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Published: June 21st 2018
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Sweat drips, sun burns, ready
Like engine pistols, we pump
Ride on, pump, we ride
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Sleeping in a bed? And well rested? Is that what this feels like? My how nice to be normal! Waking up in a bed and then having home cooked breakfast on the morning of riding my bike to one of my favorite cities—does life get much better than this?!
Sarah and I got dressed and enjoyed eating an egg & sausage with apples casserole with Molly and it was so good we got the recipe! The coffee was also on point so we didn’t hesitate to go for seconds on both! In the haste to get out the door & fill my camelbak quickly, I ended up with a leak and got myself & the floor & pack all soaked ? Haste makes waste! We loaded up and got to the church a few minutes late but all was well as everyone was still running around packing up the trailer, filling camelbaks, and applying sunscreen. We got a picture with Molly & she and the other women stayed to witness our firing up chant after route meeting.
Though I almost rode
out with the NC crew (NJ, Noah, & Mikey all live in NC!), I rode out with Noah & Mikey—marking my first ride with Mikey and only second with Noah. I lead us for the first 20 miles or so up and down long roads with great visibility and with great speed. We stopped at a BP where I enjoyed a cold Coke & some peanut M&Ms—I am the epitome of health!! Does it count if I share bc share I did with our team and the next—Kristi, Raffi, & NJ.
We then only had a few short miles to the ferry so we pushed on in an effort to make it for the 11:30 ferry so we wouldn’t have to wait another 45 ministers for he next ferry. We got there and were able to make it on, but lunch van and all the other riders took the next ferry. We enjoyed GoProing & chatting for the what felt short 45 minute ferry ride over to Carolina Beach. I Gued as I got off the ferry and we enjoyed passing by some beautiful beach houses, stopping only to pick up a black Nike hat for sweep challenge—bring them
roadside things and/or take a picture with them.
When we arrived at Kure Beach, Noah said he was having trouble with his pedals so we pulled off by the boardwalk and assed his bike. Turns out it needed some work so we got him a shuttle to the nearest bike shop and Mikey and I rode on past lunch to Michael’s Seafood to enjoy the famous Clam Chowder. It was incredible and we even tried to recruit our waiter, Josh, to do Bike & Build. I enjoyed getting to know Mikey a bit better and rising on with him.
We crossed the bridge and made our turn and found ourselves in the outskirts of Mikey’s stomping grounds where we enjoyed a nice bike lane and low traffic until we got closer to Wilmington. We chalked and GoPro-ed and had a nice, strong ride together. We stopped at TRiC to take a photo so that my 16 year old 28 year old dreams and world could collide! So fun to ride through “Tree Hill” with Bike & Build!
Though storms threatened, we rode on and got to the host first, shortly followed by NJ, Raffi, & Kristi. We
took quick cold showers downstairs as the rain passed & the final group came in with Austin—a NC2SD16 alum and friend of Ryan. Jana, Raffi and I walked downtown and Raffi split off to hit up a bookstore while Jana and I wanted to taste the local IPAs at Front St Brewery. Raffi met up with us with his bookstore finds and we walked back to the host for Town Hall, folllwed by DM-Ed pizza from Slice of Life from yours truly ☺️ For Town Hall, my low was separating from the group on Annie’s last night (FOMO!), high was Annie’s bachelorette when NJ & Beth showed up with the American themed party, & shout out was to the leaders for being leaders among leaders who live above reproach, are approachable, & all bring great strengths to the leadership team & our team in general. With the help of Sarah and Ryan we picked up the pizzas and filled the room with the aroma of cheese & garlic ?
The group then walked downtown and heard about NJ’s BrevardUntitled friends and why she has a black heart towards marriage. As we passed by the river and saw the bridge,
my high school/college self was seeing Bike & Build in the Tree Hill world—my favorite things! Some went in to a local concert, but for those of us who didn’t have cash, we walked on in search of a good spot for our crew to hang. Many places were too busy for a group of 10-15 so we went to local bar with pool tables. We ordered beers since we couldn’t get pitchers because “it’s not a bowling alley” and weren’t really able to try many beers, as well as have any description of what they were.
Being one and done with this place, once the rest of the team showed up, we moved on to Husk, another local recommended place. It felt very much like a preppy college bar, but we enjoyed drinks with Bradfort (who’s super married! his words!?) and one of Ryan’s old frat buddies—such a small world! It was nice to be outside with the team and enjoy some time together. A group of us then walked back and we set up camp in our host in the lower temperatures space—the basement! I plugged in my devices and it was all down(tree)hill into my pilllow
so fast!
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