Day 2 : Let the Stories Begin...

From 4 miles SE of Ashland, VA to Mineral, VA – 57.8 miles (152.5 miles)

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 5:33:20

Average Speed: 10.3 mph

Max Speed: 31.9 mph

Story [in words]:

We woke up a little late this morning, after having not felt terribly good as we went to bed last night. We woke up to wind blowing our tent. The good news is that it was not raining (which the weather had said there was a 60% chance), the bad news was that it was windy. in my opinion, quite possibly the worst thing for a cyclist is wind. it makes the riding incredibly tough and it is incredibly demoralizing as well.

we began riding around 7:40, and rode into ashland where we find a really cool coffee shop, where we had a great breakfast, a bagel sandwich and a huge apple fritter. we got back on the road and before long cailyn was very tired. she felt like she was about ready to fall asleep on the bike, and so we found a nice piece of shaddy grass and so we layed down and took about a 45 minutes nap.

we were just about to get back on the bikes, and looked to our left to find another pair of transamerica cyclists pulling up next to us. steven and erica, we rode with them (or at least in the same area for the next 30 miles or so). we stopped at a convenience store to eat with them. it was a good time to get to know them a little bit. they have a pretty cool story...they are making a one way trip from virginia to oregon. they are going to be living in oregon when they get there. all in all, it was fun to be with them and it was exciting to find another group doing the same thing that we are doing. hopefully we will be seeing them again.

we stopped for the night in mineral, where we are staying at an amazing fire house. they have a lounge, showers, internet, and have been amazing to us. we walked across the street to an awesome little pizza joint where we had some great pizza and ice cream. but the highlight was the two people we met there. george and whitney, two awesome locals, who were incredibly interested in our trip. they are both pipe organ builders and tuners. they asked us lots of questions about our trip and our route. they also gave us some great insight into our trip. george cycles in the area regularly, and he gave us a tip on a shortcut for tomorrow that will save us at least a few miles. i am not too into taking shortcuts, and diverging from the trail, but at the same time, i think follow some locals advice really seems to fit into the nature of this trip. all in all, it was a great encounter!

i have to admit that these first couple of days has been quite difficult, especially with the eating and whatnot. and i have to admit that i have had my doubts about being able to complete this trip, but cailyn has been and incredible motivator and encourager, which makes me love her all the more. tomorrow will tell us a lot i think. we are hoping to make it to afton, va, which means that we will have to really begin to climb some hills.