Phil's Epic Ride : Day 21 - Rest Day in Springfield, IL

"I do the very best I know how - the very best I can; and I mean to keep on doing so until the end."

Abraham Lincoln

While we are in the land of Lincoln I thought I would start today's post with a quote from our 16th President. It is how I feel after 20 days on this epic ride across America. Like all the other riders, I am focused on completing this mission and it is in our grasp. This journey is definitely not a sprint but a very long marathon. After today's day off we have 12 consecutive days to the finish line. As long as it may seem, it has been a blur as the days come and go quickly. It is sometime hard to believe that we left the Pacific Ocean 21 days ago. Here are the current total for the ride:

2046 Miles Completed

16 MPH Avg Speed

156 Hrs, 54 Min, 33 Seconds of riding

500,358 Pedal Rotations

81,266 Feet of Climbing

57,214 Calories Burned

Today was a low key day of basically doing nothing but keeping busy. I got out of bed at 6:00 am and headed down to get some breakfast and some coffee. I read the newspaper, something I have not done in awhile. I then went over to the hot tub and sat in there for a while. I was a little sore from the massage last night as all the tightness in my legs were released. Following the hot tub I did a thorough cleaning and lubrication of my bike as it was pretty dirty from riding in the rain yesterday.

I finally left the hotel around 11:30 and took a taxi to a local bike shop about six miles away to get some supplies but the shop was not that good so I decided to walk two miles to another bike shop. Upon arriving, I discovered it was no longer in business. Dam the bad luck, I searched for another shop and walked another mile to a third bike shop. While walking I was able to talk with my daughter Kelsey but could not reach my son Parker. I finally arrived at the bike shop and it had everything that I needed. When I asked the shop owner to call me a taxi he offered to give me a ride back to the hotel. Now that is customer service. Thank you Todd Mitchell, Owner of R&M Cyclery.

I did see a funny sign today as I was walking. It was for a Mexican Restaurant.

That's a big Burrito

After the bike shop adventure, I walked over to Panera Bread for lunch and then headed back to my room to take a nap. I couldn't fall asleep so I layed there for an hour and listened to some Smooth Jazz deciding what I was going to do next. I decided to head to the hotel gym and did 2.5 miles on the eliptical trainer and do some stretching.

I am hungry again so I am finishing up this post with a reminder to remember that I am riding to raise awareness and money for the Wounded Warrior Project. Fundraising has gone well but we are still short of the goal of $15,000. As of today donors have given $11,440. I have 12 days to ride and get to the Atlantic Ocean. I ask your help in sharing this blog with your network and ask them to consider making a small $10.00 donation to support our wounded warriors who have given so much for us to have the freedom we enjoy.

12 days to go and I could not be with a better group of riders from all over the world with an average age of 54. I also need to say the ride support staff of Mike and Barbara Munk, Karen Bauer, and Jim Benson with 18 years of experience are first class. Meet my fellow riders and staff: