Day 12 – June 9th 2019

Sugar Grove, VA -> Honaker, VA

59 Miles Ride, 4,000 ft Elevation Gain

For the last full day of riding in Virginia, I rode with Alexis and Sam, as we headed further west. The ride started out with some smooth rolling hills and beautiful views of fog covered mountains and hillsides spotted with cows. It rained most of the day, coming in waves. We stopped for lunch in Meadowview, VA joining the rest of our team, huddled under a small awning, eating leftovers from the day before. I had peanut butter and jelly on a biscuit. Just beyond the parking lot where we ate, a large sign said “ Switchbacks Steep Grades 10 Miles Ahead”. Ten miles after lunch, we discovered just how steep they were. We pushed each other to ascend the 3 miles up through beautiful mountain forests. We stopped on the side of the road to catch our breath and to look at a small waterfall when a local drove by and rolled down his window to tell us that we were stopping just shy of the top. We pushed ourselves up and around the corner to find a nice long descent into the next valley. The rain began to let up, and we rode the last ten miles or so to the campground we were staying that night

The site was on the edge of a river, and a group of us went swimming. Soon after members from a nearby church community brought us an amazing baked potato meal. After dinner many of us spread out to relax and enjoy the chance to relax in nature. I fell asleep laying in the back of one of our vans. Later we all had some evening snacks and retired to our tents, falling asleep to the sound of the river rushing by, making for a special last night in Virginia.

-Henry Courchaine

Saturday, June 8th Journal entry by Andrea Chang
5:30am. Pulaski, VA.
Morale: High
Ride length: 51 miles
Stoke level: through the roof

Keeping track of the days of the week has been a chore I never expected to experience. I can sometimes think that the current day is Monday or Sunday, or everything in between, all within a couple hours. The lack of timekeeping was unsettling to me at first- but now is a refreshing experience I don’t think exists in very many places.
Having responsibilities free of the conventional schedules of weekdays and weekends releases us from pressures we normally experience- college and the working life revolves around the promise of Saturdays and the dreaded Monday morning- but on Bike and Build, it can be any day of the week, any day we want it to be. Replacing a 7-day routine with the day-by-day, fly-by-the-seat-out-your-pants schedules of B&B make every day seem like the first day of school- I love the adventures that taking a bike through the Appalachian Mountains brings, the unexpected camaraderie 31 strangers creates, and the empathy for each town that riding a bike through for 8 hours pulls out of each of us.

I rode with Craig M. and Neeva Y., and we blasted down the steps of our cue sheet, thinking we were approaching the host quickly, as our odometers ticked closer and closer to 51. We rode on a secluded road for over 2 hours, searching for the final turn. Google Maps told us our destination was a 2 hour bike ride in the opposite direction we came from, and we stopped on the side of the road in disbelief. It was pouring rain, we had spotty signal, and we were so drained that riding back would have been impossible. Just as panic set in, the Bike and Build van came roaring up the road, just as lost as we were. Thankfully, we were able to put our bikes in and shuttle (in the correct direction) back, and returned with so much relief and a story to accompany it. The time on the bike is stuffed with unplanned turns and stops- conventional routines are largely irrelevant in the context of our daily lives, and instead are replaced with fond memories of individual experiences. It doesn’t matter to me that we got lost on a bike ride on a Saturday, or rode up some of the most beautiful climbs I’ve ever seen the day before. The disconnection gives us a greater connection to the purpose of our rides- to see the beauty of this country, its people, and garner the confidence for each of us to take these lessons along with us.

The 59 mile ride today from Catawba to Pulaski was a tad bit rainy, to say the least. We headed out early this morning onto another hilly ride. Many thanks to the owners of the camp ground we stayed at, who provided a wide variety and delicious breakfast.

Side note: How is it already Friday??

It rained/poured throughout the entirety of the ride, but for some, like me, the rain brought a calming effect. Adam and I were sweep for the day, meaning we were able to revel in some beautiful views and prime conversation/M&M eating.

Our host tonight is First United Methodist, who graciously gave us cots to sleep on (150% better than the floor). Dinner was provided by Trinity Evangelical Lutheran, a nacho, taco and fruit type of night…. WHO THEN ALSO BOUGHT US ICE CREAM, and my goodness did we enjoy.

Shout out to our riders for the tough work they are putting in each and every day on the bike and our incredible leaders who work tirelessly to give us a safe, inclusive, positive, and overall enjoyable experience. Many hearts to you all.

And to sleep we went..

-Melissa

Today was another extremely hilly ride into Catawba, VA. After being told that the previous day through the Blue Ridge Mountains was probably going to be one of the hardest on the trip due to the terrain and the lack of physical conditioning, we came into today hoping that everything would be smooth sailing onward. However, bodies need time to recover and hills are still hills. We all struggled, and we all persevered with high spirits because the ride was both beautiful, and also served as a proving grounds for assuring us that even the challenge of two back-to-back long mountain days is something that could be handled.

Jude and I (James) swept today, which means we were designated to ride as the last two riders in the group, carry a spare tire, and come up with a fun challenge for the rest of the team, shared in our group’s chat:

The title “Stop and smell the hogweed” refers to a fun fact shared by a fellow rider at our route meeting that there’s an invasive plant species “hogweed” sweeping through this section of Virginia that has a photosensitizing agent that will cause human skin to burn very quickly in sunlight if touched.

Needless to say, our team submitted a plethora of beautiful flower-sniffing moments (and some funny submissions) so it will be a tough decision for us to figure out the winner in time for tomorrow morning’s route meeting.

After taking it as easy as possible, stopping along the way to relax with other stopped riders like on the bridge in Buchanan, we rolled into our campground destination, keeping in mind that we’ll probably be repeating an equally challenging/rewarding ride next thing tomorrow morning.

-James

Today we woke up bright and early to our second build day. A small group of us went to The Haven to serve breakfast this morning and prepare lunch for tomorrow. The Haven is a multi-resource day shelter that offers breakfast 365 days a year and lunch on Wednesday’s. They assist the homeless community in Charlottesville by providing help with security deposits, locating low income housing, finding jobs, or navigating the world of disability benefits.

The rest of us met Meagan and Kim from Habitat at a cul-de-sac of 5 duplexes in the Fifeville neighborhood of Charlottesville. We chatted for a while about the state of Habitat and affordable housing in Charlottesville. Meagan and Kim also told the stories of the people in each house.

After that, we split up to help at 3 locations. One group worked on siding and window trim at the cul-de-sac. Another worked at the Restore repurposing old furniture and pulling weeds.

The last group helped Sterling from AHIP repairing homes in the Ridge Street neighborhood. We enjoyed exploring Charlottesville the last couple days and learning about AH in CVille. We’re sad to leave after just getting to know this great city. We hope to come back soon.

-Gilbert

RIDDDDDDDDDDE DAY!

Today we rode from Mineral to Charlottesville. The roads were windy, with rolling hills and plentiful butterflies along the way.

The landscapes here in Virginia are gorgeous and so vibrantly green. Our riding groups enjoyed stops along the way including a produce stand, a historical park, and Jefferson’s Monticello estate. This area is as rich with history as it is with greenery.

We arrived at the University Baptist Church in Charlottesville by early afternoon. People have been so gracious to open up their space to us. There was a lot to look forward to in Charlottesville. I always enjoy exploring bigger cities when I’m traveling. The size of Charlottesville also meant that several Bike and Build Alumni were able to meet up with us.

We’re just at the start of our trip. Everything seems engaging and most of us are still excited about biking every day. We all appreciated the time we had to talk to alumni who knew better than us what was to come. We could ask all the meaningful questions, like —

“What was the hardest day of riding on the whole trip?”

“What about your trip surprised you?”

“What advice do you have to give to us 31 fresh cyclists??? We have no idea what we’ve gotten ourselves into” [paraphrased]

Haha, joking, but also not joking. None of us have a clear idea of what the next two months and 4,000 miles will hold, but I guess that’s what makes it exciting. Tomorrow is our second build day. We’ll be volunteering with several organizations in the area both serving the homeless and working on painting a house.

Go Hoos!!!

-Jude

Today we went from Richmond to Mineral.

I was in Van 1 safety navigating today with Celete driving. It took me a little while to get into the groove of navigating, especially since there was a couple confusing directions getting out of Richmond. There was a couple ride groups that were a little lost but we all sorted it out and then I started using google maps to look ahead so i could better navigate. After that it was for the most part smooth sailing to the host. We made one wrong turn and Celete had to maneuver the van and trailer on a tight road to get us back in the right direction and I got to chalk the road so the riders wouldn’t make the same mistake.

After dropping the trailer off we headed back behind sweep and got to cheer on each group as we passed them. At the great lunch spot van 2 found and set up we refueled and we took some pictures with Celete’s drone which was really cool. Also I learned a lot about rock climbing levels from the climbers in the group. The rest of the day till we reached the host we hung back behind sweep. It was a very beautiful ride route and I kinda wished I could’ve rode my bike but also talking with Celete, listening to Greg’s cd, and mapping out the road was a lot of fun.

We stayed at Mineral Baptist Church, hosted by Betty. They served us a great bbq dinner with bbq chicken, beans, coleslaw, and some great sugar and peanut butter cookies. We met and talked with our hosts and learned about the town of Mineral. After, we designed and started on working on painting the trailer. The design was a ice cream cone bike with flames and the words “POWERED BY ICE CREAM” and a sunset view on the door.

-Sean

Today was our first Build Day! Although we did not work on any on any actual build sites we did have the chance to split our time between Boaz & Ruth and Northside Outreach Center. At Boaz & Ruth our teams had the opportunity to work on a few different projects throughout the day – including landscaping and other handy tasks at the organizations multiple properties in the Northside neighborhood of Richmond.

With the Northside Outreach Center, our team members helped the organization as they moved items from a storage facility into their new property. We helped organize the thrift store that occupies the first level of the building as well as move desks and other furniture to the new classrooms on the second floor. After putting in our sweat we had some great discussion with the leaders of the respective organizations. My favorite part of the day was seeing all of the riders grouping up in the parking lot and talking in-depth about the issues in the Northside neighborhood.

After the hard work and great group discussions the team had a ‘relaxing’ afternoon back at our host in Richmond. There were a few trips to the local bike shop and just as many heated games of ping-pong in the church basement. Around 6:00PM we were treated to an amazing meal of chili and cornbread. After everyone filled their bellies the leader team led a meeting to discuss the finances of B&B. Surprisingly no one on the team succumbed to the effects of the heavy meal and we had a great team discussion that spanned a wide array of topics.

So far my favorite part of the trip has been watching the group of riders become closer and more comfortable with each other – quickly becoming a strong unit!

Today our team of 31 pushed off from Yorktown to Richmond for our inaugural ride of the summer. After a 5:30 am wake up and buttoning up a few last tire and shifting issues, we left the exceptionally welcoming community of St Luke’s and headed to Yorktown Beach. We were welcomed by beautiful sunny skys, a practically empty and clean beach, and Sarah and Megan from St Luke’s (thanks for the support y’all!) We all dipped our rear wheels to symbolize the beginning of our journey across the country. Naturally our program directors Instagram Lived the whole event for our ravenous fans. 

Today was our first of many early starts. We were all up at 6am, everyone busy getting changed into their biking kit, packing up their bags, loading the trailer, making breakfast, and ensuring the chores were done quickly. We aren’t actually moving host sites today so this was a trial run for what a real morning will look like. All went well and I’m proud of all the riders for getting up and at it so early!

We spent the morning running drills in the church’s parking lot. We reviewed basic bike safety and maintenance and then had drills to practice merging, clipping in and out, looking back to scan for cars, and an obstacle course. Everyone worked hard and the morning was full of helpful tips and tricks from collective rider experiences.

After lunch we got in groups of 4-5 and rode around Yorktown for our shakedown ride! This ride was just to help riders adjust to riding in groups and following the rules Bike & Build adheres to in order to maximize road safety. All the riders did great and hopefully had some fun along the way. Today was boiling hot and very humid, so hose showers were a nice treat when the ride was over and several groups stopped for ice cream along the way as well.

Dinner was once again prepared by our wonderful hosts and we got to hang with them a bit before a health and hygiene presentation, a review of of some anonymous questions about life in Bike & Build, and finally BED!

We are looking forward to our first official ride day tomorrow. An 80 miler to Richmond, VA!

-Celete