After surprising me on the airplane yesterday, LaVonne saw me off this morning with a banner (see above). Unbelievable. This woman thinks of everything and I couldn't be more thankful.
Day One: Williamsburg VA. to Mechanicsville, VA. 72 miles. Weather: 77 and calm.
After a few blocks, I jumped on the Colonial Parkway toward Jamestown. The route took me right through the middle of Colonial Williamsburg, then on to the Jamestown Settlement where I caught the Virginia Capital Trail for 35 miles of no cars. I came upon two groups of 25 or so kids with chaperones pedaling in the opposite direction - both packs we're resting while I coasted by. They yelled out, "Where you going?" When I replied, "Seattle," they all jumped up and down shouting, "Good Luck, Be Safe, Good for you, WooHoo... etc." I smiled for miles.
The day took me past forests and fields. The forests felt like Civil War soldiers lurked behind the thick cover and many of the fields had battle monuments and cannons adorning them. I must have passed ten battlefield graveyards. The VA cemeteries had ornate statues gifted from various states to honor their fallen. And of course, there was a fair amount of Confederate flags on many of the graves in the city cemetery just before I reached Mechanicsville... just off of Lee-Davis road. I love world travel, but you don't have to leave America to experience foreign cultures.
My only mistake of the day was not hydrating enough - the cumulative excitement of the last twenty-four hours had my mind elsewhere, until the lactic acid attacked at mile 50. Rookie mistake. Needless to say, I think I've taken in my weight in water since arriving here.
Below: One of the battlefields with cannons and the empty road ahead. (Virginia is truly a cyclists dream.)
