We had our first official huge day en route to Baton Rouge. For 116 miles I paired up with friends Sarah, Jenna, and Lisa, the crew also widely known as the Dream Team. The route was primarily along leeves and roads that paralleled the Mississippi River. We cranked out this ride so impressively we were on cloud 9 by 115. Coincidentally we were also under a bridge at mile 115 fixing our only flat of the day (not even my bike!) while avoiding lightening too close for comfort. With only .25 miles to ride we embraced the torrential downpour and finished by around 6:00pm- 11 hours on the road but averaged 17 mph while riding.
The next day was a build day where we partnered with Rebuilding Together Baton Rouge. The organization focuses on fixing already owned homes for elderly people below the poverty line. All 30 of us repainted the exterior of a home in about 4 hours which was incredible. It's always to inspiring to see how much can be accomplished with the assistance of others.
The rest of the day was spent hammocking, reading, and watching the sunset across the Mississippi River with good friends and good food. By this point we have all come to the realization that this summer is more than just biking and raising awareness for Affordable Housing- we've learned that we're living a lifestyle in which a Tuesday can be just as good as a Friday or Saturday and that makes us embrace each day even more.
How cool is that? Painting a whole house in less than a day! Riding across the country sounds so cool and sexy and then your blog. Scary sh*t! Lightning, rain storms, accidents. Eeks! I'm sure that doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. But here is something I do know: for all the trials and tribulations, there are blessings and amazingness a hundredfold. :0)
ReplyDelete