The hills of the blue ridge

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Day 44: Saratoga, WY to Rawlins, WY (48 miles)

The Man and the Machine I'm much more of a creature of change and I ordinarily thrive on a sense of disorganization that somehow makes sense to me in my head. As such, it's been a bit of a change to live on such a regimented life the last month or so while biking. At times, I feel like I'm just as plugged in as a machine. Everyday follows a pretty predictable pattern: Wake up Tear down my tent and put away my gear Change into biking stuff Eat food, not in a way in which I ask myself what sounds tasty today, but in the pure fashion of "How many calories do I need to consume to get to the next place I can consume calories and what's the most efficient and economical way to do so". It's more like putting gas in a car than dining. Bike Eat food Bike Enter town, figure out where to stay Talk to folks, who generally ask the same 20 or so questions ("Where are you coming from?" "How long is your trip?" "What's your favori...
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Day 45: Rawlins, WY to Jeffrey City, WY (69 miles)

Biking today ended up well and the front wheel held up today. We passed through a decent amount of nothing, but we had the wind at our back except for the last few miles. Our destination was Jeffrey City, WY. We had been dreading Jeffrey City since it was the only sign of civilization from Rawlins to there, and really the only place for 60 miles in the other direction.We had heard from the blogs and from a few other folks that the restaurant there wouldn't serve food or give water to cyclists for some reason. That only 50 people lived there. We've passed through alot of towns that folks in cars would blink through and miss. We had heard back in Saratoga that things were a bit better and that the restaurant was under new ownership. We even heard that some folks next door were taking in cyclists. Things were looking a bit up, but as with all things, we try to remain level and not get our hopes up. Places sometimes arbitrarily close (especially in rural areas) and in a town of 5...
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Day 26: Ash Grove, MO to Pittsburg, KS (70 miles)

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As the day started we caught a bit of rain heading out for our last little climbs out of Missouri. We got in from the rain at an awesome diner called "Cooky's Cafe", known across the TransAm for its amazing pies. I debated the merits of just ordering 7 different types of pies, but decided on a balanced lunch and got a sandwich and 2 slices of pie. Peach and Blueberry; I think I liked the blueberry a bit better. We rolled into Pittsburg, and I took an ironic picture since it's not really the real Pittsburg(h). Totally ironic?  We went to the park to check in, then went to the YMCA to take some showers. At the YMCA, I had this exchange with a teenage girl: Girl: Why are you on your trip? Mark: You know, to meet people, adventure, that kind of stuff. Girl: You're going to need to break that down for me, I'm not even in High School yet. Mark: Well, I guess then it's just cool to see America then. Girl: Where did you bike from? Mark: Virginia....
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