In His Process

Vision Week...

2011-11-10T10:22:00.000-08:00

last night we took a break from our journey through the life of david to talk about the value of out-of-the-ordinary experiences. about the fact that we need out-of-the-ordinary experiences in our faith journey to change us forever as we come back to the ordinary.

much like jacob as he wrestled with God before as he crossed the jabbok river...we need these experiences.

as because we need these experiences, we are setting up an out-of-the-ordinary experience this coming week. inviting everyone and challenging everyone to come to what we are calling vision week.

the basement at campus house will be completely transformed into numerous different spaces, and will be open 24 hours from monday at 8am until thursday at 9pm, for people to come and encounter God in different ways.

we also have a few other specific things that will be going on, including:

prayer -

there will be 36 hours of continuous prayer happening during the first 36 hours of vision week. we want to have someone in the prayer room here in the building continuously for those 36 hours. we have half hour time slots for people to sign up for. if you were not at dig last night and didn't get to sign up for a prayer slot but would like to, you can send me an email at cchbrad@gmail.com and i can let you know what times are available.

fasting -

we are challenging people to fast next week...to intentionally remove something ordinary from their lives (food or something else) in order to create an out-of-the-ordinary scenario that will cause people to seek God and encounter God.

worship -

worship will happen in a bit of an out-of-the-ordinary way next week as well. monday, tuesday and wednesday nights at midnight there will be low-key, informal, acoustic worship happening in the basement in the midst of the vision week stuff.

meal packaging for people in africa -

we felt lead to bring something into this out-of-the-ordinary experience that would align us with God's heart for social justice. and this opportunity to package meals fell into our laps.

we have set a goal. by the end of next week we want to package 360 meals. the meals we are packaging cost $1.20/package. so, that means that if 60 people will each bring $7.20 we will meet our goal. so, if you will bring cash next week...you will find in the space in the basement an area where literally for every $1.20 you bring you personally will put food into a package, seal it, and put it into a box ready to ship to africa.

community wrap-up thursday @ 9pm -

we want to gather together at the end of this out-of-the-ordinary time together to worship a bit and to share how we have encountered God in different ways.

i believe there is great potential in what this coming week holds. i pray that it will be a time of deepening relationship with God in a way that people walk away with a limp like Jacob did...knowing that they have been forever changed as they continue in the ordinary.

so...it you are around warresnburg, will you consider coming and spending some time in this space during the week ahead?

and if you are not around here, will you consider praying for what is going on here, that people would encounter God in new ways and walk away changed?

Life of David [1 Samuel 28 & 31]...

2011-11-03T08:44:00.000-07:00

last night we looked at the end of the life of saul. the night was sponsored by this guy. and really not so much by this guy...but by his most notable phrase...

"i pity the fool"

the night was brought to us by the phrase "i pity the fool" not because saul was dying...but because as his life was coming to an end, he was convinced that God had turned away from him and would not answer him...when in reality God was right there, but saul's unconfessed sin and disobedience issue was keeping him from connecting with God.

isaiah 59 gives insight to this where it says...

"Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, not his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear. For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt. Your lips have spoken lies, and your tongue mutters wicked things."

and so we must ask ourselves...when we feel like God has turned away from us and will not answer us...are there unconfessed sins and disobediences that are keeping us from fully connecting with him.

because we can be assured that if there is sin and disobedience in our lives, it will causes barriers and disconnection with God.

Life of David [1 Samuel 27, 29 & 30]...

2011-10-27T11:34:00.000-07:00

cheap grace...

deitrich bonhoeffer coined the term...

he wrote about it this way...

"Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession...Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate."

God calls us to something far deeper than cheap grace.

romans 8:38-39 says:

"For i am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to seperate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

in the wake of those words, how can we not wake up to an understanding of grace that is far deeper than cheap.

we must encounter God's true grace...and the outpouring result will be 1 Peter 4...

"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms."

if you are interested in listening to this whole teaching, you can check it out by clicking here...

Life of David [1 Samuel 25]...

2011-10-20T17:03:00.000-07:00

beauty...true beauty...beauty based in shalom...based in the way that God intended things to be...

always has the potential to do two things...

1. to stop us dead in our tracks

2. to bring us back to what is right and true

last night, we look at a beautiful illustration of this in the life of david as he encounters a woman named abigail in the bottom of a ravine. david is caught up in a moment of sin...full of anger and rage and vengeance. abigail represents beauty.

here's a eugene peterson quote that sums up well much of the teaching:

“When some Abigail or other shows up – a sudden beauty in song or face, in aspen or iris – we see ourselves in a larger, truer light. David had been living in the huge, vast world of God – God’s love and redemption, prayer and holiness – and it nearly got away from him as he pursued his puny, small-minded revenge. Abigail’s beauty – her double-edged beauty of character and countenance – recovered the beauty of the Lord for him. Abigail on her knees put David back on his knees.”

paul talks in 1 corinthians 10:13 about the fact that when we are tempted, God will provide a way out. and yet, in the moment when we feel sin barreling down on us, it can feel challenging to actually recognize that way out.

and i wonder if more than anything, our inability to recognize that way out, is a result of the fact that we have lost our eyes and appreciation for beauty. that we need to allow beauty, true beauty, to cause us to stop dead in our tracks and to be brought back to what is right and true.

what if in our moments of temptation, when we are caught up in anger and rage, we actually went out hunting for beauty. believing that it would realign our compass and bring us back to our true north.

if you are interested in listening to the entire teaching, you can check it out here.

“When

Life of David [1 Samuel 21 & 22]...

2011-10-06T14:21:00.000-07:00

last night we entered in to the story of 1 samuel 21 & 22 and saw that david continues to turn to God as his sanctuary...as his place of refuge...as the place he goes to when he needs filled up. and we observed then, that in the first two verses of chapter 22, some 400 people are drawn to david. an absolutely beautiful picture.

my guess is that as a result of the sanctuary david turned to, he had an aroma about him that attracted others. it was an aroma of where he had been.

was it the aroma of Christ that paul talks about in 2 corinthians 2:14-15?

saul on the other hand, went to the sanctuary of the world. as a result, his aroma was that of the world...an aroma that drew others in to his evil-dominated imagination...and left them turning to the ways of the world as well.

the story leaves us pondering two questions...

what sanctuary are you turning to in your life?

what aroma are you carrying?

Life of David [1 Samuel 20]...

2011-09-29T10:54:00.000-07:00

in chapter 20 of 1 samuel we SEE the friendship between jonathon and david playing out in a unique and deep way.

however, it was back in the beginning of chapter 18 that we were TOLD about the beginnings of their friendship. there it says that they "became one in spirit". but what does it mean to be one in spirit?

the hebrew word for "became one" is "qashar" and it means "to be knit together". to become one in spirit is to be knit together. being knit together was what made jonathon and david's friendship unique.

i think it is being "knit together" and "one in spirit" that Jesus is talking about when he is asked, "what is the greatest commandment of them all" and he replies, "love the Lord with everything you've got and love your neighbor as yourself". (Mark 12:28-31 - my paraphrase)

but what is the root of being knit together...of loving your neighbor as yourself.

i believe it goes all the way back to the beginning of everything. in genesis 1, God says, "let US make make man in OUR image", and these words show us that from before the beginning of everything, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit were living out this commandment of loving God and loving neighbor as yourself. perfectly. and it is this image that we, every single person in the world, is created in.

and so what is at the root of being knit together?

it is the way we were created to be. it is shalom. it is rightness, wholeness, completeness. it is the way things were in the garden of eden. it is the way things will be in heaven someday. all knit together on one long scarf.

so how might you change and how might the world change if you started viewing everyone as someone you are knit together with?

Monday Book : The Reason for God...

2011-09-26T08:53:00.000-07:00

the reason for God, by timothy keller, is simply a fantastic book! one of our community groups is spending this semester learning from it.

first off, keller is an absolutely fantastic communicator. i don't know that i have encountered many who are better. and more than that, he is an incredible thinker! consequently, there is probably nothing he has written, or said for that matter, that i wouldn't recommend. click here to check out both his writing and teaching.

specifically, the reason for God, is a compelling look into why we believe what we believe. keller takes the tough questions and answers them simply and concisely; yet profoundly and convincingly. if you struggle with tough questions like "why do bad things happen to good people"...or if there are people who surround you that struggle with these questions...or if you have a desire to more fully grasp why you believe what you believe...then this book is for you.

i can almost guarantee, if you pick up a copy, you will not be disappointed.

and in light of thinking about a book like this...

what are some of your toughest questions of faith? what are your most important questions?

Life of David [1 Samuel 19]...

2011-09-23T07:51:00.000-07:00

have you ever felt like you are doing what God called you to do and yet everything seems to be going wrong? what are your emotions in these times? how do you typically respond?

david was experiencing one of these times in 1 samuel 19. he is doing what God has called him to do, and saul and his men are repeatedly trying to kill him. the questions had to have been flying, and i think we see some of that in psalm 59 (the psalm david wrote in the midst of this trial).

i think it is important that we notice two things in this time where i would guess david was questioning God's call.

first, where did david "run" to. he ran to samuel. and what does samuel represent for david? someone he was familiar with and who was safe, but most of all...someone who david trusted to speak God's truth. he had done it before (samuel is the one God used to anoint david) and i believe david trusted God to use samuel again.

secondly, God sent his Spirit into the midst of david's situation. i think partly to modify the situation, but mainly to remind david that the Spirit of God was at work and that he didn't need to question God's call, but instead he needed to simply keep the vision.

i wonder how often we are willing to wait patiently for the Spirit of God to show up and affirm God's call in the midst of our questions and uncertainty. we live in such a face-paced, jump-from-one-thing-to-the-next society, that often we simply assume that when the questions start flying it must be time to go somewhere else and do something different.

david waited. the Spirit showed up.

to watch the Spirit of God completely take over...rendering saul helpless, naked, and prophesying...and for this to be the same guy that had been hurling spears at him...had to have been a reassuring moment for David.

do we wait long enough for the Spirit of God to bring his reassurance to us in the midst of our questions and uncertainty?

Monday Book : "M"...

2011-09-19T13:15:00.000-07:00

This is a post i am re-posting from a blog i follow...the author is seth godin. the book, and more than that, the concept behind the book is fantastic. i haven't read the book yet, but i have flipped through it and i am intrigued and excited!

more than that, i love the fact that in addition to a great book it is an even greater cause. check it out!!

"Six weeks ago, at midnight, I found myself awake but wiped out from jet lag. I was in a lumpy bed, in the dark, in an obscure, $20 a night, John-Waters'-esque former country club. I was in Kitale, Kenya, near the Ugandan border.

A mosquito was buzzing in my ear. (Why do they buzz in your ear?). I had meds, of course, but what if I didn't? What if, like so many who live here, I had kids and no money for medicine?

Try to imagine that for a second before you click onto the next thing you've got on your agenda for today.

Today is End Malaria Day.

Right this minute, right now, please do three things:

Buy two copies of End Malaria, an astonishing new book by more than sixty of your favorite authors. In a minute, I will explain why this might be the most important book you buy this year (not the best book, of course, just the most important one). You should buy one in paperback too so you can evangelize a copy to a colleague.
Tweet or like this post, or email it to ten friends (It only takes a second.)
And, visit the End Malaria Day website and share it as well.

What would happen if you did that? What would happen if you stepped up and spent a few dollars?

Here's what would happen: someone wouldn't die.

A child wouldn't die from malaria, a disease that causes more childhood death than HIV/AIDS.

It's that direct. Malaria bednets are simple nets that hang over a window or a bed. They're treated with a chemical that mosquitos hate. The mosquitos fly away, they don't bite, people don't get malaria.

Every single penny spent on the Kindle edition goes to Malaria No More, giving them enough money to buy one or two bednets and to deliver them and be sure they're used properly. Low overhead, no graft, no waste. Just effectiveness. And if you buy the beautiful paperback edition, you can easily give it away when you're done and the same $20 donation gets made. None of the authors or anyone at the Domino Project sees your money, there's no ulterior motive, just the fact that a kid won't die.

Wait, there is one ulterior motive: You might be inspired. One of the sixty plus contributors might share a gem or spark an idea.

And I guess there's a second motive: Stepping up feels right. It's a few clicks to buy a book, one you might be able to afford. And for the rest of the day, or even a week, you'll remember how it felt to save someone's life.

Please.

And if you could, after you buy a copy, please tweet or post or email your friends. It matters. Thanks."

Life of David [1 Samuel 18]...

2011-09-14T21:39:00.000-07:00

commitment...

that's what we looked at last night...

specifically two commitments...jonathon's commitment to david and david's commitment to saul.

the commitment of jonathon to david is fascinating. it is a fast-formed friendship. they click instantly. it seems at least, without the need for approval or affirmation. and it seems to be a one-directional relationship...from jonathon to david. and it centers around a "berith" covenant. (berith is the hebrew word used here for covenant) the covenant that jonathon gives to david.

the most fascinating piece of this commitment is the beautiful parallel that it forms with the covenantal commitment that God makes with us. i believe we cannot encounter the beginnings of the relationship between jonathon and david, without being pointed directly to God's commitment to us through the blood of Jesus shed on the cross.

david's commitment to saul is a fascinating one as well. david would have been completely justified in cursing saul and running the other way, after two spears had gone whizzing by his ear. he instead chooses a different way.

he remains committed to saul, in what i believe was a makrothumia spirit. makrothumia is this great greek word that means: "the spirit that never loses patience with, belief in and hope for others". david doesn't lose patience with, belief in or hope for saul...and i believe that was because he believed that saul could still be the king God wanted him to be. david didn't give up on saul, and i think that is because david believed that God hadn't given up on saul.

looking at the commitment of david to saul should inspire us to this makrothumia spirit as well.

and it wasn't until i was praying to close last night, that it really hit me, that it isn't until we truly grasp the covenant and commitment of God to us, that is shown metaphorically in jonathon's commitment to david, that we can then truly have a commitment like david's toward others.

in some senses the words of 1 john 4:10 seem so simple:

"This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins."

and yet, truly grasping these words, changes everything.

do you grasp these words in your daily life? how might grasping them more change you?

Monday Book : I Once Was Lost...

2011-09-12T17:25:00.000-07:00

on wednesday, i was talking with a new student who is on the baseball team here at ucm. he is a relatively new follower of Christ and is fired up about sharing this new-found relationship with his teammates. his passion is awesome and his heart is undoubtedly pure, but i was encouraging him to strive to not turn his teammates into projects.

that he needs to see them and value them as people, and realize that if they are going to come to relationship with Christ, it will be through a journey and a process. (and if they don't ever come to a relationship with Christ, he should be friends with them just the same...their coming to faith is God's job not his) and that if their journey is going to start with him, it is going to be through his simply being their friends. Because likely, for many of them, they are at the stage of simply needing to trust a Christian.

this reminded me of the best book i have read, (as a matter of fact, the only book i have not wanted to throw across the room) on evangelism (sharing Christ with others). the author, don everts, does a fantastic job of keeping the reader from feeling riddled with guilt, and instead embraces the process that God is working in and around people.

the book is called I Once Was Lost. you can check it out here.

if you feel lost when it comes to evangelism, and maybe more than that, if you have been left feeling infuriated by the guilty feeling other books of this sort have left on your spirit, you will not be disappointed with this fresh perspective!

Life of David [1 Samuel 17]...

2011-09-08T13:27:00.000-07:00

last night we continued in our study of the Life of David. we looked at what is probably the most well-known and recognizable story of david's life. david and goliath. our hope was to see fresh application of the core foundational truths of an age-old story.

we talked about that the story is less about a battle with a giant and more about the battle with the mind. about the fact that david won this battle because he had a God-dominated imagination.

there is no doubt in my mind that a God-dominated imagination changes everything. that if God dominated our imaginations, God's shalom would enter this world in ways it has never been seen before.

what would it look like for you to have a more God-dominated imagination? how might God bring His shalom into the world through your God-dominated imagination?

here's a great quote by eugene peterson that we used last night:

"The moment we permit evil to control our imaginations, dictate the way we think, and shape our responses, we at the same time become incapable of seeing the good and the true and the beautiful."

how does an evil-dominated imagination creep in to your life and keep you from seeing what is good and true and beautiful?

Monday Book : Outliers...

2011-09-05T08:43:00.000-07:00

wednesday we looked at the anointing of david. one of the major take home messages was that david had been practicing for what was to come by embracing the training grounds of the ordinary and normal. for him it was shepherding.

we talked specifically about his logging his 10,000 hours of practice.

this concept comes from a fascinating book called Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. it is a great, intriguing read. it will get you thinking in many different, outside-the-box kinds of ways. the book tries to answer the question: what creates an outlier (which they define as someone who is "elite" at something).

the general conclusion is that it is not innate talent, but rather 10,000 hours of practice that creates an outlier. the fascinating part is seeing the progression from question to answer.

check out the book here. enjoy!!

Life of David [1 Samuel 16]...

2011-09-01T10:15:00.000-07:00

last night we officially began our journey of entering in to the story of david.

we looked at the fact that david, as the underdog, is anointed by God. this gives me great comfort and excitement...because i often feel like the underdog. what a great realization it is that God can and will call and anoint us even when we are the underdog.

we also looked at david's preparation. that david was prepared to be king through the everyday and ordinary. through being a shepherd. while shepherding, david was putting in his 10,000 hours of practice.

10,000 hours of practice is what it takes to make us elite at something...to make us an outlier.

so, out of the life of david, we asked the question: what are the everyday, ordinary things that God is placing in front of you to give you the chance to practice for 10,000 hours? are you aware of those things? are you simply allowing those things to pass by you? what are you practicing right now?

to listen to the entire teaching, click here.

there is also an interesting and potentially confusing detail that we read in the words of 1 Samuel 16. it comes in verse 14 where it says:

"Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him."

for many, it seems confusing that the Lord would send an evil spirit to torment someone. how can God send an "evil" spirit?

the word "evil" may mislead us a bit here. here is what the commentator john goldingay says about it:

"the Hebrew word in this story is more like the English word bad than the English word wicked. While it can suggest something morally bad, it can also suggest that the thing we experience is bad, something that brings trouble or suffering to us."

this may still seem challenging to some who struggle with the thought that God could be the initiator of anything bad. however, i believe that if God is sovereign (and i believe that He absolutely is), then we must be accepting of the fact that for some people the most loving thing God can do for them is to send them a "bad" thing in an attempt to get their attention and bring them back to Him.

i believe that God is in the business of helping people find their way back to Him...no matter what it takes.

what are your thoughts? how do you process 1 Samuel 16:14?

Monday Book : The Total Money Makeover...

2011-08-29T14:22:00.000-07:00

the other day i witnessed a conversation i found quite alarming. a younger, post-college aged guy was talking with a guy who had to be into his 60's. here is how the conversation went:

the younger guy comments about the fact that he hadn't seen any of the little league world series because he doesn't have cable. the older guy found this quite unbelievable. but the younger informed him that he is poor and he needs to save money in any way he can. to which the older guy responded by telling the younger guy that having cable didn't cost that much. he told him he had a package deal...he got cable, internet, and phone all in one.

and then came the kicker. the older guy told the younger that this package deal only cost $130/month. to which the younger guy said, "exactly, that's a lot of money".

of course, the older guy seemed to disagree.

and as if that is not bad enough, the older guy went on to ask the younger guy why he didn't have any student loans...insinuating that if he had loan money he could easily pay for cable. and to top it off, a while back i was at our local food shelter and i saw this same older guy there getting free food.

it was a conversation that made me at the same time, furious and in disbelief.

if i had time and space, i could go on with at least 5 other stories i have encountered recently of people suffering difficult situations and circumstances as a result of poor financial decisions. the bottom line is, there are not many things that are more damaging and paralyzing than poor financial decisions. and i am convinced that, in most cases, people simply don't know. they are doing what they have seen done.

my wife and i have enjoyed the great blessing of being debt-free for the entirety of our marriage (over 5 years). it is something that cannot be described in words! we have been debt-free and have been able to continue to make wise and informed financial decisions largely because of the wisdom and teaching of dave ramsey.

he and his business have a ton of amazing resources. click here to check out everything they have to offer.

if you are looking for a good place to get started with ramsey's principles and ideas, this book, The Total Money Makeover is a great choice. i challenge you to pick up a copy...you will be challenged and changed...and it will be well worth the money spent!

Life of David [Intro]...

2011-08-25T10:53:00.000-07:00

last night we started a teaching series on the life of david. we will spend the entire school year entering in to david's story. (the image above can serve as our logo...and if you missed it...sorry...but let me just say a russian david is awesome!)

i am incredibly excited about this journey. i think it has so much to teach us...so much potential to mold and shape us.

last night was all about setting the stage for the journey. we spoke to three specific questions:

why one story for the entire year?
who is David?
why the story of David?

much of what was said came from and was inspired by Eugene Peterson's book on the life of david entitled...Leap Over A Wall. if you were at dig last night, you know that i read a number of quotes directly from the first chapter of his book. and as promised, below are those quotes:

"Story is the primary way in which the revelation of God is given to us. The Holy Spirit's literary genre of choice is story."

"The biblical way is not so much to present us with a moral code and tell us, 'Live up to this', nor is it to set out a system of doctrine and say, 'Think like this and you will live well.' The biblical way is to tell a story and invite us, 'Live into this. This is what it looks like to be human; this is what is involved in entering and maturing as human beings."

"I see so many things in him I wish I had - and so many others I'm scared to death I do have. All you need to relate to David is a membership to the human race." -Beth Moore

"David's importance isn't in his morality or his military prowess but in his experience of and witness to God. Every event in his life was a confrontation with God."

"The David story is the most complete, detailed rendering of God-dimensioned humanity that we have, the common life that God uses to shape humanity to his glory. As the story develops, we see everything about us interpenetrated with God; our imaginations expand and we see what it means to live largely, aware of God's grace and beauty in every detail of which we're invited to participate."

"The David story serves to train us in the, normative, in seeing, accepting, participating in the miracle hidden in the ordinary, the supernatural suffusing the natural. Thoroughly trained by David, we're not apt to impulsively discard our lifejackets and abandon daily meal preparation - supposing that this is the way to 'deeper' and 'higher' spiritual life - when Jesus walks on the water and feeds the five thousand."

"David's is a most exuberant story. Earthy spirituality characterizes his life and accounts for the exuberance.
Earthy: down-to-earth, dealing with everydayness, praying while doing laundry, singing in the
snarl of traffic.

Spiritual: moved and animated by the Spirit of God and therefore alive to God."

i am excited for this journey because i know it will change me...i know i will not be the same on the other side.

why are you excited? what part of the david story do you latch on to? what intrigues you?

Monday Book : Leap Over a Wall...

2011-08-22T09:20:00.000-07:00

this Wednesday, we are entering into a teaching series, where we will hang out for the entirety of this school year, on the life of David.

i am incredibly excited about this journey! the potential i see for learning and growth is huge. so much of the potential lies in the fact that it is a massive story that we get to enter into...and that it is not just a far off story that happened, but that it is story that can and does become our story.

the book that has really inspired me to do this series is a book by Eugene Peterson (the author of the Message), called Leap Over A Wall. it is a great book. a fresh, refreshing and challenging look at the story of David.

here is a great quote about entering into the entirety of the story:

"The David story, like most other Bible stories, presents us not with a polished ideal to which we aspire but with a rough-edged actuality in which we see humanity being formed - the God presence in the earth/human conditions. The David story immerses us in a reality that embraces the entire range of humanness, stretching from the deep interior of our souls to the farthest reach of our imaginations."

he goes on to say at the end of this paragraph:

"But David's importance isn't in his morality or his military prowess but in his experience of and witness to God. Every event in his life was a confrontation with God."

i am excited...it is going to be a fun journey.

if you are interested in listening along to the teachings, you can find them on our website at www.digdeeper.org.

Introducing a New Blog Strategy...

2011-08-18T10:24:00.000-07:00

a new school year is under way, and we are back in the swing of things here at campus house.

with the new start i am excited to share that i will be taking a new, more intentional approach in blogging. here is what it will consist of...

on thursdays, i will write a follow-up to the teaching from the night before here at campus house. i hope for it to be a place to expound a bit and a place where conversations can take place in response to the teaching.

on mondays, i will write about a book i am currently reading or have recently read.

periodically, i will share other thoughts that pertain to this journey of finding our way back to God.

so...with that in mind...here is the first thursday post...

last night, part of what i talked about was expounding on our vision..."A Jesus community helping students find their way back to God"...specifically trying to grasp what we mean by "back to God".

we traced a path that moved from the first words of scripture..."In the beginning God created"...to John 16 and 17 where it talks about this God who created being relational and each member seeking to glorify and delight in the others...and that it is in this image that we are created...when God says "let us make man in our image...in our likeness"...and that after He creates, of all the possible details that could have been shared, the detail that was shared was that this creation (named Adam and Eve) were "naked and unashamed".

my proposal is that "finding our way back to God" is about journeying back to this place where we are naked before God...and yet are unashamed. honestly, i don't know exactly what that looks like, but i know i want it...whatever "it" is.

what do you think "it" is. what might it look like for us to begin to get a glimpse of being "naked and unashamed" before God?

Week of Welcome 2011...

2011-08-13T13:29:00.000-07:00

it is all at once overwhelming and exciting to think that another school year is right around the corner.

i see so much potential in what this year will contain! the leadership is amazing...i am super excited about the teaching material God has led us to...and the community development opportunities are better than ever.

this coming week is packed with events, in hopes that students will find opportunities to connect and find belonging amongst our community. here is what the week will hold:

Sunday, March 14th :: Prayer and Worship at CCH @ 6pm
Monday, March 15th :: Burgers, Dogs and Ultimate Frisbee at CCH @ 5:30pm
Tuesday, March 16th :: Chocolate Fondue and Live Music at CCH @ 7pm
Wednesday, March 17th :: DIG Worship Gathering at CCH @ 7:30pm
Thursday, March 18th :: Mud Volleyball meet at CCH @ 5:30pm
Friday, March 19th :: Bonfire meet at CCH @ 7pm

If you are a student, come and hang out with us. And make sure you spread the word.

If you are not a student, would you consider praying alongside us in this journey. Pray that God would bring the right people at the right time to make the connections He desires!

This is not just another week...the possibilities and potential are truly sky high!!

The Power of Memory...

2011-08-02T10:35:00.000-07:00

last week, cailyn and i were on vacation with our families in the smoky mountains of tennessee. it was a great trip for many reasons. some of the things that stick out to me the most actually took place in the traveling to and returning from tennessee.

part of what traveling from warrensburg to tennessee meant, was that we would be crossing over our bike route from last summer (for those that don't know, cailyn and i rode bicycles from virginia to yellowstone national park last summer...if you are interested in reading about the trip, you can check out the blog posts in the archives of this blog from May, June and July of 2010).

we actually crossed the route in two different locations (we went home a different way than we traveled there). our return trip, took us over last summer's route at berea, kentucky. as we passed the exit, read the signs, and looked at the surroundings, it was amazing how quickly all of the memories came rushing back.

we stayed the night in berea, and within minutes, we were able to remember where we camped and ate dinner the night we were there. we reminisced about a college campus we rode past that day. we reflected on conversations with a kid at the campground who was from a suburb of my home town. we remembered phone calls we made that night and pictures taken there. the memories seemed to just flow and flow.

it was amazing to be literally flooded with memories! what a blessing to relive such a great time in our lives!

as i processed all of these memories, i began to think about just how amazing it is that God created us with the ability to remember and to think and to reminisce back to memories. it is amazing to me and is one of the things that makes me the most confident there is a God and He is the Creator of life! i can wrap my mind around the physical and scientific pieces of our bodies. and while they are incredible, they are still very logical. but our minds, memories and the ability to think are not logical...i can't begin to wrap my mind around it. and i love it. it causes me to stand in awe of God. it causes me to worship Him!

He is God and i am not, and therefore He understands the making and recalling of a memory...He knows how the mind works, and i do not...and for that i am grateful...and for that and so much more i choose to worship Him as the Creator God!

A Crazy Day...and Lessons Learned...

2011-07-24T21:19:00.000-07:00

cailyn and i arrived yesterday in the smoky mountains for a week of vacation with both of our families...

traveling down here was a journey to say the least...

just a few miles outside of nashville, while cailyn was driving, we blew our back left tire. cailyn did an excellent job of keeping the car under control...and God seemed to provide us a break in the traffic to allow her to get to the side of the road from the middle lane. it was a very scary experience and we are thankful to be okay.

thankfully, we were only a few miles from a walmart and we were able get there on our spare and purchase a new tire in less than an hour.

it was the process of getting a new tire that reminded me of a great lesson learned. a few years ago, cailyn and i went through dave ramsey's financial peace class. among other things, we learned about the process of setting aside money for specific emergency expenses.

and so, we had significantly more money set aside for car repairs then what it cost us to purchase the new tire. and man was that a blessing. it was a stressful enough afternoon. and it was so nice to be able to stand at the counter, paying for a new tire, and not feeling worried in any way about the cost of the tire and about the financial burden that it might add to the rest of our trip.

in many senses it seems like a little thing, but in the end, it changes so much...

Love...Filipino Style...

2011-07-19T08:38:00.000-07:00

we currently have 4 campus house students on a short-term mission trip in the Philippines, with students from two other campus houses. missions is a huge part of our vision of helping students find their way back to God. we believe and invest much in missions for many different reasons. it makes a difference in the restoration of God's shalom in this world. but it also does beautiful things in shaping the hearts of students in seeing and loving the world the way God does.

this is certainly happening for these 4 students. here are some words that Meagan wrote on the teams blog about their past few days and about what God is doing in her.

"These past few days have been a blur, but a blast. This past weekend we did leadership training on the beach (how AMAZING!) with the small group leaders from Baguio, Dagupon and BSU. What a blessing it was to see the students from 3 different ministries blend together and just enjoy some fellowship time playing in the waves! This was the first time we met the Dagupon students and Stephanie, Allison and I roomed with 5 of their girls. It seems like connections to these students happen in a flash. They are so full of love, acceptance, curiosity and most of all, joy. They continue to be an example and encouragement of how I should be living my everyday life.
Yesterday, we traveled into Dagupon from the beach and got our first chance to check out the Encounter Christian Campus House connected with Luzon University. The students were eager to share with us their culture and many many giggles and fun stories. We pretty much crashed into our rooms at the YMCA hotel, where we are staying until Thursday this week, after that. This morning, we traveled to Luzon University and got to have a meeting with the Deans from all the colleges and some student and faculty representatives. Let me tell you this... I experienced an incredible amount of hospitality. We were welcomed in a huge way, and were given a tour of the University and took about a million pictures. Tomorrow, we will be teaching classes connected to our major to anywhere between 50 and 200+ students, and tomorrow evening we will join Encounter Dagupon in their mid week fellowship. Long story short...well, semi-short, God has shown up in a HUGE way in this country and He has and continues to do amazing things. The Filipino people have been such an example to me in how I was created to love...just as God does. I wish I could explain in words how this trip is changing and shaping my heart to love and want to be His servant even more. Thanks for all the prayers and thoughts!
With love and joy and thankfulness,
Meagan"

God never seizes to amaze me in the ways he teaches us! and i love to see the teaching come from so many different angles. this morning i was reading in colossians 3 where it says:

"And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful."

what struck me was the fact that i grasp the idea of making the choice to love in a marriage sense. from the beginning Cailyn and i have had a solid understanding that the marriage love is one you chose, and it has made a huge difference in the quality of marriage we have.

but i fail often at transferring this idea to other people and situations. when love is easy and convenient and something i feel like doing, i share it with others with no problem. but when it is not easy and convenient, and when i don't feel like it, it is not something i do well. i want to actively be making the choice to love everyone...not just my wife. it is the way of Jesus.

and ironically (or not so ironically, because that is just how God works), Meagan is learning the exact same thing from Filipino college students halfway around the world.

The Ragamuffin Gospel...

2011-07-18T08:56:00.000-07:00

i recently started going through a book with a student...it's a book i read quite a while ago. The Ragamuffin Gospel, by Brennan Manning. it is a fantastic book. honestly, i had forgotten just how good it was. it has been great just to read through the first three chapters again.

here's an amazing paragraph i read this morning:

"If we maintain the open-mindedness of children, we challenge fixed ideas and established structures, including our own. We listen to people in other denominations and religions. We don't find demons in those with who we disagree. We don't cozy up to people who mouth our jargon. If we are open, we rarely resort to either-or: either creation or evolution, liberty or law, sacred or secular, Beethoven or Madonna. We focus on both-and, fully aware that God's truth cannot be imprisoned in a small definition. Of course, the open mind does not accept everything indiscriminately - Marxism and capitalism, Christianity and atheism, love and lust, Moet Chandon and vinegar. It does not absorb all propositions equally like a sponge; nor is it as soft. But the open mind realizes that reality, truth, and Jesus Christ are incredibly open-ended."

there is so much in this paragraph that inspires me and gets me pondering.

i love the idea of having the open-mindedness and teachable spirit of a child. i want to see the world and people that way, every single day!

i also love the way he talks about the "both-and" mentality. it is so true. i have a great friend and mentor that talks often about the christian life being like a paradox. a paradox is two things that are true at the same time that don't seem like they can both be true. like a coin standing up on it's side. it is a beautiful, perfect, and challenging illustration of what we are called to as Christ followers!

if i can daily strive to have an open-mind, a teachable spirit, and a both-and mentality, i think i will be pleased with both where i am and where i am going.

what thoughts does that paragraph prompt in you?

WOO(ing)...

2011-07-11T14:36:00.000-07:00

in case you are not familiar with WOO: Winning Others Over...

we have five values at campus house that we use as a guide in both what we do and what we do not do. one of those is belonging. we want for people to belong...to belong to us as a community and as people. not because we want to be popular or cool or trendy or to be able to boast about big numbers. but because we believe that, in today's culture, belonging comes before believing. that when people feel like they belong with us and around us, this will allow them to truly encounter Christ and to, in turn, come to a place of believing.

i have been thinking this summer about how we can improve our value of belonging. particularly, i have been thinking about those new people that slip in, in say the 9th week of the school year, and we don't ever realize they were here. how do we work on creating belonging with them? (there have been numerous thoughts and ideas to go along with this, but i will save the details unless you are really interested in hearing about them)

in thinking about this, i have been processing thoughts with our staff and our leadership team. the conversations have been good, challenging and enlightening.

last week, i was talking about it with one staff member, and she pointed out something that was both convicting and inspiring. she said that in all of the talking and brainstorming about how we could improve on this aspect of belonging, she hadn't heard me mention God at all. hadn't heard anything said about how this was going to connect people back to God.

this was convicting because i know that it is incredibly important that i am always operating in a way that makes it clear, verbally and explicitly, how what we do is connecting people back to God. it is not okay to leave it assumed and unspoken. maybe i have become a little too relaxed with that.

however, it was inspiring, because it is my hope and prayer that in everything we do and in everything we are as a community of individual's who are finding our way back to God, that "winning" someone to us as a community is the same as "winning" someone to the opportunity to truly encounter Christ. i want that to be our drive and our goal. it needs to be directly stated and laid out. but i do firmly believe that there is a way for us to be operating that will allow people to truly encounter Christ as they first find a home with us.

and on a broader scale, isn't this the life that God is calling all of us to every day? faith and following Christ has become such a compartmentalized thing. something that is delegated to just a corner of life. but that is never the way it was intended to be. following Chirst is meant to be, as Paul talks about in Colossians, a death and burial of the old self, and a being raised to new life in Christ. not part of a new life, but a totally new life. which gives us this great opportunity to tangibly be Christ to people in every moment of every day. largely through them simply belonging with us.

The Power of Specialization...Part 2...

2011-07-04T10:47:00.000-07:00

i was doing some reading and studying in acts the other day, and this idea of The Power of Specialization (see previous post) jumped out at me. in acts 6:1-7 it says:

" ¹ In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Grecian Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. ² So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. ³ Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them ⁴ and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”⁵ This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. ⁶ They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.⁷ So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith."

i did a bit of commentary reading and discovered it is likely that these widows who were being overlooked were being overlooked, at least partially, because of a language barrier. Which to me is another way of saying that there was a lack of ability and specialization.

And what is their solution? The apostles assign 7 people to specifically take care of these women. And i think it is only fair to assume, that at the very least, these guys possessed the necessary means to overcome this language barrier. Which is to say, they were specialized...talented and gifted in an unique way to be able to do what they did excellently.

And then i love what we see in verse 7. Specialization happened, and with it, results came. Specialization made a difference. the word spread and numbers increased rapidly. not only did specialization make sense, but it paid off...it made a difference.

i think it is important that we stop and notice this. far too often we get caught up in thinking we have to be good at everything. i believe God calls us to excellence, but that doesn't mean we have to be excellent at everything. be excellent at the things God has specialized you for, and be okay with allowing someone else to be the specialist where you are not gifted and are not interested. it was best for the apostles, why shouldn't we think it will be best for us?

The Power of Specialization...

2011-07-01T14:30:00.000-07:00

this summer, our staff at campus house is growing from 3 people, to 5. it is an incredibly exciting time. one thing i am most excited about is the new passions and excitements, along with the talents and abilities that, i believe, will turn those passions and excitements into amazing new endeavors.

however, personally, i have noticed a challenge in this. as i have been observing these talents and abilities, that go along with these passions and excitements, i have found that one of my first reactions is to feel like i need to grow. like i need to learn that ability. like i need to acquire that passion. and while i forever want to strive to learn and grow, i do not believe for a second this is the growth that i or God desire. and it is certainly not the growth that will allow our ministry to reach it's full potential.

so much of the beauty in a staff that is growing is that we possess different passions and abilities. and if i can focus less on aligning with someone's talents and abilities, and instead focus on maximizing and featuring those talents and abilities, the sky is the limit.

in this year that lies ahead, i want to focus...with both our growing staff and our ever deepening leadership team...on identifying their unique passions and abilities...the things that they are far better than me at...the thing that they may just be the best in the world at...and celebrate that, feature that, encourage that, and simply be the cheerleader for a tribe that is way bigger than me.

Games and the Meaning of Life...

2011-06-29T13:35:00.000-07:00

i like board games...a lot...and when i say a lot, i mean a whole lot! and i guess i should clarify. when i say board games, i am really not talking about Gestures or Sorry or games like that. (although those games are not all bad)

what i really love are the longer, thinking, strategic games. the ones where you have to plan an approach, and then maybe change the approach 2 or 3 times during the course of the game.

i am realizing that these games have a great lesson to teach me about life (they probably have numerous lessons if i dug deep enough). but here is the lesson i have been learning.

i am realizing that my enjoyment of these games has little to do with whether i win or lose, and much to do with the process and journey of arriving at the end of the game. i love the thinking, the analyzing, the reacting, the reworking the plan and initiating the new plan. there must be a point to the game, or else the process makes no sense. there has to be a winner. or why would we even sit down to play. but i am realizing that i am less and less interested in playing games to be the winner and more and more interested in playing them to enjoy the journey.

and it is the same way in the life that God has put in front of us. often we make it so much about the end...about where we are going...about heaven and hell. and there is an end...there is a heaven and a hell...and they matter. but in many senses they are not the point right now. they are what give context to the now...but they are not the point now. the journey is the point now. the enjoyment is in the journey. the calling is in the journey. we are not here to just wait for an end to come. we are here to participate in the process. we are here to participate in the thinking, the analyzing, the reacting, the reworking the plan and initiating the new plan.

A Dog Attack and the Restoration of Shalom...

2011-06-28T10:26:00.000-07:00

last night our dog, Tahoe, was attacked by a pit bull.

i took him out for our normal quick walk before bed so that he can do his business (we walk to the same driveway, turn around, and come back pretty much every night). as we were on our way back home, a lady with a pit bull came to the corner and turned toward us. shortly after they turned, the dog took off at us and when it got to us, it latched on to Tahoe's neck as if he was out to kill him. it was one of the scariest moments of my life...and it happened so fast.

i first began kicking the dog as hard as i could in the side while still holding Tahoe's leash and trying to pull him away. when this did no good, i dropped the leash and jumped on top of the dog...pinning his head to the ground so that he could not shake Tahoe's neck. while doing this, i tried to punch the dog in the head or anywhere that i could. at this point, Tahoe was yelping and making some bad sounding noises...which had me seriously concerned that the dog had already ripped open Tahoe's neck.

when the punching didn't work either, i quickly got back to my feet and yanked on the dog's neck and collar and this finally caused the dog to release. as i was holding the dog, i saw that Tahoe was able to walk up into the yard...seeming to be stunned but at least moving. unfortunately, about this time, the dog's head slipped through the harness he was wearing and he was on the loose again. it took off towards Tahoe and i took off after it, and fortunately i was able to deter it from latching on to Tahoe's neck again. i began to yell for him to run and to run towards home (we were only about three houses from home) and about that time Cailyn came out the front door because she had heard the commotion. so Cailyn coaxed Tahoe to her as i began to yell to her that she needed to check his neck and see if he was bleeding. fortunately, she found that his neck was not ripped open...just a very minor cut and a bit of swelling in the neck area where the dog latched on.

when i knew he was okay, i went back down to where it all happened, to check on the lady and her dog. they were working on getting the dog's harness back on. it seemed to be fine. the lady on the other hand, was not fine. she was pretty hysterical. Mainly she was just very sorry and apologetic. i tried to assure her that our dog was fine and to tell her that i was sorry for having to do what i did to her dog.

all in all, it was an incredibly scary situation and one i hope to never have to go through again.

but in the aftermath, it got me thinking about some things i read yesterday in Simply Christian, by N.T. Wright. he is talking about the book of Isaiah, and he says: "In his eleventh chapter the prophet paints a picture of a world put to rights, of the wolf lying down with the lamb, and of the earth being filled with God's glory as the water covers the sea."

he talks about how, obviously, this is not the case currently...the wolf does not lie with the lamb (which was very obvious to me as Tahoe was attacked by this dog). but Wright goes on to call this awareness that things are not as they could be and will be, "an echo of a voice". and he talks about these "echoes of a voice" being things that point us to and make us aware of the fact that there is something more out there to be had...that there is a shalom...a rightness...a wholeness...a completeness that God is calling us towards and to participate in.

and while i don't think that God is calling me to become the next dog whisperer and to restore the shalom between fighting dogs...the fighting dogs remind me that there are all kinds of things in this world that surrounds us that we can play a role in restoring the shalom of. and so, while the memory of Tahoe being attacked is not a fond one for me...i want to allow it to inspire me to do more of what God is calling me to do in the restoration of His Shalom.

Loving Others...

2011-06-27T14:55:00.000-07:00

i have been spending a lot of time in philippians recently...and in chapter 2, paul writes, "in humility consider others better than yourself".

i know this has huge potential and would make an immense impact on the world if fully lived out...but in practice, it is hard...really hard...

i have noticed this through couples that surround cailyn and i. i really like the marriage we have...i think it is something special and unique. however, i am realizing this causes me to be judgmental and to look down on those around us. i know that i should look for the best in people and that i should work to celebrate those things. i would be happier and the world would be a much better place. and yet it still feels like a major struggle to me. so why is this?

i think that for me, it stems from my competitive nature. i don't think i have ever really been cocky in competition, but being confident has never been a problem. however, i am realizing that for me, part of what that means is more times than not thinking i am at least as good if not better than those around me. and while this may be a beneficial thing on the basketball court, it is not so ideal in real life. i am not sure why i feel it so necessary to be the best at everything, but more times than not, that seems to be the case.

i think i would benefit from truly taking to heart the words of 1 Corinthians 12 that say:

"But in fact God has arranged the parts of the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, 'I don't need you!' And the head cannot say to the feet, 'I don't need you!'"

see, i think it would make perfect sense to take these words one step further, because not only can the eye not say to the hand, "i don't need you", but i think it is equally important for the eye to acknowledge the fact that the hand is way better at it's job than the eye could ever be at doing the hand's job.

i have fallen many times into the trap of thinking that i need to be the best at everything...which easily translates into needing to be better than everyone else...which easily morphs into looking down on and judging others. if i could grasp the fact that i am an eye...and that i need to be the very best eye that i can be...it would free me up to be able to celebrate the hands and the heads, and that would be a huge step away from judging and looking down.

my friend jason says something along the lines of, "everyone is the best in the world at something". i want to daily be striving to figure out what the people that surround me are the best in the world at doing, and celebrate that...instead of looking down on them and working to feel like i am the best. it seems that then, "considering others better than myself", would be a much easier journey.

what about you? when you look down on people, what tends to lead you down that path?

A Place Comfortable Enough to Cry...

2011-02-17T11:05:00.000-08:00

last night was a great night of worship and teaching...filled with some memorable moments for me.

i noticed at the beginning of the night that there was a guy who came in that i didn't recognize. i took note of him but was unable to talk with him before dig. but shortly after i finished teaching, he came to the back and chatted with me for a minute. he seemed fairly emotional, and wanted to know if we could meet sometime.

so we set up a time to meet this morning. it was a really great time. he is going through some tough things...but he is learning much, and it was awesome that he desired to come to me and talk through it.

however, maybe most beautiful of all, was that at one point as we were talking, he said..."I feel comfortable in this place. I can trust you. Afterall, i cried through the whole thing last night and i don't even know any of you."

it was an awesome testimony to the community that God has developed and is continuing to develop in this place. it is a truly beautiful thing and i love to think about what may be next!!

The Tough Way is Still the Best Way...

2010-12-16T11:57:00.000-08:00

the past week has again been filled with numerous tough conversations...

i am the type of person that would just rather avoid confrontation. i feel like God has blessed me with the ability to be an incredibly positive person, but part of the problem with that is i often want to spin things in such a positive way that it leaves me skipping out on confrontation that needs to happen.

so, this past week, i have managed to not allow myself to be talked out of confrontation...and i had a couple of really tough conversations. but they were conversations where the Spirit was very obviously present...and that have brought great things in their aftermath.

i have thought much these past couple of weeks about the words of james 1:2-4 where it says...

"consider it pure joy my brothers when you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."

i have to confess...i am far from enjoying, liking, wanting, being comfortable with confrontation...but i am realizing more and more that there are times where it is simply the best way...and i pray that i can continue to rely on the Spirit to know when that is the case.

A Great Night of Reflection...

2010-12-06T11:07:00.000-08:00

last wednesday we finished up our series on the sermon on the mount...called ascend.

we spent 11 weeks in all looking at matthew 5,6 and 7. it was the longest expository teaching series that we have done in probably 2 and a half years. it was a great series...people really seemed to get into digging so deeply and entering into the story of God in the way that we did.

so, to come to the final week brought mixed emotions. half of the emotions were really about not wanting the series to be over...to continue to dig and study in new ways. but the other half of the emotions were all about the excitement of hearing what people had learned and what stuck out to people along the journey.

we took some time during the night and asked people to share about what stuck out to them the most, what their favorite moments were, and what they felt the most challenged by. and the sharing was really phenomenal!

there were probably 20 people that shared...and it was such a great picture to hear all of the different things that people remembered and that stuck out to people. many of which i barely remembered teaching! it is so good to be reminded that God works in so many more ways than we know or realize. really just awesome stuff!!

as we move into second semester, we will be moving to some slightly more topical series...but it leaves me incredibly excited to again dig into a section of scripture over a rather lengthy amount of time.

The Tough Way is the Best Way...

2010-10-30T08:46:00.000-07:00

yesterday i had some really tough conversations with some students. conversations based in highly charged topics surrounding faith and actions. topics that tend to be polarized...some standing on one side while others choosing the opposite side.

they are things that if we lived and followed Christ in an ideal world, we wouldn't have to deal with. but because that is far from the context in which we live...we do have to deal with them. and i believe that they way we chose to embrace these tough gray areas has serious implications for faith moving forward.

and yet, i have to be honest...there is a huge part of me that wishes...and maybe even dreams that we wouldn't have to have these conversations. often i want for ministry to be easy, and comfortable, and smooth, and safe, and without tough stuff. but i know in the depths of my being, that as soon as those thoughts and emotions win out...our ministry begins to fail. because that is not the way that true life change happens. easy, comfortable, smooth, safe, and without tough stuff is not going to lead people towards finding their way back to God. we have tried that in churches and faith communities for far too long...and it is simply not working.

and so...as i look back on yesterday...it had some of the toughest conversations i have had in a while...and it was one of the more roller coaster like days i have had in a while. and yet, i can say confidently, that it was one of the best days of ministry i have had in quite some time as well. i feel confident that strides were made in people finding their way back to God...and that is what i believe God has called me, and us, to hang our hats on here in this ministry in this place.

i pray that out of this, i will be able to embrace the tough stuff more and more! Lord help me, because i know there is no way i can do it on my own.

Learning About the Holy Spirit...

2010-10-28T20:59:00.000-07:00

over the last month or two, God seems to be leading me in a journey to understand the Holy Spirit in a deeper way.

i have been reading and discussing francis chan's book Forgotten God with one of our students...it is stretching and growing me in some great ways. but in addition to that, it seems that everywhere i turn there are experiences that teaching me as well.

today was one of those days...

i met with one of our biggest campus house supporters to tell him about some incredibly exciting things that are on the horizon for our ministry...and to specifically ask him if he would help financially support a major part of the endeavor. however, it turns out there were a number of factors that i hadn't anticipated. as a result, i was not able to ask for his support.

normally, this might be something that i would just reschedule and plan to do in another day or two. but as i have been thinking more about the Spirit, it has caused me to seek to listen to the Spirit about what He may desire for me to do in this situation instead of what i had initially planned.

it is something that i by no means have all figured out, but i am learning that listening to the Spirit opens up all kinds of deeper possibilities. and while it is much less defined, it does certainly seem like the way to go.

A New Way...

2010-10-25T12:54:00.001-07:00

we have been studying the sermon on the mount for the last number of weeks. we have talked over and over again about the fact that these words are all about turning the world upside down...or maybe we should say...right side up.

i am not sure there are words in all of scripture that have more potential to turn the upside down world right side up again than the words of matthew 5:38-48.

just try to imagine what it would be like for every Christ follower to take seriously the command to "not resist an evil person" and instead to "love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you". it would be nothing short of revolutionary.

we used this great clip as an illustration...

A New Way...

2010-10-25T12:54:00.000-07:00

a thought about mourning...

2010-09-24T16:05:00.000-07:00

i have been thinking recently about how i have this tendency inside of me to assume that something bad has happened. not like in a negative pessimistic way, but when a situation arises where it seems possible that someone close to me has been hurt or something like that.

i am finding that i have a tendency to almost clamp up inside in this fear that bad news is going to come. which might just sound like a bad case of being a worrier. but while I do think that i can be too much of a worrier, i don’t know that worry is the root of these feelings. it may be a part of the feelings, but i don’t think that it is the root.

at the root of these feelings, i think, is a desire to not have to feel pain and hurt and to be in mourning. i am not sure that it is really about worrying about others and their well-being, but rather i think that it is more about my own comfortability.

i taught this past wednesday on the beatitudes and in those, Jesus says, “blessed are those who mourn”. he is saying, “i am with you when you mourn”. he is not telling us that we need to seek out mourning and try to be mournful…but he is saying that when we mourn, he is with us and he will bring an ultimate comfort in those times that we wouldn’t otherwise know.

so, i am not saying that i need to figure out how to be looking forward to and being excited about bad things happening that might cause me pain or anguish. but i am saying that i need to stop letting this negative feeling win out and start trusting God to have a plan and that if and when that plan does include pain and suffering and mourning (because it will), that i will be better for it in the end and i will come to understand and know God as the ultimate comforter in ways that I wouldn’t otherwise know.

The Challenge of Relationship...

2010-08-21T07:36:00.001-07:00

i was thinking this morning...and have been thinking recently...about how often i want for cailyn to just be able to know exactly what i am thinking and understand exactly where i am coming from, my perspective, without having to spend time dialoging and talking about it.

talking and conversing...sharing life...takes a lot of time and effort. it is work. and don't get me wrong...i understand fully and completely that it is well worth it. i am just saying that often times i wish that it didn't have to be that way. probably mostly because of laziness and the desire for things to be as easy as they can possibly be. i don't like that sometimes i am that way...but that reality is that, at time, i am.

so yeah...i wish that there could be full and complete relational understanding without all of the time and investment.

and this morning, that got me thinking about my relationship with God. and really it is pretty much the same way. i am have a full and complete desire to know God's heart and His plans...it is just that often times i would rather just know them without all the relational investment and time spent. i want the cliff notes version...i want to get the results without putting in the time.

however, i know that, just as in the marriage relationship, that is not how it is designed to be. we are designed to spend time with God...to have Him on our hearts and minds...and out of much time and much investment and much of what the world would call "inefficiency"...comes an understanding of His will and desires...His heart.

A Lesson From the Croquet Club...

2010-08-19T09:15:00.000-07:00

yesterday we had a table at the universities activities fair. we just so happened to have a table right next to a new club on campus...the croquet club.

as our time there went along, i noticed a couple of things about the people representing the croquet club. one...they were very passionate about the "product" they were selling. a good thing for sure. you could tell that they definitely loved croquet. two...they were very open to anyone and everyone joining their club. most of the day they were out in front of their table talking to all kinds of different people. and three...(and this is where i think i have a problem)...as they were standing out in front of their table...they were basically forcing conversation and interest on people as they walked by. it often seemed quite apparent that people really had no interest in croquet...but these guys would continue talking and trying to get them to put their contact info on a sheet of paper.

as i watched this continue to go on...i realized something. these guys are basically evangelists for croquet. they are evangelizing people to croquet.

and as i had that realization, it first left me feeling guilty. guilty because these guys seemed to be "more passionate" and talking to more people than we were. however, as i pondered on it more, i realized that the last thing that i want to be personally...or that i want us to be as a ministry is pushy and in your face. i just don't feel like that is a good method.

and it is there that i feel lies the difference between evangelizing for the croquet club and evangelizing for God. because the bottom line is that i am sure that a number of the people that were somewhat cornered by the croquet guys were fairly annoyed...but there is really not going to be any lasting damage from that. it will probably be forgotten by the end of the week. however, that is not the case for the church and for God. if we were to start cornering people and pushing Jesus on them...i would propose that the damage that would be done would far out-weigh the positives. the church has already done much damage in this area...people already have stereotypes about the church and christians and they already carry a lot of baggage.

i was reading this morning in mark and i came across the parable of the sower. in the past when i have read this story, i have always assumed that it is to make us aware that not everyone is going to receive the message...that there are going to be different types of people...and that is okay. but this morning as i read it, it left me wondering if part of what we are to take from it is that not everyone is good soil and part of our responsibility as Christ followers is to be seeking Him out to know where the good soil is.

the croquet club guys were throwing seed wherever they could...but could you imagine a farmer doing that...we would think he was absolutely out of his mind...spreading seed on the middle of the highway?

maybe part of our responsibility as Christ followers...and part of our responsibility as evangelists...is to be in tune with the Spirit to the point where we are able to begin to discern where the good soil is...and throw the seed there.

A (Prayer) Walk to Remember...

2010-08-15T19:02:00.000-07:00

tonight marks the start of my fourth school year here at central missouri...(well, classes actually start tuesday, but our week of welcome events began tonight) we always start the week with a prayer and praise night that is geared mainly towards our returning students...it is a great way to give them a chance to reconnect and to focus and to prepare to invest in the new students.

i am sitting at my desk trying to accurately process the awesomeness of the night. the time of worship and prayer at campus house was so authentic and real...and it was all student lead. a number of different students lead prayer time, and it was raw and real and deep! quite frankly i was pretty blown away to say the least...not blown away by the worship and praying itself...but blown away by what was behind it...by what God is doing in students!

and then, at the end of that time, we challenged students to go on a prayer walk around campus...to intercede for people and places in a very real and tangible way. it is something that we have done the last couple of years, but there was something different about it this year. as i walked around campus, i saw so many students from our ministry taking it so seriously...

one girl was sitting outside of the art building, where she is an interior design major and spends so much of her time. another who is on the track team spent time sitting on the side of the track. and so many seemed to be so passionate about being present and interceding for what is going to happen on this campus this year. it truly was awesome!

it was a night to remember. it leaves a wonderful taste in my mouth...an excitement about this group...about what is happening in this place...about what God is doing!!

Thanks to an Awesome Wife...

2010-08-02T09:07:00.000-07:00

i have been trying to get some follow-up/final thoughts written on our trip...and i feel like one of the biggest is a huge thank you to my wife for being awesome!

during the trip and in the aftermath of it, i can't begin to express how many times people were shocked that i had a wife that would be willing to ride a bike across the country with me. but she did...and she was awesome to do it with!!

that is one of the very biggest reasons that i love my wife! she is passionate...she is willing to listen to my passions...and she is willing to invest in those passions. and that is exactly what happened with this trip! i would never have actually considered this trip, let alone done it, if she wouldn't have been willing to listen to my crazy ideas and to allow me to dream. but she did...she did all of that and so much more, and for that i am so thankful and i love her so much more because of it! not many women would be willing to jump on a bike and ride some 2800 miles just because their husband was crazy and was looking for an adventure...

...and i guess that is part of why i chose to call cailyn my wife!!

so thanks honey...i love you!!!

Thoughts on the way our trip ended…

2010-07-20T18:06:00.000-07:00

it didn’t end where we had originally planned…that was astoria, or. we didn’t make it quite to our alternate destination…that was yellowstone. but in some strange way, it just kind of seemed right that our trip ended in…lander, wy of all places.

it didn’t have the fanfare and welled up emotion type of a feel as we cycled in. instead, it just kind of happened…which i think is how some of the very best endings occurs. i know that for me personally, i can put all kinds of expectations on how something big…like an ending…is supposed to feel, and this allowed it to happened without the pressure of how it was supposed to feel. and yet, like I said, in the midst of all of that, it felt right.

it was our longest day of riding on the whole trip, 124 miles. and the transition that we experienced in the landscape over the last 40 miles or so was absolutely majestic! without a doubt a part of the trip that neither of us will ever forget!

i have also been thinking about the way the trip ended with respect to the elements of story, and i feel like there is much for me to learn there as well. here are some of the things i have been processing.

a good story does indeed take planning and initiative. very seldom does someone simply stumble into living a great story…it just doesn’t work that way. so, without a doubt, i believe that we must be intentional in the story we live and the way we are living it. however, i am realizing that even the best planned story must sometimes yield to the Great Storyteller and His ways and His plans! His timing is ultimate and supreme, and that is what matters more than anything else…and that is what makes for a great story above all else.

so…did it end the way that we had planned…absolutely not. are we glad that it ended the way that it did…absolutely. it was right and it was best…and that is what matters.

Day 43 : The Pick Up...

2010-07-14T07:26:00.000-07:00

this morning, we made contact with my aunt and uncle and made plans for them to come and pick us up in lander at around 4 pm.

after getting that all set up, i began calling around to different dentists to see if someone would be able to squeeze me in. i called 2 or 3 with no success, and then finally, i found a very sweet sounding receptionist who seemed determined to get me in. she said, "how does 9:30 work?". which sounded absolutely great considering that it was about 8:45 at that point in time.

cailyn and i got a few things together and walked the 5 or 6 blocks down to the dentists office. after filling out a little information, they promptly took me back and put me in a chair. before long, the dentist came in and asked what was going on. i gave him a summary of what had been going on over the past number of days. he then quickly looked at my abscess and decided that he could lance it and relieve most of the pressure, which would help the pain and also allow the antibiotic to start working much better. so, he numbed it a little and then that is exactly what he did. and i will be honest, it was a fairly painful process, but i can't begin to tell you how much better i began to feel as soon as the procedure was complete. my face no longer felt like it was going to explode.

so, with that out of the way, cailyn and i headed to the main drag of the town to find the bike shop and see about the possibility of them keeping our bikes until we came back through lander with mike and jenna on our way home next week. the bike shop was super generous in telling us they would be happy to keep our bikes for the week while we were in yellowstone.

we grabbed a little lunch at a great local place and then headed back to where our bikes were at (a great little grassy patch by a river and behind a hotel, where we were able to pay them a small amount of money to be able to shower), to pack up our gear and then ride our bikes back down to the bike shop.

we got our stuff all together, cycled to the bike shop, and just about had the bikes all settled in at the bike shop, when we got a call from my aunt and uncle. they had decided that for space reasons, it would be easiest if they just rented a small uhaul trailer to put some of their gear in and we could just put the bikes in there as well, in case we were interested in riding them around yellowstone at all.

we informed the bike shop of our change in plans, and they were still gracious enough to allow us to leave the bikes there until my aunt and uncle actually arrived. so, cailyn and i headed across the street to a pretty nice little bookstore/coffee shop and got a little coffee and sat and talked and read a little in a few different books that we found interesting on the shelves of the store. i have to say, it was nice to be able to just sit and read...something we really haven't done in the last 6 weeks.

and then, before long, my aunt and uncle called again...they were coming into town and needed to know where to meet us. so, we gave them directions on where we were and a couple of minutes later...they were there, ready to load us up and be our knight's in shining armor.

it is totally awe-inspiring to me the way that God works...to be literally thousands of miles away from anyone that we know, and yet to have relatives that end up being hours away when we are in need of someone to come and pick us up and take us the final miles of our journey. God...you are cool...real cool!! i am looking forward to continuing to process the overwhelmingness of that in the weeks to come!

so from here, we are off to yellowstone, to spend through friday with my aunt and uncle, then on saturday, cailyn's friend aimee who lives in montana is coming to see us, and on sunday our great friends mike, jenna, and sammie will come to hang out for a couple of days, before they will take us back to warrensburg.

sidenote: as i mentioned in the last post, over the next couple of weeks, i hope to do a number of different reflection types of posts.

thank you: thank you to all who have followed along and all who have been such an encouragement to us. it has been both exciting and humbling to have so many people join us for this journey. so, there really aren't proper words, but thanks!

Day 42 : Our Longest Day Yet...And Our Last...

2010-07-10T19:20:00.000-07:00

From Rawlins, WY to Lander, WY -

Story [in numbers]:

Story [in words]:

in response to the brutal day, with respect to the wind, that was yesterday, we decided to get up with the sun and get riding. with that in mind, we were on the bikes at 5:45 riding to beat the wind. and we were riding along with our new friend, eli...a guy who ended up camping next to us at the campground last night...he started in new york and has pretty much made his own way across the country until just joining the transam yesterday.

we cycled along with eli for the first hour and a half of the morning...however, eli was talking about really wanting to push the miles and was hoping to get to lander...which we thought sounded absolutely crazy, even if the winds were good...because it would mean riding in the range of 124 miles for the day. so, after 20 miles or so, eli decided that he was going to push ahead of us in an attempt to get to lander. we wished him well and watched him ride off into the distance.

we rode another 12 miles or so, and came across this place called grandma's cafe. now what i should mention is that, shortly after we left rawlins, we entered the great basin, which is basically this huge bowl of nothingness in the middle of wyoming. but in the middle of this bowl of nothingness...literally in the middle of nowhere...was this cafe called grandma's. we cycled up, poked our heads in to make sure they were opened, and grabbed a seat to get some breakfast. the food was pretty good...although grandma seemed a little quiet and like she was maybe getting up in age a little bit.

a number of days ago, we made a tentative plan to ride to a city called jeffery city...however, we heard a couple of days ago from some eastbound cyclists that jeffery city was a pretty shady place and that we probably didn't want to stay there. so, with that information in mind, as we sat at grandma's, we studied the maps to decide where our ending point for the day would be. it was at that point that we realized that the best thing for us would be to make an attempt to push on to lander as well...so, as crazy as it seemed, we got back on the bikes, hoping to make the day total in the range of 124 miles.

we cycled and cycled, through mostly nothingness...the scenery was pretty bland, the ground fairly flat, and the winds relatively calm. until about 3:00, when we had completed about 75 total miles for the day. the winds began to pick up, as a very obvious sheet of rain began to build out in the distance. and before long, we were in the middle of the storm, with rain spitting on us and the winds gusting at what had to have been 30 mph. by about 4:15, we managed to make it through the storm to a rest area that was at about 85 miles for the day. there was camping in the area, so we were debating about whether we should just stay there for the night, or wait out the storm a little bit and then try to finish the 39 miles into lander...which we did know was mostly downhill.

when we actually got inside the rest area, we found about 7 other cyclists inside, one of whom was eli...he apparently was not able to push as hard as he had hoped and he had arrived at the rest area just about 20 minutes before we had. we talked with him for a little while and the three of us decided that we would wait the storm out a little while and if it cleared by about 5, we would push on together into lander.

the storm did clear, and by about 5 the skies were mostly blue and the winds were completely calm. so, eli, cailyn and i got back on the bikes and headed out. we had to climb about 300 feet as we left the rest area, and then as we crested the hill and began an amazingly long downhill, we found that the scenery had completely changed and that we were looking at one of the prettiest scenes of the trip. beautiful rolling hills for what seemed to be as far as the eye can see.

the ride into lander was indeed almost completely downhill and the three of us were able to make the 39 mile trek in just a little over 3 hours. and man were we glad that we pushed on to finish the day. it was really nice to be in a town of a little size and it also felt pretty cool to be able to say that we had gone 124 miles...easily 20 miles further than we had ever ridden.

however, as the day passed and the miles mounted, the abscess on my tooth and gum were continuing to grow and become more uncomfortable. since visiting the doctor on thursday, i would say that the abscess had easily doubled in size. so, when we arrived in town and i finally had cell reception again, i called my parents to get their medical perspective on things (my mom is a dental hygentist and my dad, a pharmacist).

after some discussion, it was decided that it was probably time for me to see another dentist and that it was probably also in my best interest to stop the cycling. the fear was that my body was just having too much trouble healing and doing all the cycling. we were just days away from our final destination of yellowstone...but it just didn't seem worth it to continue to push things at the risk of my bodies health.

here is where God is just absolutely amazing. as it turns out, my aunt and uncle, who were were supposed to be meeting in yellowstone in a few days, are in cody, wyoming for the night, which is just a couple of hours north of where we are right now. so, the plan is that we will try to make contact with them in the morning and see if there is any way they could come and pick us up and take us with them to yellowstone...and in the meantime, i will try to see another dentist and see what the next step in the process might be with this abscess.

it is a little hard to fathom that this is probably the end of the cycling portion of our trip. it is hard to believe that we are to that point already. we certainly would have liked to be able to cycle the final 3 days into yellowstone, but it is still pretty crazy to think that 42 days ago we were in yorktown, va, dipping our rear tires in the atlantic ocean, and now, we are in lander, wy. it really is crazy!

hopefully, over the next couple of weeks, i will write a few different posts reflecting on the ending, processing some of what we learned and what God is teaching us, and also a trip in review post where we will try to reflect back on some of the best moments and "award winning" people and places.

Day 41 : Wyoming = Windy...

2010-07-10T17:27:00.000-07:00

From Saratoga, WY to Rawlins, WY - 44.2 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 5:13:59
Average speed: 8.4 mph
Max Speed: 23.8 mph

Story [in words]:

we woke up this morning to a beautiful sunrise over the lake and mountains that were just off to the one side of our tent. and to our pleasant surprise, the winds were not blowing at the moment. so, we got loaded up, ate a few pop tarts, and got out on the bikes.

the beginning of the morning was nice...it seemed like we were going generally downhill, and we were able to ride next to each other quite a bit, which was really nice. (wyoming seems to generally have nice wide shoulders) before long, we found ourselves riding up to a lady with a stop sign for some apparent construction ahead. we heard her say to the car in front of us that she would have to wait about 14 minutes...but as we cycled up to her, she asked if we wanted to go or if we needed a break...we said that we would like to go ahead as we were trying to beat the wind. she radioed ahead to make sure that it was okay, and after getting the 10-4, she told us to go ahead. it was fun because there was a pilot car (truck) taking traffic back and forth, and every time the lady would drive past us, she would give us the biggest wave you have ever seen.

unfortunately, a couple of hours into our ride, the wind did pick up, and the cycling became quite difficult. as we neared walcott, we knew that we were going to be making a road change, but weren't sure what road we were getting on...we pulled out the maps, and to our surprise, it said that we were supposed to ride on i-80. in most states it is illegal to ride a bicycle on an interstate, but apparently not in wyoming. it was definitely a little scary, but there was more than adequate shoulder, and so we felt like we were safely clear of the traffic.

we continued to make very very slow headway as we worked our way into rawlins. we had had hopes of going past rawlins today, but the wind had thoroughly demoralized us, and we were confident that going further was not going to be in the plans for today. as i was cycling, i was thinking that if there is ever an alternative needed for chinese water torture, maybe they could just put people on a bicycle and tell them to ride straight into a 20-30 mph headwind for an hour or two. it was demoralizing to say the least.

after a stop for lunch at taco bell and a trip to the grocery store to stock up for tomorrow, we pedaled across town to our campsite for tonight. it is a very nice place for a fairly reasonable price...i think it gets the award for the best campsite on the route so far.

so, it is going to be early to bed tonight, and then the plan is to get up and be ready to pedal out with the sun. the forecast is for less winds tomorrow, but regardless, the winds are almost always more favorable in the early hours, so we are going to try to knock out as many miles as we can before things get hairy. hopefully it is better than today.

Day 40 : Our 7th and Final State...

2010-07-10T17:26:00.000-07:00

From Walden, CO to Saratoga, WY - 75 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 6:20:40
Average speed: 11.8 mph
Max speed: 44.6 mph

Story [in words]:

The day had an interesting beginning. i was just about to get out of the tent, when i heard a pitter patter across the tent. we had noticed before we set up our tent that the grass seemed awfully green...which we had heard could be a bad sign when you are west of kansas...a bad sign because it means there is a good chance they have sprinklers. and sure enough...they did.

i promptly got out of the tent (between sprinkler bursts, of course) and moved the bikes so that at least they weren't getting wet. however, just about the time that i got the bikes situated out of the way of the rain (sprinklers), they shut off. so, i moved the bikes back by the tent and then removed the rain fly to put it over the fence so that it could dry a little. meanwhile, cailyn was finishing packing things up inside the tent. she just about had everything packed up, and we heard another noise...another set of sprinklers had turned on. now, not only were the bikes getting wet, but the inside of the tent was getting wet. so, i quickly tried to put the rain fly on as quickly as i could in a makeshift kind of a way. needless to say, by the time everything was said and done, the vast majority of the things we had were wet.

we finally got things loaded and headed back to the moose cafe to grab some breakfast. we enjoyed eggs, bacon, toast, and one gigantic cinnamon roll. we finally got on the road at about 9.

the cycling today was relatively easy, with just one substantial climb in the middle. we made our way to the summit of the climb and as we arrived at the top, there was a fairly dark looking cloud just off to our left. we were resting for a moment and preparing to descend when we saw a gnarly lightning bolt strike. we decided it was time to go, and fast. so we headed down the other side, and as luck (or unluck) would have it, it began to rain...big, cold drops.

thankfully, we seemed to be able to outrun both the rain and the lightning...and the cycling returned to fairly easy normal going. we stopped in a cute little town to make some peanut butter bagels...it was there that we ran into the two ladies from the netherlands that we have been playing leap frog with the last couple of days. we shared some nice conversation with them and then got back on the road to cover the last 18 miles for the day.

we made really good time finishing the day,,,maybe partially due to our excitement about the rumored hot springs. we rolled into town and headed straight for the springs. we changed into our swim suits and went down to the spring. and man was it hot...so hot that i could only put my legs in and cailyn was only able to put her feet in. so after a little while, we went down to the river that ran right alongside it and enjoyed a slightly cooler hotness (if there is such a thing).

we headed inside and took showers and hopped back on the bikes to find a place to eat. we finished the night with a good meal at a local eating establishment, a quick trip (unfortunately uphill) to the grocery store to pick some stuff up for tomorrow, and then out to a lake just outside of town that has camping. and man, it was a mosquito haven...it was a quick set up and then get into the tent as fast as we could.

oh, and by the way...we are into wyoming...our 7th and final state on the trip...

Day 39 : A Different Kind of a Day...

2010-07-08T09:02:00.000-07:00

From Kremmling, CO to Walden, CO - 63.6 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 5:20:09
Average speed: 11.9 mph
Max speed: 41.5 mph

Story [in words]:

when we woke up this morning, my tooth and gum were still not feeling all that well...so, we decided that i should try to see a dentist because we knew that there was a dentist in town and we didn't know when we might come into another town where there was one. so, cailyn called them as soon as they opened and they said they could work me in at 11:30.

we showed up at about 11:05 and they took me straight back in put me in a chair to see what was going on. to make a long story short, about 14 years ago i had a root canal done, and apparently they didn't get all of the root, and now i have managed to get a fairly large abscess above that tooth. so, when i get home, i will have to have the root canal redone...not fun! but for the time being, they gave me a prescription for an antibiotic to get the infection cleared up for the rest of the trip.

so, we cycled down to the pharmacy to get the prescription filled. the pharmacist was a really nice guy, who i shared some really good conversation with. he even gave me the prescription for much less than it was supposed to be...ahh, the beauties of a small town.

by the time that we got things all taken care of, it was about 12:30. we were just about ready to jump on the bikes when, although it was completely clear and sunny, a huge rumble of thunder rang out...loud enough to set off a car alarm in the parking lot. so, we then took another 10-15 minutes trying to decide if we needed to wait out some weather or not. in the end, we decided to just get on the bikes and see what happened.

we got maybe 5 miles down the road before it did indeed start raining on us. it is just crazy what the weather does up here in the mountains...it can be totally sunny in one place and crazy raining just a mile or two away. just insane!! fortunately, the rain didn't last very long...but not too long after the rain ended, cailyn had a nasty noise coming from her front tire. after closer inspection, it was apparent that not only the tube, but the tire was completely shot. thankfully, we have spare tires with us, and man, am i glad we brought those with us! some of the cyclists we have encountered seem surprised that we are carrying tires with us, but it sure does decrease the stress. so, without too much trouble or time spent, we patched the tube and put a new tire on cailyn's bike and then got back on the road.

a little before the middle of our ride today, we had to make about a 1500 foot climb...and as luck would have it, as we were just about ready to start the climb to the summit, it started to rain and sleet on us as we headed up. needless to say, it was cold and wet!

we made it to the summit of the climb and by that time, the rain had subsided. from the point of the summit, we had 35 miles to get to walden...and it was down hill. as we began the descent, we surveyed the horizons, and it was quite obvious that there were numerous storms continuing to hover around us. and for the most part, it seemed that the crazy stuff was behind us, and there was blue sky in the direction we were headed. this all added up to incredible motivation...especially for cailyn. for those of you who know cailyn well, you know that when she finds the right motivation, she can be quite impressive to say the least. and what was going on in the clouds was definitely the right motivation...because she seemed to absolutely fly through our last 35 miles...i found myself constantly 20-50 yards behind her. i simply could not keep up with her...man was i proud of her!! i wish that we would have had an average speed for just our last 35 miles...it had to have been 13-15 mph.

now we are sitting at a restaurant here in walden...which i guess is known as the moose viewing capital of colorado. it sure would be so cool to be able to see a moose while we are in the area! it has been a fun time here at the restaurant as well as we have been 2 other west bound cyclists, as well as 5 east bounders! sounds like there is a good chance that we will get to swim in a hot spring at the place that we are staying tomorrow night!

Day 38 : A Little Bit of a Rest Day...

2010-07-08T08:44:00.000-07:00

From Middle of Nowhere, CO to Kremmling, CO - 22.6 mph

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 2:15:37
Average speed: 10 mph
Max speed: 34.9 mph

Story [in words]:

this morning we decided that we were just going to sleep until we were ready to get up. it was definitely a nice change of pace. however, even after we got up, we were both feeling tired and worn out...and i have been dealing with some pain in a tooth and inflammation in my gum. we figured we needed to ride at least a little, so we loaded up and headed out.

unfortunately, we were in a situation where we didn't have any food on board with us. and as it turned out, the restaurant that was supposed to be 8 or so miles ahead was closed. so we ended up having to ride all the way into kremmling on just a little bit of trail mix.

fortunately, we were able to make it without too much trouble. we quickly found a great little pub type restaurant to grab some lunch...and we got inside just before it poured rain, along with some hail. it was definitely nice to be inside for that.

after we finished our lunch, we started looking at the maps to try to make a decision about what the rest of the day was going to hold, as well as the rest of the trip into yellowstone. we took a look at everything, as well as how we had been feeling so far on the day...and in the end, we decided that we would just stay in town for the night and rest up a little more. we began to look for a place to stay, and as it turned out, there was a hotel in town that had hostel style rooms for $25. which meant that it was a normal hotel room, except there is a shared shower and toilet room. turned out to be a really really nice deal!

so, we holed up in the hotel...did a little laundry in the sink, went down to the grocery store down the street to get a little food, made some phone calls to catch up with a few people, and just tried to relax a little. it was definitely a welcomed change of pace for the day. plus, as it turned out, there were 3 or 4 more significant storms that came through...glad to be inside for sure!

Day 37 : A Picture Perfect Day...

2010-07-07T15:20:00.000-07:00

From Fairplay, CO to Middle of Nowhere, CO - 62.9 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 5:22:04
Average speed: 11.7 mph
Maximum speed: 37.8 mph

Story [in words]:

today was by far the best day of the trip...simply amazing!!

we awoke from our beautiful (and as it turns out, free) campsite next to the river and mountains, a little later than normal. as we would soon discover by cycling past the welcome to fairplay sign, we had camped at just slightly less than 10,000 feet above sea level, which made for a rather chilly morning.

we made our way up to a beautiful and quaint coffee shop in the heart of fairplay. turns out that fairplay has become quite famous because it is the town that the show south park has been modeled after (fairplay is in the south part of park county, co). we had some great coffee and even better conversations with the lady that was working in the shop. she was incredibly interested in our trip and was even interested in looking at our maps.

at around 9 am, with all of our warm weather gear on, we headed out towards hoosier pass (the highest point on our route). we were just 12 miles from the top of the pass with about 1500 feet to climb. i wish that i could adequately put into words the beauty that we encountered as we climbed. it was absolutely nothing like climbing in virginia...not in toughness or beauty. first of all toughness, there is simply no comparison between climbing in virginia and climbing here...it is way way tougher in virginia. and in terms of the views, in virginia the majority of the climbing is spent staring at trees, that quite frankly, all seem to look the same. the views while climbing today were completely the opposite. the area around the roads is open, so as we climbed, we spent our time looking at amazing snow-capped peaks, beautiful lush valleys with amazing homes in them, and tons of awesome mountain streams and rivers. there is just not any way to put into words what we saw and experienced as we climbed. the combination of much more gradual climbs and the amazing views, made for what i have got to imagine, was the best climbing possible.

at a little before noon, we arrived at the summit of hoosier pass! it was awesome...what a feeling! the sense of accomplishment was amazing, and the views continued to wow us. we took some pictures with the sign at the summit, ate a little trail mix, and prepared to descend.

just before hopping back on the bikes, we ran into this woman and her amazing dog frankie, who were getting ready to go hiking. the lady is a firefighter in fairplay, which was interesting because we almost stopped at the fire station last night to see if we could camp there. she told us that they host cyclists regularly...nuts, gues maybe we should have stopped. but frankie was even cooler...he was a boxer...but he was the calmest one i have ever seen. she had him right out by the busy road without a leash or anything. she said that he loves to hike, and they when they go on longer hikes, he even has a backpack that he wears so he can carry his own water. too cool!

we finished our conversation with frankie and his owner and got back on our bikes and started our descent into breckenridge. the descent was every bit as beautiful as the ascent...only lots faster. we managed to get into a nice slot with very little traffic, which made the descent all the greater. we pasted lots of beautiful ski places with more beautiful mountain streams running alongside of them. we have both absolutely fallen in love with the idea of mountain streams! they are just so mesmerizing!

we rolled easily into breckenridge, to find things more bustling than we expected. but at the same time, we were both very excited to be there. it is a little touristy and industrialized, but there is such an outdoorsy athletic feel to it and the backdrop is just breathe-taking! we could have easily spent a week just hanging out there. as it turned out, it was bike week there, and so there were tons of cyclists and tons of cycling activities going on.

we parked our bikes and locked them up and headed to find a place to grab some lunch. we found a great sports bar type of a place where we had an amazing taco pizza. from there, we wanted to hit up some sporting clothes types of stores to see if we could each get some sort of a long-sleeved hiking type shirt to keep us warm while we are camping the next couple of weeks. and without too much trouble, we were able to each find what we were looking for at what seemed to be a pretty reasonable price. lastly, we wanted to find a place to get a little blogging down. we grabbed the bikes and cycled up the way a bit, to where we found a nice picnic table outside of a miner's pie stand. we did a little writing and made a few phone calls, and then before long, the lady that owned the stand came out to see what we were up to. we told her about our trip and asked her a little about breckenridge...then, we found out that she used to live in newton county...the same county that cailyn grew up in. so, the two of them shared some great stories. after talking for a little while, she went back into her stand and then came back out with a shepherd's pie miner's pie...free just for us. we sat and enjoyed it as we finished up our tasks. before leaving, we decided that we would just buy a couple more of her pies for our dinner. so we got a couple of pies and then headed for our next destination.

we cycled on an amazingly nice and beautiful bike path that went from breckenridge to the next couple of towns up the way. it was a great path...the only problem was that it seemed to be much more windy than the road that we would have been following...and we also had a little bit of trouble figuring out where we were supposed to get off of the bike path. all in all, it was a beautiful path!

as it turned out, we kind of stayed in breckenridge a little bit longer than we should have, because we ended up in a little bit of a tight spot as far as finding a place to camp for the night. we came on one campground, but it had been closed down at some point in time. then we stopped at a place that rents cabins and asked if we might put out tent up there...they said that we couldn't, but that there was a campground just a half a mile down the road. so, we cycled up another half mile, and sure enough, we found a nice little campground right on a lake with the mountains in the backdrop. a pretty amazing ending location to an incredibly beautiful day!

Day 36 : Hills, Wind, and Beauty...

2010-07-04T20:08:00.000-07:00

From Royal Gorge, CO to Fairplay, CO - 71.6 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 9:18:19
Average speed: 7.7 mph
Max speed: 38.1 mph

Story [in words]:

in a nutshell, today was incredibly tough. we climbed a lot of feet and fought head winds pretty much all day. the saving grace of the day was absolutely the beauty of God's creation.

we started the morning with breakfast at the cafe that was connected to the cabinground that we stayed at...including some of the biggest blueberry pancakes i have ever had! the people working there were absolutely wonderful. because we had a long distance to go without any services, they were willing to make us sandwiches off of their lunch menu...and they even packaged them really nicely for us to take along with us. and on top of that, they allowed us to substitute huge brownies in place of the sodas that were supposed to come with the meal.

we left from our beautiful cabin getaway and promptly descended for 2 miles. then the climbing began. the next 5-7 miles were the most intense climbing for sure. we climbed and climbed...and as we climbed, the winds began to pick up, and they were pretty much straight into our faces. it was challenging cycling for sure...but the further we went, the prettier things got!

at about 2 in the afternoon, we were continuing to fight the winds and climb the hills...and in the middle of the beauty of the mountains...cailyn got a flat rear tire. so, we pulled into a driveway and began to get the tire changed. we had multiple spare tires for with us for cailyn's bike, and so i figured it would be a good time to go ahead and change the tire and tube. it made for a little longer stop, but probably a wise decision. while i got the tire changed, cailyn got our food out and we got some filled up with energy as we still had quite a distance to ride.

we got back on the road and continued to battle both wind and hills. we finally got into hartsell, the only town between our starting and ending points, at about 5 pm. we quickly got some trail mix and filled up water, and then got back on the road because we still had about 17 miles to cover to get into fairplay.

just before leaving hartsell, we began talking to a guy named jeremy who seemed quite interested in what we were doing and where we had come from and where we were going. we had a little conversation with him and then he asked us if we were logging the trip in any way. we told him that we were writing a blog as we went...and he was immediately interested in knowing what it was. we told him the address while he programmed it into his iphone. then he asked us if he could take our picture...and he told us that he would pass the blog on to a bunch of other people. which we thought was a little out of the ordinary...but very cool. and then, we found out that he was originally from the area, but now lived in new york and manages all of the blogs for the new york times. pretty crazy to say the least!

as we headed towards fairplay, the winds seemed to just get stronger...and it was starting to get somewhat demoralizing. it was particularly tough on cailyn. but the further we went, the more beautiful it continued to get. we cycled past amazingly beautiful mountain streams that seemed to just wind through lush green pastures...all while the snow-capped mountains grew closer and closer.

we finally pedaled into fairplay at just a little before 8...with probably just 30 minutes before darkness set in. as we arrived, we really had two major concerns on our minds. first, we needed food, since we hadn't eaten in more than 5 hours...and secondly, we had no idea where we were going to camp for the night. after not having any luck on either front at pizza hut, we went to the gas station to see if we could call the fire station to see about housing. luckily, the guy working at the gas station told us that he knew of a place where cyclists usually camped. he told us that we just need to go down the road that was just across the street for about a mile, down to the reservoir and he said that there were campsites by the reservoir. we thought that would be great...so we picked up a bag of fritos and some dip, and a couple of drinks, and headed to where he directed us.

as it turned out, we were down just next to this amazing river (where apparently you could pan for gold) that was just off the reservoir. the view was amazing and we could hear the water as we set up camp. when we entered the camping area, we noticed a sign that said, "camping by permit only"...but we had no idea where or how to get a permit. so, we decided we would just give it a try and see what happened. it was getting dark and cold and had no other option to try. all in all, a pretty good situation, considering we had no idea what we were doing as we came into town.

i was thinking today...if you consider yourself an avid cyclist...your cycling life is simply not complete until you have cycled through the rocky mountains. the sights, sounds and smells are absolutely amazing! the things that we have seen, heard, and smelled that we would never have, had we been driving in a car, are just amazing!

Day 35 : God is an Amazing Artist...

2010-07-03T17:05:00.000-07:00

From Pueblo, CO to Royal Gorge (area), CO - 59.1 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 5:58:34
Average speed: 9.9 mph
Max Speed: 36 mph

Story [in words]:

the title for today really sums things up...we spent the day cycling up to and into God's beautiful masterpiece! and it was awesome and awe inspiring!

we started the morning cycling out of pueblo on relatively flat terrain, and before too long the ground began to roll. our legs were definitely climbing (and therefore pedaling) in a way they hadn't in probably ten days or more. then a little over 20 miles into our ride, we hit what i would consider the first real climb of the rockies.

we had been gradually coming up on a ridge that seemed to be just in front of the much larger mountains. and it had finally become time to climb up, and as it turned out, onto the ridge. it was not a terribly difficult climb...just slow and steady. if that is indicative of what the next days of climbing are going to be like, i think we will be just fine...especially when the trade off is these amazing views. so, after 30 or 40 minutes of fairly slow climbing we made it to the top of the ridge. and we both thought that what we discovered was rather interesting.

it had appeared that just over this ridge were lots of much larger mountains. and there were...however, in between, there was a very large plateau. we cycled on top of this plateau for what must have been at least 10 miles...and interestingly went down for must of those miles. also interesting, was the fact that when we looked back towards where we had come from, there was no indication at all that we had just come up a substantial climb.

we continued on towards and through the mountains. by afternoon time, we were definitely surrounded by the mountains...and they were breathe taking to say the least. we cycled into a beautiful, old town with tons of little antique shops. if we were just on a leisurely vacation, it would have been a great place to just hang out. (aunt bonnie...you would have been in heaven)

we finally made it into canon city at about 2, where we stopped at a subway to grab a late lunch. after consulting the maps and trying to decide what our plan was going to be for the next couple of days (especially with hoosier pass in the near future), we decided that we would go just 10 more miles to the royal gorge area where there were about 5 different camps grounds listed. we finished our food and pedaled over to the royal gorge information center to see if we could get some info on camping. they had a sheet with phone numbers and locations for the same 5 campsites that the maps listed. we decided that before we left town, we would call all 5 and where we could find the best deal. we were able to get ahold of 4 of the 5...finding that the best price was going to be $19.95. (not the most expensive camping we have paid for on this trip, but also far from the cheapest)

so we headed out to conquer the last few miles. as we crested a fairly large hill that we had been climbing, we saw a campground on our left. i quickly pulled on the sheet from the information center to confirm that it was the one campground that we had not gotten an answer from. we figured that it would be worth just stopping in and seeing what the cost would be. and man are we glad that we did...

it appeared that they were already closed...which wasn't too surprising considering that it is a sunday and the fourth of july. as we got close to the door, however, a gentlemen came up to us and asked if he could help us. cailyn told him that we were hoping to get a campsite. to which he replied, "how about i make you a deal...what if i give you a little cabin for $20". to which we said, "sure, sounds great". knowing that the price was the same as the best camping price that we had found.

he opened up the office and got us all set up. we ended up having some great conversation with he and his wife...and in the process, they discovered that we didn't have any food with us. so, they told us that they would fix us some blt's or something. they told us to shower up and to come up to the cafe at about 6:15. we wheeled our bikes back to our cabin, settled in, got cleaned up and headed up to the outside patio of the cafe to meet sid and kim. they had a number of things they could offer to cook us, but we said that blt's and chips sounded great. they quickly cooked us up some sandwiches and we sat and ate some food and shared some great conversations. they had some amazing stories about taking their horses and herding cattle on some 35,000 acre farms in the area. sounded like an amazing time. they were just wonderful people who we thoroughly enjoyed sharing the fourth of july evening with.

oh, and i almost forgot. i am sitting, writing this post on the deck of our little cabin, and the view is amazing to say the least. mountains, mountains, and more mountains...some of them even snow covered. (it is the first of the pictures posted above) sid and kim told us that the country that we are about to go into is some of the prettiest anywhere...and i believe them.

a slight sidenote on our upcoming schedule: we have decided that we will not go up and over hoosier pass tomorrow. we plan to cycle as close to the pass as we can...probably fairplay, co...and then we will get up and go over hoosier pass first thing on tuesday morning.

Day 34 : A Doggie Kind of a Day...

2010-07-03T14:24:00.000-07:00

From Ordway, CO to Pueblo, CO - 57.9 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 5:10:14
Average speed: 11.2 mph
Max Speed: 23.5 mph

Story [in words]:

we had a record start time this morning. the guys that we were hanging out with at gillian's were interested in getting up early and trying to beat the heat and winds of kansas...and we thought getting an early start sounded like a good plan as well. so, the alarm went off at 4am and we were loaded and on the bikes riding by 5:15. it was really beautiful because as we started cycling the sun was just coming up behind us (don't worry, there was enough light to be safe).

we cycled about 18 miles to the town of fowler, co where we found a little diner called phat willie's. as we pulled up, there was a beautiful husky puppy on a leash outside of the restaurant...it was a sweet lovable thing for sure.

we both ordered cheese omelets, hashbrowns and toast. i was proud of myself because i discovered that we could get two eggs, hashbrowns and toast for $4.99...or we could get a cheese omelet (made with 3 eggs), hashbrowns and toast also for $4.99. so we each got a "free" egg and some "free" cheese. really, i'm just a math nerd...but whatever, i enjoy it!

we finished our food and headed out to get back on the road. the best part was that we had ridden 18 miles and had breakfast and it was only 7:30. we got all ready to go, however, as i began to wheel my bike away from the building, i discovered that i had a flat tire. so, we put the bike back and took off our helmets to begin changing the tire. as i started to change the tire, we noticed a dog walking over from the house next door. it walked right up to cailyn and just wanted her to love all over her. this dog was something else...it was super round, and i am pretty sure that it's belly dragged on the ground. after a few minutes of petting the dog, we heard a voice from the house next door saying, "waddles"...and we just laughed, because there was absolutely no better name for this dog...because that is exactly what happened any time it walked.

we got things all changed and got back on the road without too much of a delay. the rest of our cycling today was fairly enjoyable...basically flat, and not much wind at all. and as we went, the mountains just kept getting slightly closer and slightly bigger. we even got close enough to be able to see one snow-capped peak. (it is pretty crazy to think that on july 5th we will likely be able to touch snow...just crazy) as we approached pueblo, cailyn finally got to see something that she has been wanting to see for a number of days. off to the right side of the road, there were many little mounds of dirt...and then we saw them...little animals, prairie dogs, scurrying for their holes as we came up to them. i am pretty sure that if it was up to cailyn, we would be going home with one as a pet. i do have to admit, they were pretty cute...especially the little ones!

we cycled into pueblo (which is a pretty large city) and headed right for the great divide bike shop (it sits right on the route), where we dropped our bikes off to get a few things tuned up. we then headed 4 blocks down the street to a motel that an eastbound cyclist that we were with last night told us about. we were able to get a really pretty nice room for $50. we cleaned up, and headed out to find a coffee shop that another one of the cyclists told us about. now we are sitting outside the coffee shop just relaxing, enjoying a half-day off of sorts.

before long, we will go back and pick up the bikes and head back to the motel to just relax and get ready to head up into the mountains tomorrow!

as another sidenote: for those of you who have been to el paso, tx...pueblo really reminds me of el paso. with the mountains in the distance, and just the general feel of the town.

a couple of hours after writing what is above...

we have now gone back and picked up our bikes from the great divide bike shop...and man are the amazing. we had heard absolutely great things about them, but they were even better than advertised! it turns out that cailyn right clipless pedal was about to break off of the bike. they seemed to think that she was incredibly lucky that it had not already slipped off of the bike.

basically, the only option was new pedals. to get new pedals like the ones that she had was going to cost us $110...which was, needless to say, not in our budget. i began to ask them if there was any cheaper option that we could put on there. at first it didn't sound promising...but then, before long, they had dug some pedals up that they "just had laying around" from something else...and they said they would just give them to us and all we would have to do was to buy the clips for them. so, all in all, we ended up with new pedals and clips for cailyn and it only cost us $27...it was pretty amazing to say the least!

there is just something about the cycling community that is really unlike any other that i have been a part of. i am still figuring it all out...but i know this for sure...it is pretty awesome!

Day 33 : Mountains!!!

2010-07-02T18:39:00.000-07:00

From Eads, CO to Ordway, CO - 64.5 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 7:04:51
Average speed: 9.1 mph
Max speed: 18.6 mph

Story [in words]:

well, the good news is that when we got up this morning the wind wasn't as bad as we had thought it might be. the bad news is, it was still windy (from the south).

we got our stuff all loaded up and headed into the little restaurant in town to grab some breakfast before cycling out of town. we had our food and were out on the road by about 7:15. the first 12 or so miles actually went by quite easily...then the wind began to pick up a fair amount more. we rode about 23 miles into the only major town between our starting point and our ending point for the day. the towns out here are just so spread apart...it seems like things just get more and more desolate as we move west. one guy we talked to the other day said that he thought that the towns were spread out about the distance that a wagon could go in a day. i don't know if it is true, but it sounds like a decent proposal.

we got a little bit of food to take on the road at our stop and filled our waters up and quickly got back on the road. we figured that the wind wasn't going to get any more favorable and the word on the street was that where we were going we would be able to stay at a house where we could shower and do laundry, so we were pretty motivated.

the afternoon continued with more of the same...with the exception that a little while into our afternoon, the mountains finally began to appear in the distance. man was that exciting!! we both seemed to cycle a little bit faster knowing that they were in the distance. we are both super excited to be able to get into the mountains. we also saw more scenery today than i think we have seen on any other day. we saw a number of deer and we think that we also saw an antelope. those things are the things that really make this trip amazing.

one other pretty wild sight from today was that for probably the last 13 miles or so into ordway, there were empty railroad cars sitting on the railroad track that we have been cycling along for the last 3 days. it seemed like they went on and on...just a weird thing.

we had heard that when we got to ordway, we were simply supposed to ask for gillian and someone would be able to direct us to her house. we stopped at the grocery store to get a little food and asked someone if they could point us to gillian...and sure enough, the lady said, "go down main street and turn left on 9th and you will dead end into her house". while we were at the grocery, we ran into three other cyclists and we told them about gillian as well, so we all headed down to see what it was all about. and man, what we found is amazing. i won't be able to do it justice...but here is a little bit of it.

gillian is a woman originally from new zealand...she has a farm of sorts here. horses, goats, all kinds of different birds, etc. she also has an old 5th wheel on the property that has been gutted and she uses to house cyclists. she also allows cyclists to take a shower, do laundry, use the kitchen, and sit in the living room to watch tv or to use the internet. she is a really amazing woman...a very european sense of humor for sure. as it turns out, there are also two college age guys that are here working for gillian for three weeks on a work exchange program...and they have been an absolute blast to share conversation with as well. this has definitely been one of the most memorable stays on our trip for sure. the people are really just amazing...i wish i could fully and accurately put it into words.

i have been thinking over the last couple of days about the comparison between cycling here and back in virginia. when we were in virginia, the highest point that we reached was roughly 4200 feet...and the views were absolutely marvelous. and over the last couple of days, we have also been cycling at roughly 4200 feet...however, the views are much different. it has made me realize that what makes the mountain top amazing are the valleys that surround it. it certainly doesn't feel like we are on a mountain top right now...but it absolutely did when we were at the exact same height in virginia...and it was the valleys...the downs that made that reality.

along with that, i have been thinking about how in life, we would much rather just live on the mountain top, so to speak, all the time. we don't like the valleys...we despise the tough times...with would rather not face conflict and challenge. but the reality is...if we don't have those valleys and tough times and conflicts...the highs simply seize to be highs.

just something that i have been pondering on every now and again as i have cycled along for the last couple of days.

so, tomorrow morning it will be up and on the road early early...hopefully we will be into pueblo by a little after noon. we will plan to get some minor tune-ups done on our bikes, probably get a hotel for the night, and then we will be ready to make the push up into the mountains. i think we are both ready and excited to start climbing again. not necessarily for the cycling part, but for the scenery and the wildlife that we are excited to encounter.

sidenote: don - cailyn wanted me to point out that at one point this afternoon there was this massive open field out to our left, and out in the middle of it, all by himself, was a lone bull...all by himself. i guess she thought that would have significance.

Day 32 : A Tough Entry into State #6...

2010-06-30T19:17:00.000-07:00

From Tribune, KS to Eads, CO - 59.7 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 6:25:27
Average speed: 9.3 mph
Max speed: 18.6 mph

Story [in words]:

being in a new time zone this morning meant that the sun came up much earlier in the day. we had planned to get up nice and early, mainly in an attempt to beat some of the wind. however, something got messed up with our alarm during the night and we ended up getting up about 45 minutes late. nonetheless, we were loaded up and ready to ride by about 7:15. unfortunately, by that point in time, the winds were already blowing much stronger than we would have liked.

we headed straight west with the wind blowing a solid 15 mph straight from the south. it wasn't a head wind...but a cross wind really isn't much better. we only had 16 miles left to ride before we crossed the state line into colorado, and it was almost as if kansas knew that, and just didn't want to give us up yet. it was some tough...and slow cycling. but finally, about mid-morning, we did indeed cross into our 6th state of the tour. pretty hard to believe to say the least.

we made it into a little town called sheridan lake a little before noon where we were able to order a pizza at a little gas station type of a thing. we basically tried to linger there as long as we possibly could...including a nap at the table that we were sitting at...mainly because we didn't want to go back out in the wind. just before we were going to leave, an eastbound cyclist who has been touring around different parts of the country since last september, came in and we shared a little bit of conversation with him. then a younger guy dressed in john deere clothes came in and we had a little conversation with him...he was pretty cocky to say the least...seemed to be awfully proud of the fact that he went to john deere university...interesting dude to say the least. (colli...that was partially in there for you)

we finally got back on the road a little after 2, to make the push to eads. the afternoon did seem to be a little bit easier cycling...but not much. maybe it was the fact that the road seemed to take a couple of turns to the north for a bit and we were able to get a little bit of wind to our backs.

as i was cycling along, i couldn't help but be jealous of my friend pervis. i have been kind of reading along with his blog from two years ago to see where he stayed and things. turns out when he was in this area, he had some really favorable winds, and when he came through this area he cycled 175 miles in one day. we are barely going to make 175 miles with yesterday, today, and tomorrow combined. oh well, that is the way that it goes. and unfortunately, the weather seems to say that it is going to be windy again tomorrow as well.

we arrived here in eads and found a family restaurant type joint on the main drag that looked like a good location for dinner. we parked our bikes, headed in, and found a table next to 5 older ladies. we had some great conversation with them about our trip. they seemed to be quite familiar with the route and with the cyclists who come through. this area is a really busy area for cyclists because there are a number of routes that converge in pueblo which is just a little over 100 miles west of here.

we will see what tomorrow brings...to be honest, i am a little bit dreading getting up. it feels a little bit scary to me...but at the same time, i think that we have really lucked out when it comes to this area and the potential winds that can happen.

Day 31 : Time Zone #3...

2010-06-30T19:02:00.002-07:00

From Dighton, KS to Tribune, KS – 75.5 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 7:29:30
Average speed: 10.1 mph
Max. speed: 17.4 mph

Story [in words]:

We got up early to try to cover some solid miles before the winds got going, as they were predicted to. We were loaded and on the road by about 6:45 am. It was definitely another great morning for cycling…I really like this riding on the plains. It is just so much less humid, which is so much more comfortable.

We rode into scott city, and found a place that we could grab a late breakfast. We found a great little local café, and it was an awesome breakfast to boot! We ate a ton…which isn’t always a good thing…but it turns out that today it was the right combo I guess. We barely ate the rest of the day…we felt fueled up and ready to go.

We got back on the bikes and headed into leoti, ks where we filled up our waters and had some great conversation with an older couple sitting at a table there. The gentlemen told us about back in ’70 when he, along with a group of a couple thousand cyclists, drove their tractors to Washington, d.c. for some sort of protest.

We finished our conversation with them, ready to knock out the last 24 miles for the day. The wind picked up a little this afternoon, which made the cycling a little more difficult…but all in all, not that bad. We also crossed into the mountain time zone just before we arrived here in tribune…which is great because we get an “extra” hour today! Sounds like more sleep to me!

Today I realized that back in Indiana (where we were both born and raised) and in Missouri (where we live now), we really have no idea what a big farm is. The farms out here in western Kansas dwarf anything that we can possibly imagine out east. The farms go on forever. Whether it is a cattle farm or some sort of a crop operation, they are absolutely huge! There were multiple times today where we were roughly 8 miles outside of the town that we were going to, and we could see the water tower in town as clear as day. It is really just fields for as long as you can see!

Day 30 : It Finally Happened...

2010-06-30T19:02:00.001-07:00

From Rush Center, KS to Dighton, KS - ~63 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Unfortunately we don’t have the exact numbers for today…we had a little bit more trouble with the computer…the good news is that we got it back up and working by the end of the day.

Story [in words]:

With our late night of riding last night, it was a little bit tough to get up this morning. By the time we got up and got everything packed up and got on the road, it was about 8:30 am. It was another really great day for riding…not quite what yesterday was, but still awfully nice for riding.

We rode about 30 miles to ness city where we had planned to get a late lunch…however, due to our late start, it ended up being an early lunch. The place that we stopped to eat was at the recommendation of the lady that we had talked to the night before at the sports bar (they actually live right by ness city). We found the restaurant, and it looked a little shady to say the least…but we thought, what the heck. Then our server came and it got worse…she seemed like she was having the worst day in the world. I wish that I would have been able to think of some way to bring some joy into her life…she just seemed so incredibly closed off. Just to give a little glimpse of what the service was like…as we walked in the front door, there was a hand-written sign that said, “no smoking after 7 am”. While we were sitting at our table, our waitress spent more time smoking cigarettes and watching Days of Our Lives, instead of taking care of us.

Despite the poor service, and the fact that our orders weren’t quite correct…the food was actually pretty good. The bright spot of our time there, however, was that as we were sitting there waiting for our food, the lady from the sports bar walked in (we later found out that her name was sandy). She said that she had seen us riding a little while ago and that she was on her way back to work and wanted to stop in to say hi and give us something. She proceeded to give us two bottles…one with vegetable supplements and one with fruit supplements. She said, “I figured that you don’t get enough of these types of things on the trail.” She was just a super sweet lady to say the least.

After a much longer stop than we had planned on…largely due to the poor service…we got back on the road. And before long…it finally happened. We were cycling along, and cailyn said, “do I have a flat tire?”…to which I responded, “no, it doesn’t look like it.” But then, a couple of seconds later, she stopped and we could hear the air coming out of the tire. As I looked at the tire a little more closely, it became quite apparent that there was a thorn sticking straight out of the tire. We removed the thorn and then got the tire off and made a quick tube change. (conveniently, it was a front tire, which made it much easier) in about 15 minutes were all set and ready to get back on the road.

We had hoped to make it past Dighton, but with the slow lunch stop, the flat tire, and slightly tired legs from yesterdays long ride, we decided that we would just stay for the night. As we cycled into town, we found a dairy stand which seemed like a great place to grab some food and hang out for a while. While we tried to hydrate ourselves, we sat and looked at the maps for a little while. It is crazy, because we are getting to the point where we are able to predict fairly closely what the rest of our trip will look like. Here’s a snapshot of a few of the big things…we plan to be in pueblo, co on Saturday…we will go to the bike shop and get some tune-ups there. We should go up and over hoosier pass (the highest point on the route – 11,400 ft) on Tuesday. And we hope to make it to Yellowstone by Friday the 16th to meet our aunt and uncle who just happen to be vacationing in Yellowstone. It is getting really exciting because the colors are changing on our maps (which means that we are going up in elevation)…we are getting excited to see the mountains!!

While we were sitting at the dairy bar, a woman pulled in with her 5 children…we heard her say to one of the kids that dad would be joining them shortly. The woman was pretty interested in our trip and what we were doing, so we talked with her for a while. Turns out that her husband owns a fleet of combines that travels across the country harvesting as crops come ready. They said that they start in may and usually don’t finish until sometime around November. They said that they basically live out of a camper for the whole summer…seems like a crazy lifestyle…but they seem to do a great job with it. They were a great family though for sure. (colli – in case you are curious, we found out they are a green fleet)

Day 29 : A Great Day for Riding...

2010-06-30T19:01:00.001-07:00

From Hutchinson, KS to Rush Center, KS - 97.6 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 8:17:57
Average Speed: 11.8 mph
Max Speed: 28.6 mph

Story [in words]:

the toughest part about today was getting out of bed and on the road. the hostel that we stayed at last night was just so nice. we laid in bed until about 8 am trying to decide if we were going to take the day off and hang out at the hostel or if we were going to cycle. then we looked at the weather on my phone and as it turns out, the temps were supposed to be a little lower and the winds were supposed to be light and from the east. and so we decided that we would ride...and as long as we were going to ride, we thought we would try to get close to a century ride.

it was almost 9:30 before we were loaded and on the road, but it was just a great day for riding. easily the best riding conditions of the whole trip! we rode into the first town of the day, and as we cycled in, we looked to our right, and there on the cross road was Jerry, the 70 year old riding the recumbent with the adventure cycling association group. we shared a little conversation with him, cycled to the gas station to fill our waters and headed back out.

shortly after leaving that town, we headed off our mapped route onto highway 96, at the recommendation of an eastbound cyclist that we crossed paths with a couple of days ago. we were pretty sure that we could cut out about 13-14 miles by going this route...and since we were already in the mindset of covering as many miles as we could, we thought that we would take the shortcut. as we cycled along on 96, in some really beautiful weather, we heard what sounded like a fairly large plane (which is a little out of the ordinary along these roads because we aren't close to many large airports)...as the sound got closer, we looked straight above us to hear a B-2 bomber. which for most people would be just a really cool sight...but for us it was a nice piece of home, because all of the B-2's are stationed at whiteman air force base which is just 8 miles east of warrensburg.

as we continued on, we stopped at a subway for a late lunch...and looked at a map and discovered that we had about 62 miles to go to finish our day. so we quickly hopped back on the bikes and rode 31 more miles to great bend...where we stopped at walmart to stock up on a couple of things. while we were there, we ran into two middle-aged guys that seemed very interested in what we were doing. turns out, they were both cycling enthusiasts.

we got back on the road from walmart at about 5:30 pm with about 31 miles left to get to our destination. it was really just a beautiful evening to ride. actually a little bit cool...it was one of the first times that i found myself just sitting back and taking in all the fields surrounding us. (it is a little bit easier to do that here in kansas because there really isn't a ton to have to think or worry about). there are fields of all kinds of different things everywhere...wheat, hay, beans, corn...and huge fields at that...they seem to go on forever. at one point, we came upon a hay field with square bales just sitting waiting to be picked up (Johnny - it made me think of our mission trip to Cookson Hills, Oklahoma...which seems like it was forever ago).

when we got to rush center, we found the 4-h park, which was just a tiny little "park" right on the route. there was a little sports bar just a block from the park and so we decided to stop in there to see if we could get a couple of sodas. as we walked up to the bar, there was a really nice older couple sitting there eating and they started talking to us about our trip. we ended up having some really good conversation with them...turns out that they moved to kansas from the los angeles area about 11 years ago to get away from the chaos. instead, they decided to build a roughly 160 acre farm from scratch.

after finishing talking to them, we headed back over to the park...set up our tent, ate the food that we had bought at walmart earlier in the day, and then headed into the tent to get some sleep. and finally it was a much cooler and much less humid day for us to get some sleep.

Day 28 : A Sweet Hostel...

2010-06-29T11:48:00.000-07:00

From Newton, KS to Hutchinson, KS – 44.8 miles

This morning we woke up, packed up our gear, said goodbye to our friend Charlie, and headed to McDonalds to grab some breakfast. We were about to leave when we started to have some great conversation with a couple of older gentlemen that were also there having breakfast. They were just average great guys. And as we were talking, I couldn’t help but think about what great community exists at a place like McDonald’s. in many senses, the community there on Sunday morning is probably better than at many churches. Just got me thinking about why that is.

We decided last night that we were just going to ride a half-day because our legs really felt like they could use a rest and there was a hostel listed on our maps here in Hutchinson. So, at a little before 9, we were on the bikes and headed for “Hutch.”

Thankfully, the winds weren’t terrible today…just enough to keep us cool…and it was fairly overcast for most of the morning, which really helped to make the cycling enjoyable. It was really a pretty uneventful ride, with the exception of in the middle of the day when we cycled past a massive field of sunflowers. (pictured above) unfortunately, it seemed as though we were about a week early as most of the flowers appeared to be just on the verge of blooming.

We arrived here at Zion Lutheran Church at about 2 pm to find a really wonderful little spot. They have basically turned part of their basement into a hostel, where they have actual beds, tvs, and a full kitchen that we were welcome to use. So we settled in, showered up, and headed to the Laundromat to get a full set of clean clothes. After doing our laundry, we stopped by the grocery store to get some food to make for dinner as well as some stuff for breakfast.

We enjoyed some great pasta alfredo, with broccoli, mushrooms, and chicken. It was great to have what felt like a home cooked meal.

When we arrived here in the afternoon, there was also an eastbound cyclist here who had stayed last night and was going to ride to where we had come from late in the day today. We shared some good conversation and stories about what lies ahead for each of us. Probably the most interesting thing that we found out about the guy is that he is from Louisville…which is not that interesting in and of itself…however, when we found out that he was from Louisville, we asked if by chance he knew Kirk (the guy that we rode with for a few days at the beginning of our trip) and it turns out that he did. Pretty crazy to say the least!

Since being in Kansas, with fewer cities and flatter terrain, I have found myself with more time to think and process. I have thought quite a bit lately about what makes for a good story.

Easily the most influential (and best) book that I have read this past year was A Million Miles and a Thousand Years, by Donald Miller. It is a book that is pretty much about exactly that…what makes a good story and how can we then live that good story. so that book has really sent me down that path of thinking about that type of stuff.

I have gotten the “good story” type feeling from the number of people who are reading along with this trip on our blog. But what makes it a good story? I think there are many elements that go together to make it a good story…but one thing that is going to have to be present at some point in time is a desire to quit. And on many occasions that has been the case for us in the process of living out this story.

As I cycled along, I was thinking about this idea more. I thought about one of the other really “great” stories that I feel like I have lived with my life…spending a summer working at InPursuit summer camp. During my time there, and especially looking back on my time there, there was no doubt in my mind that I was living a good story. and there were definitely multiple times during that summer where if I was given an easy opportunity to simply quit…I am pretty sure that I would have taken it and ran.

Then I started thinking about it a little bit from a Biblical perspective. The best example that we have…Jesus…had a moment where (while he was living a pretty good story) he said, “Isn’t there some other way”…which at least in some sense sounds to me like a desire to quit.

Or take John the Baptist…also a guy who lived a pretty great story…there was a moment where he was in prison (which probably didn’t feel to him like a very good story) and he sends some of his disciples to ask Jesus if He was really the one or if they should expect someone else. And that may not sound on the surface like an attempt to quit, but I think that is exactly what it was…he was beginning to wonder if it was all worth it, and if not, he was ready to bail.

And one more…Peter…a guy who lived a good enough story to be the guy on whom the church would be built. He was interested enough in quitting this following Jesus thing that given the opportunity, he was willing to go as far as to deny that he even knew who Jesus was. Again, sounds to me like a desire to quit.

As I think and process this idea of living a good story, and what it takes to live a good story…I think I am realizing that if we are living a good story, there are going to be moments, and maybe even seasons, where we simply want to quit.
and the only way that we are going to end up living and completing a good story is if we flee the temptation to quit and keep pressing on towards the goal.

Day 27 : A Hot and Sunny Day of Cycling...

2010-06-29T11:46:00.000-07:00

From Eureka, KS to Newton, KS - ~ 78 miles

Time on bike: 8:04:06

Max Speed: 26.6 mph

Average Speed: 9.7 mph

We left the park and headed to a gas station to grab something for breakfast. We managed to find individual cereal bowls…which we have been craving. So we bought 2 for each of us and a half a gallon of milk, which we ate and drank most of.

We had a tough (thanks to the wind), but pretty uneventful ride for the morning. It was 35 miles for us to get to one of our notorious gas station/grocery store/restaurant. When we first got to town, it appeared that there was no longer a place for us to get food, which made us quite concerned to say the least. However, after asking someone in town, we found the gas station.

The morning heat was getting pretty rough by the time we arrived…it was especially tough on cailyn. So, we decided that we would hang out there for a couple of hours before getting back out in the heat.

We set out from there again at about 2:30. We had 38 miles to ride with absolutely no services or stops to get to where we were going for the night. Thankfully, the ride seemed to go pretty smoothly and the heat didn’t cause too much trouble. About 5 miles before we got to Newton, we saw a speck in our rearview mirror that seemed to be slowly approaching. As it grew a little closer, we recognized it as a familiar sight…it was another loaded cyclist. It also quickly became apparent to us that he was moving much quicker than us. We exchanged pleasantries as he passed as we all continued pushing to the finish.

Before much longer, we arrived in Newton. We had planned to just find a place to grab dinner on our way to the park where we would be camping for the night. As we were almost to the park, we came upon a dairy queen and decided that would suit us nicely for the evening. And as we pulled into the parking lot, we discovered that the cyclists that had passed us had also chosen dq for the night. We went in, ordered food, and sat down next to him to find out a little bit of his story. turns out he is a teacher (physical education) from Virginia…and the craziest thing that we found out is that it was his 15^th day of riding (it was our 27^th day of riding). He is pretty much the only person that we have encountered that is doing it faster than us, and this guy isn’t even close. He is averaging more than 100 miles per day. Absolutely crazy to say the least!! As a side note, he was in what appeared to be amazing shape.

After finishing our dairy queen, all three of us cycled a few more blocks to a rather large city park where we camped for the night. It was another hot night…the one saving grace, was that there was actually enough wind to be able to get a little bit of breeze going through the tent…which helped at least a little.

With only a couple of towns along the route today, and less interactions with people, we had a little more time to observe the sides of the road today…so we thought that we would share with you a few of the things that we cycled past today. Here’s a list: a wrench, needle nose pliers, a lock, a steer (he was on the wrong side of the fence), part of a door, and plumbing supplies.

I think it is also time for the long awaited…Brad and Cailyn’s rules for Driving Around Cyclists:

Rule #1: Get Over (Substantially)

If you are not able to get at least half a lanes width over when passing a cyclist, then wait. If it is possible, get completely over into the other lane. This may not seem necessary, but from a cyclists perspective, this is much appreciated.

Rule #2: Don’t Pass When Approaching a Corner

If you can’t see clearly around an upcoming corner and make sure that there is not oncoming traffic coming around the corner, don’t pass. Wait until the cyclists have gone far enough around the corner that you can see clearly.

Rule #3: Don’t Pass When Cresting a Hill

If you can’t see over an upcoming hill to make sure that there is not oncoming traffic, don’t pass. Wait until the cyclists have gotten far enough up the hill that you are able to see clearly past the hill and you know for sure that you have adequate space to pass.

Rule #4: Be patient

I cannot begin to tell you have many times we have almost seen head-on accidents or oncoming cars forced onto the shoulder because a car was passing us (giving us plenty of room) when they couldn’t see if there was oncoming traffic or not…only to have oncoming traffic show up and then force them to have to make a split second decision to avoid an accident.

Day 26 : Kansas, Oh Kansas...

2010-06-29T11:45:00.001-07:00

From Chanute, KS to Eureka, KS - ~ 70 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Story [in words]:

we enjoyed a great dinner last night at a mexican place in town with the people that cailyn used to work with. (one small correction....mark brought his wife, not his husband) thanks matt!! after dinner, we returned to the campground and got our tent set up for the night. after getting our tent set up, we noticed a nice looking older couple sitting in lawn chairs outside of their very nice camper. so we decided to journey over and chat a little. we had a great conversation with them about all kinds of different things. really nice folks to say the least! and a great experience in getting out of my comfort zone.

this morning we were tired. it was hard to get up and getting going for some reason. but by a little before 6, we were finally up and going. we packed up and quickly rode over to the walmart to pick up a couple of essentials that we were running low on. then we headed to the grain bin, a great little place for breakfast that we had learned about from one of the firemen when we stopped at the station last night. the breakfast did not disappoint, the community was great, and we had a great conversation with the lady at the table next to us. she even gave us her name and phone number in case we were even in town again and needed a good home cooked meal. people really are amazing with their hospitality. we finished our meal, paid, and got ready to get on the road. as we were about to jump on the bikes, this cute little 89 year old man walked around the corner, and just started talking our ears off. i am not sure of a lot of what he said...but i hope that it made his day to be able to sit and talk with us.

we finally got on the road at about 8:30. and i have to say, the morning ride was pretty average and uneventful. kansas has been fairly boring as far as the scenery goes, and we were out in the middle of nowhere, so we really didn't run into anyone. although, a little before noon, we did cross paths with an eastbound cyclist who we stopped and shared some good conversation with. we exchanged some tips about what was ahead and great places to stay and eat, and then we both got back on our way.

the eastbounder we met told us that there was a great little gas station/restaurant/grocery store just on the other side of toronto...so we decided we would stop there for a later lunch. it seemed like the place would never come...cailyn was especially ready for a break. but it finally did...and the cyclist was right...it was a great place. nothing terribly special...accept that the people were super hospitable. they had a cyclist log for us to sign and their name had something to do with lizards...so they gave us each a little toy lizard to take with us. as i was talking with the guy at the counter, he started into a story by saying, "back when i lived in fort wayne, indiana"...and i was like, "what, wait a minute...i grew us in fort wayne, indiana". and as if that was not weird enough, it turns out that he was a teacher and played organ at bethlehem lutheran school. so, we shared a few stories about fort wayne and he asked me some questions about what it was like now as he had moved away from there back in the late 70's. it really is a small world to say the least.

i had one particularly interesting and thought provoking conversation with this guy who had lived in fort wayne so long ago. i asked him if he was still involved in a lutheran church out here. to which he replied with something along the lines of..."you know how it is when you are lutheran...you learn to like it a certain way. and nothing out here really fits my needs." in the moment i just kind of nodded my head and let the comment go. but when we were back on the bikes and riding again, i began to replay that conversation in my head, and i began to think about what i said...or more importantly what i didn't say to him, and i was really kicking myself. i wish that i would have said something to him about the fact that being a part of a church is not about being a consumer and it is not about getting your needs met...it is about being part of a family and meeting the needs of others and then in the process we find that our needs get met. it is about being that change if it is not exactly what you want. the Bible is not a guide to help us find what we are looking for...it is a guide to show us how to act and live to bring those stories to life. it just seemed like this guy had gotten burned out...and i don't know what caused that...but i wonder if at least part of it was that he had the wrong attitude...the wrong perspective. i don't know for sure...but i do wish that i would have said at least a little more than what i did. because as i grow more and more in my faith, i have become increasingly aware that although we live in an incredibly consumeristic society, church is not about being a consumer.

we enjoyed our food, filled our waters, and were excited to get back on the road. we had about 19 miles to ride, and rumor had it that the city park we would be camping in had a pool that we would be able to swim in. we seemed to really just cruise through the last 19 miles. it is funny, because the people here in kansas seem to be proud of their "hills". they tell you that you are going to be climbing for the next 45 miles. and don't get me wrong...kansas is not flat like you might expect. there are hills and you are climbing, but they are just that...hills. it is really nothing at all. i feel like i could do these hills in my sleep. they are almost a little bit inviting so that we are not just cycling along on completely flat ground.

we got into eureka a little after 5 pm and quickly located the city park and pool. we asked if we would be able to swim and shower, and they said that we would be able to for free...but we would have to be quick, because they closed at 6. so we quickly got our clothes out and changed into our swimsuits and enjoyed some nice refreshing water. we cleaned up, and hopped back on the bikes and rode to the pizza hut that we had passed on the way in. we enjoyed a great taco pizza (made me think of you, mom)...some great conversation...and some relaxation in the air conditioning. after we finished our food, we headed back to the park and set up our tent for the night.

i can definitely tell that the story of kansas is going to be sun and wind. hopefully we can catch both at the right time. sure will make this state a whole lot easier.

Day 25 : Anybody Got an Extra Sail???

2010-06-23T20:27:00.000-07:00

From Pittsburgh, KS to Chanute, KS - ~ 60.2 miles

{note}
thanks to our friends justin and tracy, the story in numbers is back...they gave us the cycling computer off of his bike...

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 5:25:57
Max Speed: 26.8 mph
Average Speed: 11.1 mph

Story [in words]:

since we had ultra nice accommodations for yet another night, we decided to sleep in till 7 and grab some really good food at the free continental breakfast, before getting the bikes loaded up and heading back on the road. it was about 9 before we were out of the hotel.

as we came out of the hotel, i quickly noticed what i thought was a good sign. i headed over to a section of grass to see if i could confirm what i thought was the good news. i grabbed a few blades of grass, threw them up in the air, and sure enough...just as i had thought...the wind was coming straight out of the east. i felt like we couldn't get on the bikes soon enough...and if we would have had a sail, i would have thrown it up for sure. having the wind in your direction makes all the difference in the world. it is amazing what a new day brings.

we cycled with little effort as the wind blew us along from behind. although, we did have to go about 12-15 miles north today, so the wind did have it's drawbacks at times. at about 11:45, we were passed by a car out in the middle of what seemed to be nowhere...after passing us, it pulled onto the shoulder and driver rolled down the window, waiting for us to pull up next to him. it was a older looking gentlemen...his speech was a little hard to understand...but he was excited to tell us that there was a lutheran church just up the road that serves lunches on thursdays. we thought that sounded great...so we cycled on a couple of miles and found it just as he had said. a church with a full parking lot...we parked our bikes, and headed in.

it is always so funny to see the looks you get as you walk in. it is not one of shock or surprise really...since they are on this route, they are pretty used to seeing the cyclists...it is more one of excitement that you are there, and a desire to take care of you and make sure that you really enjoy their town. we quickly were engaged in some great conversations with people...then we grabbed some good food as well! they were even excited to give us a tour of the church...truly a small town community. they were just great people, though, a real bright spot in the middle of a bunch of farmland! it is so heart warming to be reminded of how good people are...we are created in the image of God...every single one of us, whether we realize it or not...and i am reminded of that at times like that.

we got back on the bikes and continued on towards chanute. today was the first day that we listen to headphones for a good portion of the day. cailyn started listening to the harry potter books on her ipod, and i was able to get espn radio reception on my phone pretty much all day, so i enjoyed some sports talk. it was the kind of day that just seemed very appropriate to just listen and ride...so we did, and it was quite enjoyable to say the least.

we are now sitting at a great little sub and yogurt shop in chanute. we are going to go and find our campground for the night and hopefully get cleaned up, before mark (cailyn's old boss), his husband, and two of the people she worked with meet us here for dinner. they are flying down in mark's personal private jet. it will be nice to have one more visit before we really head west for the next couple of weeks.

as a small sidenote...keep your eyes out in the next day or two...i am going to have a special section in a post entitled..."Cailyn and Brad's Tips for Driving Around Cyclists"...

Day 24 : State Number 5...Really???

2010-06-23T17:40:00.000-07:00

From Everton, MO to Pittsburgh, KS - ~59 miles

since we had such nice accommodations last nice, we stayed up a little later watching tv and whatnot, so we decided to sleep in just a little bit. so, the alarm went off at 6 am and we were on the bikes and headed out by about 7. as we got back to the route, we ran into a number of the guys from the adventure cycling association group that we have been riding in the same area of for the last few days.

the first 10-15 miles of the morning were still somewhat rolling, with a couple of decent hills to climb. then, things began to flattened out, however, the wind began to pick up as well, which as i have mentioned before, is not terribly fun. at about 22 miles for the morning, we got to make a turn to the north, which put the wind straight at out backs for the four mile ride into golden city.

golden city, is the home of cooky's cafe...which we had been hearing about for the last couple of days. they are known for their mile high pies. we rolled into town and quickly found cooky's. we went in and found a table, and a few minutes later, jerry...the 70 year old that has already ridden the southern tier and is now riding back to the west coast on the trans am...joined us at our table. we enjoyed sitting and getting to know a little more of jerry's story...his family and home life...while we also enjoyed some amazing pie. the rumors were definitely true about the pie...they must have had 25 types of pie or more! i had an amazing dutch cherry pie, and cailyn enjoyed a rhubarb pie.

we loaded our waters as full as we could get them, as we were going to have 33 miles to ride with no services of any kind. by about 11:30, we were back out in the heat and wind, headed for pittsburgh. we had heard that the winds are the biggest challenge in kansas, and as we drew closer to the kansas border, it seemed like the wind was getting stronger and stronger. needless to say, it made for a challenging afternoon ride. the only benefit of the wind, was that it kept us feeling a little cooler as there is not a bit of shade in the middle of all of these fields of corn, beans and hay.

due to the wind, it definitely took us a little longer than i anticipated to ride this afternoons 33 miles, but by about 3:30 we arrived at the comfort inn in pittsburgh, where we will be staying with justin and his wife tracy. right after we found the comfort inn and met up with tracy...drew woolery, who i had the pleasure of performing his wedding service right before we left on the tour, also met up with us. justin, cailyn and i showered up and then we all headed over to applebee's to share some food and stories. we had some great food and enjoyed catching up on stories from the tour thus far. it was especially great to be able to catch up with drew for a while. a special thanks to drew's mom, melissa for buying us our dinner. also, a big thank you to mike and kem selman for the gift to help us along on our journey. it is a true blessing to have so many people following along with us on the blog and helping us and encouraging us in so many ways. so to all of you that are reading along, thanks!

after finishing our dinner, we returned to our hotel room to watch so you think you can dance...a show that we have enjoyed watching with justin and tracy for quite some time. it was a great blast from the past! now we are enjoying a very nice hotel room and a little more time hanging out with our great friends before we head back out on the road in the morning to begin to conquer kansas.

oh, and speaking of kansas, it is crazy that we are into our 5th state of the trip. it seems like it was just yesterday that we entered into missouri. it is going to be interesting to see what kansas brings as far as the cycling is concerned. it is going to be all about the wind...hopefully we can find some moments where the winds are down...or even better, maybe we can find a few moments where the winds are behind us. also, we are looking forward to what we have heard about kansas being the friendliest state.

Day 23 : A Hunting Preserve???

2010-06-23T14:27:00.001-07:00

From Marshfield, MO to Everton, MO - ~ 49 miles

what a great morning...we didn't even get out of bed until 7:30. then we enjoyed an amazing breakfast of quiche, sausage, bagels, fresh fruit and coffee. simply another amazing meal! we stuck around for a little while after breakfast to finish up blogging and to enjoy the nice home and low humidity for a little longer.

we returned to the dairy queen parking lot where dave had picked us up last night. we got our gear all loaded back up and were ready to get back on the road just before noon. we rode just a couple of miles down the road when cailyn said, "i can hear my tire". we stopped to figure out what was going on, and it turns out that he front tire was rubbing on her front brake cable. so, we took a look at things, and decided that it would be best to reroute the brake cable. so we ran the cable a different direction, got everything back in place and working properly, and were on the road for good at about 12:30.

dave had told us that there was a great coffee shop in fair grove, which was about 15 miles into our ride. after stopping at the gas station in town to ask for directions, we were able to find the coffee shop. and man were we glad we found it...it was a really well done coffee shop. really hard to believe they are able to keep it open in such a small town. they told us that they get quite a bit of business coming out from springfield. we enjoyed some mimosa's and some great conversation, got our water bottles filled, and then got back on the road.

about 2 or 3 pm we passed another pretty major milestone on our tour. we came upon missouri highway 13, which runs about 2 blocks from our house in warrensburg. it felt quite close to home. and now we are also officially cycling west of home. in some senses it doesn't seem like a big deal...in another sense, it seems like a real monumental milestone as we really are west of home.

we continued on into the town of walnut grove, where we found another one of our favorite locations on the tour. a gas station/convenience store where they make sandwiches. we each ordered roast beef sandwiches with our choice of toppings. we loaded more ice into our water bottles and then got back on the road with about 22 miles left to ride.

this morning before we left dave's house, i looked at the maps and discovered that there was a town just 7 miles past where we were originally planning on stopping for the night, that had a hunting preserve listed with camping available. we weren't really sure what that meant, so i decided i would give them a call and see what it was about. they said they camping was free and they also had showers, and so we decided that would be a great option for tonight...free and showers is a great combo! as we got into everton, we followed the signs to the hunting preserve...when we finally got down the gravel road and to the preserve, it was a beautiful looking place. a quail and pheasant place...however we weren't sure where we were supposed to go. we parked our bikes outside what looked to be an out building and began walking towards the house. as we headed that direction, a guy came out of the house towards us. we had called ahead and told them we were coming and were interested in camping...as he came up to us, he immediately told us that it was too hot to be riding bikes across the country and that we were crazy. turns out they have a lodge here as well, and they allow cyclists to stay for $20 a person. so he asked, "are you sure that you don't want to stay inside in the air conditioning?" to which we said, "we just don't have the budget to do that." ultimately, the guy told us, "here's the deal...i've got these cots that you can put out inside and sleep on and i will charge you $10 total for the 3 of you. so, we are "camped" inside of what amounts to an entire house, all to ourselves for $!0. we are sitting, getting ready to go to bed, watching the college baseball world series.

man am i glad that we made the trek down the mile of so of gravel road!! this is quite the deal! it is just amazing what people offer you and what you come across out here!

Day 22 : An Amazing Oasis on the Transam...

2010-06-22T07:02:00.000-07:00

From Houston, MO to Marshfield, MO - ~ 64 miles

we got up early a headed out on the road in another attempt to beat the heat. we rode about 38 miles into the town of hartville, mo, which was a pretty easy and enjoyable ride. when we got to hartville, we found a great little diner with another cyclists welcome sign outside. we headed in to find, what i assume was the owner who also was the waitress, who was just one of the sweetest ladies we have encountered on the trail. she took amazing care of us, including taking all of our water bottles back into the kitchen and filling them with ice and water.

as we were just about ready to leave the restaurant, there was a blind woman who came in and sat at the table next to us. she was quite the talker...turns out that 28 years ago she lost both her child and her eyesight in the process of having a c-section. the amazing part is that she told us that it was through that whole experience that she came to believe in God and to believe that He was the one in control of what was happening to her.

after finishing our conversation with the blind lady, we took our full water bottles and got back out on the bikes. we had 27 miles, all without services, to get to marshfield. it was a rather easy ride all things considered...a few decent climbs, but nothing like the few days prior. we made it into marshfield around 3 pm, and found ourselves a nice spot at the dairy queen to get some ice cream to end our day or riding, and to wait for my friend, dave embree to come and pick us up.

dave is the campus minister at missouri state in springfield, which is about 25 miles from marshfield, and he offered to bring a van and trailer down, pick us and our bikes up, and take us to his house for the night for some air conditioning, a bed, and a chance to do some laundry.

so, shortly after getting our ice cream, he met us and picked us up and brought us to his house. turns out, the thing we didn't know, is that he also has a swimming pool in the back yard. so, we got some laundry started and then quickly got into our swimsuits and jumped into the pool. after cooling down, we spent some time blogging and chatting to people on the phone, before grabbing a shower, and then joining dave and his wife joyce for dinner. and man was dinner amazing...it was by far the best meal that we have had on the trail. fajitas, fresh salad, fresh fruit and homemade ice cream. quite the dinner to say the least. and great conversation to boot.

tomorrow we will sleep in and enjoy the bed and air conditioning...hopefully we will be back to the trail by 10 or 11. we are only planning on riding about 42 miles tomorrow, so a late start shouldn't be much of a problem at all. needless to say, this has been an amazing oasis. it continued to be humbled, amazed, and taught by the amazing hospitality that we have experienced as we have been on this trip. people have simply continued to amazing me! i hope that when this is all over, i can be more like these people that we have encountered.

Day 21 : A Short Day to Recover...

2010-06-22T06:43:00.000-07:00

From Eminence, MO to Houston, MO - ~ 41 miles

in an attempt to beat the heat, we got up early and were on the bikes by 6 am to try to save ourselves from dying of exhaustion. we stopped in town to grab some breakfast (another fairly unhealthy gas station breakfast)...and then we were back on the road trying to beat the heat.

the first 7 miles out of eminence were quite similar to yesterday...some pretty steep climbs and the legs were really screaming as we began. thankfully, about 7 miles in, the ground started to even out a bit, and the riding got substantially easier. about that time, we got passed by a couple of riders without gear...turns out they were part of the adventure cycling association supported group ride. there are 14 of them riding along with a support van that carries all of their gear. the most encouraging part is that we found out that they have been riding 9 days longer than we have...which made us feel really good about the number of miles we have covered thus far.

we also came across another guy in the adventure cycling association group who made us realize that what we are doing is really nothing that impressive. this guy is 70 years old...started riding in march in california...rode with another aca group across the united states on the southern tier route...he then rode up the coast and joined the transam group riding east to west. he will be riding for a total of 5 months...at the age of 70...that is just crazy.

we finished our ride into houston, and found our camping spot at the local city park. it seemed like a very nice park..during the day that is. turns out that we were close to a fairly busy road, there were obnoxious teenagers screwing around at about 10pm, and the pavilion we were sleeping close to had lights on it that stayed on the entire night. add to all that, the fact that the humidity was super super high, and the sleeping was not terribly enjoyable.

Day 20 : A Rough Day With a Beautiful Ending...

2010-06-21T16:05:00.000-07:00

From Johnson Shut-ins State Park to Eminence, MO - ~55 miles

our start to the day was delayed again today because of the threat of rain. it seemed to be threatening a serious storm just before we got up, however it seemed to blow over. so before too long, we got things loaded up and got out on the road.

we had a great 10 mile ride into a little town called centerville where we found a great ma and pa joint where we were able to get some breakfast. we went in, sat down, and ordered some food...and before too long the one other guy in the place started to join in on our conversation from his table a short distance away. so we invited him to come over and sit with us. his name was dave, he lives in st. louis but has a little cabin for the weekends in centerville. he was full of great stories about all kinds of different things. it was a great way to start a morning.

we headed out from centervill and had another great 15 miles of riding to get us to a place called ellington. we got some food and drinks in ellington because it was going to be 27 miles without services to get us into eminence. as we left ellington, the riding got significantly tougher...the hills started coming, the temperature went up, and about 10 miles outside of eminence, we began to run out of water. it seemed as though we were literally limping into eminence. i was to the point where i was hoping that at the bottom of every hill we would find eminence. unfortunately, there were a lot of hills that did not have eminence at the bottom of them.

by the time we got to eminence, justin and i were both feeling pretty dehydrated...almost to the point of being delirious. we cycled up to another home down diner type of a place, and headed inside. the waitress must have thought we looked like we were about to die...she came over and asked if we wanted something to drink and so we promptly each ordered a water a mountain dew. it took us a good 10 minutes of just sitting there and drinking before we were even able to order food. once we finally ordered some food, a guy walked in from the bed and breakfast across the street. turns out he was another cyclist on the transamerica...but he had come down with shingles and was going to have to call it quits for his tour in eminence. he was an older guy, and i was just super impressed that he had made it that far. it was sad to see him have to shut it down...but in some senses, i think he was pretty excited to see his wife.

we ate our food and enjoyed it greatly. after we got ourselves feeling better, we headed down the street to the local grocery store to grab ourselves some hot dogs, buns and baked beans to cook over the fire for dinner. from there, we headed down the road about 1/2 a mile to the jack's fork campground that sat right on the jack's fork river. we asked the lady at the office if she could get us a site right down close to the river, and sure enough, they got us a site about 40 yards from the river. we got our tents set up and quickly got our swimming suits on and headed to the river to swim for a good solid hour in some very cold but very refreshing water.

we finished the night by making a fire and cooking hot dogs and beans over an open fire. between the great river swim and the cooking over the open fire, it was a great ending to a quite difficult day.

Day 19 : A Justin Kind of a Day...(he wanted me to call it that)

2010-06-21T16:00:00.000-07:00

From Chester, IL to Johnson Shut-ins State Park - ~80 miles

we awoke early, excited to make it to our fourth state of the trip. we took a few pictures of the bulls and then hoped on the bikes, ready to ride. we quickly got to the mississippi river and crossed into missouri. (honestly, i am not sure that i really ever thought we would make it this far) we had a nice, easy 10 miles to start the day as we continued through the valley.

and then things changed...the next 35 miles as we rode to where we were going to meet justin and tracy were brutal to say the least. looking back on it, i am not exactly sure what made them so tough. we were climbing some really serious inclines again for the first time in a number of days, it started to get pretty hot, the winds were up, we started to run short on water, and we probably hadn't eaten as much as we should have. some combination of all of that made it a rough morning.

nevertheless, though a little later than scheduled, we made it to farmington to meet our friends. we enjoyed a excellent pizza at the heart of town at a place called bob-a-rino's pizza. after a couple of hours of eating, drinking, resting and having some great conversations, we got back on the bikes, along with justin, to ride another 35 miles for the day.

we rode about an hour or so, and the clouds started to roll in again...and as the rain started to spit we ducked into the closest driveway to find a house with a good sized porch on the front. we put our bikes on the porch and knocked on the door to see if we could wait the storm out there. however, no one answered the door, so we just waited on the porch and fortunately it only took 20-30 minutes for the storm to pass and we were back out on the road again.

we rode another 25 miles or so to finish up the day, and they were about as opposite from the morning miles as they possibly could have been. they felt largely downhill and seemed to go by easily. maybe it was the freshness and newness of having justin with us. it was really fun to have him along with us kind of trying to figure out the ropes as he began his adventure with us.

we arrived at johnson shut-ins state park to find some very nice rangers who gave us a very discounted price ($6 - cheapest state park on our trip thus far) and as we got into the campground, we found it to be by far the nicest campground that we have stayed in to date! turns out, they used to pump water up to the top of this mountain by the park during the night, and then during the day the water would run down producing energy. and a few years back, in the middle of the night, the levee at the top broke and there was a huge rush of water that basically wiped a bunch of the park out, and i guess that much of the park just opened back up earlier this year.

regardless, they get the award thus far for the nicest state park to camp in for sure! i hope that they are able to continue to maintain it and take pride in it...because it was nice enough that they should!

Day 18 : Free Dessert!!!

2010-06-18T11:43:00.001-07:00

From Ferne Clyffe State Park (Goreville, IL) to Chester, IL - ~66 miles

we thoroughly enjoyed our night with our english friends. we were planning on getting up early and getting the miles knocked out, however, shortly before the alarm was supposed to go off, we woke up to a rather large thunderstorm. so...we when the alarm went off, we turned it off and kept sleeping for a bit while the storm passed. not too much after that, there was a second storm cell that came through, so we continued to wait things out.

we finally got things packed up inside the tent, got out of the tent, went through most of our "normal" morning routine and were about to take down the tent when another storm rolled through. so yet again, we got back in the tent and continued to wait. again, the storm passed, and we finally were able to get the tent down and finish packing up.

it was pushing 9 am before we were able to pull away from the park. we headed, along with our new friends, into town to find a place to grab breakfast. we were cycling down the main drag of town when we saw a nice looking local joint with a sign out front that said, "cyclists welcome". generally speaking, if something says cyclists welcome, it is a good thing. and this was certainly no exception. we went inside to find a very cute place, complete with pictures of cyclist underneath the plexiglass on the top of the tables. we ordered a pretty standard breakfast, ate it, and then the waiter came and asked us if we needed anything else. we said, "no, i think just a check will do it." to which he said, "well, you get a free dessert." mind you, this was 10 am. so just to clarify we asked him if it was because we were cyclists that we got this free dessert, and he said yes, it was because we were cyclists. well, we couldn't pass up the opportunity for free dessert, so we topped our breakfasts off with a piece of homemade pie! not sure if it was the best for cycling, but it sure was good!

it was now pushing 10:30 am and we were finally getting on the bikes. we got about 5 miles of riding in when some serious clouds began to blow in from our right. they were some of the craziest looking clouds i have ever seen. it was very obvious we were in for yet some more rain. luckily, we happen on to a gas station that had shut down. we rolled under their front porch awning and waited as the clouds moved closer. and sure enough, a few minutes later it began to rain and before long it was absolutely pouring. we were thankful...so thankful to have found a great piece of shelter.

we finally got out on the road for good at about 12:30 pm. after the last storm passed on through, the sun came out and it became a very nice day to be riding. we rode 30 or so miles into carbondale with our english friends. when we got to carbondale, they decided they would stay there for the rest of the day to do some interneting and whatnot. we decided that we wanted to push on to chester. so, we stopped at a grocery store in carbondale and picked up some fresh fruit that we had been craving and then got back on the road. we had noticed in the morning that the book we have been using as a secondary resource listed a shortcut to go from carbondale to chester...it said that it was shorter and would avoid some hills, which both sounded great. shortcut it was then.

and it was quite nice to say the least. the ground was fairly flat as we left carbondale. and then, about 25 miles outside of chester, we dropped down into the mississippi river valley and the ground became almost completely flat for as long as we could see. we were so excited about it that we rode along at 13-14 mph for the next two hours. however, as always seems to be the case, we had to climb to get into chester. it never fails, wherever we decide to stay, we always have to climb to get there.

when we finally got into chester, we stopped at this little park at the center of town where there were these really cool murals painted of popeye and the rest of the popeye characters, because chester is the home of the creator of popeye. we then cycled down the main drag a little bit to find the fraternal order of eagles which was listed on our maps as a place that houses cyclists.

we really had no idea what the fraternal order of eagles was or what we were getting ourselves into...and let me tell you, we were still not sure as we rolled up. there were some motorcycles and a bunch of big trucks, and a couple of people drinking and smoking outside. we parked our bikes and headed in the front door...and i was kind of hoping we would find a hostess or front desk or something of that sort. however, there was none of that...instead, we saw to our right an arcade and to our left a full out country bar with a guy with long hair singing live music off of a karaoke machine. we walked around the bar for a minute before a waitress finally came up to us and said, "you guys want to stay here tonight?" we were still thinking...i'm not sure if we really do want to stay here...but we replied to her saying, "yes". she told us to roll our bikes around to the back and she would meet us and show us around. as we rolled our bikes to the back, we discovered that there was more to the fraternal order of eagles. behind the building there were two sand volleyball courts with what looked like a league going on...and then next to those, there were people setting up for a rodeo that was going to be going on the next night...complete with a dozen or so bulls.

she pointed us to a little shack looking building, so we headed down there to discover that there were 9 bunks and air conditioning inside the building. it was nothing fancy, but a nice place to crash for sure. they also had a little shower room that was also nothing special, but a great place to get at least a little cleaner.

i don't know what all fraternal order of the eagles are like, but this one was certainly a great place to end a day of riding!

tomorrow we will cross into our home state...we will cross the mississippi river first thing in the morning and then ride to farmington, mo where our friend justin schroeder will meet us to ride through missouri.

Day 17 : An English Kind of a Day...

2010-06-15T16:29:00.000-07:00

From Cave in Rock State Park, IL to Ferne Clyffe State Park (just outside of Goreville, IL) - ~60 miles

i have to be honest, it was pretty rough getting out of bed and getting going this morning. it had been so nice to be with mom and dad, to be off the bikes for a day, and to be staying in the luxury accomodations that we had been in for the last two nights. needless to say, we hit the snooze on the alarm a few more time than usual. but by a little before 6 we were out of bed and by 6:45 we had the bikes loaded and were back out on the road.

we rode about 10 miles into elizabethtown where we met mom and dad at a little ma and pa restaurant for breakfast. we had a great breakfast with them before saying goodbye and getting back out on the road for good. just before we left the restaurant, we ran into a couple that appeared to be cyclists. and so as we were leaving, we asked them if they were cycling the transam and they said, "well, kind of". we inquired as to what exactly that meant, and we found out that they are from england, they started cycling 10 weeks ago in orlando, cycled up the coast and joined the transam, they will ride the transam to missoula, mt, and there they will diverge from the route and head to calgary where they have a son.

the english blokes (their word), left the restaurant just a minute or two before us. not too far up the road, we found them stopped on the side of the road and there were 3 cyclists stopped on the other side of the road. they were what appeared to be a father, son and daughter. they have been riding across the country in 3 week increments over the last 3 years.

we cycled with the english blokes out in the distance for the next stretch on the maps, and just before we were supposed to turn, we were passed by two cyclists. when we got up to our turn, the two guys that passed us, the two english blokes, and a support car from the two guys was waiting there. turns out, the two guys that passed us were with a third guy in the car and he was giving them support (food and water). we all pulled alongside the car and had some conversation and shared a few stories, while the guy in the car filled all of our waters for us. it was quite a nice little blessing! and it was great fun to have that may cyclists, doing the same thing, all together at one place!

after we left our mass of cyclists, we rode along with the english blokes for pretty much the rest of the day. we stopped for "lunch" at around 2 pm at a beautiful country church that had some very inviting benches underneath a great shade tree. we had our lunch and rested a bit and were just about ready to get back on the bikes when a nice older lady pulled into the parking lot. she parked right next to us and got out and asked us if we wanted to come into the air conditioning and get a glass of ice water. we said that would be great (and i am pretty sure the ladies were excited about using the restroom), so we went in and the air conditioning was definitely working...she filled our bottles with ice and water, and we stood in the kitchen and had some great conversation with her. her name was patsy curly...and she was a wonderful little find in the middle of a hot june day.

we decided that all four of us would cycle here to ferne clyffe and share a campsite. so, as we got to the turn for the park, the english couple headed to the park because they had food with them and we turned and headed into goreville because we had heard from multiple people that there was a restaurant in town with amazing ribs. we found a place to eat, but i think that as it turns out, i don't think that we found the place with the great ribs. but nonetheless, it was pretty good food!

we enjoyed our food, and then hoped back on the bikes and cycled the mile or so into the park to find our english friends and our campsite for the night. so, we are here with them for the night, sharing a campground and some lovely conversation. they are great people...and amazing conversationalists. i kind of hate to see us part ways, but i think that we will probably cycle on past them tomorrow.

today was probably the best/easiest day of cycling we have had thus far. we are not sure if it was because of the off day, a slightly different terrain, or a little bit lesser number of miles. whatever it was, it was a great day of cycling. i am kind of anxious to see how the legs feel tomorrow. hopefully it will continue to be great, pain free cycling.

Day 16 : Some Pictures So Far...

2010-06-15T15:45:00.000-07:00

From Cave in Rock State Park, IL to Cave in Rock State Park, IL - 0 miles

since today was our first off day...and since we have plenty of internet and power, i thought i would get some pictures posted from the last number of days. here is an explanation of the pictures.

top left: cailyn and her mom in the very nice room that we stayed in last night and will stay in tonight as well.

top right: us with the couple we met here last night that is riding to maine.

second row left: a tugboat with a load of coal crossing in front of us on the ohio river.

second row right: cailyn on the ferry as we cross the ohio river.

third row left: me with the bikes on the ferry as we cross thr ohio river.

third row right: the dad and four kids that are riding on the two tandems and one single bike.

bottom left: cailyn riding along.

bottom right: our tent that we have called home many times over the last two and a half weeks.

today has been great being with mom and dad and not cycling. although, i must say, my legs are more sore today i think than they have been the entire trip. i guess they just haven't been stretched back out. so i am a little nervous to see how they are going to feel when we get back on the bikes tomorrow.

this afternoon we (in dad's truck) crossed back over the river on the ferry and went back to the last town that we passed through. turns out it is an amish influenced town and we drove around a little and then found a great placed called the front porch to eat lunch/dinner. it was good food for sure. as we were finishing eating, we noticed that it was starting to look like a big storm was rolling in, which wouldn't have been a big deal, accept that we had washed our clothes in the tub and had them hanging out on the balcony drying. so we quickly headed back towards home, and just before we got back to the ferry it started to pour. to the point where there were whitecaps on the river going upstream. needless to say, the ferry was not running for about 10 minutes while the heart of the storm passed by. eventually though, the worst of the storm was over and they loaded us on the ferry. the crossing was still awfully choppy...to the point where there were a few waves the came up and over the front of the ferry.

the day off has also given us a chance to reanalyze the maps to see where we stand with the entirety of our trip. it looks like if we are able to average 60 miles a day for the rest of our trips we will be able to get to yellowstone with a couple of days to spare. so we are thinking barring mechanical or medical issues, we whould easily make yellowstone because 60 miles a day shouldn't be a problem at all. and we may end up going a little past yellowstone, it just depends on how things come along over the next few weeks. or, we may also consider just hanging out for our final few days around yellowstone and just see more of the park. we will see.

tomorrow it will be back on the bikes bright and early in the morning (because it is supposed to be hot and sunny again), and we should be through illinois and into missouri by friday and then our good friend justin schroeder will come and meet us on saturday to start riding across missouri. it will be really fun to have some additional company and to be able to share with him what we have been learning and experiencing for the last 3 weeks.

oh, and dad just reminded me, when we got back from our crazy ferry ride, we pulled into the parking lot and there was a female wild turkey with a few really cute, really young babies following behind it. cute little things for sure!

Day 15 : A Stinky Kind of a Day...

2010-06-15T09:05:00.000-07:00

From Utica, KY to Cave in Rock State Park, IL - ~82 miles

last night when we arrived in utica, we realized that we had crossed into the central time zone…we were glad to take in our extra hour of sleep. however, we did decide that being in a new time zone would give us light earlier in the day and so we would try to get out on the road even earlier to try to avoid some of the heat. so we were on the road by a little before 6 am, trying to beat the heat. we quickly knocked off 25 miles before the heat got up too high, and we decided we would stop at the sebree dairy bar for a quick breakfast. they had great biscuits and gravy…and interestingly, they were located on highway 41 which is the same highway that runs through kentland, where cailyn is from. we ate quick and tried to get back out on the road before it got any hotter.

we continued into dixon, where we stopped and got some powerade and filled our bottles up with ice, and then on into clay, where we stopped at a great little deli/diner and eat had a chicken salad sandwich and got our camelpacks willed with ice again, because it was going to be 22 miles from clay before we got to our next services. while we were in clay, cailyn had a great conversation with a cute, seemingly lonely, gentlemen who was leaving the restaurant as we were coming in. it is those types of interactions that really make this trip great!

we got back out on the road a little before two, and it was most definitely hot. as we began to ride, we noticed that there were clouds building out in front of us a little ways. often we are hoping to avoid any rain that we can, but today we were just hoping that we could get to the clouds and rain, because the thought of it raining on us sounded like a wonderful thing to say the least. we never really caught up with the rain, but we did catch up with the clouds and with a fair amount of wet pavement that indicated that it had rained just out ahead of us. and let me just say, those clouds were about the biggest help we could have gotten today. it helped to keep the temperatures down at least a little and they also gave us some shelter from the sun, which was much needed as we are both suffering from some sun poisoning.

as a side note, and in reference to the title for the day…today has been an incredibly smelly day. during the morning hours, we rode passed a bunch of huge chicken farms, which smelled awful to say the least. and if you have not had that experience before, just consider yourself lucky. and then in the afternoon, we went passed a number of large cattle operations where the cattle were just laying 6 inches deep in their own “stuff”…which as you can also imagine, made for quite the smell. all in all, a pretty stinky type of a day.

we made one final stop in marion to get a couple of power bars to give us the needed energy to make the final 12 mile push to get to the ohio river to take the ferry across to Cave in Rock State Park where we would be meeting mom and dad. we started in on our last 12 miles and watched as the miles counted up (we have noticed that in kentucky they seem to do some unique numbering of miles on their county roads. there doesn’t always seem to be a method to the madness…they appear to usually be counting either up or down from some intersection. and in this case, they were counting up from the intersection that we had been at in marion.). so, as the miles passed by, we got closer to the ferry and to our first rest day of the trip. we quickly reached the ferry and rolled right on to a mostly loaded boat. we parked our bikes on the side of the ferry and watched as a massive barge of coal passed in front of us. before long, we were off across the river, and then it was back on the bikes to roll off the other side (and surprisingly, it was free to cross over on the ferry, which I couldn’t believe).

we had just another ½ mile or so to get into the state park, with one last big hill to get us up to the lodge. we arrived at the lodge and called mom and dad to discover that they were still about 30 minutes away, so we were able to check in, get the bikes settled in, and get showered up before they arrived. the place that we are staying here is super nice, much nicer than any of us expected, and certainly the nicest accommodations of our trip. thanks mom and dad!

we headed up to the lodge for dinner and about half way through our meal, there were some other people that walked in and sat a couple of tables down from us that looked like cyclists. then when we saw that they had a map out on the table and a drysack along side it, we were pretty positive they were cyclists as well. so as we finished our meal, i walked over and asked them if they were cyclists as well, and sure enough they were. it turns out they are riding from memphis to maine, using two of the other adventure cycling association routes, and this is the one location on our two routes where our paths intersect. just so happens we were both at the right place at the right time. they had been living in memphis this past year, but are originally from maine and have a home in maine, and so they are cycling back home. they both had great, what I would assume are, maine accents. they seemed like a really great couple. i was telling mom as we walked back to our room, there is something really cool about meeting people that are also doing such a unique thing. no matter how different we may typically be from them, we can now almost always be great friends, simply because of the uniqueness of what we are doing. i think there is something there to be learned about loving others and about being friends with people as Christ would have been with others. i guess it is really about seeing the uniquenesses instead of the differences.

well, it is nice to know that we will not be cycling tomorrow. that we will just get to relax, hang out with the family, and let the legs and skin rest. it is much needed to say the least! it will be nice!

Day 14 : Some Awesome Company...

2010-06-15T08:53:00.000-07:00

From Sonora, KY to Utica, KY - ~92 miles

we awoke this morning from a very very muggy night of attempting to sleep, at 5 am. we had the bikes loaded, a breakfast of muffins leftover from yesterday in our stomachs, and were out on the road by 6:20 am. we really wanted to be on the road early since yesterday was hot and windy. the best way to try to remedy both of those things is to get out early and get the miles logged.

the beginning of our ride was awesome! we logged miles super fast, and we didn’t see our first car (in either direction) until almost an hour into our ride. we quickly knocked out our first 26 miles, and decided to stop for an early “lunch” (it was about 9:30 am) of sandwiches. we scarfed our sandwiches and then quickly got back on the bikes to try to cover the miles while it was still fairly cool. however, it wasn’t much longer and the heat was up, however the wind was not as bad as it was yesterday.

the day moved along pretty normally, with the exception of the heat. we decided to take a break from the heat and get some much needed calories into our system at a little ma and pa restaurant just outside of fordsville, ky. it was much like all the other ma and pa restaurants in small town america. lots of local folks, local service, and greasy food.

we ordered a large pizza, an order of breadsticks, and some sodas…which hit the spot for sure. and let me just say, we were not in any hurry at all to get out of the air conditioning and back onto the bikes. so after we finished our food, we just kind of relaxed in hopes that it would get cooler. in the meantime, we struck up a conversation with the two guys sitting at the booth behind us. a father and son, who could not have hidden the fact that they were father and son if the world depended on it.

they were incredibly nice and very interested in our trip…what we were doing and where we were going. we told them that we were trying to make it 30 more miles today, in order to leave us 82 for tomorrow so that we could meet cailyn’s parents at Cave in Rock State Park. at that point, the guy just up and offered to put us and our bikes in his truck and drive us to Cave in Rock. i believe his words were, “it should only take us two and a half hours”. and as tempting as it was, we said that we should probably stick with riding…it kind of felt like cheating. then he said, “well I could take you as far as utica.” (where we are staying tonight) but again, we really appreciated the offer, but felt like we should just ride the miles. the guy was just amazingly nice, and it was apparent that he genuinely cared about us and was interested in helping us.

we chatted a little longer, and then they said that they needed to get going to make it back for church. they went up to the register, paid, and hit the road. we decided it was time to fill our waters, pay for our food, and get on the road as well. cailyn went to get started on the waters, while i went to pay for the food…however, when i got to the register, our waitress informed me that the guy that had been at the booth behind us had paid for our food. man…people are amazing…it may seem like there are no good people left in this world…but that is simply not true. a complete stranger just moments before, and he paid for our food!

i think the biggest thing that I have learned and been challenged by to this point in this trip is generosity. i don’t feel like i am always the most generous person, and to have people like this guy and my friend pervis, and the guy that gave us a ride when we broke down, be so generous…it is working on me in a great way i think.

so, we got our waters filled and got ready to tackle the last 30 miles for the day in what was still an absolutely blistering heat. before we got out of the parking lot, though, a truck pulled in with two older guys in it, who I wasn’t sure if they were smoking their cigarettes or eating them, and began to ask us questions about our bikes. they just seemed to be astonished by the way that they worked. and actually, for whatever reason, we seemed to get a lot of interest in our bikes and their uniqueness today.

after talking to them for a few minutes, we finally got back on the road. we actually were able to finish the last 30 miles without too much trouble, although we did have to stop again for more gatorade. (it was probably our third gatorade stop of the day) i just have to say, if you have stock in gatorade, we did our part today to pay for your retirement. we just couldn’t get enough gatorade today!

from the beginning of the day, we were planning on getting to utica, ky because we had heard from another cyclist that they had a nice fire station that hosts cyclists. as we rolled into town, we immediately noticed what looked like a fire house, but it looked brand new, to the point where it may not even be open yet. so we went to the gas station across the street to see if they knew anything about it. they suggested we ride over to the fire house and just see if there was anyone here (which we didn’t think there was anyone, because there weren’t any cars). however, as we rolled up to the building, we could see people inside. next thing we know, the front door pops open, and a young girl, maybe 11 or 12, says come on in. we wheel our bikes inside, to find that there are 5 other cyclists here for the night. a family…well, part of a family. it is a family with 9 kids. 4 of the children and the dad are doing this trip. and get this, they are riding a recumbent tandem, a regular tandem, and one singular bike. they seem like an amazing family. this is like their 32^nd day of their tour…the same distance that we have gone in 14. but they are making it one day at a time. it was awesome to be here with them tonight! there is something so cool about watching large families interact!

tomorrow we will shoot for 82 miles…hopefully as quickly as possible…which should be aided by our excitement about seeing mom and dad and also about having our first rest day of the trip. man is it going to be nice to let the legs rest for a day!

Day 13 : You Ate What...

2010-06-15T08:52:00.000-07:00

From Springfield, KY to Sonora KY - ~77 miles

we had planned to get up and out early, but when our alarm went off, there was a substantial amount of rain hitting our tent. so we decided that we would sleep a little longer while we waited for the rain to subside. we finally got up at about 6:45 and got the tent packed up. we quickly headed over to the grocery store across the street…got some muffins, bananas, and Gatorade…ate some breakfast and then got on the road.

we knocked out about 25 miles without too much trouble and then decided to stop for a late breakfast/early lunch. we found a place called huddle house, which was like a waffle house…and we ate more food than two normal human beings should really ever eat. and the crazy part, is that what we ordered was one menu item that we shared…i can’t imagine one person eating it. we ate 3 eggs, loaded hashbrowns, bacon, sausage, country fried steak with gravy, biscuits and gravy, grits, toast, and a waffle. needless to say, when we got back on the bikes, we weren’t in the best of shape for riding.

we stopped mid-afternoon to get some ice in our waters and to grab a cold treat as we were getting pretty hot. after a short stop at a gas station convenience store, we got our waters loaded with ice and got ready to get back on the bikes. as we were just about ready to leave the parking lot, two guys in a truck swung in to the parking lot just to see where we were headed. they asked us about where we had been, where we were going, and gave us some positive insight into where we were hoping to camp for the night. they then told us they were off to see if they could pull a catfish out of a log (otherwise known as noodling…catching a catfish with your bare hand). i guess that is what they do in these parts for some saturday afternoon fun.

we decided that we would try to make it to sonora, ky for the evening and see if we could find someone there that would allow us to put up a tent. just before we got into sonora, we pasted over interstate 65 which seemed like the closest to home that we had been, as interstate 65 goes through lafayette, in which is where purdue is where we both went to college.

as we rolled through sonora we were looking for someone to ask about camping…and as we were just about what looked like through the town, we saw a woman out walking in front of her house. so we rolled up and asked her if she knew of any place in town where cyclist can put up a tent. she said that sometimes people camp behind the church that was next door to her house. she told us to pull into her driveway and she would go inside and call the pastor and see if it was alright if we stayed there for the night. she came out a few moments later and said that it would be just fine if we stayed there…and then she said that we should come back over to her house and take a shower at her place. so we quickly took our bikes over behind the church, grabbed our clothes, and came back over to her house to take a shower. we took turns taking showers and talking to the woman. She was super nice…great to talk to. she lived alone, but her daughter, son-in-law and 2 of her grandchildren were coming over before too long. after we finished our showers, she insisted that we also wash our clothes, so we were able to get all of our clothes washed as well! man, what an amazing blessing that lady was.

after a little more time spent with her, we went back over to the church, got our tent set up, cycled back up to the gas station to grab some subway, came back and quickly ate our food, and then climbed into the tent to call it a night. we will see how the sleeping goes tonight…it is hot and humid to say the least. it is going to be a sticky one!

Day 12 : Wrong Turn...

2010-06-11T05:02:00.000-07:00

From Berea, KY to Springfield, KY - ~72 miles

we slept in a little bit this morning, loaded up the tent, and headed for breakfast at cracker barrel. cracker barrel is always a good breakfast, and this was no exception. we got on the bikes and headed out on the route, to find that we had a bike path for the first couple of miles out of town.

the beginning of our ride seemed easy enough. about 20 miles into our ride, we read the directions on our map to find that they said, "turn left onto unsigned jack turner road". to which we thought...what exactly do we do about that. so, we started into our next segment hoping that we would find our turn. we rode and rode, and finally we were positive that we had gone too far, and so we stopped and got the gps out to discover that we had gone a good 3 miles past our turn.

we turned around and headed back in the direction that we had come...and as we came up on the turn that we had missed, we discovered that it was at the bottom of a huge hill that we had climbed...and when i say huge, i mean at least 15 minutes of climbing. and i am pretty sure that there is not much that is more demoralizing than climbing a massive hill, only to discover that it was all for nothing. at any rate, we got back on the right route...only to find another big hill to climb. as we climbed again, i said out loud to cailyn..."every good story has conflict"...and climbing that hill for what felt like the second time definitely felt like conflict.

as we have gotten into kentucky, you can definitely see a huge difference in economic status. when we were in eastern kentucky, it really felt like it was a much lower status..and then as we have gotten more into central kentucky, we have gotten into horse country and there is definitely a much higher economic status. it has really left me thinking about what causes the difference. it has caused me to think about poverty and about work ethic. i don't know that i have come to any solid conclusions at this point in time, but hopefully it is something that i can continue to process through this trip.

as we finished our riding for the night, we arrived into springfield, ky and called the local police to see about camping in a local park that was listed in our maps. they took down our names and told us we were welcome to put up a tent wherever we wanted to in the park. so we stopped in to wendy's, grabbed a quick dinner, and headed to the park to set up for the night. they had bathrooms, but no showers...but all in all, a good location for no cost.

Day 11 : More Dead People than Alive...

2010-06-11T05:01:00.001-07:00

From Hazard, KY to Berea, KY - ~100 miles

we awoke this morning at 5 am and were out of the hotel room by 6:15 am, only to discover that we had another minor brake problem that needed attending to. by 6:45 am we had things all figured out and were on the road.

we rode in clouds and what looked like threatening weather most of the morning, but managed to avoid the rain all morning, which was very welcomed. there were even some points that we came to where the road was wet, but thankfully we stayed dry all day.

we have been riding on fairly busy roads the last couple of days and the busy roads continued for the morning stretch again today. i was really starting to get sick of high traffic and coal trucks. it is not that i feel terribly unsafe, it is just that it wears you out to have to focus and concentrate so much.

we stopped for lunch in booneville, va at a little home town dinner. it reminded us of the little diner in morocco that grandma merchant likes to take us to. it was a great lunch, and after about an hour of eating and relaxing we were back on the bikes. while we were stopped eating, the clouds broke, the sun came up, and the temperature must have gone up by about 15 degrees. which made for a hot and sunny afternoon of cycling.

shortly after lunch we finally turned off of the busy roads and onto a nice quiet back road. this road was up at a pretty decent elevation and it wasn't too far into this road that we started noticing cemeteries. and in retrospect, i wish that we would have been counting how many of them we passed...because there were a ton! there is no doubt in my mind that we passed way more dead people than alive people today. we also noticed that many of the cemeteries were up on these insanely steep hills. we began to wonder how on earth they got the bodies up there to bury them. we decided that they must use 4-wheelers to get them up there. cailyn also decided that they bury the people up on the hill tops because they think that they are closer to God that way...that was her theory anyway.

before must longer, we began to cycle through what almost appeared to be a jungle. there were parts where the trees were grown completely over the top of the road, making a tunnel. and in many places the hillsides were covered with this amazing vine type of stuff.

and then before much longer, we had left that scenery, and found ourselves riding in a valley between two small mountain ranges. and in the middle of the valley, next to us, were large, beautiful farms with horses and cows. cailyn said that this was some of her favorite scenery of the trip so far and that it made her miss home (she grew up on a cattle farm in northwest indiana).

as the day wore on, we realized that we may have bit off a little too much. our legs and bodies were starting to be immensely tired, and we still had a number of miles to cover. thankfully, we came upon a gas station where we were each able to get a gatorade and a package of twizzlers and we quickly got back on the road. we rolled into berea, ky at about 8:20 pm, quickly found a pizza hut where we ordered a large supreme pizza, loaded it in our trailer, and headed for the campsite. it was a long day to say the least...but good to have accomplished map section #11. and i think that the mountains are pretty much behind us for a while, which is awesome!

today was also a big decision day. we made the decision that we are no longer shooting to make it all the way to the west coast. we have come to realize that it is likely that we will not be able to make the coast in the number of days we have set out to do the trip. and the pace that we are trying to keep is pushing us past much of the stories and encounters that we really feel like the trip needs to be about.

also, i am on sabbatical from the campus ministry...and as a part of a sabbatical, i feel like there are 3 main things that i need to be accomplishing. first, getting away from the normal grind and getting filled up and energized. secondly, as a result of the first, to grow to a place of really "missing" the normal grind. and lastly, to get spiritually rejuvenated and ready to return. as i analyze these first couple of weeks of sabbatical, i feel like the first two elements are happening quite well, but i just don't feel like the third piece is happening like it needs to. and hopefully with a little more time to settle into routine, and with being able to slow the pace down a little, that will come around. but today we also decided that we are going to cut our trip one week shorter than we were planning. this will allow us to get pervis's bike back to him and then go to my parents lake cottage in northeast indiana for a week and just spend time reading and studying and praying and seeking to get filled up with God and His Word. this will also allow us some time to not be in such a chaotic environment as this.

we had been mulling over this decision all morning, and then when we stopped for lunch, i had a message on my phone from pervis. he had caught up on the blog and wanted to offer a few pieces of advice. and the very first piece, don't feel like you have to get coast to coast, just do what you can and be happy with that. and those words felt like a very direct confirmation of our plan. really, in every sense, it feels like the right decision.

so, we are not positive, but we are thinking that our new destination will be yellowstone. we will see how things continue to progress.

i am excited...in the morning...we are going to the cracker barrel that is just down the street...we have a gift card from christmas or something long ago like that!

Day 19 : A Justin Kind of a Day...(he wanted me to call it that)

2010-06-10T02:25:00.001-07:00

Day 19 : A Justin Kind of a Day...(he wanted me to call it that)

2010-06-10T02:25:00.000-07:00

Day 10 : A Pretty Lousy Day for Riding...with a Great Lunch in the Middle...

2010-06-09T15:28:00.000-07:00

From Dema, KY to Hazard, KY - ~40 miles

Story [in words]:

we awoke at our front yard oasis at 5:30 am. we packed up our gear, ate a couple of our hard-boiled eggs, and were on our bikes by around 6:30 am. as we began riding, it was quite cloudy which left us unsure about what the weather was going to do.

we rode about 17 miles through the towns of pippa passes and mallie, and as we came into hindman, it started to rain. it rained lightly for a couple of minutes, and then it started to pour. luckily, as it started to pour, there was a fairly large fruit and vegetable roadside stand, which had a tent that we were able to ride under as we waited out the rain. we waited under the tent for probably close to an hour, while we tried to decide what we were going to do with the rest of the day (it looked like the type of a day that would be rainy all day).

there was a hostel in the town we were in, but it cost $25/person which is just too steep for us. we began looking ahead on our maps to see if there was a cheap hotel a minimal number of miles ahead. we found a cheap hotel that was about 23 miles ahead. we decided that would be the plan, whether it stopped raining or not, we were going to cover the miles and get to a hotel for the night.

we got back on the road, and it poured for a few minutes, to the point where we were so cold that our teeth were chattering. but before long, the rain subsided and it wasn't too bad for riding. as we were coming into the town of carrie, there was a guy in a truck that passed us unusually slowly. he then pulled into a parking lot of a building just ahead of us on the left...and as we rolled up, he was standing out by the road as if he wanted to say something to us. when we got closer, he said, "there's some good food in here if you want." so we decided to pull in and see what was going on. as we got up to the building, we realized that we were at a community center.

the guy who had invited us in went into the building for just a minute and then he came back out and said, "it's free for you guys...just sign your name and come on in and eat". so we walked in, signed the book, and discovered that we had to be the only people in the place under 65. apparently at this community center, every wednesday they have a home cooked meal for a donation. so we grabbed a huge plate of homecooked food, and sat down with the guy that had invited us in. his name was jimmy slone. awesome guy to say the least...he told joke after joke...and seemed to be very real about his faith as well. man he was a great guy!

we enjoyed our food and conversation, and then got back on the road to get to our motel. as we got back on the road there wasn't rain, but the wind had started picking up, which is also not enjoyable for cycling. then when we were a couple of miles from the motel, the rain started again, and we got poured on one more time.

so, to say the least, we were ready to get inside and dried out by the time that we arrived. it is not a roach motel, but it is certainly nothing fancy. it was low cost, has everything that we need, and even has internet so that we can get caught up on the blog. all in all, not too bad of a deal. and on top of all of that, tonight is so you think you can dance night, and so we will enjoy watching that as we fall asleep! nice change of pace.

i have to be honest...our spirits have not been terribly high lately. we feel like we haven't had the right attitude exactly with the experience and with respect to encountering God and whatnot. we are pretty excited about the fact that being at the motel tonight has allowed us to get our ipods charged up and loaded up with sermons and things and hopefully that will help some.

tomorrow is going to be a big day. the weather looks good. hopefully we can knock out 100 miles which would get us to berea, kentucky...the end of map number 11. another great accomplishment!

Day 9 : A Great Start and Finish...and an Average Day in Between...

2010-06-09T14:28:00.000-07:00

From Breaks Interstate Park, VA to Dema, KY - ~52 miles

Story [in words]:

we slept in until about 7 am this morning, and we rolled out of our tent all ready to eat our massive cinnamon roll, only to discover that the raccoons had unzipped cailyn's backpack and taken the cinnamon roll out and not a crumb left. cailyn was not too happy to say the least! (we later noticed that there was a huge nail sticking in a tree on our campsite where we could have hung it from)

cailyn began packing up camp, while i rode up to the lodge to get some quarters so that we could do our laundry. we got the laundry started while we finished packing up our gear. then we rolled down to the laundry area to wait for our laundry to finish. while we waited, we tried to catch up on a little blogging and journaling. when our laundry finished, we quickly put on some clean riding clothes and packed the rest of our clothes in the trailer bag and headed back towards the lodge to grab some breakfast.

we sat down next to the same beautiful view (actually the same table) and had a great breakfast. while we ate, we looked at our maps to make a plan for the day that was ahead. we quickly discovered that there was no camping and no hostels listed on our maps in the area we would be able to ride to with our late start. so for the first time on our trip, we got on the bikes not knowing where we were going to stay at the end of the day. we figured it was about time to start asking around and see if we could just find a place to put up a tent.

after we finished breakfast, we were planning on sitting in the lodge for a while to get the rest of the way caught up on the blog, but for some reason the internet was not working and so we were not able to blog (which is much of the reason there have not been any posts in a few days). so, we got sunscreened up, and headed back onto the route at about 11:30 am.

not too far out of the park, we ran into the road line painting crew (i think that is the technical term) coming towards us. one of the trucks pulled over to us and told us that we would need to get off the road for a little while because the paint truck would be turning around and following behind us in a few minutes. we weren't exactly sure what that meant, but we figured we would just keep riding and see what happened. but sure enough, in another 5 or 10 minutes, the truck did come behind us and we needed to get out of the way in a hurry. conveniently though, at the place where we had to get out of his way, we found the couple from colorado that we had met the day before also waiting for the paint truck to pass. so we were able to talk with them a little more and get to know them better.

after the paint was dry, they came by and told us we were free to cycle on. so we said goodbye to our colorado friends and hopped back on the bikes to try to cover some miles. we continued riding and continued climbing just about as much as we did yesterday.

they say that the appalachian mountains are the toughest of the mountains on this route. and there is no doubt in my mind that i agree. at least that better be the case, or we will never make it through colorado. the climbing is demoralizing...for both of us. thankfully, it seems that most of the time, when one of us is down, emotionally, the other is up...and vice versa. i don't know where we would be without each other, that is for sure.

despite all the climbing, and the late start, we were covering a decent number of miles...but then at a little after 7 pm, we found ourselves in a town with a name that we didn't recognize. we pulled into a gas station and got our map out, to discover that we had missed a turn some 3 miles back. so, fairly frustratedly, we turned around and cycled back our 3 miles that we had gone in the wrong direction.

as an interesting side note, through most of virginia, the turns are marked with route 76 bike signs. however, as soon as you cross the state line, those all go away, and it is all up to us to navigate.

we got back on the right route, and felt like it was time to figure out where we were going to put up our tent for the night. there were a couple of towns on the route, but they were small and so there weren't really public parks or churches or fire houses to stop and ask about camping. and it quickly became apparent that we were going to have to find someone who would allow us to camp on their property.

we came around a bend, and sitting back off the road a little ways was a nice looking house, with another big beautiful garden (apparently they know how to garden in east kentucky as well), and a sign that read, "potatoes for sale". as we came to the driveway, we noticed that there was a guy walking around out in the garden area. we decided this was the one to go talk to (we both had been praying for quite a while that God would show us the right people to talk to)...so we parked out bikes in front of the house and walked back towards the garden and asked if they would mind if we put up a tent in their front yard. they were sweet as can be and said that would be just fine.

so we wheeled our bikes into the front yard and got our tent set up. as we were getting some food out for dinner, the guy walked out and asked if we had enough food. we said that we were good. then he asked us about water...he said they had some bottled water he would be glad to bring out. and we said that we would take a couple of bottles of water. he brought us out some water and we stood and talked for quite some time. and before long, his son, who lives up the road but keeps chickens on their property had come out to talk as well. and before much longer, the wife was out there as well.

we stood and talked for a good long while. they told us all kinds of interesting things about the area, most notably, that there are elk in this area. we were both quite surprised to find that out.

the son had collect a dozen fresh eggs from his chickens and at one point he asked us if we ate eggs. and we said, "only if they are hard boiled". (we don't have any means to cook them in our gear) and the next thing we know, he turns to his mom and says, "well momma, why don't you go and boil 'em some eggs". and before the night was over, we had a dozen hard boiled eggs for breakfast and to take on the road with us.

it really was an amazing place to camp. aside from not having a shower, there is not much else we could have asked for. pervis had told me a couple of days ago that we needed to just ask people and they would be glad to help us out, and that certainly seems to be true.

[as a side note about kentucky: it is crazy, but as soon as you cross the state line, quite literally, you immediately see mobile homes, four wheelers, and dogs on the loose...everywhere...kinda crazy.]

Day 8 : Another Century, Lots of Climbing, and Plenty 'O Gardens...

2010-06-09T12:10:00.000-07:00

From Mt. Rogers, VA to Breaks Interstate Park, VA - ~100 miles

[one side note...unfortunately, our cycling computer stopped working today, and so we will no longer be able to give all the number details. i will still do my best to estimate the number of miles, but that is about all we will be able to do.]

Story [in words]:

we camped last night at the top of mt. rogers, which is about 4200 feet above sea level, and so when we woke up this morning, it was cold...cold enough we could see our breath. we were set on getting to breaks interstate park today (it is called that because it is a state park that sits in both virginia and kentucky)...and so despite the cold, we were up and loaded by 6:15 am.

we left the park at about 6:20 am, and one of the things that happens when you camp at the top of a mountain is you have to descend. and descending means going fast. and going fast when it is already cold equals really stinking cold. i have never wanted to climb hills on my bike until this morning. my teeth were chattering i was so cold. i was ready to climb, just so that i could get the body temperature up a little bit. and before long, we were climbing and we got warmed up, although it was a cooler day all day. we both cycled in our pants the entire day (although there were times we didn't really need them).

and speaking of climbing, we climbed a ton of hills today. estimating from the elevation chart on our maps, i would guess that we climbed somewhere around 6000-6500 feet today. at one point we climbed 1500 feet in about 3.5 miles. we climbed at roughly 4 miles an hour for almost an hour. and it was one of those hills where you could only see a little in front of you, because the road turned. and in your mind you are thinking that the climb stops just around the corner...but there were a lot of corners where sadly that was not the case.

about 18 miles into our day we came to a really quaint little town called damascus, and as we rolled into town, there was a little ma and pop kitchen diner type of a place. we decided that would be a great place to grab some breakfast and get energized for the rest of the day. as we rolled up we noticed that there were two other loaded bikes sitting outside. (there is always something exciting and energizing about seeing other loaded bikes) as we went into the restaurant, the other couple was just getting ready to head out, so we chatted for just a minute before they hit the road. they are a retired couple from colorado, probably in their late 50's or early 60's.

we went to the counter and both ordered biscuits and gravy, and then found a table where we could plug in our phones to get them charged a little. before long, what we assume was the owner and chef, brought us our food. they also had some of the best coffee i have ever had. great for warming up after the cold morning descent. we had some great conversation with the owner as well. mainly just about where we were from and where we were going and things of that sort. we finished up our food before too long and went up to the counter to pay. we paid for our food and were just about to leave the counter when the guy reached under the counter and pulled out the biggest cinnamon roll that i have ever seen (we had noticed them when we walked in, but they were also $4). he said, "here...eat this at about 10 for a little energy boost."

we put the cinnamon roll in our bag and headed back out on the route. as we cycled on and started to need to get more energy, we thought about eating the cinnamon roll, but on the second day of our trip we had this huge apple fritter at about 10 am, and we found that it totally made us want to fall asleep, and so we thought we better just leave it for later. so we stopped and got some other food, and then continued on the road.

we had a lot of miles ahead of us today and so we tried to keep on task, however, the hills made it hard to feel like we were covering the miles as fast as we really wanted to be.

as we continued through western virginia, one thing that we started to notice is that these people know how to garden. everywhere we look we see gardens...and we are not talking just 4 or 5 rows of stuff planted in the side yard, we are talking acres of gardens. and beautiful, well kept gardens. they were awesome and inspirational for sure. it tends to be much easier to talk and cycle when you are climbing hills, and so as we climbed and climbed we talked about gardens and about the ways that we hope to expand our garden in the coming years. there is something heartwarming about being out on the road in unknown territory and yet being able to connect to life back at home.

as we approached breaks interstate park, we were spent to say the least. as we came up to the park sign, we noticed that it had a picture of both virginia and kentucky, with the state line marked on it. and there was something very rewarding to know that we had made it to our first state line. (see the above picture)

we headed into the park, only to discover we were going to have to ride over a mile inside of the park to get to our campground...and there were hills to boot. but we got to the campground and got a site. put the tent up. got showered up. and then we hopped back on the bikes to ride back to the lodge where there was a restaurant. as we walked into the restaurant, we were blown away at the view as we looked out the back wall of windows. we were overlooking an amazing valley with mountains all around. (the second picture above was the view from the restaurant) we had some amazing...and surprisingly not too expensive food, and then we got back on the bikes and rode back to our campsite to call it a night.

it has been quite the day to say the least. we will probably hang around here for a little bit in the morning to rest up and also to take advantage of the laundry facilities here. but it will certainly be exciting to officially cross over the state line in the first couple of miles of the day tomorrow.

(as a sidenote, we were too full tonight to eat the cinnamon, so we packed into cailyn's backpack for the morning)

Day 7 : Pervis, Pervis, Pervis...

2010-06-05T19:29:00.000-07:00

From KOA Southeast of Wytheville, VA to Mt. Rogers, VA - 48.1 miles

Time on bike: 5:28:23
Average speed: 8.7 mph
Max speed: 33.1 mph

i feel very confident that if it weren't for pervis, our trip would not still be going on. at around 9:15 this morning, pervis showed up to our campground with his bike for me to ride. we got everything switched over and in place, and by about 10:30 we were back on the road from the campground. only to get to the end of the road and find that cailyn was having break trouble. so we stopped and worked on those for about 15 minutes, and then we finally got on the road for good.

however, it was also the worst riding conditions we have had so far as well. the wind was blowing a ton...to the point where we had to pedal to go downhill. not fun. the plan was that pervis was going to drive ahead to the next town (rural retreat) and park his car and then get on his other bike that he brought and ride back to where we were and ride with us back to his car. except there was a problem. for us to be riding into a massive headwind meant that he had a huge tailwind. and so he was flying and got back to us and past us before we got back on the actual route (our campground was a little off route). and by the time he realized it, he was like 7 miles past us, and so he had to play catch up and meet us in rural retreat.

we grabbed some subway in rural retreat and then decided it was time to get out and pedal in the wind some more. we headed back out, while pervis would drive a little ahead of us and wait for us so that he could take pictures of us. it was awesome to have him there...you could tell that he was loving being a part of it, and we needed him, because our spirits were not high to say the least.

then before long, it started to rain...but we really needed to cover the miles because of yesterdays short day, and so we cycled on as the rain kept coming. right after the rain started, we passed 3 women setting up tents in a field (we had heard they were out ahead of us), but we just waved and kept going as there was a good distance between us and we were just trying to get through the rain. we rode for a couple of hours in the rain, and then came to a restaurant at the base of mount rogers. pervis had eaten there before and really wanted to eat there...and he said that he was paying for it. so we went into this totally back country grease pit, and we ate our hearts out, including 3 deserts that we passed around and shared.

our plan was to get to the campground at the top of mount rogers, so cailyn and i climbed back onto the bikes (at least it had stopped raining) and we began to climb, while pervis went ahead to the top and got us a campground (which he also paid for) and set up our tent. and when we got to the campsite, he even had a fire going for us. which let me tell you, was an amazing sight after the cold and rain we had been cycling in.

i don't think that i can even begin to express how thankful i am to pervis. the way that he just poured love and support on us was amazing. i don't always feel like i am the most generous person, and pervis really taught me a lot today about what it means to love others through generosity. i really want to be more like that. i hope it has really sunk in at the heart level for me through this.

it was absolutely a very tough day...and i really don't know where we would be without pervis.

i have to be honest...this has been way harder than we anticipated. not necessarily the cycling, although it has been tough too, but just all of the other things. the little details, the camping, the bike problems. it has been tough and we have wondered often whether we really want to be doing this. don't get me wrong, it is a blast, an amazing once-in-a-lifetime experience. but at the same time, it is hard...really hard. i am really trying (though i don't think very well) to listen to God and to figure out what exactly He is trying to teach me and teach us through this whole thing. i know there is a ton there, i am just trying to process it one day at a time.

and speaking of processing, you would think that you would have a ton of time to process when you are riding your bike between 8 and 10 hours a day, but honestly, i haven't found that to be the case so far. it really takes a lot of brain power and concentration to just cycle and make sure we are on the right route and that we are eating and drinking enough. that may seem crazy...but so far, that is how it has been.

Day 6 : A Story for Sure...

2010-06-05T15:46:00.000-07:00

From Christiansburg, VA to KOA Kampground southeast of Wytheville, VA - 38.1 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 3:57:54
Average speed: 9.6 mph
Max speed: 31.7 mph

Story [in words]:

with our late night of riding last night, we slept in till about 7am today, quickly got ready and got the bikes loaded, and it became quite apparent that Kirk was not very interested in moving at a very fast pace today. so he told us that he was going to hang in town a while longer, do some laundry, get a good breakfast and then just cover a minimal number of miles. so we said our goodbyes, and pedaled down to the motel 8 office to grab some continental breakfast.

we got on the road by 8:15, and spent the next 20 or so minutes riding to get back on the route. we finally got back on our route and headed on. the riding was good...a fair amount of climbs, but we were covering the miles without too much trouble.

before long, we rolled into the town of radford, yet another university town. (radford university) the downtown area was really cool. there was a house with the craziest tree limbs i have ever seen. there was actually a tree limb that was growing on the ground. kind of reminded me of the tree that used to be on memorial mall area at purdue. (it was struck by lightning last year)

we continued on through the towns of newbern and draper. we weren't too far out of draper, when from up the hill and around the corner came a hand cyclist (a 3-wheel recumbent looking cycle that is "pedaled" with your hands...usually for people who are paralyzed).

so we stopped and talked, and man was it worth it. we found out the guys name was alan and he suffered from friedreich's ataxia, which is a deterioration in the cerebellum that slowly causes you to lose control of portions of your body. he was diagnosed when he was 30 (he's now 33), but he quickly decided that he wanted to use it to write a better story. so he started talking to children in schools. and then he decided that he was going to ride from st. louis (where he is from) to washington, d.c. he was an incredibly inspiring guy to say the least, which it would turn out shortly after that we would need the encouragement.

he, along with his sag wagon, also had some great insights for us about great places for us to stay in the coming days. he even talked about staying a night with some trappist monks. sounds like it was a pretty wild time. so after talking across the road for quite some time, we both decided to head on.

we got back on the road, climbed a couple of hills...and then as we rolled down a hill, we came to a stop sign and i forgot to down shift as we were coming to a stop. traffic was clear and so we began to cross, however, i was in far too tough of a gear and so i had to put a ton of torque on the pedal, which meant that i was also pushing on the seat...and it was at that point that i felt the seat move and heard a noise from underneath me. i have had a few minor problems with my seat in the first few days, so i thought i was having the same problem. i finished crossing the road and we put our bikes against the guardrail to see what was going on.

when i looked under my seat, i discovered that the problem was much more serious than what i had been dealing with. the seat had almost snapped completely off. i was pretty sure that it was a goner, but we tried to reinforce it with some duck tape, just to see if we could make it to the next town. however, we rode probably another 150 yards and the seat snapped completely off.

this put us in a whole new predicament. our bikes are pretty unique to say the least, and i was pretty sure that the only place that we would be able to get a replacement seat would be from the guy that we bought the bikes from. so...we sat on the side of the road underneath a shade tree as we tried to decide what we would do next. we decided that the best case scenario would be if pervis (my friend who did this trip in 2008) would be willing to bring me his bike tomorrow when he comes to visit us and allow me to ride his bike for the rest of the trip. (the only other option we could come up with was contacting the place that we got our bikes from and asking them to ship us a new seat...but if we were to do that, we probably wouldn't get any riding in until wednesday.

we couldn't get ahold of pervis (he was at work)...so in the meantime we decided to walk our bikes up to the house that was just up the way. we could see that the guy was out on his porch, could hear that he was playing a banjo, and it looked like he had a truck. we walked up the hill, or maybe i should say limped up the hill. we certainly looked like we were in a little trouble to say the least.

as we got up in front of his house, we made a little bit of small talk, told him that we had a broken bike, and then asked him if he might be able to give us a ride up to the koa kampground in wytheville. he said that he would be willing to do that, so we wheeled our bikes into his driveway and got our bikes loaded into the truck. (meanwhile, we were greeted by two of the cutest little weiner dogs) we had a great little ride down the road...the guy talked our ears off about all kinds of fun things. we tried to give him $20 for gas, but he refused to take it...said, "he didn't need it...that we should give it to someone who needed it when we got to oregon". he was a great guy and a real blessing.

we got ourselves a campground (the guy who we assume to be the owner gave us a special site (including electric and water...which we didn't pay for) just for the heck of it...he was a super nice guy)...and we got the tent set up. and then of course...we showered...which is always awesome after a day of cycling...even a shorter day.

before long, pervis was off of work, and he called me back. he asked what was going on and i told him what had happened. after a short discussion, we decided that tomorrow he would bring his bike to me, we would swap bikes, and tomorrow i will continue the trip on his bike. what an amazing blessing. when we talked on the phone yesterday, he had said, "let me know if there is anything that you need and i will be glad to pick it up for you"...however i never really thought i would be telling him that what i needed was a bicycle. crazy and yet an amazing deal.

now i definitely feel like we are in an epic story...and that we are in this for the long haul, for sure. when i talked to my dad tonight he said, "didn't you expect that things like this would happen?" and i did, but at the same time, you are not really prepared for them even when they do happen.

so now we are sitting on an amazing little porch swing as it rain lightly. a beautiful ending to quite a day.

Day 5 : Starting to Get Into a Groove...and an Epic Ride...

2010-06-03T17:38:00.000-07:00

From Lexington, VA to Christiansburg, VA - 101 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 9:35:32
Average speed: 10.5 mph
Max Speed: 37.9 mph

Story [in words]:

we got up at 5 this morning at our super 8 motel, and we headed across the parking lot to the waffle house for a big breakfast. then we headed to the next parking lot to walmart to pick up a couple of things that we were needing.

so, with breakfast and walmart before getting on the bikes...it was about 7 am before we got riding. we headed through lexington and then out into the countryside. roller hills mostly. we rode alongside a stream and railroad tracks for quite some time. it was quaint and beautiful.

at about 1 pm we arrived into troutsville. and i have to stop and give props to my friend pervis (the guy who kind of inspired this trip). when he did this trip 2 years ago, he rode the whole of the ride that we did yesterday AND all of the distance to troutsville as well (where we were today at 1 pm). all i have to say is, pervis, you are absolutely insane!!

speaking of pervis, i got a phone call from pervis today, and he said that he is planning on coming up on sunday to meet us and take us out for lunch...and then he is going to drive ahead 20 or 30 miles ahead of us and see us one more time. it will be really nice to see a familiar face...and i can't wait to share stories with him, since he has been through it all before.

i wrote up until this point while we were stopped at a gas station waiting out some rain at around 4 pm. we really wanted to log another 28 miles to get into christiansburg, but the rain rolled in and we weren't sure if we were going to be able to make it or not. we waited till about 5:15 pm and made the decision that we were going to give it a whirl. so at about 5:30 we got on and started riding.

it was mostly down hill for the next 20 plus miles or so (at times in some pretty serious rain), and then we had to do a pretty serious climb into christiansburg. it was intense to say the least, but we made it. we then made a wrong turn trying to get to our camp ground for the night. and so when all was said and done, we ended up riding just over 100 miles on the day. we finally found the campground, but came to find out that it was going to cost $20/tent. (we are still riding with kirk. keith had a friend in roanoke and he rode in to visit with his friend.) so it was going to cost us $40 total to camp, and so we ended up going to the motel 8 right across the street for a total of $58, we are staying in luxury one more night. we can't keep living like this, but on a night where we were riding past 9 pm, it was nice to not have to get the camp stuff out. but we will be back to the camping tomorrow for sure.

it is amazing how good my legs feel after being on the bike for 9+ hours today and logging 100 miles. it will be interesting to see how things feel in the morning.

one note from yesterday that i forgot to mention, was that the transamerica trail intersect the appalachian trail in a number of spots. and so, yesterday, as we were riding on the blue ridge parkway, all of a sudden there was a guy that just walked out of the woods. and come to find out he was a through-hiker on the AT. we had some great conversation with him and also gave him some of our food, which he was very appreciative of. we also ran into another through-hiker a little while later, as well as one today who was hanging out at the gas station that we were at as we waited out the storm this afternoon.

it is kind of cool to have time to chat and interact with some other people that are doing things that people would call "crazy".

cailyn and i were talking today about how many things and how much variety you get to see in doing this trip. we have seen a number of old historic towns, gone by at least 5 universities, seen some amazing valleys and beautiful mountains, and even taken in a couple of decent size towns. and all in 5 days. it is pretty crazy to think back on it all.

oh and...i almost forgot...probably the most exciting part of today is that today was a major milestone. by reaching christiansburg tonight, we finished the first of our 12 sets of maps. so, 1 down...11 to go. tomorrow we will set in on map #2.

Day 4 : Let the Hills (Mountains) Begin...

2010-06-03T10:41:00.000-07:00

From Afton, VA to Lexington, VA - 56.9 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 6:30:04
Average speed: 8.6 mph
Max speed: 36.1 mph

Story [in words]:

this morning we woke up at 5 am at the cookie ladies house, along with our friends keith and kirk. we were on the bikes by 6 am.

the cookie ladies house is literally in the middle of a climb, and so as we began cycling, we were climbing. no doubt about it. we climbed and climbed until we reached the blue ridge parkway (a national park that is just barely wider than the road...and goes about 469 miles). it was a pretty serious climb, but it was well worth it to get up to the parkway. it was an amazingly beautiful ride. we climbed to 3400 ft at our highest point today.

the climbing was challenging, but all in all i felt like it was a success. the climbs seemed slow...but doable. i felt like we learned that we can do the climbs, and that was a concern that we both had. so it was good. i am also learning that climbing also means awesome downhills, and we did plenty of that as well.

we rode for a number of hours this morning with our new friends, and then mid-morning we decided to part ways as they stopped to get some sandwiches and we wanted to keep covering the miles. so we continued on. a ways further up the road, we had two older cyclist come up behind us. great local guys that were just out for a morning ride. cailyn called them rocky and crash. rocky because he was going to do a ride in the rockies in a couple of weeks. and crash, because he had broken his leg a couple of years ago in a crash. they were really cool guys. and they gave us some great info about a local place to grab lunch in vesuvius.

we got off the parkway above vesuvius, and the decent was epic to say the least. huge grades, and switchbacks. we had to stop twice to let our brakes cool down and make sure that the breaks didn't overheat. and when we got down to vesuvius, we did indeed find the restaurant that the guys had told us about. it was called girty's, and it was an awesome little place. the ladies that worked there were hometown as they come, and the food was killer! great stop to say the least! and to our surprise, as we were about to head out, our friends keith and kirk pulled in.

they were there for just a quick stop, and so we ended up leaving there together again. we had a great gentle downhill ride next to a beautiful stream all the way into lexington. it is a beautiful college town (vmi and william and lee). we stopped at a little ice cream shoppe called sweet things ice cream shoppe, as it was a place that my friend pervis stopped at on his trip.

we ended up deciding to just go ahead and stay here for the night. we really wanted to get more miles in, but it was after 4 before we got into town, and there was no where close to the route where we were going to be able to camp, and so we decided it would be best to just stay here with our friends keith and kirk. so we are at a super 8 motel (with the cost split between us, it was not bad at all)...and so hopefully it will provide a great nights sleep...and we will again get on the bikes by 6 and try to cover a solid number of miles tomorrow. it would be awesome to get to christiansburg by tomorrow. if we could do that, we would complete the first of our 12 maps, which seems like it would be a great confidence boost.

8.6
36.1
6:30:04
56.9

Day 3 : The Cookie Lady...

2010-06-03T10:12:00.000-07:00

From Mineral, VA to Afton, VA (The Cookie Lady) - 74.6 miles

Story [in numbers]:

Time on bike: 7:25:53
Average speed: 10 mph
Max speed: 31.7 mph

Story [in words]:

the fire house was quite a treat. we got rested up and were out on the bikes and riding by 6:30. it was great to be out early, before the temps got up. we rode a number of miles, and then hit the road that the local from the pizza shop the night before had said would be a great short cut for us to get into charlottesville. and so we figured...we gotta trust the local...so we went for it.

as we started into it, it was great! the road was newly paved with a shoulder and we were really able to move. it was great, until we got into charlottesville, at which point the traffic got really bad and we had to exit before we wanted to, and then had to make up our own route in order to get back onto our mapped route. but all in all, the shortcut was a success (i think we cut out about 10 mapped miles) and because of our having to make up our route to get back on the mapped route, we got to ride right through the university of virginia campus, which was really nice.

we then headed out of charlottesville, on our mapped route, shooting to get to afton, which is the home of the cookie lady, june curry. we had heard that the route had it's first real climbs going up and into afton, and the rumors were true! it was a pretty intense climb, but honestly nothing that we couldn't handle as long as we were patient. so we rolled into the bike ladies place at around 5:30 to find two other guys already settled in for the night. so, we got our stuff situated, showered up, and began getting to know them.

keith and kirk. keith had done most of the transam in 2008, but had made up his own route in the east and didn't ride the virginia and kentucky section. so he has two weeks off of work and is going to ride the section that he didn't do in 2008. and kirk was just laid off of his job, he said that he is 58 and hasn't had more than a weekend off from employment in his whole life and so he was going to take advantage of the opportunity.

we sat around the bike house (the cookie lady has a whole seperate house to host cyclists and it is an absolute shrine to people that have done the transam. she estimates that she has hosted over 14,000 cyclists. there are postcards and memorabilia and every other thing imaginable in the house. this was the first time that we really began to understand the magnitude of doing something like this. and she even keeps the house stocked with food for cyclists. what an amazing deal) and talked with kirk and keith. shared stories and life a little bit. both great guys!

then we headed up the road a bit and knocked on june's door, and she came out and we sat on her porch, as the cats and peacocks checked us out, and talked with june for quite some time. or more like listened to her talk. she doesn't hear well anymore, but even if she did, i think that we probably would have just listened mostly. she has an amazing memory and amazing stories to tell. so we just sat and listened as she talked and talked. she is an amazing lady. you should google her, you will find all kinds of things.

we finished the night back at the bike house, with keith giving cailyn all kinds of wisdom and insight about places to check out and things to watch out for as we head to the west. we called it a night around 10, with the hope that we would be on the bikes by 6.

today was the first really good all around day. the first day that i felt like i actually ate enough calories to have the energy to do all the riding.

Day 2 : Let the Stories Begin...

2010-06-01T18:16:00.001-07:00

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.

Day 1 : A Colonial Type of a Day...

2010-05-30T21:22:00.000-07:00

Yorktown, VA to 4 miles SE of Ashland - 94.9 miles (94.9 total)

Story [in numbers]:

time on bike: 8:19:40
average speed: 11.3
max speed: 28.6 mph

Story [in words]

today was an all around great first day. the weather was great as we arrived at a little after 7 at the water front to begin our journey. we got the bikes assembled, got the gear all loaded, did our ceremonial tire dip (above), and then we were off on our journey.

the route started on a beautiful section of road, that included many colonial types of locations including yorktown, williamsburg, and jamestown. and as we came into jamestown, we picked up an amazing bike path (probably the best i have ever seen) and were able to ride that for a solid 5 miles or more.

we then rode on SR 5 for a while before coming upon another really nice bike path that we probably rode for another 10 miles or more. both paths were a nice way to kind of easy into the first official day of riding.

we got to see my parents twice more during the day. the first time because they just wanted to catch up with us and see us. and then the second time because cailyn seems to be having some trouble with sun poisoning, and so she is getting terrible rashes on her legs. so my parents went into richmond to get cailyn some knickers that will cover past her legs and hopefully help with the rashes. it was fun to be able to meet up with them a couple of times yesterday.

the one real negative is that i think that we probably tried to push ourselves a little too hard for day one. we were both incredibly spent by the time we got to the camp ground and both of us had a tough time eating because we were just so exhausted. it was great to be able to knock off so many miles on the first day, but maybe not the best decision, i don't know.

we did get to see some amazing pieces of history and of God's creation. in some senses, it is really tough to take in everything that you see in a day. there is just so much that you see in any given day.

Day 0 : From Indiana to Virginia...

2010-05-30T20:41:00.000-07:00

well, we have arrived safely in yorktown, va. we left fort wayne at around 8am this morning, and arrived in yorktown, at around 11:30pm. it was a long day of driving, but a great time spent with mom and dad.

the emotions were varied to say the least. excitement, followed by nervousness, and the occasional, "what-the-crap-are-we-doing". but all-in-all, we are excited! i am just ready to get this thing started and get a couple of days under our belts. to feel like we are starting to have a routine, and honestly to just prove to ourselves that we can do this thing.

so...hopefully we can get a solid 6 hours of sleep tonight, and the goal is to head to the start by around 6:30 tomorrow morning. hopefully we are riding no later than7:30. ideally, by 7. we will see. there is still a little bit of bike setup that must happen in the morning.

Day -1 : From Missouri to Indiana...

2010-05-29T20:00:00.000-07:00

day #1 of traveling to the east coast is in the books. we got up and on the road this morning at around 7:30am, and arrived in fort wayne at around 7:20pm (after loosing an hour to the time change).

the bed of the truck (left) was loaded up with all of our gear as well as all of the stuff for tahoe (our dog) who will be staying here in fort wayne with my parents while we are going. the bed of the truck was full with cailyn, tahoe, and myself. and it was rather hot to say the least (the ac doesn't work).

we really enjoyed the time to just be together driving. it was a great start to the trip.

the one story that sticks with me from today was this family (dad, mom, and son) who we ran into at the rest stop that we stopped at to eat lunch (subway that we picked up a few exits earlier). i had noticed that the dad and son had been soliciting a few people for money, and i wondered what their story was. i headed to the bathroom before we were going to leave, and the whole time i was in the bathroom, i was thinking about whether i was supposed to help them or not. and on my way back from the bathroom, sure enough, they intersected with me.

the guy said that he wasn't a bum, but that he was needing money to get his family to indianapolis (we were about 140 miles outside of indy). he said that his wife had lost the funds they had. so, feeling like i should help them out, i went to the car and got them a $20 bill and we got back on the road.

but as i drove, i continued to think about it. i was bothered, because i noticed as we were leaving that the family did not get into their vehicle and leave, but rather, they went back to the table they had been sitting on top of, almost as if they were waiting to solicite more people. it was just hard for me, because i had given them $20 and i had seen two other people already give them money. and i know for a fact that was enough money for them to have made it to indy. and so it is really hard for me to believe that they were not just working the system.

it is a really tough thing for me. first of all, i really struggle to figure out how i should be Christ in that situation. what would He do. what is my response supposed to be. and then my heart really broke for that kid...if it is indeed a scam...that is an absolutely terrible story for that little boy to grow up into.

all in all, it was a tough deal...and yet it was good...it was formative...and it provided for good conversation and thinking.

so, tomorrow, mom, dad, cailyn, and i will load up and head to yorktown, va. if everything goes as planned, we should be to yorktown by 9pm. just in time to get the bikes unloaded and setup, and to get to bed to be ready to hit the road on monday morning. we will try to cover about 92 miles on monday.

i will try to make a post tomorrow with our packing list on it along with a picture of all of the gear.

The Gear...

2010-05-25T16:03:00.000-07:00

here is a complete list of everything that we will be taking with us on our trip.

Cycling Gear:

- (2) pairs cycling shoes w/ cleats
- (2) 2 liter hydration systems
- (2) bicycle helmets
- (2) head lamps
- light weight lock
- adventure cycling association cycling maps
- map holder
- (2) backpacks
- handle bar mirror
- front and rear lights
- plastic squirt gun (for chasing away dogs)

Camping:

- tent w/ ground cloth
- sleeping bag
- twin sheet
- (2) sleeping pads
- (2) camping pillows
- deck of cards

Personal Care:

- first aid kit
- (2) camping towels
- chapstick
- sun screen
- toilet paper
- monkey butt powder
- bug spray
- 2-in-1 shampoo
- toothepaste
- tooth brush
- razor
- tampons
- baby wipes

Cailyn's Clothing:

- sanuk sandals
- sleeveless jersey
- short sleeve jersey
- long sleeve shirt
- (4) pairs of socks
- (3) sports bras
- pair of underwear
- swimsuit
- zip-off pants
- cotton t-shirt
- (2) pairs riding shorts
- gloves
- riding jacket
- sunglasses
- riding pants
- bandana
- t-shirt sleeve (to hold back hair)
- fanny pack

Brad's Clothing:

- (4) pairs socks
- (2) short sleeve jerseys
- (2) riding shorts
- riding jacket
- zip-off pants
- cotton t-shirt
- gloves
- swim trunks
- sandals
- riding sleeves
- riding leggings
- head beanie
- fanny pack
- sunglasses

Cooking/Food:

- (2) aluminum water bottles
- (4) plastic baggies
- plastic knife
- small jar of peanut butter
- electrolyte tabs/mixes
- clif bars

Maintenance:

- (3) 26" tubes
- (3) 26" tires
- (1) 20" tube
- (1) 20" tire
- (1) 16" tube
- (3) tube repair kits
- floor pump
- spare chain links
- multi tool
- (2) tire irons
- chain lube (8oz.)
- 40ft. roll duck tape on a pen
- zip ties
- (2) replacement cleats
- 50ft. rope

Tech Gear:

- laptop
- laptop charger
- (2) cell phones
- (2) cell phone chargers
- (2) ipods
- ipod charger
- cycling computer

Books:

- Bicycling Coast to Coast
- Bible
- (2) journals
- (2) pens

Bike:

- (2) recumbent bicycles
- bob trailer

Misc:

- knife (Gerber 3")
- debit card
- drivers licenses
- insurance card
- id holder

Century Ride...Check...

2010-05-24T15:46:00.000-07:00

century ride: a one hundred mile bike ride.

a century ride is a pretty big deal amongst cyclists...and so, as our final training ride, on sunday, we did a century ride. actually by the time we rolled back into our backyard, we had logged 101 miles.

it was a good experience all in all. we carried all of our gear, just like we will be carrying next week. it was a little more weight than we had been training with, and we did notice a difference. we are really starting to understand why people say that getting rid of any weight you possibly can is a big deal. as a result, we are planning on dropping down from two sleeping bags, to a sheet and a sleeping bag (we will put the sheet underneath us, and open the sleeping bag up on top of us).

cailyn did absolutely great. the morning was pretty windy and she was seeming a little bit demoralized (and i was a little worried about that), but by about midday, the wind died a little and she gained a lot of confidence as we started moving faster. we rode the second 40 miles much faster than the first 40 miles, and cailyn was still going strong. and as a matter of fact, i think that at 101 miles she could have kept going.

i on the other hand could not. with about 10 miles to go the heat (85 degrees) and sun really started to get to me and i started to get dehydrated. i had plenty of water but not nearly enough electrolytes. with about 3-4 miles to go, my legs started to cramp and i had a killer headache. so, cailyn led the way home, and i literally limped home. only peddling when i absolutely needed to. it was not a great ending, but at the same time, it was a good learning experience. i now know what some of that feels like, and i think i know what i need to do in order to avoid some of that stuff.

all in all, it was a good final training ride, and left us feeling fairly confident. and the legs haven't felt too bad the last two days.

the bikes are in at the bike shop getting tuned up. it is crazy to think that the next time that we get on the bikes that we will be in virginia. crazy to think about.

over the next couple of days i will continue to post about some of the emotions leading up to the trip, why we are wanting to do this trip and what we are hoping to get out of it, as well as a list of exactly what we are taking.

the countdown is definitely on. 4 days till we start heading east.

The Route - Transamerica Trail

2010-05-21T08:54:00.000-07:00

over the past weeks and months we have had a number of people ask us about the route that we will be taking across the country. it is a route called the transamerica trail. it is a bicycle touring route that is specially mapped by an organization called the adventure cycling association. (if you would like to check it out, you can go to their website at www.adventurecycling.com)

it is predominantly small town america...they try to keep you away from high traffic roads and yet make sure that you are not going to be riding on gravel.

below i will include a state-by-state list of some of the cities that are on the route or close to the route, in case you are interested in trying to piece together on a map where we will be. and if you are somewhere close to the route, we would love to see visitors along the way. just send us an email or text or leave a voicemail and we can get back to you.

so here are some of the towns and cities that are along this epic journey that we are about to embark on:

Virginia
Yorktown
Williamsburg
Richmond
Charlottesville
Roanoke
Christiansburg
Wytheville
Damascus

Kentucky
Elkhorn City
Hindman
Booneville
Berea
Harrodsburg
Springfield
Bardstown
Sebree
Marion
Elizabethtown

Illinois
Goreville
Carbondale
Murphysboro
Chester

Missouri
Farmington
Centerville
West Eminence
Houston
Bendavis
Hartville
Marshfield
Fair Grove
Ash Grove
Golden City

Kansas
Pittsburg
Girard
Chanute
Benedict
Eureka
Newton
Hutchinson
Rush Center
Alexander
Scott City

Colorado
Eads
Sugar City
Pueblo
Williamsburg
Canon City
Fairplay
Silverthorne
Dillon
Heeney
Parshall
Hot Sulpher Springs
Rand
Walden

Wyoming
Riverside
Saratoga
Sinclair
Rawlins
Jeffrey City
Lander
Dubois
Moran Junction
Colter Bay Village
(Yellowstone National Park)
Madison

Montana
West Yellowstone
Ennis
Sheridan
Wisdom
Darby
Hamilton
Stevensville
Missoula
Lolo

Idaho
Lowell
Kooskia
Grangeville
Council

Oregon
Oxbow
Halfway (Half.com, OR …no, seriously. It’s true)
Baker City
John Day
Prineville
Redmond
Sisters
Nimrod
Eugene (Largest city along the route. Population 140,000)
Harrisburg
Corvallis
Monmouth
Salem
Tillamook
Astoria

in the next day or two i will post a list of the gear/equipment we will be taking on the trip, along with a few pictures of the gear laid out as well as what it will look like when it is all packed on board.