The ride started in Richmond, VA. I spent time getting to know all of my fellow riders, find out how the ride days and build projects were going to go, hear more about Bike & Build's goals and contributions to the affordable housing cause, hang out in Carytown-- a cool neighborhood in Richmond, and go on a 20 mile ride around town to make sure everyone's bikes were in working order. We also decorated our gear trailer that would be carrying all of our supplies for the trip.
The people that I spent my week with were awesome. We had very different backgrounds: a few riders were just graduating college and preparing to go to college or the Navy, a few were still in graduate school studying at universities all over the east coast, others were like me with full-time jobs and were spending their vacation on this trip. Some of us had never traveled out of their home states before this trip, others had lived and/or were currently work in developing countries. We studied urban planning, environmental science, sociology, business, computer science and more. It was an awesome week spent learning from each other, sharing stories and establishing a common ground.
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| Our support van, Elvis, and trailer, Priscilla, broke down a few times, but otherwise successfully got our supplies from place to place for us. |
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| The 2013 Capital Riders. |
Our first riding day took us from Richmond, VA to Farmville, Va. It was approximately 70 miles and about 95 degrees. It was a beautiful ride with small, rolling hills and lots of time to get to know the other riders. We stopped for lunch in the parking lot of a church to enjoy a bit of shade and refill our water bottles. When we arrived in Farmville, members of the church that was hosting us had prepared an awesome pasta dinner and spent the rest of the evening talking with us about Bike and Build and other adventures that we've all been on. I met a family with a daughter that is getting ready to start high school this fall. She was so excited about the trip that we were taking and was inspired to learn to ride her bike and prepare for a Bike & Build trip before she goes to college in a few years. It was awesome to have gotten to know her and her parents, share the knowledge I have about learning to ride a bike, and see her excitement and admiration for the journey I was on. She even asked me if I would stop at their church next summer when I was riding through VA. (Who knows if I will be, but it was cute of her to ask!!)
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| Hanging out in the shade enjoying lunch and a short break from the heat. |
The next day, we woke up at 5am for a homemade breakfast with members from the host church before heading off to Charlottesville, VA. The ride was also about 70 miles, but it was much hotter and the rolling hills were much more frequent and steep. We got to stop at a few cool roadside convenience stores, got free cookies and watermelon, and toured Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson. The scenery was beautiful, but the arrival in downtown Charlottesville came with a bit of stress and anxiety due to a long day in the heat, getting lost and heavy traffic. After walking about 10 minutes to a gym to get a shower, we finally pigged out on pizza and had a beer at a cool bar in downtown Charlottesville. After that kind of day, sleeping on an inch-thick inflatable mattress on a church-gymnasium floor was a very comfortable rest!
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| Lots of interesting roadside stops-- most of them very friendly and some a little skeptical of a bunch of spandex-clad riders. |
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| The home and gardens at Monticello. |
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| From the gardens at Monticello, you can see almost 50 miles into the central VA countryside. |
We spent the next several days in Charllottesville. We were at the construction site for the Belmont neighborhood for two days helping the Habitat for Humanity of Greater Charlottesville. We got to meet the Habitat Staff, several of the partner families that would be living in the neighborhood, and a group of volunteers, called the "Wednesday Crew" that had been volunteering with this organization for 15 years. We helped install floor systems, decking (the sheets of wood that cover floor systems), and built wall sections. It was the first time I've ever volunteered at a Habitat site that let their volunteers use power tools. And I must say, the safety practices of some of the volunteers were concerning. I escaped with just a few bruises from walking into 2x4's and narrowly avoided injury when a nail-gun misfired. (I won't elaborate, Dad, to save you the heart attack.) The build days were actually hotter than the riding days-- partially because it was just getting hotter that week and because we were spending all day standing in one spot on top of a house heaving heavy building materials.
We were staying at a church in downtown Charlottesville, so we had plenty of time after the days' work was done to go out and explore the restaurants, shops and bars that we were staying near. We also discovered a small garage that had been converted into a venue for free concerts that we got to enjoy while we were in town. Charlottesville was a beautiful college town with a lot of cool things going on. The urban planner in me was really enjoying the mile-long pedestrian mall with all of the outdoor cafes and the warehouse district that has been converted into an eclectic mix of residences and shops.
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| Downtown Charlottesville, VA. |
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| Our build site, the Belmont neighborhood, in Charlottesville. |
The ride out of Charlottesville to Washington, VA was by far the most beautiful day on the road. At one point we were riding with the Blue Ridge and Shenandoah Mountain ranges on either side of us. The combination of picturesque farms, mountain ridges, and clear blue skies inspired many of us to repeatedly admire out loud to each other how beautiful it was and how lucky we were to be riding. Of course, we had different feelings in the heat of the afternoon when the heat index reached 107 degrees and we rolled into Washington, VA to find the world's tiniest shower and no cell or internet access. Washington, VA is only 128 acres and a population of less than 150 people. It is popular for being the first of 28 towns by the name of Washington in the country and is home to a 5-star Inn and Restaurant which many people come to enjoy. It was a much different overnight experience than our last several nights in Charlottesville! Overall, though, this ride was my absolute favorite and the mental pictures I have of this day are the first ones I've recalled this week as I've shared stores of my ride with people.
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| Just outside Charlottesville on the former Blue Ridge Turnpike. |
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| One of my favorite views from the trip: The Shenandoah Mountain range that I had hiked two weeks prior. |
My last day of the trip we woke up at 4am to ride from Washington, VA to Washington D.C. We rode 102 miles with a heat index that was once again over 100 degrees! The first part of our ride was very hilly and difficult. After lunch, though, we were lucky to be able to ride the next 50 miles to D.C. on a rail-trail that was flat and free of traffic. We stopped at an awesome BBQ place that was right on the bike trail in the afternoon and then at a bike shop just outside of D.C. for some snacks and to meet some alumni Bike and Build riders. When we finally got to D.C. our first stop was the National Mall. It felt good to be there after such a long day and was amazing how different a place we were compared to where we started first thing in the morning.
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| Made it to the Capitol after 100 miles on the road on the last day. |
Thanks to all of you that supported me either financially or morally as I prepared and went on this trip! I raised just under $1,300 as an individual and my group raised almost $25,000 to help support affordable housing. I rode 325 total miles through Civil War history. I have some pretty legit sock tan lines. And I would totally do it all again.
