According to Katherine: Day 47 Recap

After a lovely rest, it was back on the bike again. Linda cooked us a full breakfast in the condo. I had scrambled eggs and oatmeal. I was to drive the SAG Wagon the first half of our 60-mile day to Pensacola. I left the condo at 7:15 to be first in line for the 8:00 ferry.

American flag and the Alabama state flag waving as we prepared to leave for Florida.

Patiently waiting for the ferry!


The temperature was 74 degrees and the humidity was 83 percent. The ferry ride across the mouth of the Mobile Bay was 45 minutes. The ticket taker gave us a break and charged $4.50 for bikers instead of $5.00 for pedestrians!

We crossed over the intercoastal highway.

 We passed fairly close to a couple of natural gas rigs. Pelicans were waiting to welcome us on the other side. I stopped for the cyclists at about 18 miles and then again at the "Welcome to Florida" sign. I knew we'd all want a picture of that momentous occasion. Marge and I switched there and I rode on to Pensacola.

This was an exciting and emotional moment for all of the riders.

I stopped at Bikes Plus where Eric was waiting to try his hand at getting all my gears shifting. I left the bike with him and Marge and I joined several other cyclists at a fun restaurant on the water. We each had crawfish etouffee and thought it was delicious. I was glad to leave that PB&J in the bag for tomorrow!

When we got to the motel we were surprised and delighted to see that Carol Breamer, a WOC nurse and Sean McMillen from Hollister, Inc. had welcome signs and a tub of iced cold drinks. They came back after dinner and brought delicious Whoopee Pies and coffee from Panera Bread. We were all thrilled.


A refreshing welcome when we arrived in Pensacola!

Like all versatile WOC nurses, Joan pitched in to dry the dishes. We had quite a party with members of the UOAA chapter, WOC nurses, the KCI rep, Amanda Brignac from Convatec. We even had Brittany, who hopes to get a scholarship to attend Emory. The UOAA Chapter of Pensacola honored its WOC nurses with a $225.00 contribution to the Scholarship Fund.


Amanda Brignac representing Convatec, one of our corporate sponsors.



Carol Breamer, a Pensacola WOC nurse, and Sean McMillen from Hollister, Inc. sure do know how to host a celebration!

It was a marvelous day, and my bike was pronounced fixed and delivered back to me at the motel by our guide, Carol.  Dear friends of mine, Bernie and Anita Wall from Brewton, AL, drove in to welcome me shortly after we got to the motel. Our friendship goes all the way back to West Point in the 70s.

My dear friends, Bernie and Anita Wall from Brewton, AL drove in to welcome me shortly after we got to the motel.

2,592 miles behind us. 508 miles to pedal. 9 days to go.

Dr. Jeter Day 47 on Polyvore.com

Photo Friday: Going Ape Over Anti Monkey Butt

The Anti Monkey Butt folks sent two canisters of powder and a hat. What wonderfully-useful gifts!

According to Katherine: Day 46 Recap

It was a picture perfect rest day! We woke up at 6:15 and had coffee in bed until 8:00. Marge walked on the beach while I showered and dressed.

Four of us walked about a mile down the island to a restaurant at the golf club for breakfast. I had an omelet and grits. They were Alabama good!

We walked back and cleaned our bikes. I almost enjoyed it, but I used more rubber gloves than most nurses use doing a sterile dressing change! I spent some time on the bed writing cards and then put on my helmet and shoes and cycled to the post office to mail them. Does everyone know on April 18 the day the post card rate went up 1 cent?

Wading in the Gulf of Mexico. We started out in the Pacific Ocean. We've ridden along the Rio Grande, taken a ferry across the Mississippi, cycled to the Gulf of Mexico, and will soon be putting our feet and the front wheel of our bikes in the Atlantic Ocean. I can scarcely take in the wonder of it all.

When I returned, we visited for awhile with some of the other cyclists and then strolled down the road at 5:00 for a salad and a cup of really good gumbo. When we got back, some of our friends were gathered in the condo. They thought ice cream from last night's birthday celebration sounded good. We each had a small bowl of some kind of tasty brickle with a cup of coffee.

The sun set on our perfect rest day in Alabama. Tomorrow we enter Florida.

We did one final load of wash, wrote some more cards, went out on the beach at 7:10 to see a breathtaking sunset, strolled on the beach, repacked our suitcases after laying out our clothes, said goodnight to the full moon from our porch, and crawled into bed, rested and rejuvenated. Tomorrow we're off to Pensacola, FL. That means we're coming ever closer to the end of this magnificent adventure.

10 days to go.

Dr. Jeter Day 46 on Polyvore.com

According to Katherine: Mind Racing

 

(source)

In the early weeks of February 2010, I put down the non-refundable deposit to secure my cross-country bike tour, sponsored by WomanTours. I had a ton of questions for the president of the company before I felt comfortable signing that check. I bounced from one question to the next, covering all topics and making sure I’d be able to train to prepare for the grueling trip without it interfering in my personal life too much -- and of course, that I'd be able to finish the tour. A 3,100-mile bike tour! My brain was racing as I asked my questions.

• Can a 72-year-old woman complete something like this?
• Will my 72-year-old self be able to endure the different terrains?
• How can I train during ski season? (I couldn’t give up skiing.)
• How could I train despite the snow on the ground?

Jackie, the president of the company, lifted all of that weight off my shoulders. First, she assured me plenty of older women have participated in these tours. Next, she shared that through all the training, my body would be strong enough within a year to endure the ride. Finally, she helped me realize I could split my time between skiing, training and a bicycle set-up on a trainer indoors -- a fine substitute for riding outside. 

This past year was quite a ride and I’m looking forward to embarking on new adventures during -- and even after -- the actual tour.

Wordless Wednesday: Slow Cooking for Fast Cyclists!

Four Dutch ovens, with coals below. Covering the lids will turn out gourmet cuisine! The bread is wrapped in foil, and heating up against the pots and coals.

Our guide and chef, Linda Baldwin, prepares nutritious and flavorful dinners every night. 

Whatever Linda cooks in the Dutch ovens is sure to please!

According to Katherine: You've Got Mail!

A common afternoon routine: One of the first things Marge and I do is swap photos we've taken, since often, we're not riding together.

When talking to her friend Dan, Marge failed to explain our ritual and said, "We have to have WiFi and cell service, because Katherine and I e-mail each other a lot." Dan responded, "Wouldn't it just be easier to talk to each other?!" We're still chuckling over this conversation that happened a few weeks ago!

According to Katherine: Day 45

It was a chilly 45 degrees this morning in Pascagoula. The beds and pillows at the motel were awful, but the kindnesses of the management made up for it! They added hard boiled eggs and yogurt for us to complement the cereal and English muffins (fun foreshadowing, little did we know!) they usually offer. I had two eggs and a yogurt, and took a PB&J sandwich and nuts to snack on.

We were pedaling 43 miles under clear skies to Dauphin Island, AL. We left at 8:30 a.m. for what is now considered a very short ride! It was a gorgeous ride, except for a tiring head wind. We stopped at the "Welcome to Alabama" sign and took lots of photos.

Today, Alabama. Tuesday, it's Florida!

Along the way I was careful about hydration, which is hard when it's cooler and you don't feel thirsty. I ate the sandwich and worked on the nuts. At the end of the ride, we saw the 3.7-mile bridge in the distance. As we approached it loomed higher, but it was only a six percent grade -- fun going up and over!

The 3.7-mile bridge we crossed.

It's beginning to look like the beach.

At the end of the bridge was our lunch destination, Barnacle Bill's. Most of us ordered the blackened grouper sandwich and sweet potato fries with freshly brewed iced tea. Divine. Just as the seven of us were finishing, an attractive 60-ish male cyclist opened the door and exclaimed loudly enough for the whole restaurant to hear, "I've found them! I've finally found the girls."

He was so excited to find us!

He was Dave of Dave, Matthew and John, three Brits who are doing the same route across America that we are. The two cyclists call themselves "Two Tykes on Bikes." It seems that men in Yorkshire, England are called "tykes." They had heard about us several weeks ago, and had been "chasing us" ever since. They are doing about 100 miles per day. John drives the RV, which is their SAG and sleeping vehicle. We had an uproarious half hour visit. They said they saw the bikes out in front of the restaurant, and thought they'd take a chance that it was "the girls." Their blog, which Dave writes in rhyme, is www.dmjacrossusa.tumblr.com.

Dave's great logo: Two Tykes on Bikes.

Dave, Matthew, and John wearing our WomanTours safety triangles.

After all the hoopla, during which Dave and Matthew scarfed up every one of our leftover sweet potato fries, they were off for 40 more miles, and we pedaled a mile or so to our comfy digs at the Dauphin Island Beach Resort, where we will be for the night and tomorrow for our rest day. We have a washer and dryer in our condo -- pure luxury!

We celebrated our guide Carol's birthday with her favorite meal: lasagna, spinach and strawberry salad and garlic and cheese bread. Her brother had arranged for a gorgeous cake that tasted like tiramisu, and three kinds of ice cream. I could not resist the cake and a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

What a memorable day it was. Rest tomorrow will be divine. 2,532 miles behind us. 568 miles to pedal. Only 11 days and hundreds of WOCN Scholarship Fund donations to go.

Dr. Jeter Day 45 on Polyvore.com