Build days in Chapel Hill

Our first build days in Chapel Hill went great! The first day I worked on a project for an elderly lady with a few riders. We cleaned and painted her shed as well as her porch. She was such a nice lady! Her house backed up to the woods where there was lots of poison ivy so we asked to use her restroom. I will post a picture soon, but her toilet was basically a throne. It had a giant cushion on it and was pretty awkward. The next build day I painted on a different house for a few hours. Tonight we are on our own for dinner so I think we might be going to some good burger place in Chapel Hill. Its a really pretty town and UNC is such a nice campus! Tmrw we set off for over 80miles followed by another 80+ miles! I just posted some new pictures in the picture tab so check them out! Thanks for reading!

Chapel Hill - 39

Today was the best day yet! We had a great breakfast with eggs/spinach/tomatoes, bagels/cream cheese, bacon, cereal, and fruit. I'm so sore!!!!! We set off today and ran into more up and down hills. At times I was going 5mph and others 35mph. I got my first flat that I had to change all by myself and in less than 10minutes! I also fell a few times because I was unable to clip out while stopped. But I'm good! For lunch a group stopped  near Duke University. I worked my first DM (donation magic) and got us free firehouse subs! We also got a medical kit donated from CVS. I'm now in Chapel Hill and its nice here! I havent really explored yet though. We got in, showered, and ate a yummy dinner at a reallyyyyy pretty church that we are staying at! I will posts pics tmrw. Many riders went out to local bars and different places around town but I stayed back with a few riders and had my bike worked on by a nice knowledgable bike mechanic at the church. Hopefully tmrw after our first build day we will be able to go out and explore. Bed time now! I will update about the build day tmrw and add pics when I have more time. Night Night!

Greenville 52 - Wake Forest 84

Greenville:

Last night in Belhaven concluded with a night at the local bar! This was a tiny empty town! A nice drunk man bought us all beers at the bar! Breakfast was at a local Oyster bar that served us eggs, bacon, sausage, grits, cheese biscuits, fruit, and cereal. The ride today to Greenville was a rough one but I’m here in Greenville at the church. It was about a 52mile ride but I had 2 flats! Lunch usually consists of pb&j, bagels, fruit, cereal, hummus and carrots, and any leftovers. At the church we had just ONE shower for all of us! That got interesting. Dinner was pizza and salad! Tmrw is the longest ride at 82 miles! I’m sweeping as well which means I’m in the back and ensure everyone is good to go and on path. Thanks for reading! Night!

Wake Forest:

Today we biked 84miles to Wake Forest! It was such a rough ride. Just getting to the half way point for lunch was hard. It rained on us and then I ate a lot for lunch. The last 40 miles was very tough. I was on sweep so I was always in the back. We got to the hills finally…I went a nice 6mph sometimes. I also went 35mph in the down pouring rain. I think today I learned what self determination and what the support of fellow teammates will do. This was prbly one of the most painful experiences besides going through ACL rehab that I’ve concurred. Riding into the church with Claire with the entire bus cheering was the best feeling. Completing 84 miles up and down hills with such struggle is definitely a big accomplishment for me so far. Anyways, besides having a rough ride, we then had showers at the ymca and dinner and Kim (fellow rider) house! Her family fixed us a nice lasagna, pizza, and salad with various beers! I ate SO much today! Welp, I’m off to bed early. We have a 39mile ride in the morning to Chapel Hill!

Belhaven - 35miles

Today in Swanquarter I actually woke up a little earlier before the alarm was to go off! I got some great sleep in the sanctuary! The church members had provided us with a great breakfast consisting of eggs, grits, waffles, strawberries, really good cheese biscuits, coffee, bacon, sausage, and really salty ham! The folks here are so kind! We set off for about 34 miles. The ride was great today. While I was sore, this ride acted as a cool down from the 68 miles the day before. My bottom is pretty sore but my legs are feeling great. On the ride, we were pretty much in the middle of nowhere land. Surprisingly, one of the few houses on the road was having a yard sale! So a bunch of the riders stopped by and we chatted with the folks. They had a few horses that were rather nice and friendly. I have a few pictures of them! We continued on and well, nature called so I pulled off from the group to do my thing and once I got back on my bike and started to catch up, there were 2 riders a little way back from me as well. However, while catching up I had my first dog chase!!! I must admit, it was a little scary considering it was a pretty big pitbull that decided to run down the road and chase me! The dog ran in front of a car and crossed the street to me so I screamed really loud and scared it off and it went back to his house. I out ran the dog! The rest of the ride was pleasant and we arrived to our host at the Trinity Methodist Church. The ladies here opened up their houses to us for showers. They were so nice! Each neighbor drove a few of us to their house and allowed us to use their showers, lay in hammocks out back right on a lake that was having a sailboat race! After showers we came back and were greeted with prayers and a huge feast including loaded potatoes, lots of veggies and salad, fruit bowl, yummy garlic cheese bread, these green tomatoes, grilled chicken, cranberries, and lots of desserts that I proudly ate only a dab of each. The folks here were way to kind to us! They kept coming around and filling our cups up with lemonade and water even though we kept telling them to fix their plates! I’m finding it absolutely amazing come across such kind folks in these towns so far. We are complete strangers yet they open their homes for us to shower and cook us amazing homemade food! We bike into Greenville tmrw. I haven’t had cell phone reception so if you’re reading this (Mom and Pop!) I’m doing great! Having fun, getting a great workout in, eating great food, and having an incredible time! I will try calling when I get reception soon! Night Night!

Wheel Dip - 68 miles

May 17^th was our first official day of the trip cross country that included a wheel dip in the Atlantic and my longest ride yet, 68 miles. We woke up at 5:15, did our chores, then met the Silver Riders who led us to the ocean where we were met by I believe was the commissioner and mayor of Nags Head and a few parents. There was a nice ceremony with prayers and pictures and then we took off our shoes and carried our bikes down to the ocean where we dipped our back tires in the ocean!

The Silver Riders led us a little way till we reached road 264 and that was the same road we took all the way to the next church. I’d like to say I led the rear of the pack. I couldn’t see anyone behind me so I assumed I was always in the led. Slow and steady wins the race. The road was pretty empty and looked the same the entire way. I took quite a few breaks but they were worth it. We had lunch at about mile 30 that consisted of a delicious bagel with nutella and this apple butter stuff. I also had a big carrot stick!  I will try to be rather conservative in this blog and not include the weird, yucky, and rather unnecessary information; however, at this lunch break I did venture into the woods for my first wilderness pee break. I’m in need of more baby wipes! Its surprising how little you have to use the restroom for just how much we are drinking. At least I’ll speak for myself and I’ve been gulping the water down! I also saw a lot of road kill that included many interesting critters such as a fox, birds, snakes and other unidentified critters. OH! A live otter ran across the road in front of myself and a few others! He was cute and reminded me of Kasper! (family dog)

After lunch it got a little rough, I wont deny that. I was mentally prepared for the rough part of my longest ride though which helped some. The last 30 miles, also on road 264 were long, sunny, and simply rough to pull through. I took many water and stretch breaks and got through! My legs feel pretty good, its mostly my lower back and bottom that are feeling prettyI came in first place in my book! (Even though I’m pretty sure I was one of the last riders to come in shh) The last 5miles we came into the town that was a pretty empty town. The population is pretty small and theres not much to do here. Not to mention I have no internet and no cell phone service.

Upon arriving at the Soule Methodist Church we were able to shower across the street at a highschool. Even though the showers were freezing cold, it was the best feeling after a long ride to get out of the cycle gear and get clean. After showers the Pastor, his wife, and fellow community members greeted us with prayer and a very nice spread of great homemade food. There was yummy chicken, salads, pastas, broccoli salads, corn tortilla casserole thing, fruit, and manyyyyy desserts. I’m going to attempt to stay away from the desserts and go for the salads and fruit first. This will take such will power since I love food and eat just about anything.

After dinner, the Pastor and his wife invited us into a small traditional Sanctuary where she played the keyboard and sang and he the acoustic. There were a few nice song prayers and kind words. The folks here are very kind and supportive of what we are doing. They invited us for a nice breakfast in the morning at 7:30am.

This will likely be one of my longest blog posts. But I felt it was important to document my entire first day of Bike&Build as well as my longest ride to date. It turned out to be a great day and will likely be a bit sore in the morning. I’m looking forward to a 33 mile ride tmrw! Check out pics in the "Photos" tab on this blog! Thanks for reading! Night!

Orientation! May15&16

Bike & Build NC to SD has started! About a year ago I was just looking into this thing called bike & build and here I am, beginning my journey cross country. Thank you to everyone that has supported me! Especially my mom and pops, my biggest supporters! I arrived in Nags Head NC with my parents on Saturday and spent a few days here visiting various places such as the lighthouses, Jockeys Ridge State Park, and the Wright Brothers museum. On Wednesday I finally met my team! I have to say, I was rather on top of researching/facebook lurking so when everyone arrived I already recognized faces and knew names! Once we checked in at the Nags Head Church we did various cheesy "get to know you" games. Within just the past 2 days our team of 28 members has become friends! It's such a weird feeling dedicating my entire summer to just bike&build. No classes or work this summer. It feels like I'm at summer camp almost! Its a huge slumber party here.

Today we did more safety presentations and did some skills tests on the bikes. In the afternoon the "Silver Riders", which is a group of men over the age of 58 that have formed a well known group in NC with incredible riders. One of which is an 85 years old and I believe the NC champion. The Silver Riders led us on a 22mile shakedown ride in Nags Head to the Bodie Lighthouse as pictured below. It was a great first ride! I led the rear of the group proudly! When we returned to the church we shuttled to a sports club that allowed us to use their shower facilities. I believe this may be the best shower experience we will have. This sports club gave us towels, had shampoo, conditioner, and body wash! Not to mention the shower heads were the kind that basically rain on you from above! When we finished showers we came back to the church and had an incredible dinner! This was way more than I ever expected. It was like Thanksgiving times 10! We had meatloaf, sweet potatoes, mash potatoes/gravy, salad, pasta salads, various casserolls, fruit salad (and kiwi!) beans and rice, fish tacos, cookies, chips and layerd dip, and other yummy items!

We wake up at 5:15am tmrw, breakfest at 5:45, meeting at 6:45, then head off for the wheel dip ceremony. I'm part of the breakfest crew this week. We then go 66 miles to our next destination! 

I'm getting ready for bed, I apologize for any spelling errors! I will try to post as much as possible in this blog and add pictures. Night night!!

5/3/13 Whats in a bag?

As I begin to organize everything I will be packing, many have been asking me exactly what I will be brining with me for two and a half months on the road biking and building. I will be taking a large duffle bag (max weight 50lbs) to carry my equipment and clothes for the summer. Thats right, just one bag and a bike.

Inside the duffle bag I will carry the following:

5 pairs undies

2 shirts

B&B T-shirts

3 sports bras

2 bras

4 pairs socks

2 pairs shorts

1 long comfy pants

1 pair flip flops

1 pair sneakers

1 swim suit

1 jacket

3 pairs cycle shorts

2 jerseys

cycle shoes

1 long sleeve layer

1 rain jacket

cycle gloves

arm/leg warmers

small quick dry towel

sunscreen

toiletries (shampoo, wash, toothbruth...)

phone, chargers, macbook, camera, cable

chamois buttr, gold bond, dznuts bliss

sleeping bag

small pillow

sunglasses

zip lock bags

bike lock

extra bike equipment (tubes, bottles...)

NUUN energy tablets, honey stinger waffles

stamps, flight ticket home, wallet

 

I think thats about it minus a few other items I will bring, myself, and of course Mufasa, my bike! The duffle bag will be kept in the support van that will travel with us. I will carry my camelbak with important items such as rain gear, id, insurance card, money, phone, snacks, and water of course.

 

I meet with my B&B group in less than 2 weeks! I will try to blog as much as possible this summer when I have internet; however, I will write through word doc and post blogs when I have internet to try to keep to date everything on the adventure. Please feel free to comment on my blog and continue to follow it! Thank you :)