day 4--I hurt.

SO here we go... I know it's been a while since my last post and to explain, internet's a bit patchy where we have been and there are thirty of us vying for some web time...

To catch you up now: today was Day 4 of cycling (day 6 overall) and today was probably the best and worst day so far. So far we've covered about 240 miles, about 80+ of which were just today. Things haven't been bad--my saddle is not as much of a problem as many other people's, thank goodness, and the only serious I've had is in my upper shoulders and wrists, not my legs! HOO-ray!! We've been hitting a lot of flat land as we've been rolling through the coastal NC plains and meeting some AWESOME people in the towns we've been traveling through and staying in along the way.

As for today and why it was the best and worst: Well, for the first 50 miles it was killer smooth sailing. I LOVED it. I stayed up with the lead pack who was just cruising along as a high speed, chatting and laughing and listening to fun music (and sprinting into county/town lines for points... you do what you gotta do to break up monotony...). Lunch was at about mile 60 after we started getting into some hills... eeee... hills are not fun. After that was when trouble hit. I ended up taking the first major spill of the whole trip--and by major I mean tumbling, head over heels, down and out in a serious ditch. Cars stopped. and thus, I hurt. I ended up bending the front rim on my bike pretty bad and bruising my legs pretty seriously. I rode on the bent rim for a couple of miles til the Bike Master, my aptly named friend on my trip who cycled in college, thought he might be able to fix it well enough so I wouldn't have to ride in the van. Well, he couldn't. But amazingly this truck pulle dover to where we were and who would emerge (as we would learn) but one of Lance Armstrong's, yes, the Lance Armstrong, bike mechanic from the '96 Olympics in Atlanta. Talk about divine intervention. He fixed my wheel and though I may yet have to get a new one, he virtually saved my life and my ride so I would be able to finish the day.

All in all things are great. I've met and already gottent o know pretty well some AWESOME people and am so psyched to continue on!!

til next time and i love you all!!,
Caitlin

p.s. If you haven't checked out the B&B website yet, DO IT. People are loving this thing and the blogs linked up to it are getting rave reviews. and you can leave us all messages too! www.bikeandbuild.org

Day 2: Shakin' It Down and Prep

This will be brief and focused on how to send mail since I've been getting emails about that so bear with me! quick status though: we've been doing all sorts of informative sessions on bike maintenance and B&B policies and procedures and went for a "shakedown" ride this after --15 miles to the Cape Hatteras lighthouse to work out the kinks in our bikes/find riding buddies in our group.

So mail: I can be sent mail which we pick up every Thursday at a post office. Here's how you address a package:

Bike & Build
Attn: CYCLIST NAME
General Delivery
CITY, ST ZIP

and here's the schedule of address to which you can send:

http://www.bikeandbuild.org/cms/content/view/55/112/

Roll on.

CVH

Day -1: The Day before I leave

So it is now extremely early in the morning, or rather very late at night depending on how you look at it, and the time is right (sort of) to begin documenting for all what this adventure is.

Bike and BUild is a non-profit organization that sends student/young people/thos with too much free time and energy on cross-country bike rides to raise money and awareness of low-income housing and Habitat for Humanity. check out the website if you want to know more: www.bikeandbuild.org

Info of note:
My route: NC2SD--N orth Carolina to San Diego
USE THE ROUTE TRACKER. It's lots of fun to play with.

My contact: I have my cell phone and I will be able to check email, though more sporadically. if you need your sporadic dose of Caitlin, call me!!

My blog: I type slow and spell thigs wrong so please understand when there are errors in this. I'd appreciate little sarcasm in response, Guides.

So that's all for now. The car is packed (since I am now no longer a Charlottesville resident) and my bike is loaded on top. I'm rollin' out about 6:30 for Nags Head. Wish me Luck!!