During the night it rained ~ Mahlique

During the night it rained on me and my other teammates. Due to the rain we were able to sleep in, which was a big relief, because we hung out all night with a family up the way from our camp.  Conversation was good and they wanted to feed us everything they had. I think for the first time we weren't over eating and our appetites were sated. Apart from the strange incident with the little girl at the lake beach all of the people we've met have been extremely generous and ensured we had all that we needed on this journey. I am very appreciative of that as I could not imagine having to do this tour under hardship. It is really astounding to know that people made this journey, not only by foot most of the time but, with very little accommodations. Our "Safe Houses" have been either warm or air conditioned. In the past they were either hot or hotter, cold or colder. And damp, dirty and smelly. Nothing like what we're experiencing. And I might add, we're not being chased.

We we finally started riding we were well into our ride when Houstons tire popped. We spent a very long time trying to fix it but it did not work. We then called the SAG van to pick us up. It would be a horrible situation if we didn't have our support vehicle. If we're to do an unsupported tour we really will have to train and prepare for it. Our "Safe House" for the evening was, thank God, another YMCA. Unfortunately, we all had to finish our blogs, which are grossly behind. If we did not we could not do any activities.

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Kyvon's Blog - June 27 Our ride to Owensboro, KY

SWAGG

Today we went to Owensboro, KY. Before we actually got into the town, about twenty miles out, we meet some fellow cyclists that escorted us into Owensboro. One of the cyclists was just as fast as Mr. Brogden (he was on a recumbent), when we stopped so that we could make a turn onto another street, he told us that he was going 26 miles per hour. Then when we were almost a mile from the City Hall that we were supposed to go to, it started to pour down raining, we all got soaking wet, except for Mr. Brogden, who stopped at a gas station to stay out of the rain (smart man).

When we arrive at the City Hall, we went up stairs to meet the Mayor Pro Tem, Mrs. Pamela L. Smith-Wright, she was nice enough to give us a Subway lunch, and tell about the upcoming and present construction that they had going on in their downtown area. Afterward, we rode our bikes to the city's local YMCA so that we could take a tour of the city using one of their local transit buses. While taking the tour, the bus driver told us about all the famous people from Owensboro, and how Ragu pasta sauce is made there, as well.

When the tour was done, we actually went to the Mayor Pro Tem's house to eat dinner!  She made us fried chicken, green beans, rice, apple pies, and more. While eating, we happened to be watching the news, and saw that we were on t.v. The interview that happen early that day, while we were at city hall, was on the 6 o'clock news.

We had accommodations at the Kentucky Wesleyan College.   There we were given dorms for us to use for the night.  After handling our responsibilities in our rooms we all started to play billiards. A little while later Suepinda came in and played with Mahlique, against Ibn and Itza. That was a long game and a long talk about all the places we've been so far. By the way, Suepinda and Mahlique won.

Today was a long, hard day but it was fun because we made the best of it.

June 27 Morganfield to Owensboro ~ Ride Day 12

SnR UGRR Tour 2011 June 27 ~ Ride Day 12

Started on time 6am. Waited out oncoming rain for about 40 minutes. Clouds looked ominous but only let out a light rainfall.

It's 68* with beautiful pastoral scenery and cornfields over acres of land.

As usual, my two compatriots, Itza and Jeimy, rode with the old man (technically, Bob is older than I am but he can definitely DO this). The ride was pretty much uneventful up to the 20 miles to Henderson, KY.

The one remarkable thing about Henderson is that it was the FIRST town that had a bike path. That made us feel welcome in that town for about 5 minutes.  The bike path ended in just over a mile.

Our next stop was a country store to meet up with Donny and Danny. Two retired men who are avid cyclists. But before we could get to them we had to wind our way through various turns, checking the map every turn of the way as some of the streets were unsigned highways.  Boy, was that confusing. We stopped a man from mowing his lawn for directions. When looking at the map he didn't know where to go but when we explained the landmarks we were given he knew exactly where to go. You see, when you live there you don't need a map.

We found Donny and Danny, our two Bicycle Owensboro escorts, and headed toward Owensboro on their normal cycling route, a quiet road with very few cars, a couple of dogs who were very familiar with and wary of the two, and corn.  After a while we began to see rain approaching so we picked up speed and continued on to the city. 2 miles from our destination of City Hall we were caught by the rain and were drenched.

Upon our dripping arrival into City Hall of we were greeted by the Mayor Pro-Tem Pamela Smith-Wright and several cameras from the local media. After the interview, which appeared on the 6pm and 10pm news, we were treated to lunch and given what has become our new collective piece: commemorative pins! This time we were also given a buffalo key chain.  Buffalo were prevalent in Owensboro way back in the day.

I began my first day back to work at 2pm while the Youth Cyclists ate lunch and toured the city. The tour was provided by Bicycle Owensboro, a great local bicycle community that advocates for cyclists in the Owensboro area.

Later that afternoon we were provide a grand dinner prepared by the Mayor Pro-Tem, herself (she's also a caterer). The meal was fabulous southern fare of fried chicken, potato salad, green beans, okra and butter beans & rice.  Everyone had a great time visiting.

Spoke 'n Revolutions Youth Cycling UGRR Tour 2011 ~ Visit the nation's National Parks. 

Let's Move Outside!

June 26 ~ Ride Day 10 (Rain Day 1)

It's raining here in KY and it doesn't show signs of letting up until later this afternoon.  The rain began at 4am.  Mahlique alerted us that he had seen lightening so the decision was made to put the Youth Cyclists in the van for the night after ensuring the tents were secured.  Anything that didn't fit in the van we put into the tents.

I elected to stay in my tent as opposed to sleeping upright. Felt a bit anxious as the thunder rolled and the rain poured. Much like sitting in a dentist's chair with the drill going full speed. I opted to put in my earbuds and listen to some calmer rain; how ironic.  

Suepinda joined me at 5am and we continued to sleep undisturbed. 

It is now 9:30am and the storm resumed at 9:00.  This ride day is a bust, the van is crowed and my battery is low on the laptop. We sleep inside tonight! Although I enjoy camping in the rough not many of the Youth Cyclists have been prepared for this type of adventure.  I'm very proud of them all. Under duress the personalities really come out and they have worked thru the quirkiness of each other. Although I agree with Holly that they should have caught up on their blogging, yesterday was another bonding moment for them all.

I've given a few of them new nicknames that probably won't stick but are appropriate: Kyvon "Ifel" Brown (for his unwavering ability to fall off his bike while standing still, Marshall "Crash" Lewis (for his daredevil ability - which we ardently trying to curb - to plow thru bushes) and Chris "Kayak" Dargan (for his episode in Edenton, NC last year but not to be upstaged by Kyvon and Marshall).

I'll complete this update once we reach the YMCA.

Spoke 'n Revolutions Youth Cycling UGRR Tour 2011 ~ Visit the nation's National Parks. 

Let's Move Outside!