Once again, Team Livelong added magnets and friends.  In Natchez, we met Cindy and Paula, both of whom are cancer survivors.  We had a great time chatting with them and learning about their experience, and I think they enjoyed finding out about the C3 and its efforts.  After a restful morning, We hooked up with Purple Power to cross the mighty em-eye-ess-ess-eye-ess-ess-eye-pee-pee-eye and had Shannon and Todd join us to finish out their hundred mile day.

Just when the headwind and dusty, post-cotton harvest  highway were starting to wear us down, we were cooled off by a hard soaking rain.  This was no easy drizzle like we enjoyed on the Trace, but a hard, hail-infused downpour through mid afternoon, letting up just as we left Jena, LA.  Cooled off and refreshed from the rain and the attentive support of Sally, Dave and Keith, we hit a great stretch of rollers, each one, just long enough to be a challenge, but none long enough to sap ourt strength.  Looking up and seeing the Livelong Paceline power through the rolling hills of Central Louisiana was exciting and satisfying.  Although there were a couple of sprints, either spontaneous (sprint or sputter) or necessary (LaDoT workers waving us through a one lane construction site), Livelong’s day was one marked by great teamwork.

Due to a slight miscalculation on the transition, We saw the Polk Dots at 5:30.  They were gracious enough to load back up and follow us to Winnfield for a 6:00 transition.   Have a great final ride before Austin, guys!!!  The bookend to our day of new friends and new warrior magnets was meeting Jay and Colin, students at Winnfield Middle School.  They were curious about our ride and ended up telling us about their Assistant Principal, Mr. Grider, who is fighting cancer, and their Grandfather, Red Thompson, who is now cancer free.  We had a great time telling them about our rid and our reasons.

Livelong was once again joined for postride fun, fellowship and dinner by the van o’ love (Taylor, who shows our bikes love; Kelly, who shows our sore, tired muscles love; and Lisa, who is always ready to give the riders some camera love!)  The Landing in Nachitoches, La (pronounced Nak-uh-tish) showed us some love to with delicious creole food and some pretty darn good music (including some solid renditions of Norah Jones and Etta James).

Back from commercial break…

We meet all sorts of people on this trip, some more random than others. In a not so random incident on the way to the noon transition, we met a Mississippi state trooper. He lost his sister and father to cancer. We added two more magnets to our van: Ginny Jones and Milton Sizemore.

We catch the Purple team at their hotel after their noon transition and take picture with the Mississippi River behind them. Altho the weather has been moody for a day (must be on it’s period), right now it is perfect.

We cross over the bridge into Louisiana, which for me symbolizes the beginning of the end of the trip…an endurance test that ends only when the last team pulls into the Austin hotel sometime Thursday afternoon/early evening. Louisiana is also a maze of sorts, meaning everything looks the same to tired eyes, so it’s super easy to get lost. At least last year it was. Turns out, this year too. Sorry Keith, we didn’t mean to hold your Subway sandwich hostage for 3 hours while we found you…

With nothing to do in the car but snack and drink sugary, caffeinated bevies, we sample a few local gas station bathrooms. A handwritten note on one such bathroom door reminds us that “if you enjoy using a clean bathroom, please leave it that way when you’re done.” Mental note: since I also enjoy having actual handles on the sink fixtures, I need to bring extras with me next year. Since LA reminds me of last year, I down a nasty vanilla double shot, like I did last year, and toast to Janelle (my old driver). I will not, however, be rescuing a stray dog, as we did last year, since Ron preemptively said nope.

In a gas station called “Chuck’s,” we meet a native with hardly any teeth. He asks us if we are some of those “crazy cyclists.” Yes?, we say. He gives us $5 for a magnet in honor of his mother: Corinne McBroom. The clerks inform us that they would cycle with us, if they could do so in their boots while smoking.

When we find Team LiveLong, support driver Dave informs us that “happiness is knowing your massage therapist is going to be there.” And she will be for the rest of the trip…because we are Magic. (And because we will be rotating napping/driving shifts. And because we are working on a way to hook up caffeine IVs into our elbows.)

Austin, here we come!
-Kelly

This message brought to you by the Hambasket, in honor of the Yellow Team of 2010. Missing you guys-Tedd, Anne, Robin, and Laurens.

Amazing how a year can seemingly go by so slowly at times and yet now I ask myself “where did it go?”  This is my second year to do the Ride to Austin, and I was determined to enjoy every moment to its fullest.

The sendoff was quite emotional as I listened to Ron speak and looked over to see Kenya standing with her daughter in tears.  I met Kenya just a week or so before last year’s ride.  The story of that can be found in an earlier post here.  I made my way over to her and as I did Ron had asked for Davis, her son, and Ken, her dad, to come stand with him and the rest of our warriors.  I’m so happy they will share this experience together and with their family.  I don’t know how to put into words what they are about to experience.   It is for them, all our past and present warriors, and all those in my life who have had to battle cancer for whom I ride.  My deepest prayer is for better detection, better treatments, and ultimately a cure.  One dollar at a time and one pedal stroke at a time is how this group I call my C3 family will assist in making that come true.

My other Lemon Bonkers have posted about our rides to this point from their perspectives so be patient as I share mine.  Leaving the GHS Cancer Center was exciting and emotional.  As we rode out, I saw Laurens and then Tedd and Anne who were part of my life support on last year’s ride.  The tears were welling up because I already knew how much I was going to miss them.  AND I’VE MISSED THEM.  ALL OF THE 2010 YELLOW TEAM!

Our first shift was 6-9 pm and it would prove to be our most challenging with climbs.  The wind was strong but I felt good.  For night rides we are given safety vests to wear to be more visible to the passing vehicles.  This year’s vests were made for the jolly green giant.  About an hour into the ride, I leaned over to put my water bottle back in its cage.  As I sat up, my handlebars pulled quickly to the right and I knew immediately that no amount of effort was going to keep me vertical.  My vest, which was intended to keep me safe, had ensnarled around my handlebars like a python’s death grip.  I tried to tuck and roll but not sure I accomplished that at all.  Beth has since laughed herself silly saying I looked like I was caught up in a granny nightgown with it stretched over my face and helmet connecting my body and my bike.  Untangling from the safety web proved to need some assistance.  It is very funny now to try to see what I must have looked like from my teammates perspectives.  Keith, our tireless and caring medic butterflied my knee and bandaged me up as I hurried him.  He kept shaking his head and telling me I needed stitches. I rode for about another 30 or so minutes and could feel the butterfly bandages were not going to be enough.  As we came to a traffic signal and had to stop, Taylor who is our mechanic said he could hear a clicking on my bike.  I’m pretty sure everyone knew I needed to stop.  Keith had me back on the bus and soon Jana came on as well.  A needle and 6 stitches later by those two wonderful people and the wound was closed but I was not going to be allowed back on the bike.  Leaving Beth, Mike, and Mark to finish this leg of the ride was killing me.  It’s difficult enough with four and now they were three.   They rocked the remaining hour and half which made me miss being out there with them even more!  I’m not much of spectator.

The next day we had the 12-6 pm shift and honestly I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to ride.  Knees were stiff and sore but I wanted to ride.  I had worried most of the night and kept trying to move my knees as much as possible so they wouldn’t stiffen.  I’m very hesitant to ask God for things for myself but this time was I was begging.  I wanted to ride for my warriors, for my teammates, and yes even for myself.  A few pedal strokes into our shift and I knew I was good.  It was an incredible day….not without its difficulties…but one where I constantly thought of our warriors and their struggles.

Last night we were on the Natchez Trace, the longest flattest road in the middle of nothing but what seems like forest and no civilization.  Last year I was in the dark on this road and this year was in the dark from 6-midnight.  It is an intense ride as I’m not much for the dark in the woods where who knows what is going to jump out at you!  The other intense part is the last hours where we begin saying the names of those who lost their battle to cancer.  In the dark with tears in my eyes asking God why those that are so good had to be taken puts so much into perspective.

I know I’ve used that word a lot in this post…. Perspective.  Well this ride and this group have made me more conscious of not sweating the small stuff.  I love the C3 group more than I can ever make them realize.  I know I have received far more than I can ever give to this group and to this cause.

I’m in the car as I type this heading to our transition for our final leg of this relay….the midnight to 6 am shift.  I’m already sad this is the last one.  Well the last one for this year!  I’m already thinking of how to raise the money for next year.

May God bless our warriors/angels in Heaven, those past and present, and everyone who has been touched by cancer.  Keep all the teams safe on their final 2011 rides and give them the peace to take it all in.  Allow them the open hearts to be filled with the blessings and love they have and will continue to experience with this journey.

In the weeks prior to departure we (need to) install a revolving door. Lots of activity at the Jerina house. Riders and team managers come by to drop off donations or pick up maps or tires or magnets. It is so great to see how excited they are for our journey. We cleaned off our dining room table and it became “command central”. This year Tom S. and Justina came to help mark the route on all the team road maps. It was so great to come together like that prior to the trip-thanks you two. There are lots of last minute details that keep us up and busy and so much running through our minds it’s hard to sleep. So we already practice sleep deprivation before we leave. I packed our boys up and took their bag to Grandma’s on Saturday. We all awoke for church on Sunday – I almost said we shouldn’t go because we had so much to do, but I needed to go hear HIS Word before our departure-so glad we went, as always. Rushed home and packed myself because we were leaving for the hospital at 12:15. Should have packed sooner and checked the weather cause I now know I am going to be hot in Austin wearing jeans and sweaters, perhaps I will have to go shopping?

The participants began to arrive a little before1:00 and luggage was everywhere. Lots of hugs upon arrival and then packing began. Polka Dots packed up and our Miami teammate was still not there. I called him and he informed me that he had missed his flight. I quickly made the decision-cause I’m a thinker- to load his bike on the bus and started thinking of ways we could pick him up on the way. LUCKILY he is a practical joker and walked up right after we secured his bike on the bus. We got his bike put on the van and his bags packed too. It was great seeing all of the people that came out to see us, I know I didn’t get to see and speak to everyone. Thank you all for being there!! We all gathered on the the hill in front of the cancer center for a group photo and then gathered together for heartfelt thoughts from Ron and Dr. Stephenson. Our warriors were there and it was a powerful moment to see them gathered together. They are our inspiration for this ride and I look forward to spending time with them this weekend. Mother Roxanne delivered 3 beautiful prayers asking us to call by name those that we are riding in memory and in honor of. She gave thanks for the team and prayed for our safe journey. My heart was so full of love for this group of people as I too thanked God for this team of humanitarians.

It was now time for the riders to get on their bikes and the managers to get in their vehicles. But not before saying some very tearful goodbyes to my children. They have been so patient and giving during this busy time in their parent’s lives. I am so blessed. It is so comforting to be able to leave them with their loving grandmothers during our absence. Thank you Julie for being there for me as you always are, and thank you for the crosses for the entire team. Near my children stood my teammates from previous rides that also had tears which kept mine flowing. Gave quick hugs and reminders for them to call me. Jumped in the team van with Cara and we were rolling. Ringing our cowbell and waving I saw so many people on that road! (Laurens, I am so glad I saw you by the road before I left-what a gift).

For the past three years, I have stopped with all of the riders to re-load the van and head to Clemson to Mellow Mushroom. This year I am with the Dots which is the team FIRST in the rotation so we rolled right on by the parking lot where the rest of the teams loaded up in their vans – beeping the horn and ringing our cowbell. Our team of riders: Ed, JD, John S., Brandon and Toni ( our lone diva rider ). Our team has ridden together before, so they settled right in through our tour Powdersville, Easley, Clemson, Seneca and Westminster. Our first 3 hours flew by. We also got to see friends along the way. The Garners were following us to meet a couple of teams for lunch in Clemson. So good to see them! We had a great ride with beautiful weather and transitioned with the Lemon Bonkers who were ready to go. Our team was treated to their post ride massage by the wonderful KVL. We loaded back up in the van and drove to where we thought we would transition for our 6am ride. Cleveland TN here we come. I let the Dream Team know where we were to see if they wanted to take over our rooms when we left at 4:30 for our next shift. This was especially exciting for me, because Ron is on that team and I would get to see him. I put my head on the pillow some time after midnight but kept receiving texts and I was too afraid to sleep in case I would miss one. I think I managed a few naps. I kept thinking about driving the bus up and over 3 mountains praying that it wouldn’t overheat and that the brakes would definitely do their job as I followed our precious riders around curves. I had told dream team to text me upon arrival but I heard them before I got one. I jumped out of bed and rushed to the balcony to see my knight in shining armor emerge from his team van. They informed me that they had a great ride on that beautiful morning. I had to wake up some polka dots and get them moving so that we could get ready and so that Dream Team could grab some rest. It was so great seeing them and I got to kiss my sweet husband. We ate a great breakfast that the hotel put out early for us and loaded up. We did have to drive a little farther than we anticipated to catch up with Team Livelong. They had already climbed a mountain!!! We found a church on the plateau and cheered them in under one of the most beautiful skies I have ever witnessed. We exchanged hugs and shared thoughts about the ride. We found out it was Dave’s birthday and we gathered around and sang to him!! They sent us off with lots of cheers and we were on our way through the Tennessee mountains. In my nightmare the night before I had envisioned roads without guardrails so I was ecstatic when these roads we were traveling had them. The riders looked awesome riding up those mountains. I was so proud to see how they all worked together. However, in my wildest dreams I never thought of how fast I would have to drive the bus down the mountains. I’m pretty sure that my fingernail marks will permanently be imbedded in the steering wheel. I don’t even drive my own car down Caesars Head at the speed I was having to drive the bus. However, there was no way I was letting my team out of my sight. That bus and trailer hung on those curves, making some crazy sounds, like a champ – whew! I was so nervous I was shaking a bit, but let me tell you, by the second descent I was excited. It was amazing to watch those 5 riders fly around those curves!! I forgot to mention that the weather was amazing and warmer than all 3 previous years – Perfect ride conditions. The daylight was also a new treat for me this year. The countryside was so beautiful. Lots of cool barns, silos, horses, fences, etc. I cannot wait to see all of Lisa’s pictures. After the big mountains, there were lots of rollers so we made some recovery stops. It has been so much fun hanging out with KVL, Taylor and Lisa!! We were stopped for a while at a repair shop and I’m so glad we asked for directions because the road we needed to turn on was right beside us – we would have missed it for sure had we not asked. Lemon Bonkers found us at our rest stop and then traveled 12 miles down our newly found road to find a transition spot at the Church of Christ at Pocahontas. The team was going to change in the parking lot but Toni suggested we just go in the church since “they were playing bingo”. Everyone was treated to another massage under a pretty tree. I got a phone call from Ron asking where we were and they were close by so they came to the church too. We all decided to grab some lunch together. How cool is that? Dream Team, Polka Dots and Party Rockers found the closest mexican restaurant and proceeded to eat way too many chips and some not so delicious food. But the company was priceless. We gave hugs and kisses and went our separate ways.

We got back in the van and headed to Tupelo, Mississippi for the night. We checked into our hotel. We met for dinner at Logan’s and headed to the laundry mat to wash some well worn cycling gear. It was the SAME laundry facility that my team from last year used – too funny and kind of cool. We got in late again for bed time and decided to meet for breakfast at 8am. Some of my teammates were confused as to which time zone time we were supposed to be using (despite covering that in emails and meetings ANYWAY, we went to the iHop for some protein and Brandon ordered enough food for a small country: 2 Stuffed French Toast Combos- 2 pcs of Stuffed French toast, 4 eggs sunny side up, 4 pcs of bacon and a 1/2 pound of hash browns. He was done with the first combo before I ate a pancake. We then looked at the maps and talked with Sally and loaded up to go and meet them on the Natchez Trace. We were ahead of schedule by a full 3 hours so at breakfast we decided that we would just ride backwards 20-25 miles and turn around to try and even things back out so that all teams would get 4 shifts. We found a beautiful overlook to make our transition. It had been drizzling all morning so when LiveLong rolled in, they were soggy but said it was a great ride. The temperatures have been so great. We took pictures and gave them hugs and then got some nutrition off the bus for the van. We told Keith to have a rest and turn the bus off to rest while we were gone for our “backwards” ride. It did seem strange to travel the same stretch of road that our teammates just finished. I struggled just a bit with this concept. I was fully on board with the idea because instead of adding a loop, the Trace is the safest place to add miles. In my prayer before bed last night, I asked God to help me make sense of such a counter productive idea. I awoke this morning with a comforting idea. Yes we went backwards. Yes Team LiveLong had just finished that stretch of road. I know of two beautiful ladies in my life that have traveled down the road of hearing “You have Cancer” and then going through chemo, surgery and losing their hair ONLY to hear and go through it AGAIN. More so than wondering why we were traveling the same part of the Natchez Trace, I was overcome with emotion thinking how it must have felt to them knowing they were back on the same road again with this awful disease. I’m one of those people who feels like things happen for a reason and I feel like God put us on the same path twice to remind us of our friends and family who are battling and inspire us to understand that some of those with cancer will have to go down that same road AGAIN. It’s a terrifying thought and it makes me angry. But it also makes me so proud of this team- this group of people who are doing something to try and make a difference. We all gathered around Cara this morning and prayed that she will never have to go down the road with Cancer again. It better just stay away!! This team is doing what they can to raise funds for research, and on an emotional level this team is beside our warriors in the fight.

We are now in the car traveling to our last transition of the trip- the week has certainly gone by quickly as it always seems to do. We just stopped and had a nice lunch. I asked the team to leave their phones in the car. We have all been busy talking with other teammates and family and friends via all of our technology. I wanted us to have a relaxing lunch and talk with each other before beginning our last ride. It was great- I think we all learned more about each other. I have come to love these six people just as I knew that I would. We are looking forward to our last shift, rain or shine. We should cross over in to Texas tonight. We look forward to welcome the rest of our teammates into Austin. Our shift is lucky. We will be at the hotel when our warriors get in tomorrow. We are looking forward to meeting all of them and sharing our journey.

Godspeed to the rest of our team: Lemon Bonkers, Dream Team, Purple Power and LiveLong! We can’t wait to welcome you with hugging arms

Much love,
Jennifer

I am not a blogger but I feel the need to express some thoughts and observations. I am relatively new to cycling, this being my first season.  I was introduced to the P3 team through a mutual friend, little did I know how life changing this chance introduction was to become.

I had begun biking for my own health reasons, a mixture of losing weight and therapy, however, the more time I spent around the P3 team the more I saw that these riders were riding for everyone esle, for the people that couldn’t, “because we can” is the expression I hear so often. This amazing group of riders have determination and will power like I have never experienced before and a dedication to a cause that is beyond admirable.

Having first hand experienced the devastation left in the wake of this horrible disease, my wife having lost her young cousin Ellen Gstalder just a couple of years prior, I decided that I wanted to join this battle, because I could. I signed up as a rider and began down the road that ends with this epic journey, dedicating my challenge to Ellen and the huge hole left behind by her absence.

My other team members have already described the first stages of our journey so I will not try to echo what has already been described, but I have to say that last nights ride was almost surreal and incredibly humbling. We were all tired, sore and hurting. We had already started a man down and an early fall had left Donna with stitches on her knee, although you would never know it by the way she rides. I hurt getting in and out of the tiny holes in our vehicle that we had made our for ourselves, and even more when we got on our bikes, but we were here to ride, and we did.

The ride begun with a coldish chill and light rain on the Natchez Trace Trail. We were riding the 6pm till midnight, taking over after a great ride from the Polka Dots. As night descended we began dedications to friends and family who have lost their battles with this disease. The mood became very somber and not a sound was heard except the names of lost ones. Being called out with each rotation of our paceline, broken only by the occasional cracking of a voice as a name was called. It was incredibly emotional and put in to perspective that our personal pain, however great, was nothing in comparisom to those whose names were being called and to those who are still fighting and would gladly swap our pain for their chemo treatments and endless surgeries…..

We are soon to start our final stage, but I can say that without a doubt, I will return from this journey a better person, humbled by the sacrifices of so few for the cause that concerns so many and hoping that my own children will grow up in a cancer free world…

I tried to blog on Monday and lost it which is so frustrating and Mike blogged about our first 2 rides. This is my fourth year on this amazing ride and I love to sit back and watch it unfold. We spend a lot of time together on training rides, fundraisers and just hanging out and any opportunity we get. The veterans love to share all our awesome stories about our journey any chance we get and we are always recruiting new riders, special ones! When we are riding I always think to myself they have no idea what is about to hit them once this journey begins!
Well we are here and it is so cool to read their blogs, transition with them and see their tears and a completely different look in there eyes and to experience the dynamics changing every minute on my team. I have had the priveldge of a new team each year. Year one I knew Ron and Jennifer well and Rene a little so it was fun getting to know everyone. Year 2 was the ultimate Dream Team with Ron, Tedd, Robin, Laurens

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The proverbial baton is handed off at midnight to the Dream Team. So are lots of hugs and kisses. And a full moon.

We have already arranged to share a hotel with the Lemon Bonkers post-transition. So we head off after them. (spoiler alert: we will later learn they have not joined the Church of Garmin and do not have the full technological support and search options that one would prefer when trying to find a hotel in the Wild West that is Central Mississippi. No, no one gets lost, but…)

When we finally reach the Economy Inn nestled deep in an industrial section of something that I suppose could be called a town, we are, um, slightly unsettled. (I think the exact conversation went something like this. “no way are we staying here. Did anyone see the police tape on that door? Is that guy doing a drug deal on his phone in the parking lot? Holy s—. No. No. No. No.)

So, in the spirit of comparison shopping (i.e. Not wanting to die) we follow the Garmin to a Hilton (i.e. Something we recognize, and altho it sounds too expensive, at this point, one extreme is better than the other) which is slightly out of our way (i.e. The opposite of slightly). At this point, we just need sleep.

A whole 6 hours later, when we wake up, we regret that decision. We are behind schedule, we have missed the 6 am transition, but we are feeling more like human beings, or “more normal,” as I tell Ron. “Whatever normal is for you,” he responds.

No way around it, and no one is to blame, but I hate that getting some actual sleep means missing an important transition. Justina and Tom were supposed to join the McDreamies for the last hour of their ride, to honor Jeni, one of our veteran riders who is battling skin cancer. We love you, Schumachers. We were there in spirit.

So, a quick shower (Taylor does a celebration dance upon realizing the shower head is tall enough for him, he doesn’t like “facials”), a run thru McDonalds (sad commentary that the golden arches are becoming a symbol of civilization at this point), and we are on the road again. As if on cue, “Life is a Highway” comes on the radio.

We are in a race to the noon transition where the Purps and LiveLongs want to ride over the Mississippi River together. It is debatable which will come first–the transition or the clogging of our arteries.

A decent night’s rest often brings renewal and a fresh perspective. That is my outlook today. After being in the ‘pain cave’ during yesterday’s ride, team polka dot was able to recover with a nice(!?) dinner and much needed rest.

Our dinner at Penn’s Restaurant was fun, despite the mostly fried nature of almost all the food.. sorry, Kelly! It was nice to have Taylor, Kelly, and Lisa join us prior to their departure for catching up to the lemon bonkers, and our hunt for a hotel. We settled in and simply passed out for the night.

After breakfast, Jennifer talked a bit about an epiphany she had regarding why we rode backwards yesterday. It was the exact way I felt, she just put it into words much better than I could ever do. We travelled the same road twice on this journey, the same way some people do if they get cancer twice, or if they get a recurrence. We turned a routine ride effort into an effort to honor cancer victims like Jeni, like Rene, like Laurens, and like countless others who battle recurrence. Our road was tough, but nothing like theirs.

So, here is to a new day. A new road, a refreshed road. For team Polka Dot, and for you, Jeni… and Rene…. and Laurens…. And the countless others who fight the fight.

As I write this, it’s 10:30 am, Wednesday. We’re flying, minivan style, across the Mississippi landscape. There are the occasional exciting moments as we go airborne over bumps and skim rumble strips. Ah Mississippi, land of fried food and no-tell motels. In other words, BFE.

But I am getting ahead of myself. We were back on the Trace last I wrote, waiting for the Dots to roll in….. (cue flashback here):

The Lemons await the Dots, silly string canisters hidden in their back jersey pockets. After orchestrating a photo shoot, they spray them down with the stuff. Team mom jennifer jerina dutifully cleans up afterwards as I Mee-ssage the Dots and honorary team member Flat Stanley. He can’t take too much pressure, on account of being a piece of paper, but the rest of the Dots need some work and get it. Riding into the wind = sore legs.

Apparently my spa-like massage atmosphere on the side of the road under Pine trees is lacking, so Lisa turns up the car stereo. Suddenly the world is flooded with Depeche Mode. Brandon objects.

Lisa: “you got a problem with my music?”
Brandon: “yeah, I’m not in an elevator.”

Dinner with the Dots turns out to be a classic Deep South moment. I can smell Penns Restaurant before we are officially inside the building. Everything on the menu is fried. And then it’s fried again. And then maybe again. At one point, Brandon whips out his 3-inch knife at the table to illustrate a story he’s telling. The two stoic state troopers sitting right next to us simply look over and then resume their dinner of Fried Food. On our way out we say “good evening, officers.” They nod. Only in Mississippi.

At least I hope.

Back on the Trace, it’s pitch black, and the Lemons are riding in silence and in sync. For an hour or so, the riders and support drivers call out names of those who have died fighting cancer. Sometimes it’s simply a name and an “I love you.” Sometimes it’s a story. Sometimes it’s a long pause. Sometimes it’s impossible to say anything at all.

***

For the last hour of their ride, we coast next to the four riders-a mobile DJ service and cheerleading squad combined. Taylor finds a clubby Pandora station, and heads start to bop and bounce. The cadence picks up. Sly smiles creep onto faces.

FU, Cancer.