Fijis Across America 2010

The test of a leader is taking the vision from me to we. 

-John Maxwell

Finally after much anticipation we arrive near the heart of the Cumberland Mtns, the newer formed range making up the Appalachians. Awaking to a fog we left Wheelwright with determined spirits after a local announced that you have alot of climbing to do and its “tuff”. Pedal after pedal, we ascended a couple of mountains before eating lunch in Elkhorn City. One of the hills before the small town of Bee proved to be the steepest I believe of the whole trip. It was just a constant gradient of about 9% for at least a mile or 2. Whew! Sure was a long climb, but it gave us some character…

Lunch at the Rusty Fork Cafe in Elkhorn City right of the Big Sandy was excellent as I ordered a cheeseburger with fries and the service was incomparable to any fast food place. Nap time could not have come any sooner as we all sprawled out on the booths and took a short siesta before entering into our last state.

After about a 10 mile push or so we crossed the border into Virginia. A sense a relief came upon on us all and we gladly smiled for the camera as the days were now limited to 8. “Meet Virginia” started playing out of someone’s iphone and it sure was a good tune to hear at the current time and kept us motivated as we moved on for Rosedale.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7C4sUTg_kZw. The last climb of the day was supposed to be the steepest according to our elevation profile on the maps so me and Chaz decided to take off our shirts together and just ride with bibs only. Of course I had to lather on some sunscreen, even if it was 5 in the evening, but it was definitely a smart and comfortable decision made by the two of us. Me and Chaz gritted our teeth on the last climb as switchback after switchback led to the summit. Ahhh the view from onto with the sun slowly setting behind the mountains was priceless and rewarding after such a hard climb. After carefully descending through Honaker I arrived in front of the pack in Rosedale looking for a church that according to the map existed for a free cyclist overnight stay. The church was never found (until the next day) by Jordan therefore we ended up driving down the road a few miles and staying in a comfortable hotel for the night. Hey, it was really nice after a long day’s ride! Can’t wait to see what Virginia has in store for us!