I got the boys up at 6:00 so we could head into town for breakfast at the coffee shop on Main. They opened at 7:00 so we had plenty of time to get all packed up and do our devotions. Just before we were ready to head out Carolyn, the Funeral Director, walked over (she lives next door) and invited us for breakfast. Praise the Lord! Not only did she save us a few dollars but it gave us an opportunity to spend time with our kind hostess. We enjoyed egg casserole, fresh fruit, and toast. Thank you Carolyn!
It was honestly a bit weird spending the night in a funeral home. Rocky was not a little freaked out. There was one bed and a couch upstairs but since the couch was too small I slept downstairs on a larger couch. Rocky thought I was crazy since it was next to the embalming room… Thankfully Carolyn told us when we arrived that there were no bodies in the home at that time. Well that was a relief. But to add to the freakiness when I asked Carolyn if we could do some laundry she led us through the embalming room to the washer and dryer. Rocky had the creepy crawlies for a while and Forrest just thought, “Cool!” and took a couple of pictures. I’m sure Forrest had fun teasing Rocky that night. As for me, I stayed awake nearly all night as the grandfather clock downstairs chimed a tune every 15 mins. Good thing tomorrows was only a 56 mile ride…
We left New Haven by 8:00 headed for Harrodsburg. I had no idea where we’d be staying and reached out to Tony from Sebree–our newfound lodging expert–and asked him to see if he could get ahold of the First Baptist Church there. He texted me by lunch with the good news that not only would the church put us up, but if we got there before 4PM we could shower at the gym. No problem! We were on schedule to reach Harrodsburg by 2:00. The 56 mile ride that day wasn’t bad. It was full of the hills we’ve gotten used to around this part of the country and so we just kept on pedaling, shifting high and then low and then high again.
One cool thing was that we passed through Loretta, the home of Maker’s Mark Kentucky bourbon. We didn’t actually see the distlllery–although I would’ve loved to. And if we’d passed through Bardstown, apparently we would’ve seen 3 or 4 different distilleries! Is that why there’s so much corn around here? Coming into Loretta out of the boonies we suddenly came upon dozens of 6-story black buildings. They looked like barracks or office buildings but not a single car was parked near them. They just stood there one after the other. What in the world…!? As we rode by Rocky looked in one of the windows and caught sight of a barrel. “It’s the Maker’s Mark warehouses we were told about,” he said. “No way,” I said. “There’s way too many of them.” We stopped in the very small town to use the restroom and I walked into a cafe/bar and asked a lady sitting there, “What in the world are all those black buildings we passed?” “Those are Maker’s Mark warehouses.” “Ok, but they’re not all full are they?” “Oh yes they are. And they’re building more.” “Boys, welcome to the bourbon capital of the world.”
We got to the church in Harrodsburg by 2:00 and were met by Tim Underhill, the outreach pastor. He showed us to the showers and then to the open room next to the weight room in which we’d be staying. It was a huge open floor on which we could lay out our mats and we had access to all the chips and soda in the kitchen we wanted. Thanks Tim! We were grateful for the hospitality and got a fair night’s sleep.
Aug 25
We were on the road by 7:00 heading for Berea. It was only a 48 mile ride but it would be the end of our ride for today…
When we planned this 3 month bike trip and couldn’t even start it before mid June I knew it would prevent us from seeing Schylie off to Uganda. She was scheduled to fly out of Boston on Sept 4 and we probably wouldn’t reach the Atlantic until Sept 14. Mama would have to see her off and I wouldn’t be there. I’d accepted that. I didn’t at all like the idea and was very sad about the timing, but I’d accepted it. We’d keep on pedaling and get to Yorktown as soon as we could but there was no way we’d get home before she left. So when we saw the family in Cañon City, CO we knew it’d be the last time we’d see Schylie for over a year. That was hard.
Last Saturday Schylie sent me an email that I couldn’t get off my mind. She wrote, “Thanks Daddy! I love you too 🙂 Miss you dreadfully….” I couldn’t even reply. I missed her too. Dreadfully.
We passed two westbound riders a while back and they said they’d been on the road for a month… Really? Are we that close? I did the math to figure out our average miles per day and how many days might be left. At that time we were 52 biking days in and had, at most, 18 biking days left. It looked like we’d finish around Sept 8 or 9. Wow! That’d be almost a week earlier than I’d planned… But it’d still be several days shy of getting home in time to see Schylie. We needed to reach the Atlantic about 5 days sooner than our feet could pedal us.
So when we were hanging out in Harrodsburg I decided to call Enterprise in Berea, KY and book a rental car to drive us to Christiansburg, VA. It would mean driving the entire length of Map 11, 375.5 miles. Berea is the end of Map 10 and Christiansburg is the beginning of Map 12. We were a little bummed not to bike that portion and therefore not to bike the entire TransAmerica Bike Trail. But, hands down, family is worth far more than any plaque on the wall or notch on the belt. As far as we’re concerned, when, Lord willing, we reach Yorktown, VA next week, we will have biked across this vast country of ours. And if you look at a map of the US and you look at the TransAm trail, the stretch between Berea and Christiansburg is very small compared to the rest. So with the Lord’s help we hope to reach our journey’s end by Friday and be home via Amtrak by Saturday. That’s my plan but I’ll keep you posted as things unfold.
We’ve got to drop the rental off at 9:00 and then we’ll get back on the trail and head for Daleville or Buchanan. With Tony’s help again we’ve made contact with some fellow believers in that area who are happy to host us for Sat night and the Lord’s Day. God is so good.
Thanks for praying and thanks for following.
Until next time… 🙂
Great picture!!! We can’t wait to see you!