On the seventh day, He rested. According to my schedule, we were supposed to do the same, but my alarm went off at 4 am for the seventh morning in a row. We rose to hit the road for a short, 30 mile jaunt to Scottsdale, AZ. The Phoenix heat hit us early, and the rough road was unkind to our chaffed nether regions. Dani and I cycled together for the last 15 miles and spent about half of it lamenting our rubbed-raw skin. But the ride will be well worth it tomorrow, when we face a tough climb shortened by 30 miles. (So far, there is no consensus to how long tomorrow's route will be.) Despite chafing, chapping and peeling, the blessings continue to be conferred upon us. We would like to welcome Nicole, our new rider, who will be pedaling with us to Albuquerque, NM. Nicole is a senior architecture student at Notre Dame, and graciously let us stay in her home and swim in her pool. Her mother graciously let us eat every scrap of food in their kitchen. Warning: if the team shows up, we very well may eat you out of house and home. Our athlete appetites have revved up!
We are housed tonight in the tricked-out basement at Valley Presbyterian in Scottsdale playing air hockey and ping pong. We arrived at 8:30 this morning to attend a service and make appearances at three others. This is a tremendously exciting stop, because the pastor and several other church members will be joining us tomorrow for the ride up to Payson. The support of others - in any fashion - has been the greatest blessing of this trip so far, and we all would like to send a tremendous thanks to those who fed us lunch and dinner, and donated to the Fuller Center today. And many thanks for letting us finish off your donuts!
It's technically still our off-day, so several of us gave our bikes a little TLC. It's amazing how much grease can build up in just one week of constant riding. We lubed chains, wiped frames and sanded brake pads, but I don't know how much we will need them tomorrow. The ride looks to be one of our hardest (according to the countless parishioners that cringed when we told them we are headed to Payson). Alas, it is my scheduled day to drive to sag wagon.
Gosh ... darn.
- Katherine
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6 comments:
Biker gang:
Thanks again for the daily update -
I hope that you guys are able to conquer the ride ahead of you tomorrow (Monday) - even the driver - and any passengers ;) you have keeping you company. So great to hear again of the wonderful generosity of spirit, homes, food and $ for the Fuller Center that you are receiving.
Keep peddling...
Linda S (Dani's mom)
I miss climbing the hills in GA (did I just say that?) Y'all may talk me into joining up midway after all.
Keep up the great work! If you see the old man slippin' of the back, throw him a rope!! :D
I LOVE reading this blog! It's so cool to stay current on your journey. Please keep writing and riding. Stay positive. Stay hydrated. Stay safe.
God loves you and so do I!
Hey New Jersey!...AKA...Chris and the rest of the group! So GREAT to hear from you! I loved the pic by the tall cactus!! Since you've emailed I've been reading your daily progress and thinking about all of you! I know how hot it can get in Scottsdale... although as you know I'm not fond of that area because it reminds me of the Mayo Clinic...which I will be going back to in July for my 5th surgery there. Ugh! It's been raining in Pittsburgh the past few days... I bet you would love some of that right now! Well... give me a shout and get yourself in some more of the pics posted online! :) Miss ya! -Airport (Sheryl)
Zach, thanks for the video the other day. We enjoyed seeing you guys! Hope the ride today isn't too tough in the mountains.
Our prayers and thoughts are with all of you!
Spin easy.
We hosted the group on Monday the 23rd, and I have to say that they are a very personable, dedicated group. I know that they were very tired because they don't even remember being at our place that evening for barbecued chicken. That or they all got sick from it.
Tim and Lesley Bradley.
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