Day Four - Valdosta to Waycross, GA - 74 miles, 1060 feet ascent

What a great day with a hard-fought seventy-four-mile trek through Southern Georgia!  We snuck out of Valdosta early enough to avoid heavy traffic and rode to the northeast beneath overcast skies.  The wind took center stage as the villain of this leg of our journey—straight in the face, gusting to 25 miles per hour.  Constant.  Unrelenting.  

We also had our first taste of rain showers as a harbinger of things to come.  Between lunch and our final break, we found ourselves on a 32-mile stretch of straight, uninteresting road.  Some of us engaged in math gymnastics to distract us from the weather and the monotony of long, never-ending roadways.  We also counted nine power poles each mile, thus when we departed our final rest break, it was less a question of miles remaining than the 86 power poles to go before our next turn.  Some of our riders tackled minor bike malfunctions, but nothing that a little brute force and a couple of straps couldn’t fix.

A special thank you goes out to our families and loved ones who were kind enough to keep us apprised of the situation at the Navy-Air Force game.  Way to go Navy!  A win over Air Force is enough to make anyone forget about saddle soreness and wind burns.

We have all fallen into post-ride and pre-ride routines as our journey progresses.  Tomorrow will be a little different with a forecast calling for rain showers and possibly thunderstorms.  Our shorter route to Brunswick allows some flexibility should we for delay for couple of hours.  Keep your fingers crossed and think happy thoughts about clear skies and tailwinds.