# 01 Virginia Date: Posted 11th May 2010 Link: https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/starting-my-trip-in-true-oregon-fashion.html ## Starting My Trip in True Oregon Fashion Starting my trip, in true oregon fashion it's raining :-) ---- Date: Posted 11th May 2010 Link: https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/had-longer-day-than-i-expected.html ## Had a Longer Day than I Expected Body: Had a longer day than i expected. 54 miles. Feeling a little sore in the butt, knees and shoulders need to get used to cycling again. I made it to a small town called charles city. I was trying to stay with a person from warmshowers but never connected. So i knocked on the door of a bed and breakfast to stay...she doesn't do it anymore but gave me couch to sleep on and a kitchen to cook in. Unbelievable the generosity of random strangers! ---- Date: Posted 12th May 2010 Link: https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/getting-ready-to-hit-road.html ## Getting Ready to Hit the Road Getting ready to hit the road. Looks like it will get a little warm today, 84 w/ a chance of T-storms around 5p. I'll keep ya all posted :-) ---- Date: Posted 12th May 2010 ## [Mechanicsville and Thunderstorms](https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/mechanicsville-and-thunderstorms.html) Today was a low mileage day, just under 50. Made it to Mechanicsville after several small towns. Met a guy from England and rode the day with him, I'll probably ride with him tomorrow and see how far he can make it. I hope to make it to Bumpass tomorrow. We are Staying with a couple and their 2 boys from warmshowers.org, which was a blessing! Called them about an hour before we showed and they were totally cool with putting us up. Otherwise we would be looking to sleep behind a church...and with how often I go to church a bolt of lighting may have smote me. :-p. Heading to the store to resupply and get a knee brace. Talk to you later! PS It's effing hot here, got a little sunburnt through my longsleeve shirt! Picture(s): http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_k4sy2Ebhph4/S-tlLPtkcSI/AAAAAAAAGd8/XRghrcg4adM/s1600/IMG_0199.JPG ---- Date: Posted 13th May 2010 ## [Mechanicsville to Mineral](https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/mechanicsville-to-mineral.html) Another 50 mile day or so, still getting my body used to the riding.  should be a cooler day today, about 70.  Riding with the English bloke Stuart again, he has a contact to stay at in Mineral :)  I'll keep ya posted! Picture(s): ---- Date: Posted 13th May 2010 Link: ## [Mineral](https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/mineral.html) Made it to Mineral VA, had a cooler ride today which was nice.  We will be heading into Charlottesville which should be about 50 miles again.  Getting a slower start than I figured, but I need to get my butt and knees ready for everything!  After charlottesville we hit the Applications and will need all the stamina I can come up with.  We had our first dog chaser today I do like being the faster rider cause I stirred the dog up and he chased after Stuart :-) Had great coffee and doughnuts for second breakfast in Ashland.  I have eaten more bananas in the last few days than I think I have in my life! The weather is supposed to get into the 90's tomorrow so we are going to try and get on the road early...we'll see...I am a master at getting a late start... Mom these pants rock, I have already had someone ask if they could buy a pair off me :-)  Thanks! Bed time. Picture(s): ---- Date: Posted 14th May 2010 Link: ## [Charlottesville](https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/charlottesville.html) Hot Hot Hot. Did I mention it was hot today?  The temp here was 86, but I am pretty sure on our way getting here it was pushing 90.  I got sunburnt in all the areas that I missed with the lotion...Doh!  I am pretty sure that I also drank about 8 liters of water/gatorade and I am still parched! The ride overall was beautiful, but not the photo op type pretty. Only took a few pictures, but I will make sure to get more as we get into the Appalachian mountains.  Had my second day of a dog chasing me, oh how I love dogs...We also met another cyclist on the road today, a younger guy from Berlin Germany.  He started about 150 miles into the trip and I will be shocked if his bike and what not makes it as far as he wants to go... My knees felt good today, there was no pain so I think that all the cleat and float problems are fixed :)  now it is just my butt.  Still working on that but dont expect to have an unsore ass for quite some time, like a few more weeks.  My legs were good today too, there were some good hills that we had to go up I may send even more stuff home before the Appalachian's. Staying with a guy from warmshowers roommates.  he is out of town and when i called he hooked us up!  we were pretty stuck cause the person that we were hoping to stay with hadn't contacted us when we got here.  with a pending T-Storm I made the command decision to call other people and get a place :)  Hope to get some good sleep tonight, as I have not slept well since I got here. Well i hope to charge a couple of things and got to bed soon... nite all! Picture(s): ---- Date: Posted 16th May 2010 Link: https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/made-it-to-natural-bridge-va.html ## Made it to Natural Bridge Made it to Natural Bridge, VA. Nice riding staying in a dive hotel cause it's about the same price to camp. Trying to get the wifi to work at the hotel. Will vecte more if it gets working Picture(s): ---- Date: Posted 16th May 2010 Link: ## [Long day!](https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/long-day.html) Made it to Love, VA which is in the App mts had Tons of hill climbs today and only a few descents. Rode around 50 miles and they were hard miles. My butt didn't hurt at all today so I think I am pretty good there now. Need to figure out why my shoulder hurts so much though (Dirk or Eric can you look up possible causes in the book? Text me with a solution) need to get some sleep good night all Picture(s): ---- Date: Posted 17th May 2010 Link: https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/wet-wet-wet-stopped-for-lunch-just.html ## Wet Wet Wet Wet wet wet! Stopped for lunch just outside troutville va. Hope to dry out a little :) Picture(s): ---- Date: Posted 18th May 2010 Link: ## [Last couple of days](https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/last-couple-of-days.html) Haven't had much reliable WiFi in the last few days so my posts have been either missing or by text from my cell (when I have service). Sunday was a good day, it was pretty nice heat wise.  We started off out of Love, Va early, with limited water because there were no taps where we stealth camped.  We wanted out early before anyone noticed us and wanted us to pay :).  We finished the climb in the Blue Ridge Mountains, which was really pretty but some major climbing.  Got down into a small town called Visuvus Va and stopped at the local store/restaurant (Gurty's), which was were we were going to fill out now empty water bottles. but it was closed.  we hung there for a bit to see if anyone would come and open it up and to our suprise Gurty showed up and hooked us up.  She wouldn't normally open till 12 it was 10:25.  She turned on the grill, made coffee and let us fill out water! After breakfast we headed down the road to our next stop Natural Bridge.  We arrived via the sketchy gravel backroad that could have been in a number of horror movies.  but we made, alive and intact, to the outskirts of town and took a room in a motel that had crap WiFi but a warm shower...and was the same price as camping.  They also had a 50's diner in the same parking lot that was decent for both dinner and breakfast. Monday was WET!  We awoke to massive downpours and knew we were in for a long day.  Ate a big breakfast and got back on the route.  It rained and rained and rained.  then we stopped for lunch and it stopped raining then started as we were leaving.  By the time we got to camp which was a shed in  small town of Catawba the only dry part on me was my feet...my home-made duct-tape shoe covers worked!  Yes!  The shed is a small room built onto a garage in the back of the fuel station/restaurant/general store and cost a whopping $3 a night.  The best $3 i spent all day!  got food in the deli at the store and attempted to dry all the gear out.  Slept great on the plywood floor (thanks to Tylenol PM). Tuesday was going to be our "0" day, where technically you rest all day.  But since I am a little behind on the miles that I thought that I would have done Stuart and I decided to contact a friend of his in Blacksberg since it was only about 20 miles away.  We got a hold of him and he met us in town right next to Virginia Tech University, bought us lunch at the local bar and showed us the laundry mat.  Now he is putting us up in his place even though he has a 6am flight out of Charlotte NC and will have to leave us to lock up the house.  Amazing how trusting and helpful people are!  Ate at an Asian all you can eat buffet for dinner, yum! and yes the whole Chris Farley skit went through my head as I headed up for my third plate :) Picked up some needed items at the local Kroger (which is the exact same as Fred Meyer).  Now going to upload some more photos and then sleep. Overall things are fantastic, I am having more fun than I thought and feel myself getting stronger on the bike every day.  Today final mileage puts me at about 375 total miles. here is a link to the guy that I am riding with photo album on flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jalicat/sets/72157623720628744/ (Shoulders are still bothering me a little, have raised the bars, moved the seat a bit and changed the angle on the bar where my hands meet the hoods, I think it is a fine tuning issue but any more info on the pain/fix would be awesome!) Picture(s): ---- Date: Posted 19th May 2010 Link: ## [Wytheville Va](https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/wytheville-va.html) Today was a good day to ride, got a good nights sleep and a decent start in the morning.  Had some direction issues in Christensburg but I managed :)  The roads were a little busier than I like but there were some great scenery.  Made it into Wytheville later than I hoped, close to 8pm. but we made it and picked up another cyclist along the way too :) Bruce from Dallas Texas, he is a bit slower than Stuart and myself but he is a nice guy, not sure how long he will ride with us.  We are camping in a city park under a pavilion, well more like a performance stage.  Got loads of unlocked WiFi around us too :)  tomorrow we should make it to Damascus but there are a lot of hills between us and them.  Apparently the Blue Ridge range was only part of the Apps that we ride through...good thing I feel stronger and better everyday!  Well its about bed time, I'll try and update again tomorrow.  check the photos on Picasa too there should be new ones up. Picture(s): ---- Date: Posted 21st May 2010 Link: ## [Damascus](https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/damascus.html) Made it to Damascus, Va.  stayed at a Hostel that is for hikers and bikers only.  we camped in the yard cause everyone smelled inside and there were a few sketchy folks as well.  Slept great, getting a slow start this morning but I am ok with that.  We have a massive climb ahead of us, and it will more than likely be in the rain... Yesterday we had the best day yet of cycling, we rode next to streams or rivers for about 75% of the trip.  it was in the upper 60's with low humidity and blue skies.  the hills were not that bad either, mostly a 6-7% grade (compared to the 10-13% in previous days)  Also had about 10 miles of downhill which was fantastic, nice to have an average pace through there at 24 mph. We should make it to council va today which is about 50 miles down the road. Well it is time pack it in and head out.  Here is a link to a map that Stuart is doing as we travel.  [See Our Progress Here.](http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&gl=uk&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&source=embed&msa=0&msid=101345849002312389220.0004861cc5c7d28f9daed&ll=41.029643,-81.716309&spn=6.015481,14.128418&z=6) I'll post more later. Picture(s): http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_k4sy2Ebhph4/S_abZ4o5tyI/AAAAAAAAGyA/NeYOTlucqb8/s1600/IMG_0368.JPG ---- Date: Posted 22nd May 2010 Link: https://epiccycletour.blogspot.com/2010/05/made-it-to-breaks-interstate-park-3ish.html ## Breaks Interstate Park Made it to breaks interstate park, 3ish miles from KY. First time in awhile that i have cell service. Wifi is about 2 miles away, will update more then. Picture(s): ----