Friday, June 5, 2009

St. Joseph to Chillicothe, Missouri

87 miles, 5:00 riding time, 4,097' of climbing, 4,375 Calories

Leaving St. Jo., we rode east on state road 6 through Maysville and then on SR 190 into Chillicothe. Rolling country roads with light traffic and lots of trees and small farms; this is what it's all about.

Maysville is a small town that celebrates the CrossRoads arrival each year. The town turns out with baked goods, etc. to greet the adventurers from far away. We all wore our CR jerseys in honor of today's visit and regrouped a little outside of town so we could ride in together. There are many kind, warmhearted people in this world and a bunch of them live in Maysville. The grade school kids left class to visit with us and cheered as we rode into town. It was a very special treat for all of us.

Across from the grain silo in Lock Springs, is a plaque with the following quote, "Happy are those who dream dreams and are ready to pay the price to make them come true." We are living our dream to ride our bikes across America; I guess that makes us, "happy."

Trivia of the day: Chillicothe is Shawnee for "big town where we live." Obviously, some settler asked the Shawnee what the area was called and got the answer he deserved.

Chillicothe's claim to fame is that it is the birthplace of sliced bread. The Chillicothe Baking Company started selling pre-sliced bread on July 7, 1928, the first time anywhere in the world.

For you sci-fi fans, the "City of Chillicothe" was the name of one of the spaceships in Robert Heinlein's Methuselah's Children.

Rider of the day: Willie is on a sabbatical from being the CFO of a major telecommunications company. He lives in Virginia. Willie is riding to support the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network. To make a pledge to FAAN, www.foodallergy.org . At the end of each day of riding, Willie finds the local police or fire station to meet and thank the first responders. He's a heck of a nice guy.

4 comments:

  1. What a cool thing that everyone turned out to welcome you guys! I so love reading your blog every day, Jim - thanks for bringing your glimpses of this big country to those of us who haven't seen it as intimately as you have. Stay safe and sound...

    Betsy (RIDiver)

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  2. The riders of the Beach Bike Trek team would like to thank the kids and townfolk who turned out to cheer you on. Your journey reminds us that there are many wonderful places to see in this great nation, and a lot of really wonderful people living here with us.

    Beach Bike Trek Update - though no one turned out to cheer us on, today we journeyed to India. To eat, that is. In a restaurant.

    Trip report: 0 miles. 0:00 riding time. 0' of climbing. 5,344 calories (consumed).

    Tomorrow we will journey to a town called "Claremont" to participate in a show. Claremont is known locally as the "city of trees and Ph.D.s" due to its tree-lined streets and consortium of top-ranked educational institutions. Claremont has won the National Arbor Day Association's Tree City, USA award for the past 22 years, and is one of the only remaining cities in North America whose elm trees have not been exposed to Dutch Elm disease.

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  3. P.S. What is the correct pronunciation of "Chillicothe?" Please advise.

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  4. WOW...I ALMOST want to visit the midwest! It looks beautiful. Emma wanted to go across the street to visit you the other day. Mia commented the van was home so Jim must be there. I mentioned that you were still cycling, so Emma replied "silly Emma". Then we had to review the blog together to see where you were.

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