Day 19

The guys finished in Greensboro AL with a total of 25 miles. It was an overall great day for all.

They found out this morning that they had ended up spending the night at the Superintendent's home of the Marion School district, which they all thought was a neat surprise.

They packed up their gear and visited a gas station to grab a light snack before they headed out. Because it was family owned and operated they sold fresh squeezed orange juice-which was a nice treat. Nine o’clock arrived and they hit the road. The weather was extremely nice; in the low 60s and sunny.

They traveled about an hour and stopped at Hardee’s for a full breakfast. Andy and Matt were starving, so they both ordered the ‘Monster.’ This breakfast sandwich consisted of eggs, ham, bacon, sausage and cheese on a huge biscuit. Not a sandwich for the weak or faint of heart. They also dominated some blue berry cinnamon roles. Ken’s stomach was not feeling well, so he could not partake in all the glory Hardee’s had to offer.

After breakfast they continued traveling west until about 1:30 to stop for lunch and a quick rest. They had only 6 miles left in the day and they were looking forward to being done at a reasonable time.

The HERO Housing project, lead by Pam Door, is a nonprofit corporation that assists in the development of both single and multi-family homes for working low-income rural families. The HERO group utlizes a unqiue manufacturing style called ‘rammed earth homes’(To learn more visit http://www.ruralhome.org/pressreleasesview.php?id=179). Pam had heard about the guys' trip and had contacted us to offer them a place to stay for the night. Pam also arranged a big welcome; a crowd of 25 HERO workers cheered them on as they entered town. Thanks for the warm welcome Pam and HERO.

After they arrived they dropped off their stuff at one of the HERO houses and Willy, a Bard College student volunteering for HERO, and Betsy, a native of Buffalo, NY, took them on a tour of Greensboro. They learned that Greensboro is the Cat Fish capital of AL. The guys even had some catfish tonight for dinner, along with pasta, salad and parfaits all courtesy of HERO.

Today was also a very special day for another reason. This was the first day the guys would be receiving packages from home. Ken and Andy needed a second pair of shoes and Greensboro, AL would be where they would be picking them up. The three walked down Main Street anxiously awaiting their small gifts from home. Andy was shocked to find out that 3 boxes awaited him. One from his parents, one from Kaitlyn and a third from Mr. & Mrs. Skelley. Each box was filled with trail mix, candy bars, valentine's cards and of course the ever important shoes. It was like Christmas for the guys! Unfortunately, Rick did not send Ken's shoes to Greensboro but instead shipped them to Aliceville a few days later. Andy was on top of the world as they left the post office and let Ken know it all the way back to the Hero headquarters. The guys would like to thank the Wahila and Skelley families for their delicious treats. They will be eating good for the next few days.

After dinner, Betsy, Willy, and another HERO worker and new friend Joey took the three to a weekly architecture lecture held at a house about 10 miles outside of Greensboro. The Lecture is part of the Auburn University architecture program called Rural Studio. The lecture was put on by a man who had built intricately designed ice fishing lures. There were about 30 students from Auburn who attended. After the lecture, the students were all interested in the guys' trip and were asking a million questions. The guys were all happy to answer their questions. Everyone was invited to "Taco Tuesday" but they declined the offer as it was getting a bit late.

When everything was all done, the guys all returned to their "Rammed Earth" home. The home is made of mostly dirt and some cement. The accomodations were very good; warm water, electricity, a roof over their heads...the guys were really roughing it.

Earlier in the night, one of the guys asked Betsy how long of a drive it was to Savannah, Georgia...remember that place where the guys started their run 3 weeks ago? She responded with "It's an 8 hour drive!" What an incredible distance these guys have covered in such little time.

The most notable item of the day was Ken. He had an amazing day of running. His legs were free from soreness and they were not tight at all. He was able to keep up with Andy and Matt the entire day without any trouble. We are so proud of you Ken. Andy’s shin was still bothering him today, but didn’t stop him from pounding out the 25 miles.

Tomorrow they head to Eutaw, AL; an easy 22 miles for the day. They will spend 2 more days in AL before crossing into Mississippi.

Have a great night!

-Dan