Sorry for my delay in this blog, but I am alive and well. Last I wrote, I was living in West Palm Beach on a 130' privately owned yacht. The boat was for sale and as a result was just sitting in west palm beach. So I left that job for the end of the ski season in Steamboat, Colorado. A lack of internet coupled with laziness prevented a posting of pictures and stories, but they were numerous and usually well documented. Once this thing is over and I get back to my computer in steamboat, ill get them on the net. 
As for "this thing." It is a bike ride from Athens, Georgia to Key West Florida that I am embarking on with to others: Joe Boswell and Josh Turner. Both have blogs that can be found at myspacetimebicycle.blogspot.com and crazyguyonabike.com/alphanuroswell. The cause is Multiple Sclerosis. Anyone wishing to donate can do so through the spacetimbicycle blog.
We left from Athens on April 27th. Due to some complications at the bike shop, we left in the late afternoon and were only able to get 15 miles down before night, so we spent the first night in Lexington, Georgia on 78. We slept in the yard of a nice man who let us watch the hawks game and use his facilities. Day number 2 was a long but good day from Lexington to Wrens, Ga for a 75 miles. There, we slept in a sketchy field in the hood. We awoke to a prison work bus unloading guys with landscaping equipment. Day 3, we pushed it all the way to Statesboro, which was 85 miles from wrens. There, we stayed at the sig ep fraternity house with a really cool couchsurfer named Bennett. 
That night saw some beers and a relaxing sleep in a bed. The next night we had decided to take a day of rest to hang out, sit at a pool and check out the nightlife. After a long day of the aforementioned hanging out, we made it to the bars and had a great time. 
The locals were really nice. While leaving the bars, we hopped on the back of a taxi bus for no other reason than to see where it would take us. Once it began moving, Turner hopped off. The bus turned onto the road and immediately began accelerating. I had nothing to hold onto and was just using the friction generated by the palms of my hands to hold on. at about 20 or 25 mph with no slowing in sight, I realized that either I was going to plan my escape or the van would do it for me. So, clad in flip flops, i made a fantastic leap, hoping to run it out. My hopes were not realized. Instead I took one step and immediately tripped and slid across the pavement, mostly on my face. Turner comes up to find me dripping with blood. We hail a good samaritan and get a lift to the hospital where I get eight stitches. We order a pizza from a place that was near by the frat house and convince the delivery girl to give us a ride home. Good sleep, though waking up in the morning means stretching scabs and lots of pain. Boz, in the meantime, had managed to hold on and ride across town to a MacDonald's, where he found some people with which to spend the night. 
That night saw some beers and a relaxing sleep in a bed. The next night we had decided to take a day of rest to hang out, sit at a pool and check out the nightlife. After a long day of the aforementioned hanging out, we made it to the bars and had a great time. The locals were really nice. While leaving the bars, we hopped on the back of a taxi bus for no other reason than to see where it would take us. Once it began moving, Turner hopped off. The bus turned onto the road and immediately began accelerating. I had nothing to hold onto and was just using the friction generated by the palms of my hands to hold on. at about 20 or 25 mph with no slowing in sight, I realized that either I was going to plan my escape or the van would do it for me. So, clad in flip flops, i made a fantastic leap, hoping to run it out. My hopes were not realized. Instead I took one step and immediately tripped and slid across the pavement, mostly on my face. Turner comes up to find me dripping with blood. We hail a good samaritan and get a lift to the hospital where I get eight stitches. We order a pizza from a place that was near by the frat house and convince the delivery girl to give us a ride home. Good sleep, though waking up in the morning means stretching scabs and lots of pain. Boz, in the meantime, had managed to hold on and ride across town to a MacDonald's, where he found some people with which to spend the night. Day 4 was a late morning ride to Savannah (50 miles) to stay with Boz's friend Jesse in Savannah. 
She was another excellent host and though we didn't have the energy to make it out on Friday night, we did hit up the bars on Saturday. 
Again, the most excitement happened after the bars closed. We decided to get a late night slice of pizza before riding home and stopped outside a pizza shop. There was some confusion about who was eating and who wasn't, so the bikes were not locked automatically. Once we realized that all four of us would be inside, we went back out to find that Boz's bike had been stolen. A cop gave me a ride home while the others rode the remaining tandem and single.
Day 5 was spent hanging out hatching a plan. Options included a longboard, the tandem bike, a boztaag(a homemade craft similar to redbulls flugtaag) and getting another bike. In the end, cost and viability overrode coolness and we ended up with a 50$ mountain bike rental on day 6. The same day we loaded up and rode 15 miles over to skidaway island for a home cooked meal from my mother who was down here helping out Mary Smith fix up her new home. Also in the mix was Aunt Julie, Bev and partner Laurie, and Cibby from Rhode Island. Some scrabble, then bed. Today we head towards Brunswick, but as we are not sure about an 85 mile day, we are considering an earlier stop. 
She was another excellent host and though we didn't have the energy to make it out on Friday night, we did hit up the bars on Saturday. Again, the most excitement happened after the bars closed. We decided to get a late night slice of pizza before riding home and stopped outside a pizza shop. There was some confusion about who was eating and who wasn't, so the bikes were not locked automatically. Once we realized that all four of us would be inside, we went back out to find that Boz's bike had been stolen. A cop gave me a ride home while the others rode the remaining tandem and single. Day 5 was spent hanging out hatching a plan. Options included a longboard, the tandem bike, a boztaag(a homemade craft similar to redbulls flugtaag) and getting another bike. In the end, cost and viability overrode coolness and we ended up with a 50$ mountain bike rental on day 6. The same day we loaded up and rode 15 miles over to skidaway island for a home cooked meal from my mother who was down here helping out Mary Smith fix up her new home. Also in the mix was Aunt Julie, Bev and partner Laurie, and Cibby from Rhode Island. Some scrabble, then bed. Today we head towards Brunswick, but as we are not sure about an 85 mile day, we are considering an earlier stop. 
