Day 50: Wednesday, May 24

It was great to see my Grandparents today as we met them for lunch in Fairgrove. My cousin, Troy, happened to be in the area on a business trip so he was able to join us.

We met several more west bounders today, and they continue to warn us about the upcoming mountains. Obviously I don't expect the Ozarks or the Appalachians to be easy, but we have already ridden over the Rockies. As Shayne pointed out it is a matter of perspective. We could tell them horror stories about some of the mountains in Oregon and Idaho, but by the time they get there, they won't have a problem getting over them. It's crazy to think that judging from how many miles the cyclists we met today have ridden so far, we have less than 1,500 miles to go. We only rode 74 miles today, but since we haven't taken a day off since Colorado, we are still ahead of schedule. Tonight we are camped in Hartville at the designated camping spot: the front lawn of the Courthouse, right in the center of town. Hopefully there won't be much traffic at the town's main intersection, which is right in front of the Courthouse. We had difficulty falling asleep in the heat, so we went across the street and hung out in the post office lobby for a little while to try and cool down.