Trek Across Maine 2013

Friday morning 7:00 Lavena and I were ready to start a new trek.  Tucker brought us to Sunday River, and we loaded our gear for the day.  You can't really see our helmets, but Lavena decorated us.  She made dragonflies with florescent  pipe cleaners, a pink boa cut in half and a huge pink gerber flower at the base of the helmet.  Many people commented and I just kept giving the credit to my creative daughter.
Pa had already been on the road at least one hour earlier preparing for the SAG driving.  He drives along and picks up bikes or people who can't go on.  He always starts earlier than we do, and works well after we are finished riding for the day.  

This is our cheering section!!!  Becca, Richie, Estella and Brenna go to the Route 2 Diner  each year to support us.  
They brought their own entertainment while they waiting.  

It helps to have someone cheering you on as you sorta know what is ahead.  Becca and Richie also made us dinner when we got home on Sunday night.  They made meatloaf and scolloped potatoes for Father's Day.  It was so good!  They also babysat our dogs.  So they had 4 dogs at their house.
  Everyone smiles as different people encourage each other along the way.  It is an awesome event and each year I tell myself- that I must train harder for the hills.  And every year I just tell myself next year I will.  

Each year lupins have been a special blessing along the trail, and Tucker brought us each a bouquet for our hotel.  

It is not all work!  We are wiser now- we rent rooms with a pool and hot tub.  

This is what a rest area looks like.  Kind of like locust - we come we eat and we go!

This is the finish line -for us it was a happy ending.  By now I am sure you all know that a biker died on this trek.
It was so unfortunate and everyone was so sad.  He was a young man of 23 and from what reports are telling us he was drinking from his water bottle and lost his balance and was run over by the back end of a tractor trailer.  Lavena and I were about an hour ahead of him, but we knew something awful had happened when the police and ambulances went screaming by us in Rumford.  Somethings just don't seem right, but we are not to question what our Lord has for him.  

Tucker and Phia were cheering us all along the way.  

It was so warm when we entered Belfast that we spent some time at the water front.  

I am proud of her strength and thankful for her encouragement - she waits for me all along the way and makes me laugh.  

This is a perfect pair.  This little boy would through the ball in the water, and then Phia would bring it back.  They were both so happy.  

I think she should go into designing helmets.   We had all kinds of comments!
Thank  you everyone who donated money to the American Lung Association,  cheered us on and most of all prayed for our success.  It was a great ride!  My lesson for this ride is to be thankful for each breath you take.  On some of the tough hills I was praying to the Lord and asking for strength to keep going and air.
 There is one older man at the top of a very long hill on the third day who brings a truck full of watermelon and water. Everyone stops for a few minutes to rest, and he shares his water mellon.  He gets lots of hugs and everyone thanks him over and over.