Can I just start off by saying DUKE! Sorry Rick but they had it coming. Today was emotionally, physically and mentally the best we have all had in a long time. It did not start off that way but we finished strong and on a high note. Before I get into the day, let me talk a little bit about last nights festivities.
First, for all of you concerned about our safety and the dangerousness of the road we are traveling on let me assure you I have not felt safer all trip. The section of road that Rick was referring to as being "the most dangerous road in America" is long behind us. It was the 30-40 mile section between the town of Denton and Decator because of all the rock trucks that travel it. However, we are currently well past that and in a much more desolate area with a solid 8 foot shoulder. Practically our own lane.
Secondly, I am back to my normal self after mentally being out of it yesterday. It was really difficult for me to get my mind back on the road after spending an amazing four nights with Kaitlyn's family as well as having her around. I was totally surprised to see her and I just mentally checked out for a bit. It was so nice to think about something else besides how many miles we have to do tomorrow or where we would be sleeping/eating the next night. But please don't get me wrong. I am having the time of my life and would not want to be anywhere besides here. Today I am back and ready to knock on New Mexico's door.
So as Rick told you all yesterday we stopped at the triangle house that was situated directly on the shores of Lake Bridgeport. We explained to "the gentleman and his wife" (Maclain and Heather Jobe) about our journey and asked if it would be alright to camp out in their yard. At first I could tell they were a bit skeptical as Maclain kept calling us crazy idiots all night, but by the end of the night we were invited to sleep inside. That's right, Texas has yet to see our camping gear (well John's tent) and we hope to keep it that way. The largest state of our travel and perhaps the most luxurious as well.
Maclain and Heather were heading out to a local bar and wanted us to come along and enjoy a true southern pub. We were pretty exhausted from the early morning, especially me, and a tough day but decided this was the whole reason for doing this run, to experience life outside of New York. Around 8 we headed into town.
The place was nice with a few pool tables, a live band and a huge dance floor which excited Ken. However, he quickly found out the only dancing happening there was the 2 step and on rare occasions the worm thanks to Maclain. The five of us immediately hit it off as we told them stories about our trip and they told us about their lives. It was so great to just relax and enjoy ourselves for a few hours. At times it seems we are always doing something. 24 hours in the day just doesn't seem like enough time for everything we do, but we get it done and are still having a great time.
Maclain paid for everything all night and as we were leaving the owner of the bar gave us our $30 membership fee back after finding out what we were doing. It was definitely a great time regardless of the sleep we might have missed. One last thing before I get going on today. Maclain has two things about him that I will never forget. One, he is an amazing pool player as I witnessed this first hand. Not only does he win but he wins with style. He played 3 or 4 games before I bravely challenged him and as he was cleaning up the table he was dancing and shaking to the music. He was really enjoying himself and Durkin and I both agreed he reminded us of Ken. Both free spirits who just like to have a good time. The game between the two of us did not last very long. I was able to get one shot the entire game and had all my balls still on the table. The guy is good and if you don't believe me, challenge him ayait...and make sure your peoples is there to see it.
Second, and most important, he looks exactly like Dale Earnhardt Jr. We took a picture of him standing next to a life size cardbard cut out and it should be on the site soon. Check it out and make your own call. Just be aware if you happen to run into Dale Jr. somewhere down the road and want to buy him a drink ask to play him in a game of pool first. Only then can you be sure.
We headed back to the house a little past 11 and the entire ride home Maclain was talking about playing the game Rock Band. He has a drum set, guitar and microphone but know one to play with. This was his time to shine and as he put it, get us pumped to "rock across the country". We were all excited and wanted to see him in all his glory but as we started getting ready for bed everyone was dead tired. We felt bad telling him we didn't want to play and called it a night. The next time we are in Runaway Bay, Texas we will be looking for the triangle house and rocking deep into the night.
This morning we woke up around 7:30 after a great nights sleep and packed the joggers up. We were in kind of a hurry as Maclain was leaving the house as well in order to coach a 9-year olds volleyball game. We weren't ready as he was leaving and the last thing he said to us was, "you better not steal my xbox". Durkin wanted to hide it somewhere in the house just to mess with him but I didn't think it was such a good idea.
We had 33 miles to travel today and we tried to get going as quickly as possible. It was already warm and we took off our long sleeves and pants immediately. Ken thinks that soon we won't have to start the day with pants. I agree with him because the weather is definitely picking up. Even after a late night on the town I think we all felt pretty good. I felt 100 times better than I did yesterday and loved every minute of the day. At one point I turned around after being ahead of Durkin and Ken and watched them run as they caught up to me. I was smiling from ear to ear because the two of them looked so tough running down an empty highway in the middle of no where. It still amazes me to think we are running across the country. I continuously ask the guys from time to time if they ever just stop and think about what we are doing. After 3 years of planning and 51 days of actually doing it the whole idea kind of just becomes normal. It loses some of its meaning to some degree and it's just what we do now. So when I stop and look around at the scenery or look at our journey from an outsider looking in, it always amazes me. We are running across the entire country with nothing more than the clothes on our backs, two baby joggers and our boyish charm. I just feel blessed to be living my dream day in and day out and I guess Maclain was right when he said we are crazy idiots.
The scenery today was amazing as we ran up and down a number of rolling hills. The land is becoming more and more what I always imagined the west to be. Cactus are becoming more abundant and the earth itself is started to change in color. It won't be long before we are finally out there.
We ran the first 17 miles before reaching the town of Jacksboro in a blazing 3 hours and restocked our Gatorade supply. I would say this is the one thing we purchase the most of and it is kind of like our gasoline during the trip. We get about 20 miles to the gallon before refueling. We then stopped into a local cafe for lunch and a break from the sun. Our meal was delicious as usual and Ken put away at least 4 Dr. Peppers before we hit the road for the last 16 miles. The road began to flatten out a bit and we kept running at our almost racing pace. We found two more Texas plates and I decided we will no longer be picking Texas license plates up, unless as Durkin stated they are in mint condition. We probably have close to 20 Texas alone and we joked that we can only give people so many plates for their birthday before it becomes old.
We were finally picked up by Ben Taylor around 3:30 and headed into Graham to check into a hotel. For the next two nights we will be staying at a Best Western thanks to Tommy Lewis. Tommy, for those of you who don't remember him, was who we stayed with in Paris only a few days earlier. He knew a few people in the town of Graham and told them about our story. Amy Willis, her husband and Ben have graciously gone out of their way to get us a room and provide us with rides for the next few nights. We all really appreciated it especially with it being the holiday weekend. We understand everyone is busy during this time of the year and it means a lot to know that people are still willing to help us reach our goal.
Ben also took us out to dinner at a great Italian restaurant where we watch some of the college basketball games. It was weird to see the games going on and not really caring who was winning or losing. I usually get pretty involved in the tournament but this year was the first time I didn't fill out a bracket in a long time. I honestly couldn't even name all four number one seeds. To some degree we are putting the real world on hold and just living each day step by step. It's a great feeling to just let everything else go. One last thing about dinner. Neither Ken or Matt could finish their meals unlike myself. I guess we are back to being even after my failed attempt at the largest burger in the world. However, what they didn't tell you was how many cheese fries I had prior to this burger. I still feel I could eat both of them under the table any day.
We returned to the hotel where we are currently doing laundry and relaxing for the rest of the night. Amy will be picking us up tomorrow morning around 8 and driving us back to where we finished today. We have a total of 51 miles to cover in the next two days so we can pretty much go as long or as short as we wish. They are calling for light rain all day so we will see how the day goes. I am not that confident to call our fourth rain day of the trip but Matt can tell you all about that tomorrow. Thanks for reading and for all the support everyone has shown us so far on this trip. Happy Easter Everyone. Enjoy the time with your families.
-Andy
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