Ceremonial Tire Dipping Yorktown, VA

Hey everybody I just wanted to give everyone a quick update as to the happenings of our TransAm bike trip. We’ve been cranking out some miles and are on schedule for the most part. The first two days were pretty rough, but once we get into the swing of things there’s no stopping us. We started in Yorktown, VA on Saturday and are currently at a library in Lexington, VA. I want to say we’ve ridden approximately 300 miles and we are extremely sore. Being in the saddle for 80 miles a day really starts to wear on you, but our spirits are up. The people we have met along the way have been tremendously helpful and hospitable. We had the opportunity to sleep in a hostel the first night and behind a young lady’s convenience store the next day. We took a short respite in Charlottesville where we actually just sat around and watched TV all day at a friend’s house. They were incredibly kind and offered to tend to any and all of our desires. I attempted to add a third chain ring to my bike because the hills through the Appalachians have proven to be quite intense. Besides that, the hills are like riding a rollercoaster. It gets to the point where you despise going down hills because you know what’s coming up next. More uphill battles. It gets to be very mentally taxing, but the camaraderie between Rob, Rich and I has been very uplifting. The sights are incredible in Virginia. We have run across hundreds of historical sites and battlefields, and just visited the burial site of Gen. Robert E. Lee. Very interesting. I did happen to see two mountain lions yesterday as I was ing up a hill. It’s amazing how quick and agile those creatures are. The dogs had also proven to be quite a nuisance when going up hills because they bite and nip at your feet while you’re trying to outrun them. Rob was fortunate enough to outrun a Rottweiler but you should have seen how big his eyes got. Last night we experienced an incredible thunderstorm that woke us up in the middle of the night. We were camping behind an old country store called Gertie’s, who fixed us the most amazing pancakes this morning. We’ll be staying in Troutville tonight at a campground hopefully, that is if we make it the next 40 miles before sundown. For right now, we’re all just enjoying the excellent sights of Lexington and taking it all in before we have to hit the road. I hope everyone is doing well and is enjoying their summer as much as we are. Feel free to send e-mails to keep in touch or chech out Rob and Rich's blogs at trackrob.blogspot.com