So many states, so little time!

Well Bike and Build continues to be a whirlwind tour, especially now that we've left lovely Colorado and passed quickly through northeastern Utah and into Wyoming.  Despite the fact that we were in Colorado for almost a week and a half, it went by extremely quickly with more wonderful views and rides than I can recount.

After the 4th of July, where we camped in an RV park in Kremmling, CO, we had two nights and a day off in Steamboat Springs.  What did I do with myself on my day off?  That's right! Riding bikes!
I got to rent a really sweet mountain bike for the day for way less than the shop normally charges and explored the network of trails in the immediate vicinity of town.  After Steamboat it was back to camping, so now a quick photo tour:

In Maybell, CO, we were faced with ferocious winds and the need to cook/serve dinner, so after cooking in the back of our trailer we went and sat under the awnings near the bathroom just to stay out of the elements.  After the storm passed, sunset was absolutely amazing and the whole campground was lit up with the colors of the sky. 

After leaving Maybell we passed through Dinosaur, CO where Dinosaur National Park is located and into UTAH!  It was a long day, about 92 miles into Vernal, and the state sign was conveniently located at around the 60 mile mark--perfect for a second lunch stop.  We got our obligatory state sign photos then battled hot headwinds the rest of the way into the church.

From Vernal we had a short day to Flaming Gorge, Utah which just so happens to be in Ashley National Forest!  (For those of you that don't know, this is a shout-out to my sister).  We expected to be closer to the reservoir so we could go swimming, but as it turned out our campground was still up the hill a few miles.  The weather was warm and calm, so we were able to get all set up, nap, and have the best evening camping of the trip so far.  Given the favorable weather, our evening included the obligatory elements of any good campout: a fire, s'mores, and good company.

Two short days in Utah were all we got, but that also means more fun state sign photos!  The Wyoming border was about 15 miles into our ride today, after one of the big climbs but it definitely was not the last. 

Lunch was at the top of a good long climb, where the views out over the valley were spectacular and the clouds in the sky surreal.  A group of horses seemed to be snacking on the hillside right above us enjoying the same view we were afforded by 3+ hours of climbing and descending throughout the morning.

After lunch it was all downhill into Rock Springs, WY, but that doesn't mean it was easy.  It seems that more often than not the winds pick up, as does the temperature, and always manages to make us fight to reach our hosts.  Once we were within a few miles some much needed fast food helped boost morale, but confusing directions kept us guessing right up until we reached the host.  Warm showers, a nap and dinner provided washed all of our worries away.  Tomorrow's another century!  Eeeek!  We're headed for the Tetons in the next few days which means more beautiful views and lots of climbing!

Boulder, CO (Day....still unknown)

We're into Colorado and the Rockies are in sight!  In fact, from Denver up to Boulder is still a sizable climb, but once we were there we had plenty of time to walk around and explore Pearl Street Mall.

One of the best parts of the ride from Denver was having a few B&B alums ride with us and tell us about their trips.  Anna Parker and Sonya Hirsch hung out with us in Denver, got us a sweet discount at the bike shop they work at, and invited us over to their house after dinner one night.  Since the days ahead include lots of climbing up to Estes Park and the Trail Ridge Pass (elev. 12, 183 ft.), I picked their brains about what to bring and how to not fall off the side of the mountains. 

I was so excited to be in Boulder because in addition to having a day off the bike to build with Habitat, I got to see my friend Hattie who's living in Ft. Collins, CO this summer.  We had talked earlier in the summer about meeting up in Colorado, but it just came together that she was able to drive down our first night there.  She got to meet some fellow riders and it was such a great chance to catch up since we now live far away from one another.

Our build site was a four-family house, where four small units are a part of one larger building.  The Boulder Habitat chapter is able to do some pretty cool things for their homeowners like putting up solar panels which can help pay as much as half of the tenants electricity bills.  It should be mentioned that Boulder has over 300 days of sun a year--I'm so jealous.  I was with a team putting up the rim boards and then floor joists for the second floor of one unit.  All of the lumber was marked with labels that corresponded to their placement on the plans.  This made the process of putting them in place much easier and it was neat to see how well coordinated the construction could be.  We didn't have to cut any pieces, they were all just delivered ready to go. 

In a few days we'll be camping so it's back to radio silence, but the riding after the mountains will hopefully be easier than climbing 7000+ feet in two days. I can't wait!

Day ??? - I LOVE Kansas!

So after a long radio silence, I'm back!  Actually I've never left, I've just been busy, tired, or unmotivated to blog (sorry guys) when faced with the opportunity to bask in the awesomeness that is Bike and Build CUS 2010.  Yesterday I was sweep with my lovely co-rider Sarah Graham on an 80-mile day from Beloit to Phillipsburg, Kansas which proved to be a beautifully scenic and fair weathered day.  To break up the monotony (or just to get us to stop being so giddy at how pretty everything was), we stopped at every mile for a themed photo.  To sum up our day and see a little bit of the landscape, here they are in order:

Mile 10 - Tight at Ten (our morning stretching ritual)

Mile 20 - Tourists at Twenty (we stopped to see the World's Largest Ball of Twine in Cawker City).  It's really big...and we got to add to it!

Mile 30 - Thristy at Thirty (and we managed to capture this with a bike tripod and self-timer)

Mile 40 - Frolicking at Forty (We eventually caught up to another rider who was kind enough to take photos for us for the rest of the day.  I felt like I was in the Sound of Music running through wide open fields)

Mile 50 - Fighting at Fifty (I clearly have the upper hand and had to show Sarah who's boss...don't worry, no sweeps were harmed in the taking of these photos!)

Mile 60 - Sexy at Sixty (so after fighting naturally had to make up--Sarah takes charge)

Mile 70 - Sprinting at Seventy (10 miles to go! We're almost there!)

Mile 80 - Eating at Eighty (We made it! And now we get a mid-afternoon snack, again part of our daily ritual of burning more calories than we stuff in our faces, but we make a solid effort at finding all the delicious spots.  The Chubby Pickle was recommended as the roadside place to go in lovely Phillipsburg, pop. ~2000.)

After all of that we had another fantastic dinner, meaning that after just over a month we've still only cooked dinner for ourselves 3 times.  My chore group was back to dinner and presentations so we're getting more practice on talking up Bike & Build, which at this point comes naturally and we all love to do it.  On Thursday nights we have our group "Town Hall" meeting where we all gather together and give Highs/Lows for the week.  Often we'll include something we're looking forward to, but this week a leader changed it up to Confessions and let's just say we were all thoroughly entertained with several no-holds barred offerings.  After Highs/Lows come Warm Fuzzies, where people write little shout-outs to other individuals about whatever--being cool, goofy, doing something nice, admiring a budding bromance, you name it.  These group meetings are great for the collective spirit because we always end up laughing to the point that we're on the floor crying and it just reaffirms our collective bonds. 

One thing I'm looking forward to (and I know I'm not the only one) is getting into Colorado.  We're nearing the end of our week plus in Kansas, and while its been great--it's truly the quintessential American landscape--the mountains are drawing us towards them.  The excitement grows with each day as people excitement wins out over anxiety of climbing.  LIVELOVERIDE!

Day 25 - St. Louis Build Day!

Today was our fourth build day, but it was the first time we've worked with Rebuilding Together, the other organization Bike & Build frequently partners with for build days.

Unlike Habitat for Humanity that primarily builds from the ground up or rehabs homes for new owners, Rebuilding Together helps out existing homeowners fix up their homes so they have a safe, secure place to live if they can't afford or otherwise perform the repairs themselves.  Our M.O. on Bike & Build is that we'll do just about anything under the sun these organizations need us to do, and today we did just that.  As a group we were working on three homes on one block doing anything from spackling cracked ceilings to putting down new flooring to fixing fence posts.  I was one of the last people to arrive on site so I ended up going to Home Depot with another rider and the crew leader from RT, which was an awesome chance to learn all about St. Louis and how Rebuilding Together operates. 

By the time we got back from our errands, it was lunch time and so while I wasn't super hungry, just about everyone else was.  The heat and humidity in St. Louis were absolutely oppressive, and while most days on the bike I don't go through my whole 100oz CamelBak of water, it was gone by about 2pm today.  We congregated in the shade, taking refuge in any escape from the sun we could find.  Needless to say, we were worn out:

After an afternoon of hard work, we managed to cover up the underside of one home's awning that had rotted away, leaving the joists more exposed to the elements and more likely to crumble later. 

I wish I had more photos from the rest of the day, but sadly my camera isn't waterproof and thus I can't show you in photos just how wonderful the UMSL pool was after a day in sweltering heat.  I think everyone knows the feeling, and I'm getting chills just thinking back about it.  Showers and food came next, then more food, then a little ping pong, more food, then badminton!  Since we were staying at the gym they had all kinds of things for us to do and I think I speak for all of us who played when I say it was a blast to totally goof around and smash the little birdies back and forth at one another.

Back on the road tomorrow--we're biking all the way to Washington! Washington, Missouri that is....all along the Katy Trail, an old rail line converted into a 225-mile gravel bike path.

Day 24 - St. Louis! Gateway to the West!

Our day into St. Louis was punctuated with lots of excitement and uncertainty.  While it wasn't a really long day in terms of mileage, by the time we arrived at UMiss-St. Louis it felt like an eternity.  Along the way we saw lots....and lots....and a whole lot more corn, with the occasional lone tree like this that I've quickly become obsessed with photographing:

After biking almost all the way there, we finally came to the point where we had to cross the Mississippi River (ahhh!!!) and the directions from our well-intentioned leaders became really fuzzy really fast.  We stopped at a Lewis & Clark visitors center to escape the highway death trap that is Rt. 3, where we learned of a great bike path along the river.  With about 3 miles to go, we decided we could use the break and hopped on the path we were told would lead us directly to the bridge we wanted.

As you may or may not be able to see from the photo, the bike path was not a happy place.  Think less bike path and more loose rock service road.  Definitely NOT road bike friendly.  This may have been the longest 3 miles of our day....We had no idea where we were going, no faith in our tires (but luckily no flats!), and lots of pain to sore rears that don't need any more torture than we already give them.

Eventually we found the old Chain of Rocks Bridge which would deliver us from unpleasant Illinois to a somewhat welcoming Missouri.  Had our leader Derrick not been waiting for us at the start of the bridge, I think we would've turned around and continued to be hopelessly lost.  What we discovered is that the bridge is actually part of the historic Rt. 66 and we got a few good photos in the middle.

Once into St. Louis we biked through the north part of the city to UMSL where we stayed and a few of us stopped at a rundown roadside barbecue joint for a local treat: pork steaks.  Despite the appearance of the place, the delicious food not only lifted our energy but also our spirits after a day of highs and lows.

Now onto some highlights of the evening: THE ARCH!

We were so kindly bussed downtown by one rider's parents and we got to hang out and walk around for a few hours while the sun was setting.  In photos it looks big, but for those who haven't been--it's WAAAY bigger in person, and all the more impressive because of it.  A cool fact: it's as wide at its base as it is tall--630 feet.  Another cool fact: it's elevator is egg-shaped so it can go up the arch.  I didn't get to go inside, but that'll definitely we a priority on my next visit.  Lying on the grass underneath we could see camera flashes going off from the observation deck at the top.    Later that night we went out to an area near WashU in St. Louis called 'The Loop' which has fun shops and bars to kick back and have some good off-the-bike fun.

The first thing off the Metro was this cool sculpture, so I couldn't resist taking photos of it:

Eventually us 21+ year olds found a half decent bar, got ourselves a couple rounds and ordered our umpteenth dinner of the day because yes, we were still hungry...  Rebuilding Together tomorrow!

So much Bike & Build love...

Day 20 - Bloomington, IN (College towns are cool)

Another short ride (and limited battery life) merit another short photo tour of possibly our shortest ride to date.  That said, the ride from Columbus to Bloomington, IN was certainly not the least entertaining.  About 2/3 of the way rolled into Nashville, IN which is a super cool little artists community with small shops and restaurants.

A few of us stopped for a rare treat--a morning coffee!--at the Muddy Boots Cafe as per the suggestion of another rider, Will Paradis, who had been previously. We were not disappointed.  Our stop also featured some bicycle repair excitement as we had to change a tube AND tire after a spontaneous explosion.  The underlying cause was later discovered to be the tube, but at the time we just changed it out and got on our way.

To hide her black eye, Christina decided to go for the McDonald's ghost look.  As she rolled up with the spare tire we all burst out laughing, but the couldn't help but feel bad since she's now constantly being asked about how she got them (a spill she's quickly recovered from).

The little town of Bloomington is home to Indiana University.  As a result, it's also home to lots of great little restaurants, more coffee shops (wahoo!) and legitimate bike shops.  Laughing Planet is a vegetarian/vegan burrito place that made one vegan rider, Emily Frost, extremely happy.  The coffee shop below, Soma, made my day.  Not only was I able to get good coffee, but also some really great postcards.  Keep and eye on your mailboxes or send me your address if you can't wait!

As a midday snack we got Tibetan food before exploring the area around IU, but I unfortunately missed out on touring the campus proper.  Since our lives revolve around our bikes and food that fuels us, I have to say that dinner was a special one.  The parents of a former rider with no affiliation to our trip made us barbecue in a public park about a mile from the church we were staying at.  It was a great chance to walk through the residential area of the town and I even spotted some cool street art.

While must of the day was really great, I want to end with one highlight that really made me smile:

That's right--a candy pink Mini Cooper.  Tomorrow we ride along Rt. 46 into Terre Haute, IN when we'll hit 1000 miles!

Days 19 - Columbus, INDIANA!

We've crossed into our fourth (official) state--Indiana!  Shortly after leaving Cincinnati we were greeted with intense rains, soaking us so thoroughly that no rain jacket or outerwear could have provided any protection.  Water was coming at us from all directions, and even when we thought it had stopped, we were still soaked by cars passing us flying over puddles.  Not surprisingly, I have no photos from the rainstorm.

That said, it eventually cleared up and the rest of our 90 mile day into Columbus, IN was fairly pleasant.  There was more of the same rolling agricultural countryside, although we've now started passing dairy farms that have, well, a very distinct smell to them.  Fortunately we didn't pass to many so I was still able to breathe, but I also now know the smell of roadkill all too well....and I have 3000 miles left to bike.  Woo hoo!  Now for the exciting photos of the day!

There were some pretty awesome chain grease tattoos (that's been the best one so far).

We passed through lovely Greensburg, IN where they have a tree growing out of a bell/clock tower (don't ask why...):

Then after lunch we passed this huge abandoned barn on the side of the road with it's roof totally caved and we decided to explore.  We discovered that it still had electricity (we were able to turn a whopping one light bulb on), really cool timber framing (I'm a huge nerd for that kind of stuff), and some really old but cool looking farm equipment.  I'm not sure where we were, but of the many MANY barns we passed, this was definitely one of the coolest simply by virtue of the extent of decay.

And about that whole facial hair thing....I lied!