Virginia is for lovers

On the Road

We had quite the day today! Before hitting the road we roamed around Lexington checking out Washington and Lee University, VMI, and Stonewall Jackson's house. Once we started riding we pounded out a quick 18 miles to Vesuvius and took a quick stretch there. From Vesuvius there was a STEEP four mile, 2,000 foot climb. People say the Rockies are tough, but they don't know anything about mountains. Check back soon for my "Ode to the Appalachians".

At the top we turned onto the Blue Ridge Parkway, a highway that runs along several ridges of the Appalachians. It was a beautiful ride with beautiful scenery ("Dude it's not the Rockies, in the Rockies the views are EPIC") and the descent was smooth and easy.

At the base of the mountain we came into a little town called Afton. Afton is famous among cross-country cyclists because it is home to June Carter, the Cookie Lady! June has served cross country cyclists for over 30 years with drinks, cookies, and a place to stay in her house. She converted an entire floor into a have for cyclists. The walls are covered in memorabilia from the last three decades. I left my torn jersey, from my crash in Colorado, on the wall and signed it. It was my contribution to a little piece of history. June is quite possibly the nicest lady I have ever met and her story is incredible. She is one of those people who really reaffirms your faith in the goodness of people and the perseverance of the human spirit.

We stayed for hours talking. When 6 o'clock rolled around we had to part ways and finished the last 25 miles into Charlottesville. Currently we are staying with some friends of a friend. I went to school with Andy Madigan, a current UVA student, and he offered us his room in a house to crash in. In the morning we are going to walk around campus, check out Monticello which is a couple miles down the road, and bike all the way to Richmond. Looking forward to a good night's sleep tonight, my legs are fried! Good night all!

Fact of the Day

For every 2 people starting HIV treatment, 5 are newly infected. The rate at which the virus is spreading is alarming. Face AIDS seeks to spread education about the disease so that people can develop safe habits to protect themselves from infection. Prevention is one of our greatest allies.

Trivia Contest

Answer to yesterday's question: Robert E. Lee and "Stonewall" Jackson are buried in Lexington. Lee is entombed in the church on the W&L campus while Jackson lies in a cemetery nearby. Both are clearly marked with some really cool statues. 10 points to my Dad, 0 points to KTO, but an A for effort!

Today's Trivia Question: Washington and Lee University gets its name from George Washington and Robert E. Lee. What is the family connection between these two men that serves as the basis for the college name? (10 points)

BONUS Question: Who designed the original part of the UVA campus? (5 points)

Let it rain, let it rain

On the Road

As beautiful as Virginia is, the weather is not cooperating with us. When looking at the weather reports last night we learned that a big storm was making its way across our path. Oh well, that's how it has to be. This morning we got 6 miles into our ride and Dave already had two flats. Upon closer inspection it was revealed that Dave's back tire was shredded. In the interest of time (and beating the on coming storm) Lauren picked up Dave and took him to the bike store to get a new tire while I pushed on alone.

The first 30 miles were fine but when I entered a small town called Catawba the rain really started coming down. I stopped at a small store, downed a peperoni/sausage pizza, washed it down with a Mug root beer, and stepped back outside ready to brave the storm. The first couple of miles were terrible, but once I accepted that it wasn't going to start raining everything was good.

About 40 miles into the day the clouds broke and the rain passed. 10 miles later I met up with Dave and we pushed the last 50 miles into Lexington. Lexington is home to both Washington and Lee University and the Virginia Military Institute. Since it was around 6 when we arrived most things were closed but Dave and I are going to get up early tomorrow and walk around town before biking to Charlottesville. It's a short day (77 miles) but there is a pretty nasty climb 20 miles in that will take a little bit of time.

Fact of the Day

With just over 10% of the world's population, sub-Saharan Africa is home to 95% of the world's AIDS orphans and 60% of all people infected by HIV. The numbers speak for themselves. This is one of our answers for "Why Africa?". Because a disproportionate amount of people are being affected with HIV in Africa compared to other places in the world.

Trivia Contest

Answer to yesterday's question: Mt. Mitchell is the largest mountain in the Appalachians. I was going to give KTO 1 point for every foot that Mt. Mitchell rose above sea level, but turns out she isn't that far behind Mrs. Evans (47 points). KTO has joined Nate Rooks in a tie for 2nd with 30 points a piece. Give it a day or two and Mrs. Evans' streak could be over.

Today's Trivia Question: What two famous Confederate generals are buried in Lexington, VA? (5 points a piece)

Presentation Announcement

On August 12 Dave and I will give a presentation about AIDS, Face AIDS, and our ride at St. John's High School starting at 7 PM. Afterwards everyone is invited back to my house for some light snacks, good conversation, and friends. If you will be in the Central Massachusetts area we would love to have to stop by! If you plan on attending, please let me know at rideagainstaids2009@gmail.com. Thanks!

Lincoln's Birthplace

A couple of days ago we passed Lincoln's birthplace in Kentucky. It was only a couple miles into our day, but we decided to stop and check it out. Here are a couple of pictures from the visit.

The Memorial Building on the park grounds.

The Memorial Building housed this log cabin. While it was not the exact cabin in which Lincoln was born (its origins are traced back to the 1840's) it was found on the grounds where the Lincolns' cabin would have stood.

Ride Against AIDS Reaches the East Coast

On the Road

We are officially on the East Coast! Yesterday we crossed the Kentucky border and entered into Virginia. The riding has been very tough. Who knew the Appalachians would pose such a challenge? While the elevation doesn't rival that of the Rockies, the grades are much, much steeper and really take it out of your legs.

This photo was taken after the "Leaving Kentucky" sign and before the "Welcome to Virginia" sign. We call it the black line. You know, like state boundaries on a map.

Yesterday we stayed at a local hostel in Damascus, VA. One of the local churches had a place set up where hikers (Appalachian Trail) and cyclists could spend the night on their way through Virginia. We met some cool people and had a great time swapping stories ("What made you decide to bike across the country, you're nuts!" "Are you kidding me? You're walking it!").

We went to bed under the impression that we had only 87 miles to ride today. Upon reviewing the map this morning, however, we realized how off we were. We ended up doing 106 and climbing about 5,000 feet in the process. Surprisingly, I felt a lot better today than yesterday, but by the end my legs were wiped. Virginia is beautiful, though, and I really, really enjoy biking through the countryside.

Some of the beautiful Virginia countryside.

Tomorrow was supposed to be a rest day for us, but we've decided to push on. Our Couch Surfers feel through here so we don't have a place to stay (Mr. Evans put us up at last minute in a hotel...thanks!). Over the next couple of days we bike to Lexington, Charlottesville, and Richmond before turning north. We'll take the off day in Richmond so we can check out some of the Civil War stuff there.

Fact of the Day

60% of tuberculosis patients in South Africa are HIV-positive. It's easy to focus on one aspect of health care. But if you treat someone for AIDS while TB or malaria kills them, you are sort of missing the big picture. That's why we believe in comprehensive health care. If you need food, you get food. If you need shelter, you get shelter. If you need mosquito nets, you get mosquito nets. Partners in Health, the money who receives the funds we raise, also believes this and provide free, comprehensive health care for people living in developing countries. Check out what they do at www.pih.org

Trivia Contest

Answer to Sunday's question: The four commonwealths are Massachusetts, Kentucky, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. 12 more points to Mrs. Evans! I'm going to suspend the daily rankings until someone challenges our leader's supremacy.

Today's Trivia Question: What is the tallest Appalachian Mountain (10 points)

Sometimes you're the Louisville slugger, sometimes you're the ball

On the Road

Last night your friendly RAA team was witness to the most ferocious lightning storm any of us had ever seen. It found it hard to fall asleep and even when I did it seemed I was woken up only an hour later to the sound of thunder. Overall it was not the best night of sleep.

Weather forecasts predicted rain and thunder storms in the area, so Dave and I rose before the break of dawn, broke camp, and hit the road. There was a decent climb out of Booneville and at the top we were met with a light sprinkle. After our first descent the rain picked up until it was a heavy, heavy downpour. We had another climb and descent before taking a (very) early break 18 miles into our ride at Buckhorn.

A cup of coffee later we were back on the road in the pouring rain. Once again we found ourselves climbing out of town and a steep, slippery descent followed. I gripped my brakes as tight as I could, slowly navigating the fierce corners in the pouring rain. The steep downhill grade and driving rain made for extremely dangerous conditions. At the bottom of the hill, only 20 miles into our day, we pulled into a gas station to assess the situation.

The rain was not likely to pass, in fact it was only supposed to get worse. Lightning strikes off in the distance threatened our position so we flagged Lauren down. In the car we came to a unanimous decision: we had to call it quits for the day and head to the hotel we had booked for the night. So, after only 20 miles, we drove off into the hills and have missed 70 miles.

As difficult as it is to miss miles, this decision was certainly the safest one. On our ride we saw downed trees, blind corners, and cars driving wildly. One of us was certain to wreck and it was not a chance we wanted to take.

We've spent the afternoon and the evening chilling at our hotel in Pikeville, KY. Dave and I just got back from Transformers: Rise of the Fallen. I tried to think of something witty or dry to say about this film- certainly one of the great sequels, much like The Godfather 2- but I am at a loss for words. It was....I got nothing.

Tomorrow we continue on into Virginia! East Coast here we come!

Fact of the Day

Only 23% of people living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa are receiving the anti-retroviral therapy they need. Considering that the vast majority of HIV-infected people live in sub-Saharan Africa, very few people who need these drugs are getting them.

Trivia Contest

Answer to yesterday's Trivia: Berea was founded in 1855 and people of all backgrounds- men, women, blacks, and whites- could attend. Mind you this was 8 years before the Emancipation Proclamation and 65 years before women gained the right to vote. 5 points to my Dad for coming up with the year first and 5 points to Hailey, our friend Dave met at Berea, for answering the latter part of the question.

Today's Trivia Question: What are the four Commonwealths in the Union? (3 points a piece)

Dog Days of Summer

On the Road

Whew, it's been a couple of days so I'll try to keep this as short as possible. The biking has been great. I got back on the bike yesterday and my legs are feeling good (but tired) and the cuts are holding up very nicely. I forsee no further complications, but knock on wood, I don't want to miss any more miles!

Kentucky continues to get more and more beautiful. Today we worked our way up to the base of the Appalachian mountains. They are much shorter than the Rockies or the Sierra Nevadas (our biggest peak is around 4,000 feet) but they are significantly steeper so it will make for some long days in the near future.

One of the many beautiful backroads of Kentucky.

Speaking of long days, we rode 100+ miles today. The first 50 took out a lot of both Dave and me, but we stopped in Berea and checked out the college there for a while. The wind was blowing very hard and we tried to wait it out; I'd had enough of head/cross winds from the morning.

After pushing on we tried to break up the last 55 miles into 30 and 25 miles segments. Lauren got lost in the windy roads though so we rode all the way in and met her in Booneville, KY. The rain started coming down in the last couple miles so we rode very hard and rewarded ourselves with a big dinner. I had a double bacon cheeseburger, fries, four cokes, a sirloin/egg/cheese breakfast sandwich, and a slive of peanut butter pie. I could have had more.

Nine order tickets in total for the table. Oh yeah.

Now we are cmaping out back of a Presbyterian Church in town. The church has set up a free camp ground for cyclists passing through complete with bathrooms and showers! It's a very welcome surprise at the end of a long day and should refresh us for a long day tomorrow. We're going 125 miles or so to Elkhorn City. It's longer than we originally planned but it gives us some good flexiblity for housing two days from now. Besides, go big or go home.

There's a little story that Dav insists I tell on the blog. Throughtout Kentucky it has not been uncommon to be chased by dogs for a little bit. Often they are small and just want to play, but we've had our fair share of dogs that look pretty vicious and just want to take a big chomp out of our juicy legs.

Well we were biking along this ridge this evening. Dave was leading by 5 bike lengths or so when a large (140 lbs) black dog starts to bark, chases Dave, and nips at his heels. Dave barely made it through. I froze at the start of the dog's property. It turned, barked, and started to sprint directly at my down the centerline.

I developed a theory early in the day while outrunning a German Shepard that likens biking past dogs to playing basketball. When you are on offense you have to beat your defender with your first step. If you can beat him with one step, you can turn the corner and get to the hoop. If, however, the defender reads your step and blocks your path you have nowhere to go. Well Dave beat the dog with his first step but I could not do so.

Anyways this 140 lbs, very fast, snarling dog is barreling down on me so I about faced and start booking it away from our destination. I managed to get away and the dog returned to its yard. A 5 minute sparring session ensued. I would try to sneak by, the dog would block my path and try to end my life. After a few unsuccessful attempts, the owner came out and managed to pin the dog- aptly named "Bruiser"- down. "He's all bark and no bite!" he kindly chuckled as I sped on by. I thanked him but didn't wait around for the dog to be released.

It's safe to say I am officially terrified of dogs.

Fact of the Day

For only $4 you can buy a one time drug dosage that will prevent the transfer of HIV from mother to child during pregnancy. This fact is one that really gets to me. Having grown up in a household with two, healthy parents who worked hard and provided me with the opportunities to get where I am today I am extremely thankful for the blessings in my life. Yet everyday children are born with HIV, have no access to the life saving drugs that we can produce, and die before they are 5 years old only because they were born in a 3rd world country. Yet for $4- $4!!- these kids can be given a chance at life. Ultimately, that's what we all want and $4 seems a small price to pay for the life of a child.

Trivia Contest

Answer to Wednesday's Question: I must confess that I have led my reading audience astray. As it turns out the men on the Kentucky state falg are NOT Daniel Boone and Henry Clay but symbolic figures of "the stateman" and "the pioneer". As I was corrected by Mrs. Evans she gets the 10 points and assumes the lead on our scoreboard! Has Nate Rooks gone silent? Will KTO make her comeback? Keep checking back to find out!

Today's trivia Question: In what year was Berea College founded (5 points)? Who was allowed to enroll (5 points)?

Driving 'ol Dixie Down

On the Road

It rained hard last night. I awoke several times to the pounding of the rain on the top of our tent. The protective covering held fast, though, and all our team rose in the morning dry and warm. Camp was broken, and we stopped at a local restaurant for breakfast before taking the ferry- the only way across the Ohio River- to Kentucky.

As Dave pushed off from the Kentucky shore the rain still came down at a decent pace. Lauren and I drove on through the countryside and waited for Dave in a small town 40 miles down the road called Dixon. As I sat in the library reading I received a text from Lauren that Dave had arrived and pushed on another 20 miles. The clouds had broken and the sun was starting to push through.

We continued on through the beautiful countryside of Kentucky. The interlocking corn fields, bundles of hay, and green forest formed distinct patterns that resembled patchwork quilts. After another short stop in a small town Dave pushed onward before calling it a day. We drove a few miles up to Owensboro to a hotel the Evanses had reserved for us. It was a special treat after a long day of very wet biking for Dave.

For dinner we found ourselves at an all-you-can-eat buffet. Not having biked for two days I kept my plates on the small side, though it should be noted my dinner plate did not differ all that much in size from my dessert plate. Dave, however, must have had eyes bigger than his stomach. I almost had to roll him out of the car back into the hotel.

Fact of the Day

Approximately 1 in 5 adults in Zimbabwe is living with HIV. The life expectancy for men is 37. For women it is only 34. I'm currently reading a book called My Own Country about the spread of AIDS during "the plague years" in rural Tennessee. The author, infectious disease specialist Dr. Abraham Verghese, makes the observation that while some diseases target older people, AIDS is predominantly a young person's disease.

Trivia Contest

Answer to yesterday's trivia: 10 more points to Mrs. Evans! Face AIDS boasts more than 150 chapters on high school and college campuses across the country. If you are interested in starting one please send us an email at rideagainstaids2009@gmail.com or go to www.faceaids.org. It's easy to start, rewarding to participate, and important to maintain.

Today's Trivia Question: Kentucky's state flag boasts what famous pioneer? (10 points)

Standings: Nate Rooks maintains his slim lead (30 points) over Mrs Evans (25 points) and KTO/Matty Pru (20 points). Will Mrs. Evans' overtake the top spot tomorrow?