LPC R4L 2011 - Day 3 Recap

Greetings Family and Friends,

God is good.

What a day! We started out meeting up for breakfast at 6 am (oh to sleep in on Saturday!). After that we met outside to gear up and quickly began adding layers to what we were already wearing as it was cold and rainy. Little did we know that this was the beginning of cyclically dressing and undressing all day long. Cold, hot, wet, damp, dry, hot again, then cold, more rain, then sunshine, drying out, more sunshine, blue skies, and very grateful riders. We have some laundry to catch up on and we hope our shoes are dry by morning after we had to pour the water out of them.

The first 30 miles out of Louisville were cold mixed with consistent rain. We were met at our first break with hot chocolate and coffee to try and warm up. Then the fun began; it stopped raining but we ran into our first mountain. It was a 3 mile climb that was endless (or it felt that way. It was obviously not endless as I just told you it was 3miles), just when you thought it was done it would curve around and there was more! Derek and Mary had some bike trouble on the way up but made it to the top after some repairs. No slackers in this group! After a quick break at the top the group continued on while Derek and Mary took a detour to a bike shop and meet up with us when they were done.

Upon arriving at the E'Town Schwinn bike shop in Elizabethtown, KY we (Derek & Mary) were treated so well and enjoyed spending some time with the Owner (Bob) who sported a very inspiring beard that everyone should aspire to and the in house Mechanic Extraodinaire (Mike) at E'Town Schwinn. They were very helpful, gracious, and generous. This little pit stop again reminded us that itʼs not about the destination, but the journey along the way. Thank you Bob and Mike for being a blessing in so many ways to us and the people of your community! Next time you find yourself in Elizabethtown, KY, stop in and say "Hey" to Bob and Mike, sign their wall of passerthroughers from all over the world, and be blessed by some classic southern hospitality.

After meeting up with the team again at lunch, we were able to ride together the rest of the day, ending with a 75 mile total on the bikes, although it might as well have been 150. The climbs were big but at the end of the day we had some awesome downhills too. On our last downhill coast the elevation dropped 650 feet very fast. The top speed clocked was 39.4 MPH! (we won't tell you who hit this speed. For the sake of your peace of mind, just assume that it wasn't your husband, wife, daughter, or son, mom or dad).

After we were done riding, we loaded up into our SAG Vehicles and trailer to have an "early" dinner and get to bed!

Tomorrow more hills to climb, places to see, and people to meet. It was a long challenging day but once again God was watching over us and all of you prayed us through. We are each being stretched, carried, and blessed in so many ways that we did and didn't expect. We miss you all. Thanks for your many prayers. We'll stay in touch.

Peace out,
Team Ride4Life