Day 7

Hello from Panama City, Florida, home of Spring Breakers gone wild! Or Bike and Builders resting weary legs (and butts!)

A quick recap of the past week:
Jacksonville to Callahan - stayed in a campsite. Rode fast

Callahan to Perry - stayed in another campsite. Rode fast

Perry to Sopchoppy (it's a real place) - stayed in a campsite. This was actually one of my favorite rides so far because I rode at a slower pace, but got to talk a lot more to a lot more people. I rode mostly with Cory, who in the morning got a flat. Changing a flat in the intense heat is not fun, but we got it done quickly and then got to lunch where Hans (leader driving the van that day) had bought us sweet corn. Everyone has been talking - and it's true - about how the "little things" make such a difference on this trip. Having corn in addition to the normal PB&J&Banana&Honey sandwich made such a difference in our moods and we left lunch feeling great. However, not more than a mile and a half out of lunch, Cory and I stopped to assist Agata (a leader riding that day) who had a flat and heat exhaustion. We took care of her the best we could and got Hans to come get her as quickly as he could. It was a little scary, but she turned out to be OK in the end, and all we got was a little extra sunburn.

About 15 miles later, we decided to jump into the Wakulla River to cool off. There was a canoe rental cabin next to the boat ramp we used, and as we were swimming in the deliciously cold water and slimy kelp, the people at the canoe rental yelled to us that manatees were swimming towards us. I thought they were joking. They weren't. Two manatees, a momma and a baby, swam right up to us. About this time, other riders saw our chalk on the road (indicating we went for a quick swim) and joined us in the water. The manatees were very playful and let us pet them, ride them, and in Jen's case, kiss them. One also blew water in Josh's face. It was an incredible experience, and totally made up for the flats and heat that Cory and I had to ride through in the morning. Definitely one of the high points of the trip so far. We called it: Habitat for Hu-Manatee.

Sopchoppy to Apalachicola - rode slower again, but at a good clip. I've settled in around 15-16mph average, which I'm happy about. It rained A LOT that day, and we had to shelter in multiple locations from lightning. After lunch the thunderstorms gave way to simple rain, which was refreshing to ride in as long as we didn't stop for so long. To get to Apalach (which is what the locals call it), we had to ride across a 3-mile-long flat bridge and a tall bridge after that. I was riding with Rebekah that day, and luckily we had a tail wind because we were cruising across the 3 mile stretch at around 23mph - fast on a bike when you're on flat ground. On the way down the bridge, I hit my trip high of 35mph which was a lot of fun, and I was surprised to see a bustling village on the other side of the bridge.

One of the things we try to do everywhere is get stuff donated. Whether it be cycling gear, food, coffee, ice cream, or swag, we always talk to locals about Bike and Build, what we're doing, and if they'd like to give donations. In downtown Apalach, we were received with open arms. Rebekah and I were joined by Scott and Brandon, and between the four of us we managed to get coffee, a giant lunch of turkey, salad, crab cakes, and chocolate mousse cake for the four of us, enough paella for dinner for the entire group, and oysters later that evening for just about anyone who wanted them. We were surprised, overwhelmed, and humbled by the amazing generosity of the people in Apalachicola.

Apalach is an oyster/seafood town, but it's hurting badly from recession, housing prices, and general neglect. We stayed in an abandoned high school because nobody else had the resources to host us. We all went into town in the evening for oysters, and the people there were terrified of the Gulf oil spill. In their opinions, which are probably very close to the truth, the oil will turn Apalachicola into a ghost town. Talking about it made people visibly upset. Most became silent. It was heartbreaking. I was surprised and inspired by their resiliency though - nobody spoke of leaving. Everyone there is a fighter. Apalach was my favorite stop so far because the people there were the nicest, but also the strongest... even though the town has so little.

Apalachicola to Panama City - Yesterday I rode with Justin, who is a student at Harvard and joined me for a ride in Boston before we were both done with school. He's a hilarious kid, but yesterday we were both exhausted and turned somewhat into zombies, just spinning away on our bicycles trying to get to PC as fast as we could without collapsing in the heat. We passed Tyndall Air Force Base - which is huge - and saw two fighter jets screaming above us, but it wasn't enough to combat the monotony of a 15-mile stretch of perfectly straight, perfectly boring road that lulled us almost to sleep.

We were all surprised to hear that today was not a build day. In fact, as I write this post, I'm realizing that I probably wouldn't have had the time to give such detailed explanations if our build day got canceled. For some reason, the family whose house we were going to build could not complete the final step of the application process, so they did not break ground last week. Panama City's Habitat for Humanity is a very small chapter, so this is a huge setback for them, and a disappointment for us. I truly love build sites - I loved it in Huntington, WV during my spring break trips, and I loved it in Atlantic Beach in Jacksonville. I was really looking forward to building again with the 32 other people whom I am coming to know much better, but it was not meant to be. I'm scared for the family because I don't know the reasons for their failure to break ground, but for some reason I'm haunted by the possibility that they were unable to pay, or even worse, lost a job. Owning a house (and paying Habitat's no-interest mortgage) is such a stabilizing financial factor for a family that I am worried a deserving family will end up worse than they are now. But I don't know the details so I must remind you this is all speculation.

In any case, it is nice to have a day to lounge and rest the legs. I've ridden over 400 miles already. The route tracker says it's been less, but we had a few detours and re-routes each day that add miles. I'm confident I'll have ridden over 4,000 by the time I reach the Golden Gate Bridge. Anyway, 400 miles in 6 days of riding is a lot. My bum hurts, a lot. My legs are sore, constantly. I was beginning to have knee pain, but learned that I was spinning incorrectly, so that is beginning to subside. I've been eating a ton - probably in the range of 7000-9000 calories a day - but I think I'm actually losing weight. I have ridiculous tan lines. I'm sick of peanut butter, already. I hope I never have to drink yellow Gatorade ever again. I've been in two states (we crossed into Georgia for 11 miles on Day 2 of riding). Yesterday we crossed our first time zone.

But the people on this trip are amazing. I'm learning more and more about them each day, and everyone is so dedicated and has such inspiring (or hilarious) stories that it makes an 80-mile ride seem like nothing. Tomorrow we head to Funiak Springs, before riding the following day to Pensacola. The oil just hit Pensacola so it will be an interesting experience. Then we ride out of Florida to Mobile, AL, which was hit hard by Katrina. Hopefully I'll be able to get internet and post again before then, but if not I am keeping notes and will fill you in afterwards.

Thanks for reading!
Alex