Sunrise at the start of the ride
Another hot day. Breakfast at 5AM and we left for the NTP a half hour later. An earlier start and slightly shorter day helped everyone get finished by noontime. Today, four of the Geldings had their own reunion ride. Baltimore Mark, Jeff, Alex, and I got to ride all afternoon as we swept the course. It was great to ride in a pace line with them, though we did miss Toronto Mark and Dave's company. We pretended like they were there, drafting in the back of the line.
Our Sag stop, overlooking the reservoir. Almost as good as ABB.
Dan, Bill, John S. (LBJ), and Steve did this ride a month ago and the information provided by Dan has helped during our ride. Basically, this is a 444 mile ride in a national park with smooth road and 99% courteous drivers. The one exception is a 4 mile stretch near I-55 where the NTP is used as a cut through for morning commuting. There is water and restrooms along the parkway, but at sporadic locations that would require you to leave the parkway, were it not for a SAG vehicle. There is no commercial traffic, stores, or gas stations of any kind along the way. For these you must exit at a town. Kind of like a wide, paved Appalachian trail for cyclists.
A Gelding reunion
Tomorrow we cycle up to Starkville at the junction with US82. At that point the parkway is currently closed for ten miles because of tornado damage. I am looking forward to another good day tomorrow.
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