Day 73-Washington DC to Rehoboth Beach, DE

We woke up at TJ’s at 4:40am to pack our stuff, eat breakfast, say bye to TJ and then we drove to the metro and left our bags in Evan’s car and caught the metro back to the hotel where they were holding our bikes for us. It took a lot longer than expected but we got to the capitol with our bikes at 7 and set off to ride the 100+ miles to the coast. We didn’t know the exact miles because we weren’t sure of the exact route or how far we would have to be in the car for to get across the Bay Bridge which is un-bikeable. The first 20ish miles getting out of the city was pretty rough, we were going to try the interstate because it looked like it had a good shoulder from google maps but we realized it was an awful shoulder and then there was no more shoulder so we had to switch to the backup route which had a lot of lights and rolling hills. After we got further from the city, up until mile 30 was beautiful through some woods on a small road until we met our parents at the mall who were being our crew for the day. We had been carrying all our extra road snacks and Chacos with us that we wore on the metro so we finally were able to drop those off with them. After that we had maybe 15 more miles of little hills before we got as close as we could to the Bay and put our bikes on the car to get across. The Bay Bridge was awesome, crazy long and I’m sure we would have been blown right off the bridge if we tried to bike across. Once on the other side it became the easiest century I have ever done. The rest of the ride was all flat and for a while we had a little tail wind just pushing us along towards the coast. I also got to add two states to the list of states I biked through, we did Maryland and Delaware today but only caught the sign going into Delaware. We stopped along the way to get a fresh peach from a farm along the road and continued on. Our parents stopped for a little too long to pick up some food for us for lunch and we were pretty hungry about 35-40 miles out and they didn’t catch us until 12 miles from the beach so we didn’t want to waste time eating. We probably should have just ate when they caught us but we powered through the last bit with a little head wind coming off the ocean and we were completely drained since we ate last at 5am. Finally we turned onto the road leading to the beach and I could finally see the ocean at the end of the road. I had the biggest grin and felt so accomplished looking at the ocean, I biked from ocean to ocean. We just rolled down the street at an easy pace taking it in, riding side by side. We unclipped and walked our bikes down the beach and dipped the tires into the water and jumped in, the journey for Evan and I had finally ended, there was no more ground to ride on, just ocean. What a wild thing to do, bike from coast to coast of the United States in a summer. I was so glad that Evan was with me, I definitely would not have done either the preJOH or this postJOH ride without him, he is an awesome guy and great person to be on a bike with. The total ride today was 108 miles and completely worth it. We hung out at Rehoboth and got some drinks before we drove back to Annapolis to eat dinner ate a super fancy place right on the docks with an amazing view of the water. It was late by the time we got back and Evan ended up just staying with us because he had to drop my bags off. It was the last ride I will have with Evan for a long time but we both plan to continue riding so maybe sometime we will be able to ride together again. Glad I got to hang out with him for a while longer but it sucked finally saying good bye to the last teammate. Now it is time to close the book on this summer, every memory engrained in my mind and as much as possible written down in this blog journal. I will always remember the people I met this summer and the memories we made and the impact we had, this was an incredible summer and I am lucky to have had this opportunity and I will always treasure this summer.

Day 71-Manassas Va to Washington DC

Today was the day, arrival in Washington DC the day everyone has been looking forward to but dreading at the same time. We had a very early morning to get to stage up at George Washington University before 9:30am which was a 35 mile ride. The ride was honestly pretty tough but it was all in my head, just being so excited to get to arrival made the 35 miles feel like they were only inching along. It didn't help that we hit almost every red light on the way, it was so frustrating. On the other hand I didn't exactly want the miles to fly by because I was enjoying the time on the bike especially because I was riding with Dean and Evan, the same way we started when we left from the coast. It is crazy to think back to that ride from the coast was like with them before orientation, kind of awkward, I hardly knew them at all, even though Dean is from my chapter (we were only active for a semester together) and now on this ride they are two of the closest friends I have. They are also two of the funniest guys so the frustration of the red lights was pretty comical with them. Finally we cross the bridge and get into DC and as we ride through the streets it becomes more and more real that the trip is quickly ending. A few blocks from GW a couple cyclists ride up to us wearing Push America Jerseys and welcome us to the city and congratulate us on the ride, the light turned green pretty quick so we didn't have time to talk but they were meeting us at the arrival. in the last bit we see the guys from the North and South routes riding in, the South route was in a 8-10 man pace line the last few blocks. Finally we get to the last turn and see a huge crowd of cyclists from North, South and the Trans guys ahead of us. It was an awesome feeling, so much excitement. After our whole team arrived we walked over to the GW Deli that Scott took us too which has amazing breakfast bagels, the pile it with bacon, throw some cheese on it and cook a couple fresh eggs, one of the best breakfast bagels I have had so I had to get two. After that we headed back to the lawn for stage up and circled up with all the teams to go over arrival and figure out what the order will be, sadly our route went second behind North. We clipped in and lined up on the road behind the police escort for the last time as a team everyone was screaming and yelling shooting water all over the place from our bottles, arrival was finally right in front of us. The ride down the national mall was insane, everyone was having a great time screaming and yelling and checking out the looks we got from everyone on the side of the road. As we get closer friends and family start lining the side walks taking pictures and we can see the capitol right in front of us. Finally I see my parents and my sister at the end of road right in front of me, we get off the bikes and walk onto the lawn and our rose, Liz Rodie, and Ben Jackson and Daniel Wilson were in the tunnel of people we walked through. We lined up in our full team picture and waited for Chad Coltrane, Mark E Timmes and the Project Managers to give their speeches then we got to run over to see our family and friends, my parents, sister and Aunt Ellie and Uncle Jeff were there. Of course my mom couldn't hold the tears back, my dad almost couldn't either and my sister had already let it go when she saw me ride in. After that it was crazy, families and teammates all over the lawn scrambling to take pictures with people and the epic picture in front of the capitol.
After that was all over we slowly moved to the hotel to check in and grab bags. They didn't have my room ready so I walked across the street with my family in my chamois and sat down at a restaurant outside to grab a drink and wait for the other big event we have been waiting for at arrival. It has been hard not to blog about it because of how much we have talked about it with the team but Brentley Wells has been planning to propose to his girlfriend all summer. He told us he was thinking about it after the first ride out of Seattle and we helped him set in stone by the time we got to West Yellowstone, get the ring box from a jeweler who decided to make it a donation to him, we helped him figure out a good way to pop the question and some guys drove into DC yesterday to scout out a good spot that they could walk to and we all pitched in to pay for a photographer to capture the moment. To add to the moment, after she said yes, they walked back to the hotel where we were all waiting on the sidewalk and as soon as she got closer we all got down on a knee in our chamois with Brentley and sang the rose song to her. It was an amazing moment for them and I was so happy we got to be apart of it not just today but all summer long. Talking to Brentley about our relationships has been such a good time.
I got to check in and shower then went to meet my family to go tour the Capitol Building, it was probably not the best idea, I should have just slept but we went anyway and it was very cool despite sleeping through the intro video.
The last event was the reception where they gave out the awards for fundraisers. They also had the teams go up and read the creed of the Pi Alpha. What really got to me was the slideshow, it really sunk in that it was done, we got the too quick recap of everything that we had done and all the places we had been and we had reached the end of the journey.
I don't think I will every be able to describe it all well enough to anyone but it I will always remember how it has effected me. I made it from Cape Flattery/Seattle to the Capitol in Washington DC on a bike with the Trans America route of Journey of Hope. This was the most incredible adventure I have had and I have never made closer bonds with brothers as well as people with different abilities that we met. It was an unforgettable summer and I am so proud of the entire team. It will be sad to see us split up after tomorrow. But for tonight we are still all together and it is time to celebrate with everyone.

Day 70-Charlottesville to Manassas VA

We had our second to last circle up this morning, everyone was really excited to get on the road and get just one step closer to arrival. As usual at the end of the circle up we dedicate the ride so someone and today our Logistics Coordinator Zack had the idea of dedicating this ride to ourselves and to everything we have done as a team and the impacts we have made across the country this summer. That really set the mood for me for the ride and I spent a lot of the 42 miles with Hayden and Max just in my head thinking back to friendship visits that were really meaningful to me, made a lasting impact on who I am, and brought me very close friends like Denis and his family. I was remembering all the times with team that I will never forget and all the tough rides we powered through together like getting into Yellowstone with Randy and Dylan, probably the most mentally and physically drained I have been on any ride. The ride today just disappeared before we knew it, over some hills and through some street lights and all of the sudden we were at lodging.

After showers we sent the vans to go get cleaned inside and out so they look real good riding in arrival tomorrow. We also had to consolidate everything we need into our backpacks because we are dropping off our duffel bags tonight and won't see them until after arrival. While we were waiting around to go to dinner the South team came to our lodging to shower, it was the first time we have seen their team so I got to see Keegan and Zack finally, the guys from ASU. It was very cool to meet their team but they have a very different team than us and it makes me feel very lucky to be on the route I am with the guys on this team. 

Tonight we had the full team dinner with both the North and South Route. It was a blast getting all ASU guys together and meeting the guys on South route. We just hung out until we had to take care of some business items to prepare for arrival. We set up our picture with all the routes and crew members to take at the capital and walked through what the arrival will look like and where to go during and after the arrival. Just about 12 hours left until my tires hit the capital lawn with the entire Journey of Hope team. We were hoping to learn the arrival order at dinner but we will find out at stage up right before we leave, the anticipation is killing me but I also will not really care either way, I know we will be first or second to North route. We also got to see KT again at dinner who, before we left, complimented our team on how great we are doing and the respect we showed and that he could tell we had the right attitude. His respect for us is an amazing compliment to me and the team for how hard we have worked so I am so proud of everyone.

Tonight we had a short team meeting to wrap up our leadership development with a few quotes and then talked about arrival and the ride tomorrow, 35 miles to stage up. After the meeting we laid out our jerseys and got them signed by everyone on the team, this one will be getting framed for me to carry with me for the rest of my life along with every man who signed it.

 At stage up we will have an hour and a half or more to hang out, the stage up is at George Washington where Scott goes to camps who wants us to go to this really good deli for lunch that is nearby. We ride into the capital at 11 and all hell will break loose after that, speeches, pictures, hugs, crying, family, friends, chapter brothers, our rose, it will be insane. I can't wait to take it all on. I am also very excited for the 35 miles because we are finishing it off the way it started with Dean, Evan and I riding together.

Day 69-Charlottesville to Front Royal VA

Today was our victory lap, the most challenging terrain we have seen maybe but still a victory lap and it could not have been more perfect. I rode with Jeff and Preston which we have been planning for at least a week now, Jeff just told me we were going to do it with Preston so I was absolutely up for it. Morning started off perfectly, we were up at 5:30 and left lodging a little late because of some road delays but cycled just 4 miles to Whole Foods who was feeding us breakfast which was very filling and delicious plus they gave us a ton of organic energy bars for the ride. While we were waiting around to leave Bott somehow broke his front derailleur off, he was just standing there then rolled his back backward a second and it broke off. He really wanted to ride today so we took it off and taped the cable to his bike and just set the chain in his middle ring and he just went without a front derailleur all day. From Whole Foods the ride began and the first 25 miles were really not bad at all, similar to the last few rides we have had through the woods on small back roads. After that section we get to a turn and see the big Skyline Drive sign on the road and we realize the challenge is about to begin. Jeff has been talking about this ride since practically day 1 and has gotten me really excited about it. We were the second pace line to hit the hills and the 12 miles after that sign were intense, constant climb on a steep grade. Not even half way up we see the first pace line and they yell that Joe (AKA Wombat) broke his chain, I was really bummed that he was going to miss the ride. Finally after the 12 miles we get to the top and I remember that the ride goes through Shenandoah National Park, I had completely forgotten until we saw the park sign at the top of the climb. As soon as we rode through the gates of the park I lite up with even more excitement and wonder and never lost it through the entire 67 miles we were in the park. I loved every hill both up and down, but what really made the ride was not only that it felt like we were on a hike through the wilderness just on bikes but every half mile to mile there was a scenic overlook and the views were jaw dropping every single time. We were so high up we were looking down at the tops of mountains and ridges surrounding us, and they went on all the way to the horizon, we saw lakes and rivers below us, it was absolutely breathtaking. Around mile 50 we came up to a visitor center and I had to run in and look for a sticker to add to my bike because I haven’t added one since Colorado and this is the perfect place for the last one before Washington DC plus the one I found was too good to pass up, it has the quote “The mountains are calling and I must go” by John Muir with an outline of the Shenandoah mountains.
Right before we had stopped we had a dear walk out of the bushes and cross the road right in front of us as we were climbing, then on a downhill section we saw a family of deer in the woods right next to us, the wildlife was everywhere. Just after the visitor center we were headed down a hill and I heard some rustling in the woods and look over expecting deer and was pleasantly surprised to see a small black bear leaning up against a tree looking onto the road, I loved it but no one else had time to see it. 13 miles later at the bottom of one of that very fun downhill section, one of many, we hit lunch. I had almost forgotten about lunch because I was so distracted by the ride. Wiles picked a great spot for lunch too, it was a huge overlook parking lot so we made our sandwiches, grabbed some cookies, chips and an Arnold Palmer and walked over to the brick wall and sat there with the team eating lunch looking out at the gorgeous view, it was a perfect moment and that is when Scott said this was our victory lap and I could not have agreed more. This ride was the culmination of our Journey, no better way to go out than a 106 mile day climbing just over 9000 feet. After that the time just disappeared and the hills felt easier and we were on the final climb busting it to get to the top and hit that last crazy downhill section to take us all the way to town. On the hill we were just getting started when somehow my chain popped off so we coasted to the next overlook and stopped to put it back on, ended up being a great place to stop, the views to the right of the road were the best and this one was perfect.
Even after all that climbing we weren’t too beat and at the end of the hill we got to Matt’s stop who was actually asleep in his chair on the side of the road but it was clearly marked which way to Front Royal so we just made the turn and went for it. In town though, we just barely missed Ryan at his turn because he ducked inside to use the bathroom and we went on for a couple miles before we hit a T in the road with no one marking it so we called Wiles and turned around and found Ryan and road into lodging. I know we have technically two more rides after this I know they will go by so quick so this one really felt like the last hurrah on the bike and it was the last for a lot of things, we won’t be that high again, won’t have as intense of climbs or as long of downhill roads. Today was one of the best days on the bike.
The day kept being amazing after the ride too. Our lunch was sponsored by a guy who owns a Winery nearby called Naked Mountain Winery so we went to his Winery and they had the best pulled pork and fried chicken that we have had all trip and after eating those things so much this trip I never thought I could enjoy them as much as we did today. His winery was amazing and the weather was still perfect to sit outside and enjoy the view while we ate. On our way out a bunch of us bought some shirts from the winery because they were hilarious, you can make a lot of funny shirts when your winery is called Naked Mountain Winery. Mine has their logo and says “Drink Naked” with the name of the winery below it, he gave us a big discount and was very open and generous and invited us all to visit any time we are back in the area.
After dinner we had a team meeting to discuss more details about tomorrow where we have our all team dinner with North and South in Manassas and our last preparations for arrival. Once the logistics things were done we finished the end of the ritual from yesterday be talking about the last handful of guys including myself. It was really moving for me to hear what people had to say about me and how much I helped them on and off the bike and it really made me fully believe that the goals I set in my letter I wrote to myself I really did accomplish and what those guys had to say was the proof I needed for myself to really see that. I pushed people hard on the bike and pulled them when they needed it and slowed down for them when they were struggling. I killed it at friendship visits and made it clear that I was here for the right reasons, to make a difference in the lives of the people we met and I shared that with teammates, sponsors and reporters to help spread our message.

I don’t know what to expect out of the next 30 some hours of the Journey of Hope but I have learned that every second is amazing so I’m looking forward the last few moments I have with everyone this summer.

Day 68-Lynchburg to Charlottesville VA

The ride today was like a hike in through the woods but on a bike. That is the best way I could think of to describe it. A crazy amount of rolling hills but for 90% of the ride we were just weaving our way through the woods over steep hills and back down. It was a really challenging day with all the climbing we had, over 5,500 feet over the 75 miles. We also had a tough rack time so Evan and I were pushing ourselves hard on the bike and shot passed everyone and had the road all to ourselves. The downhill sections were super fun but we were on back roads so some of it was not very nicely paved and the corners don't have the speed suggestions so it is hard to gauge how sharp the turn will be and how fast we can take it. Nonetheless the downhill rides were a blast, I love leaning into the corners and getting up to some high speeds, the only downside was when we get to the bottom and are almost immediately punished with a steep climb, I swear we had maybe a mile or two of flat ground total today. We got red flagged at one stop early on and right as the dropped the flag we got passed by a pace line before we got on the bike, we passed them later on then got red flagged a bit later for a long time and were there until almost all the pace lines caught up to us, not to much later I realized my back tire was pretty low so I stopped and put a new tube in and got passed by the groups we were just red flagged with including our PM Stefan, I couldn't let Stefan beat me today so we took off after them and passed everyone that had just passed us, then I popped my chain off and had to put it back on and we were still crushing the ride. Even after all of that we got to mile 58 just before rack time when we were supposed to be at 65 but they didn't have enough vans up there to rack us because we were so spread out so they just let us keep riding with the intention to rack us just a ways down the road. Half way up a hill 7 miles down the road we see Ryan's van and stop because he said we were racked and after Evan had his wheel off and I had put the back rack up Ryan gets the message that they are letting us finish the ride just as the next pace line gets to us and they continue on up the hill. At the last red flag Bott was giving me grief about being the fastest pace line with Evan so I could not give him the satisfaction of us not rolling into lodging first so I told Evan we had to catch them and we took off up the rest of the hill and went all out with all the energy we had left which was very low at that point but we made it in first, fastest pace line around. In the last 10 miles we also ran into a news crew that was getting footage of us on the ride, they drove by a few times with a camera sticking out the window and a GoPro attached to the trunk, I hope we get to see that footage because I bet it looked awesome.

We staged up for an arrival into lodging with the Arc of Piedmont who is also feeding us dinner and breakfast and we have a friendship visit and dance with them tonight. At the arrival they had a their yard full of staff and clients to greet us and we walked around and talked to them before putting our bikes up in the house next door where we are staying for the night and grabbed our Jimmy John's boxed lunches at Gatorade.

After lunch we showered and a group of us walked to the historic downtown area of Charlottesville which is very pretty and has a walkway with shops on either side and restaurant seating in the middle. Our goal was coffee and Evan knows a place called Mud House so we went there and I had to get the signature Mud Cup which is black coffee with two shots of espresso, it was very tasty. We all hung out there and talked and did a little bit of planning for arrival.

Our friendship visit was a blast, we had dinner with the Arc and a bunch of their clients, a lot are from group homes they run. One guy that stood out to me that I got to talk to and dance with was BowWow, at least that is what he told me to call him. He had some awesome dance moves, he was just taring up the floor. Not only could he dance but he was also raping his own lyrics to the beat of a lot of the songs it was awesome.

The evening was a lot more serious but in a very good way. This was the last friendship visit which was a huge milestone and an appropriate time for a team meeting. We met downstairs in the house we are staying at and Wiles handed back to us the letters that we wrote to ourselves when we were in Seattle. I had completely forgotten about them but as soon as I saw them in his hand it felt like it was just yesterday that I had my pen to that paper. After reading it it gave me a sense of pride that the vision I had and goals I set for this summer that I explained in that letter I definitely accomplished. Reading this letter marked the beginning of the Pi Alpha ritual. To start we wrote another letter to ourselves that they will mail to us a year from now, I included a lot of goals and hopes that I would like to make happen in the next year including the team and my journey after the Journey of Hope. Tonight we all officially became Pi Alphas as a team. Before the night was over we had a chance to go around and individually thank people for what they have done for the team and for ourselves individually, it brought tears to a couple guys' eyes and made me realize just how appreciative I am for the team that we have and the contributions that people made throughout the summer in so many different ways. It also reminded me of a lot of amazing and impact-full moments that my teammates have given me the opportunity to have on and off the bike that I will treasure and remember for the rest of my life. The fact that I will be leaving these guys in just a few days is becoming more and more painful to accept but the last few rides we have together will be the best.

Tomorrow is our last century day with exactly 100 miles and it will also be a tough one I believe. We are on Skyline Drive for most of it which is very hilly, estimated 10,000 feet if climbing. Today was 4,000 in 75 miles and I was struggling. I will be conquering this last ride with everything I have alongside Preston and Jeff because after this we have just 80 or so miles until we arrive in Washington DC.

Day 67-Roanoke to Lynchburg VA

Super fun day today on and off the bike. Started with a 6am wake up in our motel and on the road by 7. I had to leave my original pace line because we needed to make a couple 2 man pace lines so I ended up with Jeff which was fine because we haven't ridden together in a while and I want to get a ride in with everyone I haven't been with much before the end of the trip. We took off as the last pace line before sweeps but started hauling from the start. We ended up passing up everyone one by one and really pushing to go fast. Jeff is a good cyclists when he is working hard so I was pushing him to put full effort in by pulling at fast speeds when I could. We were both pushing ourselves to the limits untill around 35 miles where we got red flagged and we realized we had made a pretty big gap between us and the next pace line. Once we left from there we were still moving as fast as we could, at 55 miles we realized our average was almost 18 mph and we wanted to push it even higher so we ended up sprinting the last 13 miles which we thought was going to be 10. We were flying up hills at 26 mph and up, it was insane, we were really going all out just for fun. By the time we got to the lights that slowed us down right before lodging we had brought our average up to 18.7 mph which is very impressive. I had a good time going that fast with him, he is awesome to ride with.

We did an arrival for our sponsor for lodging at Lynchburg College who is a Pi Kapp from Roanoke Xi Chapter. We ate with them and then showered and went down the street to our friendship visit with Challenged Sports where we played beach ball volleyball and mega basketball with an inflatable hoop and ball. I played volleyball for a while with Adrian who was in a wheelchair but if we served it to him in the right spot he could get a hand on the ball and hammer it. The smile and laugh he had every time he hit it was amazing. I also played basketball with Keton who was a little boy and we were picking him up and flying him around the court to slam dunk it in and he was hilarious and full of energy.

For dinner our friendship visit was with the Arc of Virginia. They had pasta for us and we ate dinner with a bunch of their clients. I ended up sitting with Kieth and Sarah who have been married for 20 years and met at a group home they were living at back then. They were such a cute couple, poking fun at each other and laughing. Kieth used to be a Special Olympics weight lifter and beat a few of our guys in an arm wrestling match. After dinner we pushed the tables aside for a dance party and Kieth pulled out some awesome moves for us.

Tomorrow we have 75 miles to do and supposedly a tough one with a lot more hills than we had today. Tomorrow we will also have out last friendship visit which we all plan on making really count. We only 4 more rides left, it is insane. Tonight we started preparing for arrival by clearing out vans.

Day 66-Roanoke, day off

It was a good start to the day because most of us decided to skip crew chief breakfast and went down the street to Waffle House to get breakfast instead which was amazing. After breakfast we packed up for the hike and headed to the mall for a little. I am giving a gag gift to Dean, we are doing it secret santa style so I found some awesome old man stuff at Spencer’s in the mall, I got him a cup that says “Old Man Drink” a fake old man driver’s license and a book titled “Sex After 40” and when you open up the book every page is blank. Can’t wait to give it to him. We headed straight to the hike after we ate lunch so we would have enough time to get to the top. It was not too bad of a hike, definitely a lot of elevation gain but it was a nice trail. Ryan, Hayden Wiles and I ended up taking off ahead of the bigger group, we didn’t know how long it would take us and were not going to let the time constraint keep us from getting to the top so we ended up getting to the top 10 minutes before the other guys and hung out and took some pictures. It was an incredible view, 270 degree view of the Appalachians and we could see the mountains rolling on all the way into the horizon, definitely one of the best views I have seen, it will be a very memorable one.

After we got back from the hike we had time to jump in the shower before heading to our friendship visit with Camp Easter Seals just outside Roanoke. This week the camp was for kids with visual impairment, many of them had Albinism and are able to see ok but have night blindness, some had no vision or some kind of impairment. We showed up and got a tour of the camp, this camp is also one the Build America visits every year and a couple guys on the team, Agerton and Wiles, had been to while on BAM and built some of the things they showed us, they also knew the director, some staff and a few of the campers. We ate dinner with the camp and then did their evening activity with them which was called Get Messy. It was exactly how it sounded, they had a counselor Sunday station, dumping all kinds of things on the counselors, paint fight and water fight. I was not too interested in getting messy at first and hung out with a kid, Paul, who was also avoiding the mess. I finally caved and ended up joining the water fight and got paint splattered on my face, it was a lot of fun. Before I left I hung out with Paul again who was sitting by himself. He has been going to the camp for 5 years and loves it, he said he loves the food and his favorite part is going canoeing, he was really cool. Everyone on the team was a mess, shaving cream and paint and chocolate syrup all over, it was great, we had to rinse off and most guys took their shirts off to keep the vans from getting covered in our mess.

Tomorrow we are back on the bike and I am very excited. We have 75 miles to Lynchburg and I am hoping we are still riding through the same beautiful scenery.