Crossed our first state line

It is official, we have biked our way across North Carolina. It is odd to think that we have come so far, and still have so much more in front of us. The riding has been amazing in the past few days. We have had some extremely rewarding (aka difficult) climbs in the past few days which have really tested all of the riders. Reaching the North Carolina Tennessee boarder after a 4 hour climb made the crossing a little bit more special. Not only did we cycle across our first state, but we had to work our butts off to do it.

It is really exciting to see the scenery change so quickly as we are riding. Coming out of the Appalachian mountains into the foot hills of Tennessee has been such a dramatic change. We have stayed predominantly on back country roads which gives us the opportunity to see some amazing farm lands and car traffic has been low. However, I was unaware that in order to live in Tennessee one is required to own a dog with a deep seeded hatred for cyclists. I am not sure which is worse, angry drivers or angry dogs.

The highlight of this past week had to have been our Build Day in Maryville, TN. All 32 of the riders were able to work on the same work site and we put in the flooring of a house in a single day. The build was made special by the fact that the future homeowner, Stephanie, was working on her house as well. Getting to see the impact that our work had on her, and her holding back tears at the end of the days was extremely powerful. The opportunity to interact with the homeowners in both Asheville and Maryville pushes the riders to work a little bit harder during the builds.

Today's ride has been my most enjoyable ride in Tennessee thus far. Only 3 miles into the day we began to climb Daus Mountain. A short but formidable climb. In less than 3 miles we climbed about 2000 feet and pushing our way up a 10% grade. Many of the riders, including myself, talked about how the could feel their rear wheel struggling to find traction on the wet asphalt. The climb was one of the steepest that we have encounter thus far, which made reaching the summit the top all the more exhilarating. Daus Mountain in a large plateau, so we rode about 25 miles before enjoying the fast descent. After lunch, myself and two other riders cruised into the host site at a good clip, talking and laughing the whole way. Despite the climb, today's ride was extremely relaxing.

Overall, I have been pleasantly surprised with how well my body has been holding up to the rigorous activity. I have been able to remain injury free, and my legs haven't fallen off yet, so I am taking that as a good sign. Some of the other riders have been battling recurring injuries and lingering colds, but on the whole everyone is doing extremely well. Unfortunately, this morning we had to say goodbye to one of our riders who has been experiencing problems with his achilles tenants. The recurring pain had just become to much and he was unable to continue with the trip. Saying goodbye this morning was extremely difficult and riding today with one less rider just didn't feel right. Hopefully, he will be able to take some time to recover and meet back up with us later on in the trip.