DOUG McCARTY: Going farther than the finish line

Today we rode 51 miles from Anniston, Alabama, to Cedartown, Georgia. Our gracious hosts at the Episcopal Church of St. Michael’s and All Angels in Anniston arrived early to prepare us a sensational sendoff pancake breakfast. So after a blissfully restful night, and having been fueled with coffee and carbohydrates and encouraged by fellowship, we offered our hosts a series of heartfelt oyee’s and received a scriptural blessing from the pastor before heading out.

A unanimous decision was made by the group to ride the remaining 14 blocks on the Chief Ladiga Trail while in Anniston to reach the current termination point of the trail. I mean, c’mon! We simply cannot get this close just to say “we ALMOST made it to the end.” Pictures of victory and conquest (of course) marked the moment!

We were blessed with gloriously beautiful weather for today’s ride. The only drawback to splendid springtime weather is the generation of TONS of pollen. But that would not slow this group… not one little bit! And it is worth noting that the Chief Ladiga Trail has undergone substantial improvements! Some lengthy segments have been completely repaved (fresh, smooth asphalt!), and many of the protruding tree roots on other sections had been ground flat. We are all super grateful for that!

The first half of today’s ride took us through the middle of the Jacksonville State University campus (very cool!). Our terrific support dynamic duo (Cindy and Dan Epp) treated us to a wonderful lunch at the welcome center in Piedmont, Alabama! The second leg of today’s journey had us crossing the Alabama/Georgia state line… where the “Roll Tide” chalk marking I made yesterday (on the Georgia side, of course) was still holding strong! (and yes, I am from “Sweet Home Alabama”).

So, we all arrived safely at Kresge Methodist Church in Cedartown, GA, after a 50+ mile ride. Thank you, Lord! We were later shuttled to the local Planet Fitness gym to take showers (fees paid by a local church) and afterwards hit the drive-thru at Checkers to order fifteen (15) 99-cent milkshakes. Can it possibly get any better than this?!

Well, actually, yes… it can get better! Our hosts at Kresge Methodist Church prepared a wonderful dinner for us… homemade chicken salad, fruits and fixins, and a lemon Bundt cake that would make you slap yo momma!

We have only one more ride day (tomorrow), which will take us approximately 55 miles back to the originating church in Smyrna, GA. And after that, we get to participate in a build day on a home currently under construction in Americus, GA. Very exciting!