Hey Everyone,
So it has been far too long since I last updated this thing. Tennessee proved to be a very challenging state on many levels, much of which we biked over. To try to pick back up with updating, I have decided to wrap up everything the best I can, probably using bullet points frequently.
So here she goes:
-Tennessee is very hilly, like, the whole state. It leveled out about 30 miles east of Memphis.
-The people in Pulaski, TN, are awesome. It was cool to go to the mayor's house and him be pushing us to drink the beer he bought us. And he also did a cannonball with me and Ben.
-Memphis is an amazing city. Everyone we talked to there was really cool and Beale Street was worth all the hype. Many pictures to come from our stay there.
-Eastern Arkansas is desolate. There is nothingness until you get near Little Rock. The people that live there even admit to it and don't know why they live there.
-Little Rock is a nice little city. It has its share of problems that we saw and heard about, but it is growing and the Clinton library was really cool to tour.
-Giving television interviews is interesting, but would be even better if they actually used your footage...
-The Ozarks are a beautiful mountain range, but are the most frustrating things in the world. You think you're done with them and then more hills emerge. At least I know they are done with now.
I am currently in Grove, Oklahoma, after a 74-mile day that took us out of Arkansas and into Oklahoma, then back into Arkansas, then into Missouri and then back into Oklahoma. We are all looking forward to getting to Bartlesville tomorrow and enjoying our day off on Tuesday.
I will post pictures soon, I promise.
Travis
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Friday, June 6, 2008
I would just like to start this post by saying that in no way can words describe the emotions and feelings that have come along in the past week or so in traversing the rest of the way through North Carolina and into Tennessee. I will try, but I hope that some of the pictures will tell the story...
I am currently in Maryville, TN, a smaller town located about 20 miles south of Knoxville. We pulled into town yesterday afternoon after a (short) 40-mile ride from Gatlinburg. The first half of the ride yesterday was one of my favorite so far. I was riding with Dan for the majority of the day, taking turns pulling each other along about 20 miles of road along a river. It was perhaps the most soothing ride that I have ever completed, and seeing the people tubing and swimming as we rode by was awesome. We stopped to talk to some of the locals every now and then, but once we were back on the bikes we were cruising along the flats at about 20mph.
By I will try to catch up on all of the events since I was last able to update. Being in Chapel Hill was amazing as usual. It was so nice to be back "home" and be able to play the tour guide for the rest of my group. Taking a big group to the Pit, the belltower and Kenan Stadium was a lot of fun and it's nice to hear people talk about how beautiful the campus is where I spend 10 months of my life every year. Being able to lead everyone around the Chapel Hill nightlife was also a lot of fun, and from what i can tell, everyone had a great time, myself included.
Going into Winston-Salem was also a pretty special moment in this trip for me. It was nice to take a few of the guys to Old Salem for some sugar cake before pulling into our host church and seeing my parents waiting on me. It is strange how everything looks so different from the seat of a bike. I have been around Winston-Salem all of my life, but everything looked so much different without a car window between you and nature/the city. It was also nice to get my camera from the parents so I can document the rest of the summer in pictures.
After leaving Winston-Salem we headed toward our first real test of the ride, the Appalachians. We headed to Taylorsville the next days and after a few hills made it without much of a hitch. The wind started to become a real issue, but most people were so motivated by the notion of a swimming pool waiting for us that is was a short day. Needless to say the pool was a hit, but the chicken "sandwich" I got from the people beside the church was not. I don't think I have even gotten a chicken sandwich where the chicken still had the bone in it. I guess that's how they do it in Taylorsville.
The next day to Newland/Altamont gave us our first real hills and our first real views of what we have been climbing. After leaving Newland we started climbing toward Lenior and then Blowing Rock. After crossing the continental divide and hearing about this awesome BBQ place, Dan and I had to stop. Woodland's BBQ in Blowing Rock had some amazing BBQ, but it was probably not the best idea before starting up the Blue Ridge Parkway. Although we suffered quite a bit after our meal, the BBQ was definitely worth it. At the end of our climb on the Parkway we finally got our first descent, which is unlike any other feeling in the world. Flying down a hill at 35mph (having to slow down because of a car in front of you) in exhilarating.
The trip from Altamont to Asheville put us on the Blue Ridge Parkway for about 70 of the 80 miles for the day. I went out pretty fast that morning, feeling good about being on the Parkway instead of highways. I got to enjoy the first descent that day without any distractions and hit 40mph pretty frequently. I spent the rest of the day with a lot of the guys as we climbed our biggest hill to date (over 5000 ft) that led up to an view of Mt. Mitchell, the highest point east of the Mississippi. That day also tested to nerves of almost everyone of the trip. We usually have a lunch stop about halfway through our days, but on this day we have to traverse through a closed part of the BR Parkway (yay for trespassing on federal land for 25 miles). Lunch was 53 miles away and many people were struggling, but everyone made it through. The descent into Asheville was also a lot of fun.
We spent the next day building in Asheville. Part of our group went to help the Mountain Housing Organization build an accessibility ramp at a house and was featured on the news that night. The rest of us went to help the Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity where we stuccoed the foundation of a house and stained the interior trim for another house. We were also treated to an amazing (BBQ!) dinner in Asheville by Volvo Constuction Materials (no, they don't just make cars). A contact with Cane Creek also got us hooked up with free shock-absorbing seat posts and arm warmers. Thanks Cane Creek!
The next day presented one of the biggest challenges of the summer. The ride from Asheville would provide the group with 17,500 ft of climbing, more than 5,000 ft more than any day before. After a short and easy ride into Maggie Valley, the group decided to get back together before starting up the first hill. The wind made the first hill nearly impossible, but after pushing past all the shops in Maggie Valley, we finally hit the BR Parkway again, lessening the wind effect. The ride of the Parkway seemed pretty easy after my legs got warmed up and the descent into Cherokee was quick. After a lunch at the Great Smokey Mountains Visitor Center we started off on our climb to Newfound Gap, the peak of our hill and the state line between NC and TN.
Biking across North Carolina has been a personal goal of mine for the past two years and being so close gave me so much motivation to push to the top. The way up the mountain was 16 miles, meaning that it took around an hour and a half of intense climbing to reach the summit. My legs felt good and I was able to catch and pass some of the group leaders near the top. After spending some time at the top we descended into Gatlinburg (aka the biggest tourist trap in the world) and had a nice Mexican dinner in town.
Since being in Maryville we have started building with the Blount County chapter of Habitat for Humanity and we started work today to lay down the flooring trusses of two houses in town. We got so much done today that tomorrow may be a short day due to the lack of materials.
Sorry for such a long post, but I hope this gets everyone up to date on what's happening on this trip across the continent.
And oh yeah, it's hot..
Some of us out in Chapel Hill
Showing the non-believers real Old Salem sugar cake
Crossing the continental divide near Blowing Rock
Biking across the Linn Cove Viaduct, one of my favorite moments
Highest elevation we have reached so far, 5592 feet, all on bike
The first five to the NC/TN line
I am currently in Maryville, TN, a smaller town located about 20 miles south of Knoxville. We pulled into town yesterday afternoon after a (short) 40-mile ride from Gatlinburg. The first half of the ride yesterday was one of my favorite so far. I was riding with Dan for the majority of the day, taking turns pulling each other along about 20 miles of road along a river. It was perhaps the most soothing ride that I have ever completed, and seeing the people tubing and swimming as we rode by was awesome. We stopped to talk to some of the locals every now and then, but once we were back on the bikes we were cruising along the flats at about 20mph.
By I will try to catch up on all of the events since I was last able to update. Being in Chapel Hill was amazing as usual. It was so nice to be back "home" and be able to play the tour guide for the rest of my group. Taking a big group to the Pit, the belltower and Kenan Stadium was a lot of fun and it's nice to hear people talk about how beautiful the campus is where I spend 10 months of my life every year. Being able to lead everyone around the Chapel Hill nightlife was also a lot of fun, and from what i can tell, everyone had a great time, myself included.
Going into Winston-Salem was also a pretty special moment in this trip for me. It was nice to take a few of the guys to Old Salem for some sugar cake before pulling into our host church and seeing my parents waiting on me. It is strange how everything looks so different from the seat of a bike. I have been around Winston-Salem all of my life, but everything looked so much different without a car window between you and nature/the city. It was also nice to get my camera from the parents so I can document the rest of the summer in pictures.
After leaving Winston-Salem we headed toward our first real test of the ride, the Appalachians. We headed to Taylorsville the next days and after a few hills made it without much of a hitch. The wind started to become a real issue, but most people were so motivated by the notion of a swimming pool waiting for us that is was a short day. Needless to say the pool was a hit, but the chicken "sandwich" I got from the people beside the church was not. I don't think I have even gotten a chicken sandwich where the chicken still had the bone in it. I guess that's how they do it in Taylorsville.
The next day to Newland/Altamont gave us our first real hills and our first real views of what we have been climbing. After leaving Newland we started climbing toward Lenior and then Blowing Rock. After crossing the continental divide and hearing about this awesome BBQ place, Dan and I had to stop. Woodland's BBQ in Blowing Rock had some amazing BBQ, but it was probably not the best idea before starting up the Blue Ridge Parkway. Although we suffered quite a bit after our meal, the BBQ was definitely worth it. At the end of our climb on the Parkway we finally got our first descent, which is unlike any other feeling in the world. Flying down a hill at 35mph (having to slow down because of a car in front of you) in exhilarating.
The trip from Altamont to Asheville put us on the Blue Ridge Parkway for about 70 of the 80 miles for the day. I went out pretty fast that morning, feeling good about being on the Parkway instead of highways. I got to enjoy the first descent that day without any distractions and hit 40mph pretty frequently. I spent the rest of the day with a lot of the guys as we climbed our biggest hill to date (over 5000 ft) that led up to an view of Mt. Mitchell, the highest point east of the Mississippi. That day also tested to nerves of almost everyone of the trip. We usually have a lunch stop about halfway through our days, but on this day we have to traverse through a closed part of the BR Parkway (yay for trespassing on federal land for 25 miles). Lunch was 53 miles away and many people were struggling, but everyone made it through. The descent into Asheville was also a lot of fun.
We spent the next day building in Asheville. Part of our group went to help the Mountain Housing Organization build an accessibility ramp at a house and was featured on the news that night. The rest of us went to help the Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity where we stuccoed the foundation of a house and stained the interior trim for another house. We were also treated to an amazing (BBQ!) dinner in Asheville by Volvo Constuction Materials (no, they don't just make cars). A contact with Cane Creek also got us hooked up with free shock-absorbing seat posts and arm warmers. Thanks Cane Creek!
The next day presented one of the biggest challenges of the summer. The ride from Asheville would provide the group with 17,500 ft of climbing, more than 5,000 ft more than any day before. After a short and easy ride into Maggie Valley, the group decided to get back together before starting up the first hill. The wind made the first hill nearly impossible, but after pushing past all the shops in Maggie Valley, we finally hit the BR Parkway again, lessening the wind effect. The ride of the Parkway seemed pretty easy after my legs got warmed up and the descent into Cherokee was quick. After a lunch at the Great Smokey Mountains Visitor Center we started off on our climb to Newfound Gap, the peak of our hill and the state line between NC and TN.
Biking across North Carolina has been a personal goal of mine for the past two years and being so close gave me so much motivation to push to the top. The way up the mountain was 16 miles, meaning that it took around an hour and a half of intense climbing to reach the summit. My legs felt good and I was able to catch and pass some of the group leaders near the top. After spending some time at the top we descended into Gatlinburg (aka the biggest tourist trap in the world) and had a nice Mexican dinner in town.
Since being in Maryville we have started building with the Blount County chapter of Habitat for Humanity and we started work today to lay down the flooring trusses of two houses in town. We got so much done today that tomorrow may be a short day due to the lack of materials.
Sorry for such a long post, but I hope this gets everyone up to date on what's happening on this trip across the continent.
And oh yeah, it's hot..
Some of us out in Chapel Hill
Showing the non-believers real Old Salem sugar cake
Crossing the continental divide near Blowing Rock
Biking across the Linn Cove Viaduct, one of my favorite moments
Highest elevation we have reached so far, 5592 feet, all on bike
The first five to the NC/TN line
Sunday, May 25, 2008
On the Road
So I said that finding Internet access on the road would be difficult, and it's true. This is the first time that I have been able to really check email in five days.
Orientation was a lot of fun and getting to meet 29 new people and blending so many different personalities. We left from Nag's Head on Friday with a full police escort, very cool. That night we stayed at Soule Methodist Church in Swanquarter, where they fed us very well and get us ready for our next day's ride.
My next day was very rough. I ended up have a very difficult day on Saturday due to the combination of rainy conditions, a hole in my Camelbak and two broken spokes due to the bumpy roads. I finally got to Belhaven, which was amazing. The people there were so nice and accomadating to our every need. They threw us this awesome cookout Saturday night and built a campfire for us later.
Today was much smoother. I had to sweep today and pulled into Greenville around 3:00. This guy named Steve have offered us his house for the night, as well as dinner.
I will try to update in a few days when we finally pull into Chapel Thrill!
Cheers
Orientation was a lot of fun and getting to meet 29 new people and blending so many different personalities. We left from Nag's Head on Friday with a full police escort, very cool. That night we stayed at Soule Methodist Church in Swanquarter, where they fed us very well and get us ready for our next day's ride.
My next day was very rough. I ended up have a very difficult day on Saturday due to the combination of rainy conditions, a hole in my Camelbak and two broken spokes due to the bumpy roads. I finally got to Belhaven, which was amazing. The people there were so nice and accomadating to our every need. They threw us this awesome cookout Saturday night and built a campfire for us later.
Today was much smoother. I had to sweep today and pulled into Greenville around 3:00. This guy named Steve have offered us his house for the night, as well as dinner.
I will try to update in a few days when we finally pull into Chapel Thrill!
Cheers
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
It's Here
So all the hard work with fund raising, interning and training has made its way to this moment. I leave early tomorrow morning for Nag's Head to meet up with the other 33 people that have made this commitment for the summer. I have been looking forward to (and dreading leaving everything/everybody behind for 2.5 months) this moment for four months and it has finally been realized. I am biking across the country/continent starting Thursday. From what I hear and expect, this is going to be the most exciting/interesting/enlightening summer of my life. I can't wait to dip my rear wheels in the Atlantic in two days and set off on this amazing journey from there.
In an update of my fund raising effort, I think I have come to the total of $3,650 from everyone. I plan to make up the difference as my own kind of donation toward the effort this summer. Even though it is too late to have money counted toward my total (unless you find me tonight in Chapel Hill), I hope that you will still try to help Bike & Build by donating whatever you can toward the organization. You can make a general contribution by going to www.bikeandbuild.org and clicking "Donate."
Thanks so much to everyone that helped me in getting me to where I am now. I promise your money will go so far.
Hopefully the next post I make will be from the road, wherever that may be...
Cheers
In an update of my fund raising effort, I think I have come to the total of $3,650 from everyone. I plan to make up the difference as my own kind of donation toward the effort this summer. Even though it is too late to have money counted toward my total (unless you find me tonight in Chapel Hill), I hope that you will still try to help Bike & Build by donating whatever you can toward the organization. You can make a general contribution by going to www.bikeandbuild.org and clicking "Donate."
Thanks so much to everyone that helped me in getting me to where I am now. I promise your money will go so far.
Hopefully the next post I make will be from the road, wherever that may be...
Cheers
Sunday, May 18, 2008
My Schedule
I realize that some people may think that I am heading off this summer and I have no idea where I will be at night or that I will be camping out in strange lands every day. This is, however, not the case. Although I will have never seen most of the lands that I will be biking to during the summer, our Trip Leaders have gone to great lengths to make sure we have places to stay (albeit schools, churches, etc.) in each town we stop in.
This is where I will be every day throughout the summer:
This is where I will be every day throughout the summer:
I also have places where I can pick up mail sent to me throughout the summer, but I will post those locations later.
72 Hours
The real countdown has begun, and I start this amazing trip in little over three days!
In the meantime, I have had a huge rush to raise the last bit of my $4,000 goal. I have seen so many people help, and I am so thankful. Today, Sunday, is the last day to make donations online. In order to do that you simple go to www.bikeandbuild.org and click on "Donate." From there you can choose the rider you would like to support and proceed with the transaction through Google Checkout. All donations are tax-deductible!
Also, The Stokes News, my small, local newspaper from back in King did a story about my journey this summer. It can be found here:
http://www.thestokesnews.com/articles/2008/05/15/
news/doc482b4229cc331405090498.txt
Thanks so much to Wendy Byerly Wood for giving me the opportunity to share this experience and cause to all of the people back in King.
Now I am just in the process of gathering all of my clothing and equipment and getting ready to head to the Outer Banks on Wednesday.
In the meantime, I have had a huge rush to raise the last bit of my $4,000 goal. I have seen so many people help, and I am so thankful. Today, Sunday, is the last day to make donations online. In order to do that you simple go to www.bikeandbuild.org and click on "Donate." From there you can choose the rider you would like to support and proceed with the transaction through Google Checkout. All donations are tax-deductible!
Also, The Stokes News, my small, local newspaper from back in King did a story about my journey this summer. It can be found here:
http://www.thestokesnews.com/articles/2008/05/15/
news/doc482b4229cc331405090498.txt
Thanks so much to Wendy Byerly Wood for giving me the opportunity to share this experience and cause to all of the people back in King.
Now I am just in the process of gathering all of my clothing and equipment and getting ready to head to the Outer Banks on Wednesday.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Getting Close
So the start date for this amazing journey is getting very close. Less than six days til we all meet in Nag's Head. I have kick-started my fund raising again, and hopefully I will have all $4,000 raised before next Wednesday, meaning that I will be able to focus all of my personal money toward bike maintenance on the road.
Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone that has donated. I have definitely seen a lot of generosity from people in giving, especially from people I would have never expected. I am currently $900 from my goal. Please donate if you can! Every dollar counts!
Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone that has donated. I have definitely seen a lot of generosity from people in giving, especially from people I would have never expected. I am currently $900 from my goal. Please donate if you can! Every dollar counts!
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