The ride continues...

Yesterday we stopped in Greenville, NC, home of the ECU Pirates. A couple riders learned the hard way that you need to cross railroad tracks with your tires perpendicular to the tracks, otherwise you wipe out. No one was hurt, just a couple of scratches and bruises. We did 58 miles and had to ride with some fairly heavy traffic - something we did not have to do since leaving Nags Head. We stayed at an abandoned house - not completely abandoned, just no one was living in it and we did have permission to stay there. There was only one shower and I got sick of waiting and used the hose outside to shower - so much faster.

Today was 80 miles to Wake Forest. We were spoiled the last couple of days and had some rolling hills at the end of the ride. It was 85 degrees, also higher than what we had been riding in but still cooler than what is coming up. I went thru 2 water bottles of Gatorade and nearly 2 camel packs of water. I decided to ride up in the front group, averaging a little over 19mph. As the lead group, it was our responsibility to draw chalk arrows on the ground for every turn. For those who have seen the movie Superbad, I modeled my arrows after his drawings in his notebook. The 2nd half of the day, Renee, Ana and I rode in a group together. It was pretty good but we missed the last turn and stopped at a restaurant to ask for directions. A super nice couple helped us out and offered to buy us a beer - which we declined per Bike and Build policy (as I always follow policy), but settled for an ice tea. My new rule: If I am ever lost on this trip, always stop at a restaurant to ask for directions! We had to turn down their offer for dinner as we had to get to the North Wake church to shower. We walk in and the first guy I see is wearing an Appalachian State t-shirt. They were super nice and fed us Papa John's pizza. Don't worry, I ate a full pizza myself, but only after everyone else had a chance to go thru the line. We got some frozen custard and then called it a night. Believe it or not, I have dropped 6 lbs since Nags Head, but not sure how much is water. Tomorrow we head to Chapel Hill where we will build with Orange County Habitat for 2 days.