Patti said...

HI guys! Sounds like the southerns are hogging all our heat! Tell them we want some sent up to Maine so we can dry out and get warm. We've had only ONE full day of sunshine in the month of May in the Portland area! Good luck with those interviews and keep those pictures coming. Stay safe and may Arkansas greet you with open arms. Enjoy your day off in Dallas too! Send me a cowboy! ....Patti

Anonymous said...

Hello Gina, Alex and Bev! Good to see that you're back on line! That's what little sisters are for I guess. We had a cool day at Raeleen and Ted's party, but a good time was had by all. Harry and Dad are at camp putting on screens before Memorial weekend. Hope you got the package and that the sweets help boost your energy, as if you needed it!

Love to all! MOM

Anonymous said...

HOWDY! Great to hear from you on Saturday. I'm so relieved to see Rhonda worked her magic, not that I had any doubts. It seems like you two are making incredible progress both mileage and awareness. Great work!! The closer you get to home, the closer I get to our big day. So much to look forward to. Stay safe.

Love, Pinecone and Baby Pine

Maine-ly in the Plains

Tuesday, May 24, 2005

What a difference a week makes! By that I mean, goodbye mountains, and hello Great Plains, as we are now in the middle of Oklahoma, resting up in the town of Norman, just south of Oklahoma City. It's been an interesting week, for sure. We started out by biking north from Santa Fe, New Mexico, up to Taos along "The High Road." They call it that for a reason. It was a scenic ride, but took it's toll with all the climbing, descending, and climbing again. Lots of small little towns along the way, each looking more abandoned than the one before it, until we got to Taos itself, which seemed pretty enough for the little of it that we saw. The next morning we got psyched up for our biggest climb to date, up over a pass that would take us to 9100 ft. of elevation before descending down into eastern New Mexico. The climb turned out to be easier than we thought, and the descent through the canyon on the other side was quite beautiful, as we raced a small stream downhill into the valley. Once, we came zipping around a corner and there were five mule deer crossing the road in front of us. Very nice. The one tough part was a ten-mile section where we had our most severe cross-winds to date (I had to get off and walk a short stretch because the wind was blowing me off the road!). Aside from that, it was a very nice biking day.

The next day we rode steadily away from the mountains, and it was clear that we were in a different part of the country. The terrain opened up, it was much drier, cattle ranches were everywhere, and we were in the Great Plains. Technically we were still in New Mexico, but it sure felt like Texas. It was interesting at first, but then became a little repetitive. Would it be like this for the next few weeks? The next day we officially crossed into the Texas panhandle, and in addition to the cattle ranches there were now many drilling rigs dotting the landscape. I'm told that they drill for natural gas in this area, and it kind of smelled that way. And when it doesn't smell like natural gas, it smells like cow manure. Welcome to Texas.

At this point, we started to employ a new strategy for our awareness campaign,. When we entered a town that was big enough to have its own newspaper, we would stop by their office and make ourselves available for a quick on-the-spot interview. We tried this in three different towns over the next few days, and in each one they took some notes, snapped a few photos of us, and told us the story would appear in their paper in the next few days. Hopefully they follow through with the stories, as this would mean our story would get out to thousands more people than we could reach on our own. We'll keep trying this tactic, as it seems promising.

We made it across the Texas panhandle in two days, and entered Oklahoma, where things looked pretty much the same. I should note that over these last three or four days, they've had record heat in the area, so each day it's been sunny and in the mid- to high-90's. Everything is baking in the sun: the crops, the cattle, and especially us. So we keep on pouring on sun-screen in the mornings and showering off the sweat and the grime at the end of each day. And drinking a lot of liquids. I mean, a lot of liquids. Gatorade should sponsor us!

As we entered Oklahoma, we noticed some of the fields were starting to grow crops. Specifically, wheat. And of course, wheat is something that a person with celiac disease cannot eat. So here we are, trying to spread the word about celiac and going without gluten to a community that relies upon growing and selling wheat. Oh, the irony! But all we can do is keep pressing on with our campaign. We made it to Norman, this time with company, as Greg, whose wife has celiac, joined us for the 70 mile ride into town. It was a pleasure to have him ride with us. And when we got to town, the local celiac support group had organized a pot-luck dinner for us. The food was great and I got a chance to hear their stories and to tell them mine. It's always good to connect with other people who understand what I'm going through and what I'm trying to achieve with this ride. They were very supportive and welcoming, and I'd like to thank them again for all their help, especially Kate Martin and her family, who welcomed us into their home for the night.

Tomorrow it's on the road again, as we head east into the hills of Oklahoma (yes, there really are hills in Oklahoma!). In a few days, we'll be in the state of Arkansas. I've never been there before, so I'm actually looking foward to it. I'll try to write again from there. In the meantime, keep those messages coming!

Regina