Friday, June 24, 2011

Oklahoma is OK by Me

Alright, so Oklahoma and I admittedly got off to a poor start. Part of that is my fault and I am willing to assume that responsibility, but the state does have a few redeeming qualities about it.

Our build days in OKC were great. It was nice to get back to building and helping out again. We decked a roof, installed soffit, facia and frieze board, and then we caulked and painted it. Another group painted the interior of a home and did similar trim work.

The first day out on the road after the build day was my van day, which was adventurous because we had two riders crash who needed to be patched up (for the record they are both fine and rode today) and a bunch of sick people in the van. So much for having so me time to get things done. We got into the host around 2:00 which is pretty early these days and then I went and picked up a van load of mail. I can tell that I have gotten sentimental in my old age because instead of tearing through the packages and looking at all the good food that I was sent, I went straight for the cards. I guess as you get older you realize what is important.

Today we rode from Watonga, OK to Arnett, OK a total of 86 miles. Up until our first lunch stop things were going great. We had a tail wind, were making excellent time and were riding on great roads, but just after our first lunch stop we made a left hand turn and the tailwind turned into a crosswind and the roads got rough. We pedaled through and had an excellent surprise at our second lunch stop in Vici, OK. People had stopped to talk with all the bikers coming through town and we wound up getting $335 donated and lunch meat, which made for a great lunch stop. The last couple of miles got really difficult as the winds picked up to about 30mph with gusts around 40mph but we managed to make our way into Arnett were they were ready for our arrival. They had a sign at the Activities Center welcoming us and ice cream at the host for us to eat when we got in. It was incredible.

We head to Texas tomorrow on a 95 mile ride, but I think there will be a part (albeit small) that will miss Oklahoma.

-Jeremy

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