches below you foot is the real thing, the same stuff you walk on, it’s right there, so blurred you can’t focus on it, yet you can put your foot down and touch it anytime, and the whole thing, the whole experience, is never removed from immediate consciousness.”

As much as I could reminisce detail after detail about these rides, there is no way that the words written here can capture what we are experiencing with every pedal. So I ask you, the reader, the friends and family, wonderful churches and community centers who have all helped us in one way or another, to roll down your windows, become part of the scene that surrounds you, and always, always, always, take time to smell the roses.

-Craig

Coming off of our first build in Charleston, our group was really excited to be able to get back onto a build site and complete another project. Our project in Athens had nothing to do with building, though. On this day, we became Bike & Destroy. Our group headed out to the east side of the city to a group of two buildings made up of eight apartments each. Our mission was to tear out the drywall and walls of two of the sixteen dilapidated apartments and clean them out to prepare them for further work by the Athens Area Habitat for Humanity. It was quickly apparent that two apartments would be no match for our group to 32 eager beavers and we spread to two additional apartments to tear out the interior. By the end of the day we had torn out enough drywall and material to fill an entire construction dumpster, and even had to get people on top to push down more drywall so it would all fit. Once again it goes to show what kind of progress can be made by our group, on the bike or off.

We’d like to thank the Athens Area Habitat for Humanity for the chance to build (or destroy) with them this year and for the awesome pizza lunch we had at the build site. And it’s amazing to show up back to our host at the Holy Cross Lutheran Church for another delicious dinner provided by the congregation there! (A big thanks goes to Bonnie Johnson for all of her help in setting up our stay in Athens! You made my life in particular so much easier for those two days!)

Happy Travels,

Travis

We rode from Hartwell, GA to Athens, GA today. So far Georgia has been extremely generous to us. Between the hospitality we received last night, and the incredible meal we received tonight, courtesy of the Holy Cross Lutheran Church, we have been spoiled thus far in this state.

Today’s ride was pretty hilly compared to other days, but it was also relatively short, so it wasn’t too bad. We spent most of the ride on the same road, which was a little monotonous, but it made it easier to follow the cue sheet and less people got lost than on some of the other days. It was also another good day for “Donation Magic” as we were able to achieve Brian’s goals by acquiring 2 extension cords (1 requested) and 4 cinder blocks for the trailer stand (1 requested) along with a $10 gift card from Piggly Wiggly.

Tomorrow we have a build day in Athens, which should be fun. On our last build day, we tore a roof off of a house and replaced it, which was pretty awesome, so hopefully tomorrow will be equally as exciting. We are almost one tenth of the way across the country now, which is pretty cool. Everyone seems to be getting along really well and that is making this trip that much better.

-Brad

Ride from Greenville SC to Hartwell GA

Today we rode from Greenville, South Carolina to Hartwell, Georgia and crossed our first state border! I rode for the day with a few different groups of people. I started off with a large group and quickly ended up riding by myself for a while. The ride was a little hilly, but was a lot of fun. Just before lunch I met up with Preston and David and rode with them for a while. We decided to stop at Dunkin Donuts to see if they had any donuts to donate to us. They were able to donate 3 dozen! Then we stopped for lunch next to a small lake and I headed back out on the road with Megan, Nicole and Melissa. After a few hills, we broke up and just Nicole and I rode together for a while. Just before the state boarder we met up with Katie K and went swimming in a huge lake for a while. It was very refreshing. Then we crossed into Georgia and took some pictures with the Georgia sign. When we crossed into GA, we decided to stop at Home Depot to work on the ‘donation magic challenge’ of the day, which was a shade tent. This was definitely the highlight of my day. I was so surprised to meet people there who were so willing to help our cause. The Home Depot that we stopped in didn’t have any shade tents, but Sheryl was extremely generous and donated a tent to our trip personally, for us to pick up in Athens. It is unbelievable how this woman, who we had never met, was so generous because she believed in the cause. This just reminded me that we are doing something amazing this summer. After this, we rode a couple of miles down the road into Hartwell, to the Hartwell First United Methodist Church, where we stayed for the night. They provided an amazing dinner, with burgers, both veggie and meat, along with tons of fruit and goodies. It was delicious. Then we chatted about with some people from the church, which was the perfect end to an awesome day. Thanks again to the Hartwell First United Methodist Church community for housing and feeding us so well!

- Karen

A well needed day off! Our second day in Greenville, SC was also our first day off since we started riding. It’s hard to believe a person can cross a state so quickly. We have all been enjoying our journey, but I will admit that I am quite sore and this day off was exactly what I needed. Days off mean sleeping later and relaxing. I slept at least 9 hours and then took several naps throughout the day.

Once most of us were up and moving we split off into several small groups to find breakfast. I went with a few people to a place called “Quick Ricks” for a very good meal. A little later in the day we followed Bill West to the Hincapie facility where we saw some really cool bike gear, which included seven (one from each year he won) of Lance Armstrong’s Tour de France jerseys. Thanks to everyone at Hincapie for letting us stop by and for answering our many questions.

We ended the night with an excellent meal provided by Bill West and his family. Thanks Bill! The meal was held at Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria in downtown Greenville. We had the entire upstairs to ourselves, complete with multiple pool tables, 4 dart boards, a seemingly endless supply of food and great music.

This was our last night in Greenville and we thoroughly enjoyed our stay. I would like to thank the Trinity Lutheran Church in Greenville for hosting us both nights. Also, thank you to Keri at Whole Foods for getting us a generous gift card for groceries.

- Preston

Today was a 65 miler to our last stop before we enter into Georgia country! We set out, geared up, hydrated and were ready to roll 32 deep- spacing out in small groups of course, safety first! We were met with persnickety weather and just before the half-way point around mile 30ish, the skies were foreboding some wicked rains. We stopped at a gas station complete with a Burger King and were covered by shelter for our lunch stop, but it began to downpour, thunder and lightening. Wait we did, then we rolled out for the rest of the ride. It was pretty rough with the heavy rains; we have to be really careful for typical road conditions, as well as puddles or any water on the road that could interfere with the traction on our little tires. It was a pretty tedious ride and a lot of people had accidents because of the rain. I took my first spill off my bike as soon as my tires hit the metal part of the tracks, not soon after someone else had fallen on the tracks a few yards behind. Some of us are a little scraped up, but no biggie, we had our teammates there to patch us up and keep morale going which I was especially thankful for.

We all made it to home base which was Trinity Lutheran Church in Greenville, NC. Many thanks to Trinity Lutheran for hosting us at their wonderful facility, for both the later portion of the ride day and our day off. We are so thankful for the folks who support our route and initiative in so many ways. We each did our fund-raising to be a part of the process but there are so many dimensions to making each route successful on a daily basis. The shelter and food for 32 people is quite significant! Not to mention the laundry, clean-up crews, bike maintenance issues, you name it.. As I get to know my fellow riders more, it is apparent that the support we have felt from our families, friends, communities, hosts, sponsors, random inquiries, etc., have been tremendous.

I’m in a pretty good place mentally and mostly physically given some soreness from my spill today, no biggie. It has been awesome riding with people and chatting. Some of us like to play 20 questions and would you rather?, games wilst riding. The alphabet game is a populate one too, for every letter of the alphabet you aske a question and it can go for quite a long while haha. I get stronger by the day from all of the riding and am really enjoying it. I find myself riding sometimes with a grin as I am thinking how we are actually here and doing this. After much preparation and anticipation, we ARE biking and building! We have a wonderful group as well which has made it a lot of fun so far, and I think we can accomplish so much more working cohesively. Thanks for checking in with us and following along!

For now, I’ll write a lil diddl:

Mother nature and precipitation

You got me rollin’ on with much anticipation

Will the sun shine and freckle our faces

And the golden oat fields aglow beneath the blue hue of sky

or will the sky forebode the fury of thunderclaps,

and the delay of 32 riders well hydrated with their Camelbaks?

Well now, nothing stops us bike and builders

We’re the fleet of 32, comin to the city nearest you!

Melissa Danielson-sc2sc: Erie, Pennsylvania

It rained last night and destroyed all the work we had done on the trailer. Hopefully we’ll have a day when it is nice enough to paint our trailer and have it stay rather than get washed off. Our last two attempts have ended terribly.
It was a very nice day. I started out biking with Lance, Carrol, Miller, and B$. We warmed up for the first 5 miles and then hit it hard for a bit. We lost B$ (bee-money) when we started up a hill at 18 mph. The last we saw him was him muttering how ridiculous our pace was. It was really funny. Apparently, he had similar experiences with the people behind us. At first, I formed a pace line with Lance, Carrol, and Miller but I began to notice how tired me legs were. Lance and I decided to just let Carrol and Miller go at it while we chilled at about 17 mph.

We got our first rain experience shortly later during a brief ten-minute downpour. It was pretty nice to ride in the rain actually. A welcomed changed from the usual sweltering heat. We rode without rain jackets and just enjoyed the coolness. The only downside was when the roads got wet enough that the person infront of you would kick up water with their back tire. I spent most of the day squinting, trying to avoid it.

We met up with Carrol and Miller in a small town about fifteen miles down the road as they were chalking a turn. We kept pace with them until a gas station at about mile 24 where Natalie had decided to stop. We told her that it was a “little” shy of half-way and she pulled back out. But not before giving us some COOKIES. Tyler and Eugene caught up with us at that point and we all rode together until lunch. I realized that Miller might be the best biker on this trip. That guy is a beast. He’s pretty small and very “efficient at moving his own weight” while at the same time not blocking much wind. I, on the other hand, act as a giant windshield. Lance says it is glorious to ride behind me.

The second we got to lunch it started to downpour. Luckily we had stopped at a gas station with a roof. We felt sorry for the sweep (Scott and Kern) and everyone that was behind us. It was really pouring! Because of lightning in the area we stayed at lunch for a while. There was a Burger King in the gas station and some people opted for $1 cheeseburgers while the rest of us played jump rope games.

Once we had a gap in the storm we all took off again. This time I decided to bike with a slower group. It was an easy-going pace and I enjoyed the chill atmosphere. It started to downpour again and we just rode in the rain. The reflective patches I had applied to my jacket that morning were sticking nicely. I think I may try to make a smiley face with them the next time I'm able. It's amazing how fast time flies and how hard it become to accomplish simple tasks.

We all rode together until we were closer to the town of Greenville. It was then that we started to encounter some really monster hills. Fighting through two $1 double cheesburgers, Lance caught up with us and finished the last 15 miles with Brad and myself. I really like hills, they're more interesting than flat land and wind is less of an obstacle for me....for now.
I realized that I had left my camera at the gas station when we had lunch! Luckily some stranger saw it and gave it to Natalie. I have a bunch of cool pictures of people riding, a behind-the-scenes view of what goes on in the van while leaders are bored, and a video of myself, Lance, and Brad biking to some hero rap song.

Surprisingly, the three of us where the first people to the church. Apparently, Carrol and his crew had taken a ten mile detour down the wrong road….Sometimes it pays to go slower. It was a very nice 70 mile day. I felt good through all of it, but am glad that we have an off day tomorrow. Greenville looks like a really cool city and my legs need the rest.

Dinner was on our own tonight. A Bike and Builder alum’s dad bought us some drinks at a local restaurant and told us about his son.

Tonight we’re staying at Trinity Lutheran Church. It’s very spacious and has an awesome kitchen, two showers, and a gym that we can play around in. We’re very lucky to have such generous hosts.

After yesterday’s “extended ride” we were looking forward to having a shorter ride. We did not want our ride to be any longer than it needed to be. Getting out of Sumter was a little difficult. Within the first five minutes, we already had to reroute our route. Apparently Sumter was having some sort of parade, but the route we took was not too far out of our way. Along the way, a group of us missed a turn and ended up taking a dirt road across to get to the main road. It was really crazy how that road led us to the correct road, but the detour provided different biking terrain and different views. We biked on a four lane highway and for the first time I saw lots of hills while biking. I kept thinking that lunch would be over the next hill, but I think I went up and down five hills to get to lunch. We stopped for lunch at a Subway which was nice and air conditioned. We refilled our waterbottles and were on our way to Columbia. Going into Columbia was pretty cool. It reminded me a lot of driving around Raleigh, NC when attending NC State. I got to see the USC stadium, which was HUGE. We tried a little donation magic, but we were unsuccessful. Our host for the evening was the Green Community from USC. We stayed in a common room area on the USC campus. The facility was super nice. Funny thing though was that we had one shower for all 32 of us. It took over four hours for everyone to shower. Some people made a bike store run while others started painting the trailer. After five minutes of attempting to paint the trailer, it started to rain so our trailer painting plans were put on delay. We ended up watching a movie with each other while our hosts prepared dinner. Our dinner was DELICIOUS. It was a vegan potluck. Our hosts and their friends provided us with an assortment of vegan dishes. We gave our famous Bike and Build presentation. It was really exciting that the people were so curious and interested about our trip. After the dinner and presentation, we took our leader Natalie out in the hall for a birthday surprise. She had a luau piñata waiting for her in the hallway. It was funny to watch her swing at the piñata while blindfolded. She was super excited. After the breaking of the piñata, the group headed to downtown Columbia to celebrate Natalie’s birthday. Hanging out with everyone during our free down time is pretty amazing. We all enjoy each other’s company and get along really well. We are super stoked about our trip and the many rides we have ahead.

Jessica Crumpler

Our 66 mile day turned into an unexpected 87 mile day into Sumter, SC. This was my longest ride I have ever been on and all I can say is I was proud of myself for finishing this long ride (and of course everyone else). A true test of our riding abilities both mentally and physically. The reality of our journey across the country truly sunk in. Looking back now a 50 miler sounds like a piece of cake.

Highlight of the day: In the midst of a reroute, Katie R., Sarah, Kern and I passed through the gates of several “Authorized Vehicles Only” signs and ended up at a fenced hydroplant hoping to follow the hydroplant’s road to our next cuesheeted street. But after realizing we needed some direction and maybe we were a little lost, Kern picked up a red telephone and Sandra (the hydroplant’s receptionist) was on the other line (all flipcam recorded by a Miss Katie)- it was absolutely hilarious. It turned out we were so far lost the receptionist didn’t know how to give us directions and everyone we ask gave us different directions.

Crashes of the day: B$ took a fall- so far he is still our battle wound winner, Tyler and Eugene had a crash but everyone is doing well (just with less skin then they had earlier in the morning- let the healing begin)
Lesson of the day: riding through unfamiliar cities will have a few hiccups here and there but having the company of 31 amazing people and knowing its all for affordable housing makes it all worthwhile; not crossing out reroutes will save everyone time- we have all improved on our chalking abilities significantly
We had two champ sweepers: Kelsey and Sebas rode a 10 hour sweep (pats on both of their backs), they were awesome and amazing!

Kerry (David’s friend) brought the group some delicious Chick-fil-a tray of nuggets. Thank you because they made our spaghetti dinner made by our “Naked Chefs” dinner crew that much more tasty.

Special thanks to Trinity United Methodist Church and Reverend Stephen Taylor for letting us stay with them in Sumter. We all really appreciated it and boy were we happy to see the church at the end of the day.

Thanks for following our blog. Let’s see where this adventure takes us all!

-Angela

The morning started earlier than the previous few days had. Not on account of timing, but more so because the compressor had frozen over night for the air conditioning and the sun was beginning to warm the South facing rooms. Linoleum was an unfamiliar mattress, and the +15 degree bag I have made it all the more unpleasant, but I think these things were merely excuses to the pressing anticipation dipping our wheels in the Atlantic.

It was a hectic affair, as everyone had items placed all over and no one was really sure if everything they brought would fit into their bags. Gradually it all came together in a loud roar of zippers and rustling Cordura fabric, then the hissing and pops of the pumps, and eventually the cordial laughter of breakfast as we all sat down to the large white plastic folding tables we had all come to know each other at. We reviewed our cue sheets, recognizing the ride we had taken the day before to ensure everything was in proper working order, all the while trying to keep the drippy organic peanut butter that will be the staple of the next few months from our sheet.

After the trailer had been packed, we went over signaling and looking in reverse to check for oncoming cars. It seems strange to me to practice these things; I haven’t had a car in almost 7 years now and have been traveling by bicycle alone for the past two, even on the days it hit -4 in Denver. Straight on Society, Left on East Bay, over the 2 mile suspension bridge, merge right, left on Center, right on Coleman, over the drawbridge with no shoulder to the dead end, take a right and continue to the Fort where the news vans were waiting for our arrival.

It took a few minutes for everyone to arrive, and in the interim we examined the dregs that the surf had left to dry in the May sun. Further up the shore there was a large horseshoe crab that would soon become the meal for something else, and near the wood post that help up the “No Lifeguard on Duty” sign lay a translucent jellyfish, decaying under the weight of its own toxins. I had taken my cleats off and started walking through the approaching tide, the last time I had been in the ocean was almost 2 years ago, it was the 4th of July on Cape Cod with a few friends. The salt in the air was a warm welcome to the shore. I didn’t have much to say then, I wasn’t concerned about video taping or photographing the moment, it was the beginning of something much larger and it certainly wasn’t worth missing the event while trying to photograph it.

Myself and several others managed to get lost within the first half hour of the days ride after the opening ceremonies, we loved climbing that suspension bridge so much that we decided to go back over it a second time. I forgot how notoriously bad street signs are in the South. Turns out we missed one of the first turns, and ended up several miles behind the sweep team. A few phone calls and some directions from a gas station got us back on track and heading towards Monck’s Corner. We were staying at a Lutheran Church across from the highschool whose locker rooms we used to shower. There was an elementary school graduation occurring while we were walking over, and there were several looks of surprise to see the lot of us in flip flops on sore feet. I overheard the highschool football coach ask someone what we were doing as he let us into the locker rooms. He laughed heartily when he heard we were riding our bikes across the country, and walked away shaking his head at his feet wondering why anyone would do something so crazy. We had actually found a very large lake that most of us went for a swim in. It was referred to us by our host, but she was off a bit regarding how far away it was. I think she said it might be about 2 miles, but we all came up with 8 round trip on the cyclometers. The water was probably in the high 60s, but it could have been 55 for all it mattered that day and we still would have soaked and lounged just the same. An hour quickly passed as time seemed to stand still on the wave-less lake, and upon our return we drew up a 4 square court to eliminate the last of the energy we all had. Dinner consisted of sandwiches from Subway, along with all the accoutrements that they have to offer. I will say the peanut butter cookies were delicious, and Doritos were an excellent pairing to the roast beef and cheddar.

Paul and Tyler are also Euchre players, and had a game going when I walked back inside from writing in my personal journal. Nicole knows the game, and Karen and Ryan Miller were both willing to learn so I started another game at an adjacent table. It takes a few games to understand the subtleties of what happens to the order of the cards when a suit is declared trump, but I have faith that everyone on the trip will be playing this game by the end of the trip.

It’s surprising now that I don’t have more to say about the wheel dip now that I’m looking back on it. Was it spoiled because we were there the day before? Did the news cameras and sequenced instructions from the camera man take away from the fact that we were all about to dedicate the next 3 months of our lives to something much larger? I don’t know, but I have a suspicion that the magnitude of it all won’t settle until we’ve reached the pacific. With that said, I’ll share a bit of the reading material I brought along:

The Road Not Taken: Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I –

I took the one less travelled by,

And that has made all the difference.

-Michael Carroll

Today was our first build day, coordinated by Habitat For Humanity Charleston. We woke up pretty early (around 6:45). Everyone was pretty excited about getting to work and nobody had too many issues getting ready.

I rode over to the build site in West Ashley with one of the construction managers, as well as Lance, Sebastian, Nahas and Kern. On the ride over, the construction manager told us about how he ended up in Charleston and loved it so much that he wanted to stay, and was lucky enough to get a job with Habitat For Humanity Charleston which he loved. He also talked about how his friend was a comedian and told us a few of his jokes. Overall a very enjoyable ride.

Once we got there we had a brief safety and informational talk where we learned what we would be doing for the day. Our task was to re-shingle the roof of the house. We got started by using deshinglers (very similar to a shovel) and shovels to take off the singles, which went very quickly. We then had to take off the old tar-paper and old nails. We then had to cut pieces of plywood and nail them to the previous pieces, which was relatively time consuming. Habitat of Charleston provided us a great lunch of mini-burgers and turkey burgers and veggie burgers, which re-energized everyone for the rest of the afternoon.

Several new crews came by to interview the leaders and ask about our trip. Channel 4 as well as another channel came and gave us some press, which is always welcome.

After lunch we finished putting down new plywood and began to put down new tar-paper and shingles, the bulk of our project. This was very time consuming and needed to be done very precisely, otherwise the shingling wouldn’t prevent leaks, etc. We worked until around 3:45, at which point we were given the option to either leave then, or stay and finish the roof. It was really inspiring when every single Bike and Builder said that they wanted to stay and finish the roof. We stayed until about 4:45-5:00. Our crew had built an entirely new roof which will last for many years to come.

We showered up at the College of Charleston athletic center and got ready for dinner. Dinner was catered by Sticky Fingers Barbecue and was amazing. I stuffed my face with pulled pork and chicken and cole slaw. After that everyone packed their bags and got ready for our first biking day, Moncks Corner: a 56-mile ride.

--Scott Burger

Today was the second day of orientation here in Charleston, SC. We woke up ready for our shakedown ride around the city and having the opportunity to begin getting to know one another better. Being only the second day, we had another icebreaker at breakfast. We played two truths and a lie where each person had to tell two truths about themselves and one lie, all the other riders then had to guess as to which of the three statements were a lie. After the breakfast festivities we were all ready to go on our first ride as Bike & Builders. This was what I had been waiting for since last June when I found out about this program, the adventure was finally about to begin. As we all gathered in the parking lot of the church wearing our jerseys and other Bike & Build apparel the feeling was amazing. The thought of what we were going to be doing this summer really began to sink in. For the next few months we would be experiencing our country in a way few people ever get the chance to do and along the way help people and provide means of living that will benefit them for many years to come.

After going through the bike safety rules and making sure everyone understood the cue sheets, we began our ride through Charleston. The city itself is absolutely beautiful, there are so many old buildings with so much history and stories behind them. There have been so many events in our nations history that took place in this awesome city giving an appeal to every side street and broken down building. When riding past older buildings in the city I found myself wondering what the people were like who originally lived there and how different their lives were like in comparison to how the city is today.

We rode our bikes over the bridge connecting one of the islands that is in the city, the view at the top was pretty breath taking. After riding a little ways we arrived at our destination, Fort Moultrie. Being the history nerd that I am, hanging out at an old Civil War fort was pretty cool. Being at the fort only added to the cool of experience of being in the city of Charleston and starting our ride in this city.

After riding back to the church, we all showered and got ready for our dinner that was provided by the local habitat chapter in Charleston. They provided us with an amazing dinner and I ate more than my filling of food. After meeting and talking to some of the habitat workers they began giving us a little information on what they have been doing throughout the city and informed us on the family we would be helping the next day. While I was sitting there listening to them explain what we would be doing to help out this family, I again began to realize how awesome this summer is going to be. Knowing that I will be impacting peoples lives this summer and making some pretty epic friendships gave me a peace and fulfillment that I have very rarely felt before.

For being only the second day of this amazing adventure I am already in awe of everything that will take place with this group of people. We are going to make a difference in this country and we are only the beginning of what will come. We are only the 8th generation of Bike & Builders, imagine what this group will do in the next 8 years. I look forward to tomorrow and the days to come. This summer is going to be pretty epic.

-Tyler Bowers

Today was the second day of orientation here in Charleston, SC. We woke up ready for our shakedown ride around the city and having the opportunity to begin getting to know one another better. Being only the second day, we had another icebreaker at breakfast. We played two truths and a lie where each person had to tell two truths about themselves and one lie, all the other riders then had to guess as to which of the three statements were a lie. After the breakfast festivities we were all ready to go on our first ride as Bike & Builders. This was what I had been waiting for since last June when I found out about this program, the adventure was finally about to begin. As we all gathered in the parking lot of the church wearing our jerseys and other Bike & Build apparel the feeling was amazing. The thought of what we were going to be doing this summer really began to sink in. For the next few months we would be experiencing our country in a way few people ever get the chance to do and along the way help people and provide means of living that will benefit them for many years to come.

After going through the bike safety rules and making sure everyone understood the cue sheets, we began our ride through Charleston. The city itself is absolutely beautiful, there are so many old buildings with so much history and stories behind them. There have been so many events in our nations history that took place in this awesome city giving an appeal to every side street and broken down building. When riding past older buildings in the city I found myself wondering what the people were like who originally lived there and how different their lives were like in comparison to how the city is today.

We rode our bikes over the bridge connecting one of the islands that is in the city, the view at the top was pretty breath taking. After riding a little ways we arrived at our destination, Fort Moultrie. Being the history nerd that I am, hanging out at an old Civil War fort was pretty cool. Being at the fort only added to the cool of experience of being in the city of Charleston and starting our ride in this city.

After riding back to the church, we all showered and got ready for our dinner that was provided by the local habitat chapter in Charleston. They provided us with an amazing dinner and I ate more than my filling of food. After meeting and talking to some of the habitat workers they began giving us a little information on what they have been doing throughout the city and informed us on the family we would be helping the next day. While I was sitting there listening to them explain what we would be doing to help out this family, I again began to realize how awesome this summer is going to be. Knowing that I will be impacting peoples lives this summer and making some pretty epic friendships gave me a peace and fulfillment that I have very rarely felt before.

For being only the second day of this amazing adventure I am already in awe of everything that will take place with this group of people. We are going to make a difference in this country and we are only the beginning of what will come. We are only the 8th generation of Bike & Builders, imagine what this group will do in the next 8 years. I look forward to tomorrow and the days to come. This summer is going to be pretty epic.

-Tyler Bowers