Day 11 – 18 May – Ripley to Union City
69 Miles ridden - 1950 feet climbed - temperature 22C Today was all about being chased. The first and more obvious issue was storms. It was quite cloudy when we got up and the weather forecast showed that there was a collection of storm systems all around us meaning...
Day 10 – 17 May – Memphis to Ripley
80 miles ridden - 2400 feet climbed - temperature 25C. Today we were trying to get to Ripley before expected thunderstorms. Although it was much cooler, the humidity made things a bit uncomfortable as our absolutely sodden clothes did not dry the way they do in a hot...
Day 9 – 16 May – Rest day in Memphis
0 miles ridden - 0 feet climbed - temperature 31C We had a radical sort to the day with a lazy, late breakfast at 7am and didn't leave hotel until 09:00 - it felt very weird but pretty nice. First on the list was a walk downtown to the National Civil Rights Museum...
Day 8 – 15 May – Senatobia to Memphis
66 miles ridden - 2300 feet climbed - temperature 32C Today was a much more social ride, non just because Darin was riding but everyone seemed a little demob happy at the prospect of a short (relatively) ride and then a rest day. The extended Across America North 2016...
Day 7 – 14 May – Clarksdale to Senatobia
63 miles ridden - 800 feet climbed - temperature 33C. The moment we walked out of the hotel the heat hit us. At 07:30 it was already 28C so we were anxious to be on our way. After a pleasant ride through the quieter neighbourhoods of Clarksdale we headed out into open...
Day 6 – 13 May – Greenville to Clarksdale
82 miles ridden - 220 feet climbed - temperature 30 Celsius. Apparently it is unseasonably hot here for May. Normally it's around the mid 20s which I must say would be pleasant compared to the current temperature especially with the high humidity which apparently...
Day 5 – 12 May – Vicksburg to Greenville
100 miles ridden - 500 feet climbed - temperature 29C. God Bless America and the tailwind blowing this flag and us! What a fabulous days ride. Although very hot - the average temperature might have been 29C but the road temperature according to the gospel of my Garmin...
Day 4 – 11 May – Natchez to Vicksburg
91 miles ridden - 3000 feet climbed - 27C It's official - Day 4 is the new Day 3 (only not so bad). It was a long hot day that split into 3 parts. The first section took us through the outskirts of Natchez into some beautiful quite country lanes. The only drawback was...
Day 3 – 10 May – St Francisville to Natchez
65 miles ridden - 2200 feet climbed - 29 Celsius. Today was a great day. In fact it was the best Day 3 of any trip I have done. Day 3 is when my legs start complaining, I haven't slept well, and generally I am wondering why I am doing the trip. Well not this day 3. It...
Day 2 – 9 May – Gonzales to St Francisville
57 miles ridden - 500 feet climbed It was hot again and we had a headwind. There's a funny balance with headwinds when it's hot - it can be very cooling but if it gets a bit too strong or you hit an incline it becomes hard work. First half of today it was cooling -...