I made it the short hop from Richmond to Yorktown. I'll make a longer entry later, for now here is a picture.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
James Day 43 - Yorktown, Va
The End.
I made it the short hop from Richmond to Yorktown. I'll make a longer entry later, for now here is a picture.
I made it the short hop from Richmond to Yorktown. I'll make a longer entry later, for now here is a picture.
Day 37 - Most Non-Sequitor Blog Ever - Munfordville, KY to Somerset, KY
Distance: 80someish miles?
Sorry for not posting in several fortnights, it's tough to find both sufficient time and internet access these days... but who cares, this is the RLPT!
Back to the land of Kentucky.... we left Munfordville in the pretty morning fog. Did you know that nowhere in the tourism brochure do they mention the especially large number of "crazies and klan members"? Weird. I was especially hungry since a raccoon came in the night and stole the pound cake I bought. He even threw my fork on the ground. What a jerk, I think about him every time we pass a squished raccoon on the road, and hope it's him. Whatever, I'm tired of talking about it.
We went toward Greensburg, and almost got obliterated by a passing cement truck which was unnecessary and kind of scary. When we made it we stopped at a grocery store with the very same truck parked outside. Aaron and I discussed beating the driver up and throwing him in the mixer, but then decided that 25-to-life right after college is kind of a waste. You get off this time Mr. Cement Mixer Guy, just don't try anything like that when I'm old and grumpy or it'll get ugly.
We pedaled on through the green hills of Kentuckyland until we hit Colombia, a charming town with a rather large roundabout situation around the town square. The surrounding buildings all had curio shops and local restaurants; I thought it was pretty sweet and wished more American towns had giant traffic circles with no lines painted on the street. And yes that is a semicolon. Naturally we explored the small-town flair by hitting a Subway because we still have free Subway money!! Following a record-breaking sandwich challenge, the RLPT rode to a public library where we internetted and updated this thing!! Aaron had to lure me away with a 32 oz Gatorade, which was of course a successful operation, but by that time it had been three hours since we first stopped...yikes!
We pedaled our faces off the rest of the day since lunch took several geologic ages and paused only briefly to pursue the dragon and punch the Eastern Time Zone in the face! Naturally a thunderstorm whacked us but Aaron's dragon-infused powers kept it mostly at bay, and we had an almost dry ride into Somerset. We stayed at a Regency Inn "Curry or Cigarettes, Choose your Scent" which was probably a good idea, since severe thunderstorms came through and totally bombarded the area later that night. We rolled over the Golden Arches having learned nothing from West Yellowstone, and loaded up on burgers and television. And then Michael Jackson died. Pretty eventful I'd say.
The rest of the posts will unfortunately have to go up after we're done, sorry. So many good things to tell though, stay posted!
As we near the end, we are pretty thrilled to hit our destination. But they say the journey is the reward, and it's totally the truth! Gotta run and grab Bodo's, RLPT out!
Sorry for not posting in several fortnights, it's tough to find both sufficient time and internet access these days... but who cares, this is the RLPT!
Back to the land of Kentucky.... we left Munfordville in the pretty morning fog. Did you know that nowhere in the tourism brochure do they mention the especially large number of "crazies and klan members"? Weird. I was especially hungry since a raccoon came in the night and stole the pound cake I bought. He even threw my fork on the ground. What a jerk, I think about him every time we pass a squished raccoon on the road, and hope it's him. Whatever, I'm tired of talking about it.
We went toward Greensburg, and almost got obliterated by a passing cement truck which was unnecessary and kind of scary. When we made it we stopped at a grocery store with the very same truck parked outside. Aaron and I discussed beating the driver up and throwing him in the mixer, but then decided that 25-to-life right after college is kind of a waste. You get off this time Mr. Cement Mixer Guy, just don't try anything like that when I'm old and grumpy or it'll get ugly.
We pedaled on through the green hills of Kentuckyland until we hit Colombia, a charming town with a rather large roundabout situation around the town square. The surrounding buildings all had curio shops and local restaurants; I thought it was pretty sweet and wished more American towns had giant traffic circles with no lines painted on the street. And yes that is a semicolon. Naturally we explored the small-town flair by hitting a Subway because we still have free Subway money!! Following a record-breaking sandwich challenge, the RLPT rode to a public library where we internetted and updated this thing!! Aaron had to lure me away with a 32 oz Gatorade, which was of course a successful operation, but by that time it had been three hours since we first stopped...yikes!
We pedaled our faces off the rest of the day since lunch took several geologic ages and paused only briefly to pursue the dragon and punch the Eastern Time Zone in the face! Naturally a thunderstorm whacked us but Aaron's dragon-infused powers kept it mostly at bay, and we had an almost dry ride into Somerset. We stayed at a Regency Inn "Curry or Cigarettes, Choose your Scent" which was probably a good idea, since severe thunderstorms came through and totally bombarded the area later that night. We rolled over the Golden Arches having learned nothing from West Yellowstone, and loaded up on burgers and television. And then Michael Jackson died. Pretty eventful I'd say.
The rest of the posts will unfortunately have to go up after we're done, sorry. So many good things to tell though, stay posted!
As we near the end, we are pretty thrilled to hit our destination. But they say the journey is the reward, and it's totally the truth! Gotta run and grab Bodo's, RLPT out!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
James Day 42 - Richmond Va
I woke up at Doug's place at around noon, and got on the road about 2:00. I was tired. Thanks again to Doug for letting me crash there, I appreciate it.
Let me pause here and say that I stayed with Doug Friesema in Charlottesville, and I am staying with my other friend Doug Scott in Richmond. From here on when I say Doug I am referring to the latter.
Back in the spring one of my training rides was to bike to Doug's place in Richmond so we could go to a gun show. It was sweet, and this coming weekend we will be firing that gun in the woods at inanimate objects. This gave me a unique opportunity to compare my fitness level now with what it was before the trip, because I would be biking the exact same route. I will say that I am in much better biking shape now (obviously). It took me less time to get there than the first trip, and when I arrived I wasn't completely worn out. It's nice to have evidence of physical benefit from the trip.
Doug was kind enough to cook me a tasty dinner of spaghetti and meatballs, which I washed down with a tall, cool glass of HBO on demand. If I had access to Entourage (an HBO original series that must have been created by Jesus himself) all the time, I would never get anything done. It is the best show ever. Doug and Kay (his girlfriend and also my friend from Roanoke) went to the gym, but I declined and instead stayed and watched more TV. It's good that I'm almost done because if I had more than 1 day left, I might just stay here for a week or so. I am currently enjoying internet access to update this blog and check facebook every 5 minutes.
Tomorrow I will be arriving around noonish in Yorktown, where I will get some food with Mike Awesome before starting my return journey to Richmond and then Roanoke. I'll be posting a joyous announcement via iPhone once I reach the beach. I'll also provide a picture so you know I'm not just making it up.
62 miles to go.
Let me pause here and say that I stayed with Doug Friesema in Charlottesville, and I am staying with my other friend Doug Scott in Richmond. From here on when I say Doug I am referring to the latter.
Back in the spring one of my training rides was to bike to Doug's place in Richmond so we could go to a gun show. It was sweet, and this coming weekend we will be firing that gun in the woods at inanimate objects. This gave me a unique opportunity to compare my fitness level now with what it was before the trip, because I would be biking the exact same route. I will say that I am in much better biking shape now (obviously). It took me less time to get there than the first trip, and when I arrived I wasn't completely worn out. It's nice to have evidence of physical benefit from the trip.
Doug was kind enough to cook me a tasty dinner of spaghetti and meatballs, which I washed down with a tall, cool glass of HBO on demand. If I had access to Entourage (an HBO original series that must have been created by Jesus himself) all the time, I would never get anything done. It is the best show ever. Doug and Kay (his girlfriend and also my friend from Roanoke) went to the gym, but I declined and instead stayed and watched more TV. It's good that I'm almost done because if I had more than 1 day left, I might just stay here for a week or so. I am currently enjoying internet access to update this blog and check facebook every 5 minutes.
Tomorrow I will be arriving around noonish in Yorktown, where I will get some food with Mike Awesome before starting my return journey to Richmond and then Roanoke. I'll be posting a joyous announcement via iPhone once I reach the beach. I'll also provide a picture so you know I'm not just making it up.
62 miles to go.
James Days 39, 40, and 41 - Blacksburg, Roanoke, and Charlottesville
So I've been a bit slack in updating my progress, but I am back in familiar territory and the end is in sight. The past 3 days have been somewhat surreal because I've been biking through places that I know well, or have biked before. It feels a lot more like the training trips I did in the spring than the end of the trip. I've also had three nights inside with a bed and a shower, which is amazing.
The ride to Blacksburg was interesting. I was woken up at 4:00am by people driving into the park. I don't know why they were hanging out in a park 2 hours before the sunrise, but one of them drove off in the car down the walking path. It wasn't made for cars. One of them decided to take a nap on another picnic table in the shelter I was in. I was a little concerned. Thankfully I didn't get stabbed/robbed/touched in weird ways by them, and several hours later I left small country Virginia in the fog. The day was nice to ride in, it stayed cloudy for a long time so it never got too hot.
In Blacksburg I stayed with my friend Matt. He had to work that night, so I took a shower and then went and chilled at Red Robin until he finished. It's about as interesting as it sounds, so Ben (who was also working that night) let me borrow his book by Anthony Bourdain, which was actually really good. I'm thinking about buying it when I get back. Katherine came down from Roanoke and we all went out. The one thing I like about bars in Blacksburg is the 32oz beers you can order. Finally, I don't have to get up quite as soon to refill. While the night was fun for me, it probably wouldn't be as much fun to read about, so I'll spare you the details. It did end with taquitos from 7-eleven though, so you know it's good.
The ride to Roanoke is essentially downhill, so the next day was a pretty easy ride. There were a good number of construction projects that were new since the last time I was in town, so it was a nice day. Getting home felt really weird, because it was a combination of relaxing from the biking and doing chores around the house. That night I went to eat with my mom and grandma at the Homeplace. If you have never been there, you are missing out. The last time I ate there was before I took the MCAT, and I'm pretty sure it was the only reason I did well. It's family style dining, so you sit at a table and they bring the food to you. They have fried chicken, ham, roast beef, mashed potatoes and gravy, biscuits and apple butter, green beans, coleslaw, fried apples, baked beans, and to wash it all down pitchers of iced tea and lemonade. The best part is it's all you can eat, so if you run out of something they will bring you more. I was in heaven.
It was hard to get up the next morning, but I had to get to Charlottesville. I took the Blue Ridge Parkway most of the way there, and it was probably one of the most beautiful parts of the trip. The temperature was perfect, and even though there was a lot of uphills, I think it was one of my favorite days of biking. Charlottesville was packed full of people I haven't seen in a while, so it was a blast to come back. Doug was kind enough to let me stay at his place, which worked out well because it was on the way out of town for Richmond. We all went out to Boylan that night for flip the dealer and table shuffleboard. It used to be that you flipped a coin, and if you guessed right draft beers cost 25 cents. Unfortunately, it's now $1 if you win the flip instead. I felt a little cheated. After I had had enough 'carbo loading' at the bar, we made the obligatory trip to Little Johns for subs. As per usual I ordered the largest sub there, but was only able to finish half of it because my eyes are bigger than my stomach. The good news is that I then could finish it for breakfast in the morning, along with the stale chips. Only two more days left!
The ride to Blacksburg was interesting. I was woken up at 4:00am by people driving into the park. I don't know why they were hanging out in a park 2 hours before the sunrise, but one of them drove off in the car down the walking path. It wasn't made for cars. One of them decided to take a nap on another picnic table in the shelter I was in. I was a little concerned. Thankfully I didn't get stabbed/robbed/touched in weird ways by them, and several hours later I left small country Virginia in the fog. The day was nice to ride in, it stayed cloudy for a long time so it never got too hot.
In Blacksburg I stayed with my friend Matt. He had to work that night, so I took a shower and then went and chilled at Red Robin until he finished. It's about as interesting as it sounds, so Ben (who was also working that night) let me borrow his book by Anthony Bourdain, which was actually really good. I'm thinking about buying it when I get back. Katherine came down from Roanoke and we all went out. The one thing I like about bars in Blacksburg is the 32oz beers you can order. Finally, I don't have to get up quite as soon to refill. While the night was fun for me, it probably wouldn't be as much fun to read about, so I'll spare you the details. It did end with taquitos from 7-eleven though, so you know it's good.
The ride to Roanoke is essentially downhill, so the next day was a pretty easy ride. There were a good number of construction projects that were new since the last time I was in town, so it was a nice day. Getting home felt really weird, because it was a combination of relaxing from the biking and doing chores around the house. That night I went to eat with my mom and grandma at the Homeplace. If you have never been there, you are missing out. The last time I ate there was before I took the MCAT, and I'm pretty sure it was the only reason I did well. It's family style dining, so you sit at a table and they bring the food to you. They have fried chicken, ham, roast beef, mashed potatoes and gravy, biscuits and apple butter, green beans, coleslaw, fried apples, baked beans, and to wash it all down pitchers of iced tea and lemonade. The best part is it's all you can eat, so if you run out of something they will bring you more. I was in heaven.
It was hard to get up the next morning, but I had to get to Charlottesville. I took the Blue Ridge Parkway most of the way there, and it was probably one of the most beautiful parts of the trip. The temperature was perfect, and even though there was a lot of uphills, I think it was one of my favorite days of biking. Charlottesville was packed full of people I haven't seen in a while, so it was a blast to come back. Doug was kind enough to let me stay at his place, which worked out well because it was on the way out of town for Richmond. We all went out to Boylan that night for flip the dealer and table shuffleboard. It used to be that you flipped a coin, and if you guessed right draft beers cost 25 cents. Unfortunately, it's now $1 if you win the flip instead. I felt a little cheated. After I had had enough 'carbo loading' at the bar, we made the obligatory trip to Little Johns for subs. As per usual I ordered the largest sub there, but was only able to finish half of it because my eyes are bigger than my stomach. The good news is that I then could finish it for breakfast in the morning, along with the stale chips. Only two more days left!
Monday, June 29, 2009
Alive, Well, and Super Lazy
Hola chicos!
For your information, since I know you're dying to know, the RLPT is still alive and doing great. Better than ever even. We even picked up a celebrity guest in Abingdon! However, we are too tired and lazy to deliver a quality update, so we decided that instead of giving you second-rate reading experience we'd hold out until Charlottesville to give you the multisensory explosion that is our standard write-up. Lo siento. At least the map is up to date!
By the way, we'll be in Yorktown on Thursday, July 2 at approximately 12pm. Get ready to rage like never ever before.
Spread it on!
Friday, June 26, 2009
James Days 37 & 38 - Salyersville, KY & Richlands, VA
I left Bob's place without much enthusiasm, as I go longer had home cooked meals and soft beds ahead of me. The day was nice again though, which helped motivate me.
While originally I had planned to go to Prestonsburg, this was not deemed acceptable by the weather gods. About 40 miles out, I stopped at a gas station and was pinnned down by a severe thunderstorm for over an hour and a half (hail, lightning, etc.). Finally the lightning died down and I biked 20 miles to Salyersville, but didn't have enough daylight left to get to Prestonsburg. The icing on the cake was when the power went out on the block with all the fast food and gas stations, meaning I couldn't buy anything because all I had was a debit card.
The next morning I slept in a little (past 7:00) but again had a pleasent day to greet me. I made it past Prestonsburg, an soon was greeted by a glorious 'welcome to Virginia' sign. It feels amazing to be back in my home state, and finally I feel like the end is in sight. I felt so good that I made it the 115 or so miles to Rochlands, Va, which had been my goal after Prestonsburg anyway. When I got to the park in town I met a couple families that were having a picnic, and they gave me half a pizza, a 2 liter of coke, ad a bag of ice. It felt like Homecoming.
This is also the last night I'll be camping out. My schedule is as follows:
Saturday 27th: Blacksburg (Ben and Matt)
Sunday 28th: Roanoke (my house)
Monday 29th: Charlottesville (if you're in town holla at me)
Tuesday 30th: Richmond (Doug)
Wednesday 1st: Yorktown
After I arrive in Yorktown I will be turning around and biking back towards Richmond, and Doug will give me a ride to Roanoke. Then I will celebrate our nation's birth by getting rowdy over the 4th weekend.
While originally I had planned to go to Prestonsburg, this was not deemed acceptable by the weather gods. About 40 miles out, I stopped at a gas station and was pinnned down by a severe thunderstorm for over an hour and a half (hail, lightning, etc.). Finally the lightning died down and I biked 20 miles to Salyersville, but didn't have enough daylight left to get to Prestonsburg. The icing on the cake was when the power went out on the block with all the fast food and gas stations, meaning I couldn't buy anything because all I had was a debit card.
The next morning I slept in a little (past 7:00) but again had a pleasent day to greet me. I made it past Prestonsburg, an soon was greeted by a glorious 'welcome to Virginia' sign. It feels amazing to be back in my home state, and finally I feel like the end is in sight. I felt so good that I made it the 115 or so miles to Rochlands, Va, which had been my goal after Prestonsburg anyway. When I got to the park in town I met a couple families that were having a picnic, and they gave me half a pizza, a 2 liter of coke, ad a bag of ice. It felt like Homecoming.
This is also the last night I'll be camping out. My schedule is as follows:
Saturday 27th: Blacksburg (Ben and Matt)
Sunday 28th: Roanoke (my house)
Monday 29th: Charlottesville (if you're in town holla at me)
Tuesday 30th: Richmond (Doug)
Wednesday 1st: Yorktown
After I arrive in Yorktown I will be turning around and biking back towards Richmond, and Doug will give me a ride to Roanoke. Then I will celebrate our nation's birth by getting rowdy over the 4th weekend.
James Days 35 & 36 - Lousiville & Lexington, KY
The past two days I have had good motivation, as there were houses, showers, and beds waiting for me at the end. The heat has also calmed down a bit, it's now in the upper 80s instead of the upper 90s.
About an hour after leaving Haubstadt, I started running into bikers going the other way. There were probably about 100 of them spread out over the next 30 miles. I talked with some at a gas station, and they were with TRIRI (Tour Riding In Rural Indiana). It's a group thy organizes multi day tours through parts of Indiana, providing places to stay, meals, and other bikers to go with. They didn't have to carry anything on their bikes, though.
Later, after lunch, for the first time on the trip, I was truly scared I was going to be hit by a car. I found out later that there was some sort of delay on 64 East, which meant eveyone got off and drove down the single lane road I was biking on. I had tractor trailers passing me with inches to spare, while cars and truck were compng the other direction. And there were no shoulders. There was a creek to one side and a rock wall on the other. It sucked in a big way. This was all but forgotten later at Andy's house. Shower, clean clothes, good food, and a nice bed can do wonders.
The next day was really nice. Rolling countryside, sunny, and only 70 miles to Bob's place. I passed bikers again, this time it was Bike And Build people. Weak. If I had been biking for over 20 days and was only in Kentucky, I would be really depressed.
I had another great dinner, courtesy of Bob's mom. Since it was the opening night of the new Transformers movie, we went to see that later in the evening. I loved it, but it may have been because Megan Fox was in it, I don't know. Two nights with a bed have spoiled me, the next couple days will be a pain.
About an hour after leaving Haubstadt, I started running into bikers going the other way. There were probably about 100 of them spread out over the next 30 miles. I talked with some at a gas station, and they were with TRIRI (Tour Riding In Rural Indiana). It's a group thy organizes multi day tours through parts of Indiana, providing places to stay, meals, and other bikers to go with. They didn't have to carry anything on their bikes, though.
Later, after lunch, for the first time on the trip, I was truly scared I was going to be hit by a car. I found out later that there was some sort of delay on 64 East, which meant eveyone got off and drove down the single lane road I was biking on. I had tractor trailers passing me with inches to spare, while cars and truck were compng the other direction. And there were no shoulders. There was a creek to one side and a rock wall on the other. It sucked in a big way. This was all but forgotten later at Andy's house. Shower, clean clothes, good food, and a nice bed can do wonders.
The next day was really nice. Rolling countryside, sunny, and only 70 miles to Bob's place. I passed bikers again, this time it was Bike And Build people. Weak. If I had been biking for over 20 days and was only in Kentucky, I would be really depressed.
I had another great dinner, courtesy of Bob's mom. Since it was the opening night of the new Transformers movie, we went to see that later in the evening. I loved it, but it may have been because Megan Fox was in it, I don't know. Two nights with a bed have spoiled me, the next couple days will be a pain.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
