Biking in Memphis: It's not as scary as you think

Seeing Memphis from a different angle

Now that I've completed my cross-county bike ride, I've made it my mission to continue cycling as much as I possibly can before the Montana roads are covered in snow. So when I made an unexpected trip back to my hometown of Memphis, TN for a memorial service, I figured I'd make the best of it and get some late-season warm weather riding in (along with some Mom/Dad time). I borrowed  a bike from a neighbor and took to the streets on two wheels.

I've biked in and around several large cities - Portland (OR & ME), Pittsburgh, Columbus, St. Louis, Denver, and even Pie Town, NM (population 153) - and to my surprise have found that I enjoy urban riding and the thrills that come along with it. But Memphis still seemed daunting to me, moreso than other cities, and anyone who's lived there probably understands my initial reservations. The thing is, Memphis drivers are notoriously awful. As one of my friends once put it, "They were trained by kamikaze pilots". Not to mention, growing up in Memphis there was very little bike infrastructure to welcome and protect cyclists on the road (I came to find out this has improved). Some of the neighborhoods are "sketchy" and you could easily find yourself in  bad spot, I've been warned. I may not have lived in Memphis for the last ten years, but I've still got sweet tea and barbecue sauce running through my veins, I still root for the Tigers and the Grizzlies, and I still get just as defensive as the next Memphian when my hometown is made out to be nothing but an obesity-plagued, violence-filled outcast that belongs in some kind of fat-camp-penitentiary for misfit cities. I wanted to see if biking the streets of big, bad Memphis was as scary as I thought.

Big wheels keep on turnin'

I set out from Midtown on a clear, crisp morning with the intention to ride for about 20 miles. Following mostly along the city's designated bike routes (yes, we have those!), I wound through quiet Midtown streets until I hit McLean and headed to north Memphis, one of those "sketchy" parts of town I'd been warned about. I was guided by clear signage, both to designate the bike route and to inform drivers of bikes on the road. I enjoyed bike lanes and "share the road" symbols on the streets the majority of the way. Cars passed courteously at a safe speed and distance. Pedestrians were no sketchier than my neighbors down the street; however, I did get some stares and funny looks, granted I was decked out in full neon. From north Memphis I headed west towards the Mississippi River and caught part of the Mississippi River Trail, a network of bikeways from the headwaters in Itasca, MN to the Gulf of Mexico. The roads brought me into Harbor Town and alongside the Greenbelt path next to the river with views of the iconic "M" bridge and Pyramid.

Grinding my gears along the Grindhouse

Up and over the hump of the Auction St. bridge and I found myself in the heart of downtown Memphis, enjoying another mile or two of bike lanes along the river before turning into the more congested downtown area. A bumpy jaunt up construction-filled South Main led me to Midtown Bike. The store owner was eager to swap stories and opinions about bike travel, telling me about a group of 100 people on tandems who came through this summer. He felt hopeful about the state of bike commuting and cycling in Memphis, especially with the promise of the Harahan Bridge Project underway, an effort that will convert one of Memphis' old bridges into a bikeway across the Mississippi River connecting downtown Memphis to neighboring Arkansas. I can't wait to ride it. Leaving the shop I dodged and hopped the trolley tracks along South Main (not an area I'd recommend for bikes) and made my way past the Lorraine Motel, along the FedEx Forum, and down Beale Street. Downtown riding was a little more technical and stop-and-go with more intersections and traffic, but cars were no less aware or respectful of me and my bike as I cruised along my favorite Memphis landmarks.

Lunch of champions

Name that flavor

I had initially planned to make my way back to my house from here and call it a day, but I was enjoying the ride so much I had to keep going. Plus I had to ride off the lunch I'd eaten at Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken. So I jumped onto another of the city's bike routes and headed east on Peabody and Central. These were two of my favorite streets to ride, with little traffic and wide lanes bordered by beautiful old Central Gardens homes. I rode past the shops and restaurants of the Cooper-Young district, the Pink Palace, and the bustling University of Memphis campus. Turning back north on Goodlett, there were a few busier intersections but nothing you can't handle without a little patience and some friendly hand signals. At one point while trying to merge left as car after car passed me I thought, "Yes, my left arm sticking out means that I would like to move in that general direction" - to no avail. Drivers didn't seem to be all that used to seeing cyclists on the roads, which hopefully will change as bike commuting increases in the city. I continued to Graham, past one of my old schools, Grahamwood Elementary, until I reached Jerry's Sno Cones - home to the most heavenly, syrup-dripping sno cones found anywhere. After staining my tongue red and ensuring a certain spike in my blood sugar, I continued northbound on Graham and Highland, returning to north Memphis before turning back down McLean into Midtown. Still not wanting the ride to end, I took a leisurely spin around my favorite Midtown spots - the Memphis Zoo, Overton Park, Brooks Museum and the Levitt Shell.

By the time I reached my house I had ridden roughly 40 miles around the heart of Memphis (route map here). I saw the city in a new light, from a new angle, up close and personal. I saw places familiar to me from childhood and places I had never seen before. I found the neighborhoods friendly and the streets safe. In four hours of riding I didn't get honked at, yelled at, close-passed, or cut off by Memphis drivers. The one time a car did swing its turn partially into the bike lane, it had a Texas license plate.

So that's where all my stolen bikes ended up...

Am I saying Memphis drivers and streets are perfect for biking? No. On any other given day, could I have encountered rude, crazy drivers? Yes. But overall I didn't experience anything that corroborated the preconceived notions I held about how scary and dangerous it would be to bike the streets of Memphis. It should also be noted that I was practicing safe riding by wearing a helmet and bright clothing, using hand signals, staying in the right of the lane, riding predictably, and remaining extremely vigilant as I rode. Failure to ride safely and making poor decisions will put you in more danger than any kamikaze driver. Be smart, be safe, and get out there and bike Memphis. It's not as scary as you think. You might even discover that you like it.




Where to ride? 
Try these out for starters (click for websites/maps):

Shelby Farms Greenline
Overton Park
City of Memphis bike routes
Shelby Forest State Park
Katy's Tour de Memphis route
Ride to Randolph route

Final Weeks - Arizona to California

Admittedly, I slacked off on my blogging duties during the last two...err...three...weeks of the trip. I chalk it up to "living in the moment" like my dad encouraged me to at the start of the trip. I was trying to savor every last minute of the experience instead of sitting in front of a screen. And I didn't have good internet. And I was tired. And the dog ate my iPad. Ok, you get the point. Nevertheless, I want to do some retro-blogging mostly for selfish reasons, so that I can have this blog to look back on and jog my memory of the trip of a lifetime. So here's a play-by-by of the last three weeks of the trip, and once I've had the time to settle down and wrap my brain around all of this, maybe I'll even write up some final thoughts filled with all kinds of inspiration and life-changing realizations.

Arizona Week 2

Sedona to Flagstaff: Having passed through Sedona before, I knew it would be a scenic ride, albeit a long one (90 miles). I was a little bummed to be driving the van that day, but the view through the window wasn’t half bad. As we approached Sedona, dark clouds loomed beyond the red rocks, quickly engulfing the town and casting an eerie shadow on the rock formations. By the time I reached the church with the van and trailer, a full-on storm had commenced, with thick sheets of rain and hail. What did our group do? They ran outside half naked and proceeded to take a “rain shower” while hollering like a bunch of bandits. Check out this time lapse video of the storm rolling in. 

The ride into Flagstaff the following day was a short 32 miles, but with nearly 3,000 ft of elevation gain on the winding road through Oak Creek Canyon. We were eager to explore Slide Rock State Park about 8 miles into the ride, with its natural rock slides and cliff-jumping sites that had been passed down by trip lore.  To our dismay, the swimming areas were closed off due to a recent forest fire, but that didn’t stop a handful of crazies from hucking themselves off the cliffs anyways. The remaining climb was pretty mystical – hairpin switchbacks up a canyon shrouded in mist that gradually turned into a steady rain as we approached the summit. The views were so stunning I nearly forgot about the fact that we’d been climbing for more than 10 miles. Once we reached the top of the pass and got off our bikes, the cold quickly set into our saturated bodies. Margaux and I found a space heater in the visitor center to warm up by – something I didn’t imagine myself doing in Arizona.

Flagstaff was easily one of my favorite towns of the trip, as it reminded me a lot of Missoula with it’s down-to-earth college town feel and abundance of outdoor recreation opportunities. I was glad we had a build day there to allow some extra time to explore the city. Our build day with the local Habitat chapter split us into several groups to complete various service projects around town, some building-related and some not. My crew completed our project at a new home construction site well before lunch, so we checked out some local shops and then joined forces with another crew in the afternoon to split firewood. I happily added the wood-splitter (vertical and horizontal varieties) to my power tool repertoire.

Grand Canyon:  Biking to the Grand Canyon was one of those surreal moments on the trip where I had to take a step back and think, “Wow, we are really doing this!”. The majority of the people in our group had never been to the Grand Canyon, so the anticipation was high. From the moment we arrived at the gateway town to the south rim entrance of the park, we were surrounded by international tourists, many of whom found our matching Bike & Build attire picture-worthy. We quickly made a game out of guessing the different languages and accents we heard around us. Once we settled into the campground we made our way to the canyon for first views and the mandatory photo shoot. Holding a bike above your head on the edge of the canyon was more nerve-wracking than the smile on the my face might suggest. Over the course of the next two days, I witnessed two sunsets and a sunrise over the canyon and hiked 6 miles down into the canyon (I try to forget the 6 miles back up it). We had campfires and star-gazing sessions to cap off our first two nights camping together and miraculously left the campground without a single noise complaint.

Williams to Parker: Our “day off” at the Grand Canyon left several of us even more sore than any day of biking or building. Coupled with the residual effects of dehydration and an upset stomach, the ride to Williams was not my finest. By the time I realized I was dehydrated about halfway into our 60 mile ride, there wasn’t much I could do besides put my head down and pedal. My body felt empty and weak, and my head was not in the game. Fortunately it was relatively easy terrain and I had a patient and supportive group to help me finish. When I arrived at the church I crashed on the couch for a nearly 3-hour nap. I hadn’t napped like that since the beginning of the trip! Our build day the following day was similar to Flagstaff, with varying service projects around the town. My crew completed what I’ll call “cemetery beautification”, which consisted of raking up pine needles into piles and loading them onto a bulldozer. Not my favorite build day project, but as always we made the best of it by playing games like inserting the word “rake” into as many song lyrics as possible (rake me up, before you go-go) and looking up tombstone names on ancestry.com. An afternoon storm (like clockwork in Arizona!) cut our day a couple hours short, so I used it as an opportunity to check out Williams, a classic Route 66 town with all of the touristy shops and diners you could want. I went for the pie shop that supposedly had better pie then Pie Town, according to an alum. The generous serving of key lime pie was creamy and delicious, yes, but nothing beats pie in Pie Town. 

The next day took us to Seligman, another town along Route 66 that might not exist if it weren’t for the historic road and the tourists that travel it. We were rained on much of the day, but fortunately it was a short ride that allowed us to get to the KOA campground early. After putting tents up, a group of us took over the campground pool for a rowdy game of “greasy pig”, which involves a Crisco-covered watermelon and a whole lot of near-drowning experiences. The predictable afternoon storm was a little gustier than usual and took down the majority of our poorly constructed tents, soaking some of our sleeping bags and pads in the process. Our third night of camping together, and we’d become quite the experts! The two remaining cabin rentals that were available were quickly snatched up, and we filled up every square inch of porch, floor and bunk space they had to offer.

I honestly don’t remember much about our ride the next day into Kingman, other than the fact that it was the site of our first In and Out Burger. The double cheeseburger, animal style fries, and milkshake must have clouded my memory.

At first I had to rack my brain to remember anything about the ride to Needles, AZ, and then I remembered the DONKEYS! How could I forget about the donkeys? After a steep climb up a narrow, winding two-lane road, we cruised down the other side and abruptly came to the old mining town of Oatman. A single strip of western-themed bars, cafes, and souvenir shops – it didn’t seem any different from the other small towns we’d encountered along Route 66. Until we saw the donkeys. Wild donkeys, or burros, roamed the streets and walkways with no regard for any car or human in their path. With a storm rolling in, Katie D. and I gladly took the opportunity to enjoy the sites and smells of Oatman. We did it all – toured a mineshaft, talked up the locals, spotted our first giant cactus, fell asleep at a bar to the tunes of a local cowboy, and even witnessed the donkey mating ritual performed in the middle of the street. Shield your eyes, children, it ain’t pretty. It was all downhill from Oatman, as we rode 15 miles down a teeth-chattering bumpy road without needing to pedal the whole way.

Needles to Parker was what we call our “surprise century” day. Due to a road closure, we had to backtrack and tack on an extra 20 miles to our 80-mile day to get to Parker. The team rallied in a big way to make the best of the unexpected challenge, with three lunches and a shaded tent village in the middle of the desert. I was sweeping that day, so I didn’t finish the ride until 6 pm or so. I live for the long days!

California

Twentynine Palms to Wrightwood: The words “Twentynine Palms” had been haunting us since we first saw the number 112 in the mileage column of the trip overview on the website. We’d been hyping up this day since the start of the trip, both nervous and eager for our longest ride day of the trip, in the middle of the desert nonetheless.  My most disappointing moment on the trip was probably a week prior to Twentynine Palms when I realized it would fall on my van day. I decided to suck it up and be the best damn support vehicle driver I could be. Aside from one rider who had a massive bug bite on his rear, every single rider completed the entire desert marathon with flying colors. Without any services (I mean ANY services) for nearly 80 miles of the ride, we had to be strategic about our water supply and consumption. With just enough water to fill up everyone after second lunch, everyone managed to get to the finish. Hetong and I rolled back in the van with cold Powerades and Snickers bars to help the last few groups through the remaining 20 miles. I have never been as proud of our group as I was when sweep and the final group rolled in to the host, completing such a challenging day as a team.

The next day to Victorville was another long one – 92 miles – and several people were hurting from the previous two days’ centuries. I was just happy there were services along the route, including a Mexican restaurant that my crew piled into for lunch. On second thought, loaded burritos on a 92 mile day may have been a bad choice.

Wrightwood was our last big challenge, and then it was literally all downhill from there (one of our trip mottos). The 34 miles would seem like nothing after back-to-back-to-back 90+ mile days, but we had some climbing to do. With such a short day, we were able to take the climb at a steady pace and stop at our leisure, which included a power nap on a bike shop’s porch. After about 15 miles of climbing, we were rewarded with a 5 mile downhill to the campground where we’d spend our last night of camping – and my favorite. Feuled by hobo packets cooked on the fire and a little wine to keep warm, we had our final “town hall” meeting followed by some spontaneous group singing and dancing around the fire. It was Sabo’s birthday, we had finished the last of our hard ride days, and the end was in sight, so you could say spirits were high.

Palmdale to Santa Paula: As promised, the ride to Palmdale was a lot of downhill and only 37 miles. With Jeff driving the van, Emily, Becca and I used the opportunity to have a “lady leader” ride and took our time, stopping for coffee and a flat or two to rehash our summer together. For our final build day, we worked with a different organization, YouthBuild. On our first night in Palmdale, the program director, Rossi, gave us an overview about what YouthBuild does and how it is changing lives by giving young people from low-income backgrounds an education and job skills while building affordable housing in their community. We saw the program in action the following day as we poured a concrete walkway around a new building on the program’s campus, which included affordable housing units for some of the neediest program participants. We worked alongside several guys in the program, and I enjoyed the conversations I had with them about how they got involved with YouthBuild and what it’s meant for them. Bike & Build has been working on this project for the last three years, and pouring of the concrete walkway marked the completion of the project. YouthBuild honored our group with a special dedication ceremony and plaque in the walkway, surrounded by each of our handprints. While in Palmdale, our team also completed our decision-making process for the doling out of $45,000 in grant money to affordable housing organizations and projects along our route and across the country, including:

Dayton Ohio Habitat for Humanity in Dayton, OH
BOTHANDS, Inc in Flagstaff, AZ
Yellow Springs Home, Inc in Yellow Springs, OH
Habitat for Humanity of North Central Mass in Fitchburg, MA
Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity in Florence, MA
Habitat for Humanity of MidOhio in Columbus, OH
Amarillo Habitat for Humanity in Amarillo, TX
Lexington Habitat for Humanity in Lexington, KY

Our ride to Santa Clarita after Palmdale included the most elevation gain and loss in a single day of the whole trip – namely because we spent most of the day on roller coasters at Six Flags Magic Mountain. We had a short 30-mile day to our host in Santa Clarita, which was only a couple miles from Six Flags, allowing for maximum riding time. Being at the end of the season and mid-week, lines were the least of our worries. We hit coaster after coaster, even lapping several that didn’t have lines at all. If only they had allowed bikes in the park, we could have hit even more rides.

Another 30-something mile day to Santa Paula, citrus capital of the world, and we were just one ride away from the finish line. We helped ourselves to oranges, pomegranates, avocados and more from the fruit stands and groves along the way. Our final host welcomed us with a personalized street sign and one last, glorious church potluck.

Santa Barbara: I remember going to bed after midnight the night before our ride into Santa Barbara thinking I’d never fall asleep. Not because I was sleeping on a church pew – I’d grown quite accustomed to that – but because I was so amped for what the next day would bring. I managed to get a few hours of sleep in, waking up before my alarm in the same frenzied state I’d fallen asleep in. This was it. The day I’d dreamed of for nearly 9 months. Today we were going to put on our jerseys, mount our bikes, and ride to the Pacific Ocean. 75 days before, we had done the same, only leaving the Atlantic. We had ridden our bikes across the entire U.S. We decided to make a “leader sandwich”, so Jeff and Emily lead the pack while Becca and I brought up the rear as sweep. We only had 40 miles to ride to Santa Barbara, and we made it to the coast in Ventura within the first 15. That first glimpse of the Pacific is a moment that will be forever etched in my memory. I remember yelling and lifting our bikes up and telling every stranger who passed by us “WE BIKED HERE”, as if expecting them to acknowledge or even remotely understand what that meant to us. We excitedly biked along the coast, stopping reluctantly for a group with a flat…then I got a flat…then Dan got a flat. Our eagerness to get to the group’s meeting spot couldn’t be stifled. Finally we rolled into the Santa Barbara cemetery, where our 30 teammates chanted “SWEEP, SWEEP, SWEEP” as we entered the gates. With our whole crew accounted for, we regrouped and rode en masse along the streets of Santa Barbara for the final mile, cheering, chanting and cow-belling the whole way. I can’t imagine what we looked like to the cars and people we passed. Once we arrived at the beach, we had to resist the urges to run immediately into the ocean or into the arms of friends and family so that we could all run into the Pacific as a unified group. With the American flag and a flag from each of the 18 states we passed through, we charged the beach the stormed into the ocean. The party that ensued was a blur of champagne and ocean spray, hugs and cheers amidst a wave pool that tried to push us apart every time we came together to form a huddle. We made it, all 33 of us, from Maine to Santa Barbara.

Delicate balancing act on the rim of the Grand Canyon

More to come on final thoughts and trip 

superlatives…

View from the top of Oak Creek Canyon

Warming up by the fire with Margaux

Pie in Williams to rival that of Pie Town

First burro sightings in Oatman

Leaving our mark on YouthBuild in Palmdale

Climbing some serious elevation with Jeff at Six Flags

Our welcome sign into Santa Paula

First ocean sighting with Becca

Storming the Pacific

4,000 miles later and a lot of practice lifting my bike over my head

My two biggest fans made it out for the finish

New Mexico and Arizona

Greetings from Payson, Arizona! Wait, we’re in Arizona already? How did that happen!? Well, by the numbers, we’ve gone…

3,069 miles in

56 days including

11 build days and

2 days off.

That means we have less than 1,000 miles to go in just 19 days, which includes 3 more build days and a day off at the Grand Canyon. I know these last few weeks are going to fly by, and I can practically taste the salty water of the Pacific that I’ve dreamed of every day for the last 2 months. Here’s an update from our trek through New Mexico and into Arizona.

NEW MEXICO:

Crossing into New Mexico leaves me with just three states left until I’ve visited all 50 (South Dakota, Alaska, and Hawaii, in case you’re wondering), and it easily takes the pie (see Pie Town below) for my favorite state of this trip. The landscape quickly changed from feedlots and farmlands to broken mesas and wide deserts filled with cactus, wildflowers, low shrubs, and pinyon pines (a shorter, bushier version of pine than the ponderosa I’m used to in Montana). Along with the barren yet beautiful geography come smaller towns and limited services, oftentimes meaning longer riding stretches with fewer breaks. We’ve learned to cherish every air-conditioned gas station, knowing the next one may not be for another 60+ miles. Fortunately the weather has been on our side, with unusually heavy late-summer rains keeping the state cool and green. The desert that I envisioned being chalky and brown has been surprisingly emerald and dotted with colorful flowers. What a nice surprise!

Portales – Our first New Mexican town of Portales welcomed us warmly into the state. We had a short 52-mile ride day, allowing for plenty of time to explore the town, which is home to Eastern New Mexico University, our host for the night. Staying on campus meant that we got beds for the second night in a row after our home stays in Friona. Dinner at First UMC was attended by mayor Sharon King, and I even got to sit next to her. After a meal of fried chicken and homemade casseroles, she surprised us with an official proclamation declaring Aug 2^nd Bike & Build Day in Portales. We even had a police escort out of the city the following morning, allowing all 32 riders and our support van to roll out en masse on the road to Roswell before splitting into smaller groups.

Roswell – We had a 90-mile, 90-degree day leading into our much-anticipated day off site of Roswell, home of the infamous Roswell UFO Incident of 1947. My riding partner J and I were greeted into town by a Sonic and without hesitation stopped for happy hour slushies (my favorite way to end a ride). That night we rallied our tired bodies for our very own prom, a Bike & Build tradition, complete with randomly selected dates, thrift store outfits, and group photos. The following day was our first day off in 5 weeks since Pittsburgh, which meant sleeping in and a full day to explore the area. I joined about a third of the crew on an excursion to Bottomless Lakes State Park about 15 miles outside of town. The park consists of a series of lakes formed by sinkholes ranging from 17-90 feet deep (ok, so they aren’t actually bottomless). We hiked around a few of the lakes and swam in and across the largest one, Lea Lake. The blue-green water felt so refreshing and surreal, as we were surrounded by an arid desert and huge rock formations. After the lakes, we continued our tour de Roswell by hitting up the Anderson Contemporary Art Museum, which featured an extensive exhibit from the Roswell artists-in-residence program. I was especially struck by the landscape paintings of the museum’s namesake artist, Don Anderson, as well as some whimsical hanging sharks made from reused golf club bags and vacuums. We ended the day by checking out some of the alien shops on the main drag, but I was quite underwhelmed by downtown Roswell and glad I spent the majority of my day elsewhere.

Carrizozo – I say this a lot, but our ride to Carrizozo really was my favorite of the trip thus far. I rode with Nick, and we started out our morning with a couple local Roswell cyclists cruising alongside us for the first 20 miles or so of the 90 mile day.  They were so enthusiastic about our journey and eager to share with us their knowledge of local geography and history. They told us we’d be ascending a hill where Billy the Kid once outran the local law enforcement to escape their jurisdiction into the adjacent county. We road extra hard over the hill and continued to follow the trail of Billy the Kid into Lincoln, where he was jailed with the intent to be hanged before he escaped, killing two guards in the process. We were conveniently halted by a rain shower in Lincoln and killed time exploring the historic buildings and hitting up the coffee shop. Another 20 miles or so down the road brought us to Capitan, the birthplace and burial grounds of Smokey the Bear.  Turns out the character is based on a cub that was found in a tree in the Capitan Mountains after getting separated from his mother in a wildfire. The remaining mileage to Carrizozo consisted of a big climb followed by a long descent, dropping 1500 feet into a picturesque valley with mountains jutting out on every side of us. How sweet it is to be surrounded by mountains! Carrizozo is a tiny town whose claim to fame is that the Book of Eli was filmed there and the first atomic bomb was tested right outside of town in 1945. The church that hosted us was incredibly gracious and eager to host us and provide meals, despite the town being plagued by poverty and the resulting problems. The pastor urged us “don’t forget about us”, referring to small towns across America being viable options for a place to make a home and a difference.

Socorro – Five miles outside of Carrizozo on our route to Socorro was the Valley of Fires Recreation Area, an old lava flow that we ventured through by bike on a paved walkway (perhaps not intended for bikes, but it was empty at 7 in the morning, so we figured what the heck!).  My legs were sore and stubborn after the climbing and long mileage from the day before, but as always, the ever-changing scenery and conversation with my riding partner Rose helped me through the day. We crossed the Rio Grande, which was toffee-colored and less grand than its name would suggest. Our host in Socorro was conveniently located across the street from New Mexico Tech’s campus, where we talked our way into the pool for a competitive game of 4-4 pool basketball with some local kids. I quickly forgot about the soreness in my legs and butt.

Pie Town – Our last full day in New Mexico was a ride to the tastiest town on our route – Pie Town. As the story goes, the small town at an elevation of 7,500 was a popular rest area in the 1800s for travelers through the region. One wise merchant began selling homemade pies that became so famous that they eventually named the town after the popular treat. It’s a shame the bartender across the road didn’t end up winning the town’s naming rights, because I’ve always dreamed of biking to Beer Town. Unfortunately, I was driving the van on the ride to Pie Town. As reported by riders, it was one of the toughest rides of the trip due to weather and elevation gain, and I wanted to be right there with them facing the challenges (honestly). It rained the majority of the day, leaving everyone wet and cold as they climbed up and over the Continental Divide. What awaited us at the top of the pass was a quirky town of 150 with two pie shops, including one that had a free slice of pie waiting for each of us thanks to a rider’s mom. I sampled several types, including apple-cranberry, coconut crème, and raspberry, but the prize-winner was the New Mexico apple-green chile-pine nut pie. Our group stayed at the “Toaster House”, a hostel for travelers that is literally covered in toasters. Somehow we managed to cram an entire loaf of bread into one toaster, with all 33 of us along with two continental divide trail bikers sleeping in the various rooms, porches, and decks.  We had a dinner of enchiladas and other Mexican dishes provided by the locals, followed by a sunset hike and a campfire sing-a-long led by the only twenty-something living in Pie Town, according to him. I didn’t question him, based on his glowing excitement to be around other young people. I think all of us would have welcomed an extra day in Pie Town, but our schedule and waistlines begged otherwise.

ARIZONA:

While I would have loved more time in New Mexico, crossing into Arizona made it feel like we are in the home stretch, even though we’ll spend a full two weeks here. The rocks have gotten redder, the air drier, and the temperatures hotter as we make our way into the state. A couple of pit stops at Fool’s Hollow and Willow Springs lakes along the way have helped us stay cool and refreshed amidst the continual rolling hills and elevation gain. Our ride into Payson marked our final one in a 6-day riding stretch without a build or rest day. A mere 52 miles, the ride included nearly 30 miles of downhill at a 6% grade. All of that climbing in the days prior finally paid off.

We had a build day in Payson today with the local Habitat affiliate, which has been incredibly eager to work with us. They not only arranged meals for us for two nights but also coordinated entertainment for us by local high school students – a singer/performer and a semi-professional yo-yo team. For the build day we broke into three groups to work at various sites. My group worked with the Brush of Kindness home repair program to work on the modular home of a woman with disabilities to paint the house, repair a wheelchair ramp, and replace damaged siding.  As always, I was amazed at how much we were able to finish in just 5-6 hours. In the days ahead we’ll hit Sedona, Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon, so it should be exciting to say the least.

PICTURES: I wasn't able to upload any pictures to this post due to slow internet connection, but you can see tons of pictures related to this leg of the trip and everything before it on my Facebook page: Katy's Bike & Build picture album

On a final note, thanks to everyone who mail-dropped me in Pie Town. We also received our affordable housing grant packet from the Bike & Build office, and in the coming weeks we’ll be doling out $45,000 in grant money. More to come on that!

Cheers,

Katy

Oklahoma and Texas

Alex digs into the best cheeseburger in Texas

Kelsey soaks her feet at our Friona home stay

Howdy from Friona, the official cheeseburger capital of Texas and home to some of the kindest people I’ve ever met. Tonight is our first home stay, meaning we all split up to stay in the homes of various church members.  Kelsey and I are staying at the home of Linda and Mickey, two retired educators who are getting ready to celebrate their 50^th wedding anniversary. Not only have they welcomed us into their home, but they have pampered us with a bubble bath, foot soak, remote-controlled recliners, frozen peaches and chocolate chip cookies, and our very own BEDS!! In fact, I’m writing this in the privacy of my own bedroom with TWO pillows and a comforter. Ahhh what a luxury. More than anything, Linda and Mickey have filled our hearts and souls with their warm conversation, stories of their children and grandchildren, and eagerness to learn about and our lives and our summer. This is just one of countless examples from the past week of the incredible hospitality and generosity we’ve encountered throughout Oklahoma and Texas.

 Here are some more updates to catch you up on the trip:

Oklahoma:

Our welcome into Oklahoma was just as I had envisioned entering into tornado country – eerie clouds, 60 mph winds, hail, and sheets of rain. I happened to be driving the van that day, but the riders had some pretty exciting experiences seeking out shelter from the storm at gas stations, churches, stores, trees, and even the front porch of some friendly locals. Despite being drenched and held back a bit, everyone braved the storm with flying colors and came out of it with great attitudes and even better stories.

Second breakfast at Annie's diner

Oklahoma may very well be the friendliest state yet. Motorists and locals have been very receptive towards our group and gone well out of their way to offer a helping hand. A number of drivers have pulled over to offer flat assistance, directions, and curiosity about our cause. Biking into Tulsa, my group stopped at a diner for second breakfast and had it secretly paid for by one of the regulars. This is not a rare occurrence, especially in Oklahoma. Our hosts have gone above to make us feel welcomed and comfortable. In Yukon, OK we had iced towels waiting for us upon arrival, access to a private pool and hot tub, bike maintenance for everyone, and a feast of steak and grilled veggies for dinner. We’ve gotten a true taste of the local flavor here, eating more bbq and brisket than I could ever dream of, attending a rodeo in Chandler, and even testing out our own lasso skills. We now have a trip lasso thanks to the kindness of one of our hosts.

Cooling off at Pop's soda stand on Route 66

The heat factor has become much more noticeable as we make our way into the southwest. We had a couple days where the temperature hit the triple digits in the afternoon, which makes for tough riding conditions. These hotter temps mean earlier wake-up times to bust out more mileage in the morning, more hydration, and some creative ways to keep cool. My favorites have been a stop at Pop's soda stand, swimming at community pools, and even a water slide into a lake at one of our lunch stops. As we make our way into the desert, I’m sure we’ll have to continue to be strategic and resourceful about ways to beat the heat.

Build day or crime scene?

Tulsa Build Day:

In Tulsa we worked with the local Habitat for Humanity affiliate’s “A Bruch of Kindness” program, which focuses on home repair and neighborhood revitalization. Our task was to prepare a home for a new paint job by scraping off lead paint and scrubbing off the Oklahoma dust. Not the most glamorous of jobs, but it did involve wearing head-to-toe yellow hazmat suits, masks, and gloves. With all 33 of us decked out in our safety gear climbing around a house marked off with caution tape, it looked like some kind of crime scene out of CSI. By the end of the sweaty day, we had readied the house for painting, which would be completed by another volunteer group the following day.

Texas:

Posting up with local farmers in the Texas panhandle

Biking from western Oklahoma into the panhandle of Texas feels like we’re really in the West now, with the landscape slowly changing right before our eyes. The soil has turned deep clay red, and we spotted our first cactus plants a few days ago. The wide open spaces and rolling terrain dotted with sagebrush and rich colors reminds me of Montana and makes me feel right at home.The ride from Wheeler, TX to Amarillo was one of the most memorable of the trip (I think I say that too often). Thunderstorms awoke us for our 99-mile ride day, with more predicted throughout the morning and early afternoon. After waiting for an opening in the storm, a couple groups hit the road eager to get as far as the weather would allow. That ended up being about 6 miles until lightening in the distance brought us to a halt. The remaining riders ended up shuttling ahead to 1^st lunch to beat the storms. My riding partner, Kristen, and I waited it out at one of the many feedlots along the route (“perfume factories” as one of the locals called them). Assuming my local sources are accurate, the Wheeler feedlots are the biggest suppliers to McDonald’s, a fact that I tried to block from my mind as we hung out with thousands of cattle for about 45 minutes until the storm passed. About a mile after we’d gotten back on our bikes the rain picked up again, but since there was no lightening or thunder we rode it out and enjoyed the cooler temperatures that came along with the showers. A few more feedlots and another 90 miles later, we rolled into Amarillo with the sun overhead and the wind at our backs. Our odometers read 102 miles – my longest ride of the trip (or ever). Kristen and I were pretty amped on what we’d accomplished that day and were excited to celebrate that night at the Big Texan.

Katie Lee vs. 72 oz steak challenge

What’s the Big Texan? Well to some it could be considered an obnoxious tourist trap, but to us it was everything we hoped for Texas all wrapped up into one – longhorn limo shuttles, waiters in cowboy hats, a shooting gallery, line-dancing, and a steak challenge attempted by one of our riders. The fearless Katie Lee had one hour to complete a 72 oz steak, shrimp cocktail, baked potato and salad. She came about 20 oz short, but made it farther than the other competitors at the table. All 33 of us dressed in matching lime green shirts and chanting for her throughout the challenge made for quite the scene. Afterwards we took over the dance floor with an Australian tour group. It turns out the bridge between the US and Australia is Shania Twain and sloppy line-dancing.  

Raising walls left and right. 

Amarillo Build Day:

Amarillo not only made our Texas dreams come true, but also provided us with an incredibly rewarding build day. The Amarillo Habitat for Humanity just so happened to be constructing its 100^th house, and we were the first volunteer group to work on it. Starting from nothing but the foundation, we

completed the majority of the framing for the house in just one day. The soon-to-be homeowner, a single mother with 3 kids who works at an elementary school, even joined us for the build day and brought her kids to dinner that night. It was nice to put some faces to the families that we are helping and hear about their excitement for owning their own home. Every build day I find myself rejuvenated and reminded that “biking is the perk, building is the reason” behind what we’re doing this summer. Check out all the newscasts that came out about us in Amarillo!

Framing complete!

http://www.connectamarillo.com/news/story.aspx?id=1078071#.U90H8_ldV1Y

http://www.newschannel10.com/story/26156462/bikers-traveled-over-2000-miles-to-help-build-a-house

http://www.myhighplains.com/story/d/story/bike-build-pedals-through-amarillo/36070/5aoV5uvczESBA-zz4kTviw

Next stop: New Mexico!

Indiana, Illinois, and Missouri

Comin’ at ya from Joplin, where we are spending our last night in the state of Missouri before our final 3-state day tomorrow (Missouri-Kansas-Oklahoma). We are nearing our halfway point, with more than 1,700 miles and a full month under our belts (butts?). Here are a few of the many highlights since my last post:

Bike Clinic/World's Best Potluck:

Jeff, Dan, and Jessica excited for some homemade goodness

Rushville, Indiana will forever have a special place in my heart and my stomach. We rolled into town after a 76 mile day to a greeting of cold drinks, fresh fruit and cookies provided by St. Paul’s UMC.  Before dinner we hosted a bike clinic for kids in the neighborhood and had around 10 kids show up – a much better turnout than our first bike clinic (1). We set up different stations to teach the kids about bike maintenance, safety and skills. At the end they put everything into action with a short ride around the neighborhood, led by some of our fabulous riders. The bike clinic was one of my highlights of the week, as I loved being around the kids and sharing the joy of bike-riding with them.

The welcoming crew at St Paul's UMC in Rushville

After the bike clinic we joined church members for an incredible dinner spread. The pastor took great pride in the meal they provided and requested an e-mail at the end of the trip to see if anyone else had outdone them. The potluck was so big we had to weave in and out of the kitchen to hit every dish and take two plates and bowls apiece to try everything – fried chicken, pastas, casseroles, tacos, fruit salads, pizza, corn on the cob, and everything else 33 famished cyclists could want. The dessert table(s) even included a prize-winning chocolate cake made by one of the youth group members and destined for the state fair. I managed to find room for a piece on my dessert plate in between the apple pie and banana cream pie. This kind of glorious gluttony is exactly how I envisioned my eating habits this summer.

The Best Worst Day Ever:  

1000th mile celebratory headstand

Our last ride in Indiana was perhaps the most memorable of the trip thus far. It was a 95 mile day to Salem, IL, and I was riding sweep (last back) with my buddy Kelsey. The day was a series of ups and downs that included sweeping a couple riders who needed to ride in the van due to illness/injury, jumping on hay bales, riding my 1000^th mile of the trip, crossing our first time zone, and eventually catching up to a group of riders who experienced the misfortune of almost 10 flat tires in a day. Every time they flatted out we stopped to help and admire the view of the endless roadside cornfields. Our progress was painfully slow, as we would make it no more than a couple miles before the next flat. 

By the time we reached second lunch (we have two lunches on 90+ mile days), it was already 4:00. We still had almost 25 miles to go and groups ahead reported a “wicked” storm approaching. As we finished gorging ourselves with snacks, the dark clouds loomed overhead and we decided to try to make it as far as we could before seeking shelter. As we pedaled out of the parking lot and over the adjacent bridge crossing the state line into Illinois, the storm did it’s best to keep us in Indiana. I could barely rotate my pedals to get up and over the bridge as the wind picked up and the rain began. On the other side of the bridge one of my riding partners, Lucas, and I stopped just long enough to take a picture in front of the state sign. We cackled hysterically while getting drenched in our attempt to document the moment. 

Gimme shelter in an abandoned building

About a hundred feet away our group had taken shelter in an abandoned building that appeared to be covered in bullet holes. After waiting out the storm for another 45 minutes, we decided to forego the offer to be picked up by the van and finish the ride. A few miles in we found ourselves riding along a winding country road with a pink sunset over a lake to our left and the thunderclouds moving away from us to the right. The lighting was perfect and everything sparkled with moisture from the storm. That’s when we realized we had made a wrong turn and gone several miles in the wrong direction. On the way back to our route, Chris got another flat. It was almost 7:00, and we had been on the road for a full 12 hours with 15 miles left to go. Out of tubes and unsure if the bikes would hold up, we decided to call it quits and have the van come pick us up. It wasn’t how we envisioned our day ending, but the group morale was high up to the very end. We coined it the “best worst day ever” to encapsulate the highs and lows of the days and the fact that there are no bad days on Bike & Build.       

Build Days in St. Louis and Springfield:

Build day with Rebuilding Together

We had two build days in Missouri – one in St. Louis and one in Springfield. The St. Louis build day was with an organization called Rebuilding Together that does home repairs for low-income housing, focusing on vulnerable populations like veterans, the elderly, and people with disabilities. We worked on two homes on a block of a street where half of the homes had been abandoned and blockaded. My favorite part was spending time on the porch with one of the homeowners and her daughter, listening to their stories about their family and living in St. Louis.  Another Bike & Build group had come through about a month prior to work on her house, and she was thrilled to have our group continue the projects.

Check out your local Habitat Restore!

Our second build day in Missouri was with Habitat for Humanity in Springfield – hometown of Brad Pitt, Bob Barker, and the world’s largest Bass Pro Shop.  We got a different look at the organization by spending the day at the Restore, a home improvement store, donation and recycling center. This particular Restore was quite impressive in size and scope. It included 3 large warehouses and brings in 1.2 million dollars every year, covering all of the affiliate’s operating expenses so that every dollar donated can go directly towards new home construction. We spent the day doing odd jobs around the Restore to help organize and stock the warehouses and home improvement center. If you have a Restore in your area, I highly recommend checking it out, as there are some great (and cheap!) finds that help support an awesome cause.

Onwards to Oooooooooooklahoma tomorrow!

How many B&Bers does it take to screw in a bulb?

Mannequins (and Lucas) on sale at the Restore

Entryway to the Bass Pro headquarters

Special visitors in St. Louis - my parents!!

...& Build

Greetings from outside Eaton, OH! Our crew is en route from Dayton, OH to Rushville, IN, and today I'm driving the van and trailer (every 4th ride day). I'm currently poaching internet from Skyline Chili, where I'm waiting to pick up a lunch order sponsored by one of our rider's parents. Chili dogs and spaghetti for lunch today!!

ME2SB14 on the build site in Columbus, OH

I can't believe it's been more than a week since I last posted from Pittsburgh. The days and weeks are flying by faster than ever, and I never quite know what day of the week it is (this morning I started to write June 26th as the date). Regardless, we've jammed a lot into the last 8 days, including two more state lines (WV and OH), another 300 miles and 3 build days.

The two walls we raised at the house on Duxberry

Which brings me to my focus for this entry - build days. As the group coined during orientation - "biking is the perk, building is the reason" - build days are our reason for being on the road and something I greatly anticipate each time. We've had 6 build days thus far in Portland, ME, Fitchburg, MA, Pittsfield, MA, Columbus, OH (2 days), and Dayton, OH. 3 of our last 4 days have been on  build sites, and it's been so motivating and exciting to see the work that 33 of us can accomplish.

Columbus, OH:

Celebrating a successful build!

I LOVE POWER TOOLS!

Columbus was our first double build day, meaning we spent two full build days (8:00-4:00) and three nights in the city. Building with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Columbus was one of the best build experiences yet. The builds were incredibly well-organized and managed, with the larger group breaking into 4-5 smaller groups on different build sites. I spent both days with our crew leader Dave at a house on Duxberry Ave, a neighborhood in Columbus with a lot of need and a great community of people. My crew constructed stairs and wall framing for the single family home. I spent the first morning using a new (to me) type of saw feeding boards into it to cut them down to a smaller size for constructing headers for above the door and window frames in the walls. I found the smell and feel of the coating of sawdust that covered me by the end to actually be quite pleasant (and possibly exfoliating!). Then we spent the afternoon and following morning putting the headers together and constructing the wall framing. On the afternoon of the second build day came the moment we'd all been waiting and working for - raising the walls! It was so cool to see this process from start to finish, as our group of 8-10 counted down together before lifting each wall and securing them into place. We really are building houses! Still plenty of work to be done on the houses on Duxberry Ave in Columbus, but I'd like to think we pushed their builds ahead of schedule with our swarm of hard-working Bike & Builders.

In Columbus with the fabulous alumni crew

After the satisfaction of completing our second build day in Columbus, we were warmly welcomed and fed by a crew of B&B alumni living in Columbus and elsewhere. Several of the alumni had completed the ME2SB route last year, and even gave us awesome t-shirts and bike bracelets along with a full-spread taco bar. It was so cool to see the continued involvement and generosity of the B&B alumni, and I can't wait to be a part of this network of people. The Northern US (NUS) route goes through Whitefish, MT where I'll be living, so you can bet I'll be spoiling them rotten in future years.

Teeny, Justin, and baby Collin

One other note about Columbus - I got to see a good friend of mine, Christina, from Elon, where I went to college. We hadn't seen each other in 5 years, and I got to see her and her husband and their adorable 3 month old baby, Collin. What a treat to see familiar faces on the road!





Dayton, OH:

Surrounded by corn en route to Dayton

After an unforgettable three days in Columbus, we cycled onward to Dayton, OH. This ride day of about 80 miles was one of my favorite of the trip thus far (I swear I say that every day). It included nearly 40 miles on paved bike trails, and much of the remaining miles was on country roads with 8 ft corn stalks on either side of you and red barns every mile or so. As one of the riders, Lauren, put it, "This is what I imagined biking across the country being like." As we approached Dayton, we pedaled along a trail on the Mad River and couldn't resist the temptation to cool off with a dip in the river. It turns out, Dayton has 330 miles of interconnected bike paths - WOWZA! If you've never been to Dayton (I never had) you should check it out, as I think it is the best kept secret of Ohio. The town has a vibrant community and is making a conscious effort to promote biking and other forms of outdoor recreation, including kayaking, hiking, fly fishing and more. A group of us even found an impressive indoor climbing gym that was converted from an old church and touted the highest climbing walls in the state. What better way to wear ourselves out before the next ride day!

Climbing at Urban Krag in Dayton

Dry wall team assemble!

The focus and determination of Nick Funlap

Our build day in Dayton was with Habitat for Humanity of Greater Dayton, and included dry-walling, siding, insulation and more. I hung dry wall in a house being built for a family from Africa that has 5 kids. I love doing different projects and learning new skills on each build site. Dry wall was new to me and came with all of the joys and frustrations of learning things for the first time. My building partner, Katherine, and I struggled a little bit (understatement) with accurate measurements and installations, so we found ourselves repeating our work several time. Fortunately, our site manager Rick was very patient and had a good sense of humor with us. It took us a full 3 hours after lunch (everything is harder after lunch) to dry-wall a single closet, but by golly we finished it! Construction may not be my greatest strength, but I'm slowly learning the tricks of the trade and really enjoying (laughing at) myself along the way.

Major Taylor Cycling Club of Dayton

The 3-hour closet from dry wall hell!

Another highlight in Dayton was having dinner hosted by the Dayton chapter of the Major Taylor Cycling Club. Major Taylor was an African-American cyclist born in Indiana in the late 1800s who became America's sprint champion in 1899, completing a mile in 1:19 reaching a speed of 45.6 MPH. Having reached 40 MPH on my bike - unintentionally, while going down a steep hill - I can personally attest that that is super freaking fast! Anyways, there are about 15 Major Taylor Cycling Clubs across the country, and the Dayton chapter was very friendly and eager to connect over our shared passion for cycling.

Thanks for following along! Until next time...