Days 13 & 14

I think the late Townes VanZandt said it best with "To Live Is To Fly." I feel so alive out here on this mission. It is a simple living of just eat, sleep & pedal. I get to see things on a much slower pace now... when you get passed by a caterpillar while pedalling up a hill I'd say that suffices the "much slower pace" criteria! The fence posts go by one at a time instead of a blurring stream blending in with the background. It amazes me the things that pop out that would normally pass unseen. I don't just see a barn in a field, I see the individual boards that make it what it is... the brush strokes of the person who spent the day painting it.

I have to thank my Brothers and Great Friends Latseen Benson and Matt Lammers for being such inspirations for me. The last couple of days it has been tough to get rolling in the morning; my legs just don't seem to want to keep the same schedule that the rest of me does. I just have to think of these guys and how great they are doing and I get fired up for another day of pedalling. Guys, keep on keeping on!

Cheers to all of the great folks we have met along the way! I have yet to ride into any town along the way, well, except maybe Jackson, MS, where I didn't feel welcome. And in Jackson they were all about support for the WWP and our Veterans, they just didn't want to have any dang bike riders interfering with their freedom to zoom down the road in several thousand pounds of metal and plastic with a total disregard for common courtesy. But, all the best to Darryl and Tom, Patti and Daniel, and Jim & the folks at "The Rez" and Kevin and the folks at "Cock of the Walk."

Let's see... Kosciusko, MS to Starkville, MS, Starkville, MS to Fayette, AL, Fayette, AL to Jasper, AL, Jasper, AL to Hanceville, AL & Hanceville, AL to Guntersville, AL. Geeze! The days are starting to run together now! I had to look at my maps to figure out what days I was where! Ah, Fayette to Jasper! Phew! Some serious hills along that route! We left out OK but ended up backpedalling 2.5 miles to the Marathon c-store for ice & water. We then headed out of town via Stamps Rd but after about 5 miles found that Stamps Bridge no longer exists. Thus we added 14 miles to the days ride and hadn't even left Fayette yet! Of course, had we not gone out Stamps Rd we would not have found the perfect kodak moment... an Engineer Castle sign hanging out on a corner in the middle of what appeared to be nowhere! ESSAYONS! We then enjoyed some country back roads and the waves of the local farmers & ranchers. Chuck & Sharon swapped out at Townley and I actually think Chuck was glad to get in the truck! The hills were tough and one after the next. Sharon & I then pedalled on into and through Jasper. We ended up passing through around 1500hrs but you would have thought it was 1700hrs in Houston; the traffic was stacked up everywhere and the narrow two-lane roads with lots of little rolling hills made it rather exciting. Still, nobody got mad or honked a horn or tore dangerously around us. We made it to Buttermilk Rd and Sleepy Holler Campground without incident though I was very happy to arrive in one piece.

At Sleepy Holler we met Chuck Lawson, owner of the campground. Mr. Lawson was U.S. Army 82nd Airborne during the Korean War and was a Jump Master during that time. He had some really great stories and knew volumes of history about the area. For instance, Buttermilk Rd was so named by a Colonel serving under General Jackson. Apparently, General Jackson was passing through with his Troops when they laid over to allow the supply train to catch up. They laid over for some three weeks. At the end of the road from the camp was a dairy farm that would ship daily supplies to the Troops. Well, the road was in such bad shape that by the time the milk got from the farm to the Troops it was well churned up and hence the Colonel called it Buttermilk Rd and the name stuck! I love those stories! Anyway, Mr. Lawson let us make camp free of charge in support of our mission and he has a very nice little facility. I had full intention of showering, eating & blogging but ended up falling asleep with the computer sitting on my chest in the tent. I was also privileged to meet Rebbecca and little Jenna at Sleepy Holler. Thanks for your support Rebbecca! Take care of little Jenna, she's a cutie!

Now here's where things get a bit wonky. Good ole TXPeddler was feeling good and decided that an 80-mile day was totally within his capabilities... yeah, in Houston! I was not prepared for the hills we climbed on AL69 from Jasper to Hanceville. It was such a short distance on the map but... the map LIES! It does not depict elevation, which happens to be a very important detail when plotting a bicycle route. AL69 is a train wreck of mountain passes, no shoulder, rumble strips and lots of truck traffic, including logging trucks. It was absolutely beautiful countryside though; mountain passes with drop-offs, streams, forests, little ranch homesteads, even a dam and lake. Chuck and I were about beside ourselves with all the climbing. It seemed to take forever as we could only make headway at about 2 to 3 miles per hour. At one point my back tire went flat... AGAIN. Number 9 or 10 I can't remember. With no shoulder and a drop off on the side of the road I had to pedal a ways to find a driveway where we proceeded to dismantle the load and repair the flat. I had just gotten the wheel off when a Jeep Liberty came down the drive and stopped just short of us. A young lady got out and asked if we were OK and what we were up to. Her home was way on up the side of the mountain but apparently her alarm system started barking at us and alerted her to our presence. I love those kind of alarms! Anyway, it turns out that Lisa's Husband is prior service Air Force and she donates to WWP already. Lisa was super nice and offered us water and lunch as well as critical information about c-stores along the rest of the route. Thanks a bunch, Lisa! We made it... sort of. About the time we hit the city limits for Dodge City I was running on a very low tank and thinking of having to pedal another 50 miles made me cringe. Not wanting to get part way down the road and completely petering out, I opted for a little lunch and 10 more miles to Hanceville where we could get a hotel and a good nights rest.

So, Dodge City is very proud of their tax base and put the city limits sign 3 miles from the actual town... yeah, what a mood killer. While we're pedalling along this little red car appears on our six and won't pass even when it is totally clear. Then all of the sudden it zooms around, scurries up the road a 1/2 mile and pulls into a little parking area. As we're pedalling past Nan Auston jumps out of the little red car and asks if we can stop for a minute... little did she know that she would not have had to twist much to get me to stop at that time, I was looking for any old excuse to be able to stop pedalling at that time. Anyway, Nan organizes the Tea Parties for Cullman County and she also follows WWP on Facebook. Her husband is prior service Navy and she just wanted to buy us lunch for all of our effort. Thanks Nan! Well, we told Nan that Sharon was waiting for us up the road at the micky d's and we would probably just eat there. We parted ways and Chuck & I wobbled into the micky d's for some nourishment. While I'm sitting there stuffing fries into my mouth as fast as I can possibly manage without choking on them the manager comes to our table and informs me that the Cullman Times is sending a reporter over and that we are being requested to stay put until they arrive. Uh, my news travels fast in a small town! We hadn't even finished our "fast food!" Turns out that Nan had called the paper and told them where we were and that she thought the story warranted some coverage. Thanks again Nan! Here's where we meet Tiffany of the Cullman Times. What a great gal! She's sharp and I believe she'll go far in her media pursuits. I gave an interview and she took a few pictures and told us that she would try to get the story to print in the next day or two. I awoke this morning to find my picture on the front page of the Cullman Times and it wasn't a mug shot! Thank you for the support, Tiffany and all the folks at the Cullman Times (www.cullmantimes.com).

Sharon & I pedalled over one more mountain range to Hanceville where Chuck had secured us rooms at the Comfort Inn. I was never so happy for a cold shower and a soft bed. Brenda and her staff at the Comfort Inn made us feel very welcome and the hotel was clean, well appointed and very, very comfortable. We walked down the street for some Chinese food and were not disappointed with the suggestion. When we got back to the room I plastered my knees with biofreeze and got some ice in a ziploc, wrapped it in a towel and put it on my back. The bed was SO comfortable. I awoke to my alarm this morning and seriously considered tossing it in the toilette and going back to bed! My legs did not want to cooperate this morning and it took several hours before I could manage to pedal anything. We visited with Brenda and her son, who is prior service Army, the former Hanceville Police Chief and now Cullman County Sheriff's Deputy as well as her staff until 1000hrs when I finally felt good enough to get moving again.

Chuck & I stopped at the Chevron on 91 & 31 for ice & water on our way out and we ended up visiting for awhile there as well. I even signed the newspaper by request; my first ever autograph! It was a lot of fun. On our way up the road there were horns honking and waves coming from everywhere, apparently a lot of folks read the Cullman Times in Hanceville! They all gave smiles and waves and thumbs up, it was a great feeling. Thanks to Hanceville and Cullman County, AL for all the wonderful support!

Though the hills were not as steep between Hanceville and Guntersville, they were long and frequent. The exception would be the hill just across the bridge on 227 that begins the road into the State Park... it is long AND steep! The ride was absolutely beautiful though and passing at such a slow pace really gave me a chance to fully appreciate the beauty. The park is very nice and the facilities a great. Kudos to the Great State of Alabama! It is so beautiful and peaceful here I wish I could bring all of our Warriors here for a little R&R.

While all of this is going on my darling wife managed to get in touch with Art at Easy Chair Recumbents in Chattanooga, TN. Art is not only going to help me out in getting a lower gear range but he also offered to put us up in his home for our time in Chattanooga! Thanks Art! We'll see you in a couple of days...

So now it's 2210hrs and I'm gonna wrap this up and get some shuteye. It has been a really great ride so far and I wouldn't want to miss it for the world. I'm sore and tired but I'll get over it. Thank you again to all of our friends and sponsors and to all of the new folks we've met along the way. Without your support this mission would not be possible. With your support we can help our Veterans transition from the battlefield to the home front. The worst thing we can do is turn a cheek and forget what these brave young men and women have done for our Country. Please help us reach our goal by donating to Wounded Warrior Project.

Let us see what tomorrow brings!