Thought from April MRT Trip

April 12, 2011

We have been back in Dillon since Saturday and I have been recovering from the 400 miles of tandem biking with Bill and Grace. Exercise is good. I left home with a nagging sinus infection and came home feeling much better. Exercise works better than antibiotics. I have a lot of browner skin. Especially on my face, arms and lower legs. And, a nagging skin irritation on my neck where I believe a shirt was rubbing. My legs are tired but, I was able to do a weight workout and a 40 minute ride on the stationary bike today.

The trip from St. Louis to Memphis was great. The weather was, should I say, challenging. Rain one day. And lots of wind. We rode 56 miles the rainy day. One of the windy day we only did 20 miles. On the first day we hit a culvert pretty hard and broke the casing of our rear tire. Then we had four or five more flats the next two days until we were able to get a new tire. I learned from Don Hansen last night that we could have used a dollar bill folded in the tire as a better fix. Bill did try to patch the tire lining. But, that only worked for a short distance.

The ride across the I-55 bridge from Tennessee to Arkansas was terrifying at best. There was a pedestrian walkway on the outside of the North bound lanes. It was narrow and the high speed continuos traffic was right next to us. At the Arkansas end we encountered a "Huge" snake that Bill almost stepped on. Then we had to ride the shoulder of the interstate another three miles for an exit. From there we headed home.

Congress should be required to take this trip. The state of our country is vividly portrayed by the condition of the towns and cities situated along the river. Whatever they are doing in Washington is not working. We are losing our economic position. Many towns and cities are in a deplorable condition. Some look like cities in third world countries. We are growing into a nation of poverty. The people don't even know what has hit them. People are out of work. There are no signs of new buildings. There are many closed factories. The main streets of some towns look like war zones. Some road work is evident. Probably supported by Obama Debt Stimulus. But, lots of roads and bridges are in a poor state of repair. The I-55 bridge is a prime example of the worn state of our nation infrastructure. Most of these bridges are over fifty years old. It is not a pretty sight.