Booyahh! Team 1 rolls again!

Why yes it was a good day! Team one had the mojo on big time today. I think it had to do with Mark Harris giving us a great dinner last night and some great conversation and positive uplifting thoughts. We just had it going today and that is all I can say:

We started a bit slow. The gals from team 5 looked beat. They rode awesome! That midnight to 6 drag is rough and they have some tales to tell. The only hard part for me was that they (and all others back to team 2) told me that the roads were nice and flat. After our first 6 hour run (mid to 6 on Monday AM) we were looking for some flat land because we needed it. So, we go about 10 miles that are nice and flat and then the rollers began. They were not bad but just enough to start the pain cycle in the legs at every hilltop. The rest of day stayed this way so we did what team #1 does, we hit it hard and furious. Our average while riding was about 21 miles per hour. We jammed through several sections at 24+ mile an hour speeds and even had the line running at 28+ several times. I don’t ride this hard during race season (maybe this will be my lesson about getting in shape!). It was a fantastic effort on the part of the team. Everyone made their pull and the momentum just kept on rolling. It was Booyahh!

Booyahh! I began this chant after the guys would make a strong pull. It came to mind when Matt was mimicking Bobby Bouchet from the Waterboy! Booyahh just came to mind. Now, a few little mindless thoughts from Joey. Today, the 3 theme kept coming at me. We had some technical issues this morning with the radios so I put on a radio and now we have the ability to talk to the bus. THis is good and bad becuase everytime I asked for mileage to the next turn I got the response of 3 miles. Yeah, i know it should have lost it’s humor but we all still laugh about. There are 3 guys on our team with specialized bikes. We have crossed into 3 states (GA, AL and LA, possibly MS but I was too sleepy to remember this morning).

Strange sightings today. Of course roadkill, we actually were looking for specific things we have not seen yet, not much luck (no armadillos yet) and not teradactyls but we did see a sasquatch sign as we rode throught the sasquatch national forest. I saw a roadsign that said “slow” 20mph” then looked down and realized we were rolling at 28 mph. It was cool! There was a wheelchair sign on a road, and when I looked up there was a guy in the middle of the road doing doughnuts in his electric wheelchair. It was kind of odd, he gave us a big MS hello and we just rolled on by. The roads varied from great to bairly tarmac. My rear wheel broke near the end of the day after one of these roads, I think the hub blew a bearing because it was making a nasty sound. Stll rolled but nasty noises!

We ended in Bogalusa LA> The people were incredibly friendly. A local came up to talk with us and then called the newspaper. I got interviewed and more people kept coming by to see what these weirdo bikers were doing. Her name was Pumpkin. She introduced herself to Rob and he replied ” I’m patch” so I am going to start calling him patch. She did not get the humor but she was incredibly nice and friendly. we met a lady named Deloris Hopkins at the pizza hut. She told us about the town history (lots of cancer due to chemical plants) and was incredibly nice. This was a great town with great people.

I must give a loud booyah to Keith, Arthur, Thomas and John. They were the support today. They are great, and still have a lot of humor even with little sleep! The support van was also there at the end of the day. Rene totally took care of my aches and pains, Matt also as he hogged the table saying he is injured! In fact, she took care of the whole crew. It was fantastic and her helpers are also great. Janet Rigdon helped on my legs which are feeling the pain of a few days of riding. 

Jonathon moment of the day: Rob asked the waitress if they were going to put cheese pizza on the buffet, Jonathon says ” If you want cheese pizza, take the pepperoni off” It was a Jonathan moment, hilarious as usual. We have a great group of guys, a lot of cut-ups and a lot of fun. By the way, jonathan just posted a video of the ride today on youtube. I am probably making faces at the camera as that is what I have made a habit of doing the past few days.

Long post, long day, great effort, lots of positive energy, lots of leg pain, but once again a great day!

Livestron! Booyahh!