Always an end in sight

Thoughts on a week of riding....

About 3 days into the tour, I started riding sag to sag. (A sag is a place where all the riders are provided a rest stop by a group of volunteers.) There were sag stops every 15-ish miles. When I was getting tired, my feet hurt, legs hurt, bottom hurt...I would just tell myself I had to just go to the next sag where I would  get a break. Other times I would say something similar...like when my shower was cold, I'd remind myself I'd have a warm shower when I got home. When it rained on us while riding, I'd remind myself that I could dry out when I got to the end for the day. When I was hungry, there was always food, and in abundance at that. Water always available. Friendship, encouragement, and community always present. Roadside assistance always within a few minutes of the next rider. Always light at the end of the tunnel, always hope, always an end in sight when I was uncomfortable.
My life is like that. Never without hope. Our ride was for those who cannot claim that for themselves or their children. Poverty and the issues and problems that contribute to poverty are hope destroyers. My prayer is that I can be a hope builder both in this ride and in my daily life.
Peace to all,
Marijo

London to Breslau

We've arrived!  Today was a beautiful ride.  More country - less trucks.  Nice rolling hills.  We are staying at Woodland Christian Schools.  I had my first warm shower of the week.  Very luxurious.  We got a photo of Jasper who is riding 15 miles each day on a unicycle with a 36" wheel.  It is quite a sight to see.  He also rides his regular bike as well.  He shared that poverty is kind of like only having one wheel on a bike and that is why he chose to do this.  I thought it was pretty cool.  We also overwhelmed a diner later in the day as well.

Sarnia to London

We left our Billet early and were ready to roll.  We faced a very straight ride with a headwind for many miles.  It was a seventy mile day.  We were greeted by Gayle Harrison standing on the side of the road.  If you have a chance, she wrote a great blog in 2008.  We were diverted to a bike path and had a beautiful ride along the river.  At night we stayed at London Christian High School.  It was a great night for sleeping.  To bed at 9:00 as we are up at 6:00am each morning.  Here is a photo of some of the tents.

Imlay City to Sarnia

We have had spotty Internet so I am going to provide a summary update.
Imlay City to Sarnia was 80 miles.  We had a beautiful ride along the river after we crossed the ferry. Tim Hortons coffee and watermelon.  We were hosted by the Sarnia Christian Schools that put on a mega spread.  They also decorated the gymn.

We planned to camp outside, but when severe thunderstorms threatened we took advantage of a billet (Canadian term for staying at someone's house).  We stayed with a family (Jan and Sharon).  They hosted 6 people and Sharon is the sister of Melissa Kloostra who rode with us in 2008.  Here are a few photos to share, the first one is the celebration, the second one was the welcome at Sombra.  In the chair is Harry, who 80 years old and rode from Grand Rapids to London! :

Day 2 Imlay City

We are staying in a town, I've driven by but never see on the highway.  The ride was 78 miles through downtown Flint.  We hit rain for about 15 miles but I stayed dry in my raincoat that was gifted to me by West MI Bike Store owner.  As for the pants and shoes, not so much.  We rode through Flint UofM campus and past Kettering University.
My right leg was a little sore today, but we held on with some ibuprofen.  We are staying at Imlay City high school with a nice breeze.  We have cleaned the clothes and hang them on the fence to dry. We then scrubbed the bike and took showers.  Now we wait for dinner.
The Vlaardingerbroeks from our church are volunteering too.  They are amazing, working hard to serve so many.  Pretty amazing.
Tomorrow we head into Canada.  I'm bracing myself for all of the festivities in Sombra.  The Canadians really celebrate this tour and the cause.
Small groups are better this year.  I was touched by the discussion about how the group has been convicted by the face of poverty and how to make a difference.

Day 1 Summary

We are off and pedaling.  We left home  at about 5:30 am on Monday, riding to Calvin.  We showed up just in time for the photo and we were off.  Met some fun people along the way, but mainly rode with friends we made in 2008.  Jane Brouwer, Barb Mellema, Claire Elgersma, and Jan Quist.  We stayed at Sleepy Hollow State Park.  No Internet so you are getting the combo post.  I was reminded of the early routine when I awoke to find most people had already packed their tents and we're eating breakfast.  We were a little late on the draw.  Here are a few photos to show the camp.
Dinner was pulled pork, beans, and corn.  The food this year is phenomenal!

The meet and greet and the tour

Well it is official, we went to Calvin and met the other cyclist. We had a brief safety training time with about 35 other cyclist starting in Grand Rapids. We participated in an awesome service that included a walk in entrance on the upper deck to music. We also had the group Faith Alive there which did a great job. Great church support from the Bosmas, VanDykens, Weidenaars, Helmholdts, Bloks, and Bolts. There may have been others, but that is who we saw. We then went back over to the dorm area and had a great meal served by Lagrave CRC. We got a tour of the truck and the rolling kitchen. I have included a few photos for you viewing pleasure. It is really quite the machine. After the tour it will be used for disaster response teams to serve those in need. Cool idea. Up bright and early for the venture to Calvin. Looking forward to pedaling!