Days 9 & 10 -- Gettysburg, PA to Culpeper, VA; Culpeper to Blackstone, VA: Rolling, Rolling, Rolling!

It's called your anaerobic threshold. It's the point above which physical exertion causes your muscles to seize, to burn, to feel almost paralyzed. The cause? Your muscles literally go into oxygen deprivation; they are starved for oxygen. For bikers, one of the most common times for reaching your anaerobic threshold is when you're biking up hills because of the strength it requires. You want to push to reach the top, but if you push too hard, you're sunk and likely to be stuck in a very low gear going a handful of mph. Let's just say that given our route yesterday from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania through Maryland to Culpeper, Virginia and today from Culpeper to Blackstone, VA, I became very interested in the best way to challenge the hills and again familiar with the concept of anaerobic threshold.

We left Gettysburg, PA yesterday morning knowing that our route might be difficult. We were heading south outside the greater Washington, D.C. area through Maryland into Virginia. It didn't take long to see that our planned route would need to change. Despite assurances from guest stop personnel that it was permissible to ride on Route 15, one look at the several large trucks bearing down on this near superhighway and we knew that Plan A just became Plan B. Taking time to modify our route, we found a couple of nearby country roads that would get us to our destination -- filled with the rolling hills of Maryland and Virginia.

Both days have had almost perfect weather. Even though the temperature yesterday started climbing toward 80 degrees late in the afternoon, the skies were fairly clear and there seemed to be a cool breeze. In addition, much of the routes were under trees that served to provide a canopy over the road and relief from the heat. The routes reminded me a bit of those areas in Kentucky known for their horse farms and we did, indeed, see many horses along with black fences intended to provide a border. We also rode through some historic areas; after all, many of the towns in this area were founded in the 1700s and are sprinkled with an old, colonial flavor reminiscent of a bygone era. All those things together and the rides have been spectacular.

As I struggled up several of the hills, I realized I was missing the point and needed a new strategy. You see, I was coasting down most of the hills and then finding myself without sufficient strength to go up the next uphill quickly. What if I pedaled a bit more downhill instead? While the approach did not work with every monster hill, I began to understand that just because things are going well (i.e., downhill) is no time to coast. By riding the downhill with strength and pushing myself a bit, it gave me a greater ability to take on the big uphills. A bit like faith, I suppose. If we coast through the easy times, we're more likely to find ourselves without momentum or strength for the uphill climbs. If we push through the easier times, it may give us greater strength when things are a bit more challenging. We continue to have safe travels and have had only minor issues with traffic (e.g., a few trucks blowing black exhaust our way as they welcome us to their locality).

Now, a couple critical updates: (1) yesterday, I set a personal record for the most bugs eaten in a single day with six. Not sure if I was just breathing extra heavily or they've started looking for me. I think I'm starting to like the chewy ones best. (2) Several of you have been interested in the final results of the recently announced and highly anticipated "Falling Off Your Bike Competition" between Mr. East and me. Despite an incredible effort by Mr. East in the final hours of the competition by completing a 3 1/2 turn, 1 1/2 sommersault fall in the inverted position, degree of difficulty 6.8, he came up just short. Final score: Mr. Grandy, 2 1/2 falls; Mr. East, 2 falls. We're thinking about petitioning the International Olympic Committee to enter bike falling as an Olympic sport -- we think we'd be shoe-ins (get it? We have difficulty getting our shoes out of the pedals) for the team.

Thanks to the folks at Culpeper Christian School for our accommodations last evening. We really enjoyed having the chance to learn more about your school and spend some time with your teachers and parents. Finally, tomorrow, we'll be joined by Team Grandy (Lori, Leah and David) in Raleigh, NC. Talk about an extra incentive to ride as fast as possible. We can't wait to see you all! Safe travels.

Charlie