The gang ready to roll out
We arose about 6am to get ready for our ride to Buchanan. We were all moving a little slow from the previous day. Thank goodness, the day was to be a little cooler and the ride a little easier. We rolled out from the church and headed to Lexington. What a beautiful ride. I am not real sure what the route was but I would like to do parts of this again. Except for this very belligerent, angry motorists, the ride went very smooth. There was even a nice spring along the way on 252 Middlebrook Rd. We had a little break at a church that's not on the original map so I am not real sure where we stopped. But a big thanks to those that provided all the goodies.
We are led out by our support waggon Tizzy "Wilson" Walker
Out on an early attack.
A cool refreshment found along the way
After a nice break, Ray "The Rock" Stern, LW, The Kid, Hokieman, V-Twin and I lead the way through the rolling terrain. There was some fast section thru here and one S curve that I pulled a "Lance" move. Ray The Rock drifted from the inside to the outside where I was trying to move around him forcing me into a field to do a little cyclocross. Thank goodness there was no ditch, fence or holes, I managed to continue riding through the field bringing the bike back on the pavement. Too bad I didn't have that on video.
Ray "The Rock "Sterns
We came to Trinity UMC in Lexington where we were greeted with warm hospitality and more food. After a long lunch break, we headed out for the remainder miles to Buchanan. We were supposed to meet some kids after lunch for a little ride but we never found those kids. Where are those kids. Some of us noodled around looking for kids to ride with. Every kid we came across we asked if they wanted to ride. We had parents worried about their kids. Some even let the dogs loose upon our team.
Lunch break in Lexington. At this time I would like to thank my sponsor Ensure.
Excellent source of protein, carbs and cals. Plus it just taste sooo good!
Greg showing just how big the salad was from the night before.
This section of the ride was one of the most inspiring to me. I was riding with Lisa "Arabian" Moran, Julie "GI" Buchikos, Bob "Mr. Gadget" McDonald. Ok, I am trying hard to come up with some relevant names. Best I can remember, Lisa likes horses and rode strong and hard, Julie served in the Army and Bob had every gadget you could imagine with him. There was even a small satellite on top of his helmet:) The Pope remarked, "It takes Bob 30 minutes just to get his gear on." Lastly, Jeremy "Rocky" Hopkins. I'll share more on his name later.
Our biker chics, Lisa "Arabian" Moran, Julie "GI" Buchikos. You girls rock!
Basically, we followed route 76 and it was a wonderful road. Rocky continued fighting cramps in which he encountered the day before. He got a little dehydrated the day before. He was about 1 hr late into Lexington due to a flat tire. The crew wanted him to get in the sag wagon and skip 10 miles but he would have no part of it. He wanted to ride every mile. We got about 10 miles into the ride after lunch and he had another flat. I found a small thorn in his tire. Could have been there from the first flat. His legs were cramping the whole afternoon. Honestly, I didn't think he would make it. I thought we were going to have to call in the support wagon to pick him up. But he kept going. We all encouraged one another and continued heading towards Buchanan. We passed under Interstate 81 and turned onto Route 11 about 5 miles from the hotel. We all were tired and had no fuel left in the tank but kept pedaling. Legs were cramping and energy gone. Once again, we had a hilltop finish onto Watstull Inn off of I81. About 300 meters uphill. Rocky had nothing left and didn't think he could make the climb. He kept the pedals turning over and made it to the top without stopping. That is why I named him Rocky. He truly inspired me to try harder. He was knocked down time and time again and never quit but fought back triumphantly. I witnessed so much courage from the riders on this day and hope I can ride with the heart and tenacity they showed.
Jeremy "Rocky" Hopkins on the final ascent
We found a cool pool at the Inn and chilled out talking about the ride. We showed, hopped in back of David "4-cyl" Palmer's (he's V-Twin's dad) truck and headed to Fazarellis Pizzeria Restaurant in Buchanan. We felt like true rednecks downing our Big K cola cruising into town. Side note, The Kid violated the "Man Code" by eating only 1 slice of pizza almost causing him to ride into Roanoke in a skirt but couldn't find a skirt for him to wear.
1 comment:
Thanks for the good read- I like your blog. I also pastor a ride. Thanks again,
Brian
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