but I will try to do it on a more regular basis for the rest of the
trip, since I figured out a way to blog from my phone.
Ok, so we've done a ton of stuff since the last time I wrote on here,
but I'll try to hit the highlights. For dinner after Sewanee we headed
to this totally awesome place called a shutawka (probably spelled that
wrong), which was basically a summer camp for families and had been
there since the late 1800s. The houses there were beautiful, and
everyone treated us so well. We all left Sewanee the next morning and
rode all together with John, the leader of outdoor adventures at
Sewanee, and it was totally awesome to descend together in a group
like we were in a huge bike race. From there, we headed on to Pulaski,
where Mayor Dan treated us to dinner at his home and arranged for us
to stay at the local college. It was so great to have a home opened up
to us and to enjoy a delcious barbecue dinner.
From Pulaski we headed on our way to Adamsville, then to Bolivar, then
on to Memphis, our first day off. A few friends and I were treated to
dinner by our friend Claire's grandparents, which was delicious and a
lot of fun. Our waiter Minnie was quite nice and insisted on bringing
us juice to assist in replenishing our bodies for the ride. After
dinner, Claire's grandad drove us to downtown Memphis, where we
wandered the streets and saw the sights for a while before heading to
bed. We mostly just spent our day off relaxing and enjoying
sleeping in until 8 AM.
We left Tennessee the following morning when we crossed the
Mississippi and immediately began the exciting trek across Arkansas.
We met a strong headwind for the first time in a while and basically
pedaled without moving for thirty miles. When the flats finally ended,
I was more happy to see rolling hills than I had ever been in my life.
The roads in Arkansas were also in horrible shape, with bumps or large
holes in the asphalt about every twenty feet, just to keep things
interesting. Fortunately, the rough Arkansas roads were more than
redeemed by the incredible host sites throughout the entire state. In
Brinkley, we had a delicious chicken and rice dinner and had the whole
of the church opened to us. In Little Rock, where we stopped for two
days of building with the local Habitat for Humanity chapter, we were
treated to amazing meals by Chef Scott at First Presbyterian Church
and awesome provisions and planning by the volunteer coordinator
Julie, who even got us free tickets to a minor league baseball game.
Leaving Little Rock, we had our dirst century, meaning our first day
where we rode more than 100 miles. It was a great ride, and everybody
felt awesome upon arriving at the Prebyterian Church in Clarksville,
where tons of local residents showed up for the best potluck and
social since Belhaven in eastern North Carolina. Ben then treated us
to a fireworks show, and we headed to bed, confident that the 92 miles
the next day would be hard but nothing compared to the 105 we had
just finished. Well, the next morning we quickly discovered that
Arkansas has mountains, and this ride was not going to be a picnic. It
ended up being probably our hardest day since the Smokies. We all
eventually made it to Fayetteville, home of the University of Arkansas
and the birthplace of Wal-Mart. We ate another potluck supper and
headed to bed. It's interesting that I've started to judge a host
sight by what they feed us, but I suppose that's
life on Bike and Build. Today we left dear old Arkansas and headed for
Grove, Oklahoma, which seems to be a pretty cool place with an awesome
lake. Along the way, we stopped at the amazing three corners, where,
of course, the three states of Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma meet.
Now we are just hanging out and enjoying an early arrival.
Oh, if you want to sre an incredibly entertaining news ckip about our
trip, you should search for "Today's THV Little Rock" and then "Bike
and Build."
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