Marianna to Quincy, Florida (57 miles) Friday, April 23, 2010

We woke this morning to lots of fog!  It is the first time we have been delayed because of fog.  We usually leave by 7:00, but we had to wait until 8:00 am.  Since it was a short mile day, it was not a problem.

We rode out almost due east.  Today we had the usual flat roads, but also hills.  Now it is not that we haven't done much steeper and longer hills.  Crossing the Southern Rockies was much more challenging!  It is just that we have not done any for at least a week!!  It's all a matter of perspective, isn't it?  I don't have any photos of the hills because we were too busy climbing up them!

Thirty miles out we crossed the Chattahoochee River Bridge.  It was that point that we changed our 5th time zone (Arizona does not observe day light saving time), so we are now in the Eastern Time Zone.

We stopped in the town of Quincy for lunch.  There were some really big up and down hills right in town!  We were dreading the return trip!

The town square looked like the Iowa town squares, with the courthouse in the middle and the shops around the square.  We stopped at "Miss Helen's" for sandwiches before we rode in to the motel.  Helen waited on us, and proudly sold us big chocolate chip cookies she made herself!  She was also helpful in giving us directions back to the route that did NOT involve big hills!  Yes!!  Thank you, Miss Helen!

I think everyone is still tired from yesterday's 94 mile ride, too.


This is an excerpt from Jo Ann Bary's blog:

EVERYBODY LOVES THE SAG DRIVER

Today was my turn as a SAG driver.   As I sat in the car waiting for the cyclists to pass by, I thought long and hard about the duties & responsibilities of a SAG driver.  The main duty is to  provide water and snacks every 20 miles to the cyclists.  Some SAG days are longer than others, today I had 94 mile day with 4 SAG stops, and at each stop each rider had to be logged ¨ in and out¨ to make sure everyone passed by safely.  There are three types of cyclists in our group:   FAST, AVERAGE SPEED, and SLOW.   But, something else came to mind, the emotional support.    And the amazing part of this whole scenario is the fact that they are all happy to see the SAG car and driver.  And, we drivers are happy to see the cyclist.  It is similar to waiting and watching for your lover to come home.  It´s a love affair between cyclists and SAG, that  most people will never understand  unless they´ve been out on the road for days touring.  It is a show of love and compassion like no other..........