Day 6....a little late in posting

I woke Friday morning in a lot pain. My newly acquired road rash I was sporting was not exactly the new summer wear everyone would be seeking this summer. My bike was in worse condition and would require the attention of a good bike mechanic before she would be road worthy.
Again the riders were divided into two groups. Mark was feeling a little under the weather with a stomach bug so he and I sagged in the truck- Tree and Aaron also were feeling poorly too and joined us as well. Cheryl was the only one to ride the entire ride from Texas today. She is an amazing and very strong women!
The terrain was difficult again with long steep hills. The riders again gained 3000 feet before lunch. The rolling hills and farm land was nothing short of amazing. The dairy cows and horses looking over the fences at the site of us in spandex racing by.
We stopped and had lunch in a small community that had the coolest tourist attractions. Across the street from the EMS/fire station was a zoo. It was kinda startling to be eating a sandwich and hear the screech of a monkey. Along with the zoo was a Dinosaur park and a replica of Stonehenge called Foamhenge. I was able to talk the group of riders to pose for a picture with Foamhenge in the background.
At lunch Mark worked on my bike. He had to change out the back wheel - one spoke was bent and anther was completely broken. The front right gear/break level was broken, the rear derail er was bent. All this was minded to the best that could be at he side of a back country Virginia road. I hopped on and did a little test ride. I don’t know what looked more pathetic my bike or me riding it with my hand in a cast and my arm bandaged up.
Though my bike was ride able I was still not in the best of condition. The road rash was oozing fluids and the bruising was beginning to develop over my entire body. The vicodine the doctor gave me was only taking the edge off the pain. I elected not to ride after lunch however Mark, Tree and Aaron joined the rest of the riders.
The town just outside Roanoke the group from Kentucky joined us. They had 7 riders. The last 10 miles of the last day all the riders rode together into Roanoke. We also gain about 2 dozen riders from in and around Roanoke. Just before we rode into Roanoke I got onto my bike so I could take part in the ceremonially ride into town.
I was not going to go all the way to NYC and start a 600 mile bike and not ride the last 5 miles of the ride.
The sidewalks of Roanoke were lined with people clapping and waving signs. I weaved past the newly added cyclist to catch up with our group of riders - my new best friends. Some of the most amazing people - I wanted to share this moment with them. Finally I caught up with my team mates and completed the ride with Tree. As we turned into the long driveway that lead to the hotel the crowds grew. We were greeted at the entrance of the hotel by EMTs/Paramedics from all over the country! There were family members of the people we were riding for- The Hanson's, there were Roanoke citizens, and tv and newspaper cameras.
We rode around the circle entrance of the hotel twice before getting off our bikes. We embraced one anther, tears flowed from our eyes and champagne was sprayed on us by the crowds. The emotions were an extreme mixture of sadness for our departed colleagues, happiness for what we had just accomplish, sadness b/c we wouldn’t be ridin' with the guys from Maine or the students from Minnesota or the guys from Georgia, or the guys from NYC. Our bodies hurt more than you could ever imagine just hours before now all the pain was temporally gone.
Six days ago getting my bike out of Mark’s truck at Jacob’s Hospital in NYC to get ready to begin this journey I never imagined how I would feel at this moment. Words can never explain the emotions we went through, the sights we saw and the nicest people we had met over the last 6 days.
I am thankful for all the people who have made this trip possible. I am truly blessed. My friends and family, the department, my colleagues and most of my teammates.