Transcontinentalitis, Days 15 - 17 (Jackson, TN to maybe Conway, AR)

Day 15: Jackson, TN to east of Memphis, TN (80.1 miles, 1028.5 total, 30.7 mph max)

The first 10 miles was stuff in Jackson. We found the bike shop and got it together. Flat land today -- a lot of swamps and murky creeks. I'm ready for Arkansas.

We're near Memphis, about 20 miles to the east.  We decided we will take 64 all the way to Enid, OK. Then we'll get back with the book, maybe. I like our route better. The cities are more fun than the country and we're certainly getting our dose of that. The roads are better and flatter. We see a million towns either way.

We saw a lot of southern hicks today. It reminded me of old pictures. They had their straw hats and were dirty, sitting on their porches. 

I've taken the lead for each of the last 5 days or so. It's better because Chris stays right behind me. When he leads I get behind. I don't mind leading as long as the wind is not blowing. But at least I don't have to look at Chris's ass all day long. 

Crossing the (Mississippi) river will be exciting tomorrow. I'll get a picture. We're gonna run out of money.


Day 16: East of Memphis, TN to Morton, AR (95.7 miles, 1124.2 total, 30.2 mph max)


Wow! What a day. We left TN early and Arkansas is like I imagined. Plain. Flat. I thought we'd never find a place to stay. We stopped at a country store in Morton, AR and they're letting us stay in the Flea Market Store in the back (really, a garage that's always set up as a garage sale). Bathrooms and everything.

I was nervous as hell riding into dusk not knowing where we'd sleep tonight. Arkansas is completely different than anything we've seen. Huge farms. Big irrigation systems. Crop dusters. We had dinner in a town called Wynne. It's a small place, but big compared to the other Arkansas towns.

I never rode so many miles flat before. It's not easy. You just never stop pedaling.
Chris wasn't as nervous as I was and got frustrated when I stopped to ask if we could stay here. He doesn't like to ask people things. I think he treats everybody like they're an employer giving an interview. All you have to do is ask. There's no procedure; no delivery. 

For the first time since leaving, I feel like I'm far away from home. The terrain is completely different and foreign to me. But, we're in the plains states now and making good progress. I hope we make it to CA quickly. I hate cycling sometimes. It's hard and very hot outside. The fun starts when I step off the bike. That makes it worth it, though.

Conway, AR tomorrow. Camp there. It's like 95 miles. Hope for the best.

 Day 17:  Morton, AR to an unknown town in Arkansas -- maybe Conway (110.6 miles, 1234.8 total, 28.0 mph max

My God! What a day!

It rained for at least 40 of the miles today, including the last 20. Again, I was scared to death riding up until 7 pm not knowing where we would sleep. And this time it was raining. We stopped at a motel, swallowed our pride, and rented a room.

Rest and relaxation. We actually watched a movie -- some Stephen Segal flick, who knows. But it had a good message about saving the environment.

I don't feel like a wimp because we got a motel room. We maxed out with our distance, but it took a lot of grief. What a day.

It's funny -- once again my memory of this trip is totally different than what I'm reading in my journal. In two cross country trips I've passed through many large cities like DC, Nashville, Memphis, Las Vegas, Portland, Omaha, and a bunch I don't care to recall right now, but my fondest memories are of the towns and spaces in between. When asked about my trips I usually like to exclaim that traveling by bike is the best way to see the country. The pace is just right and America is rooted in the towns. Cities are cosmopolitan, international; it's the small towns where American culture is most pronounced.

My journal doesn't stay where we were after day 17, but on day 16 I said we were going to ride to Conway, so I'm presuming based on the mileage that's roughly where we ended up. I really have little memory of Arkansas other that what I wrote in the journal for day 16 -- Huge farms. Big irrigation systems. Crop dusters.

Friction between Chris and I surfaced again, and this time I immaturely wrote about it in my journal rather than nipping it in the bud before it got out of hand (sorry, Chris!). I wish I'd had his confidence at the time. Seriously, it may have felt like we were in the middle of nowhere but it's not like we were going to starve. This is Arkansas, not Alaska.

And, once again, I've succeeded in crossing an entire state (and TN is long) while bitching about how wonderful the next state is going to be, just to do the same as soon as I crossed the border. As if crossing a state line is going to make much of a difference.

Saving the environment? Who does that? Is that like saving the world?