Day 0, Monday May 25, 2009

Travel day, check in, orientation

Tim and I got up at 5:30, had a quick breakfast, were on the road in my car at 6:15 and arrived at the Hampton Inn in Charlottesville at 9:30. I unpacked, checked in and Tim headed back to Winchester as he had a commitment to do some cooking at a picnic.

There are 21 cyclists and 4 staff with two support vans. Ride leaders are Mike and Barbara Monk, support - Karen Bauer, and mechanic - Jim Benson. All but one of the cyclists have ridden with ABB on a previous ride so I have ridden with 10 of them before and was roommates with four of them. So this is a 'reunion' of sorts. From 9:00 to 3:00, all bikes went through a mechanic's check.

Paul and I had lunch around 1:00 and ABB staff had an orientation for us from 3:00 to 5:30. That sounds like a lot of time but Mike had a lot to share. We had dinner at a Golden Corral and then everyone went back to their room to pack, repack, sort stuff out and get ready for Day 1 tomorrow - a 65 mile ride to Harrisonburg.

The only problem is the weather. Showers are expected in the morning and a soaking rain by late afternoon. There also will probably be some adjustments to the ride itinerary after Roanoke. I will share this in a future journal when we find out what will be changing.

Bike Check - mechanic Jim Benson

2009 Ride Orientation