Lake Avon, OH

After biking 77 miles to Avon Lake, Ohio, we were welcomed with the potluck to end all potlucks. There was food as far as the eye could see with enough variety to accomodate every one of our allergies and dietary restrictions. Needless to say, we were thrilled. We are always thrilled to eat. At any time of day. I'm not sure if the food has gotten better with every or if we are just getting hungrier. Regardless, we are all grateful to every host, business, and individual who has housed us, fed us, cleaned our wounds, or shared their stories with us. We may actually be more grateful than we are hungry, but that's debatable.

Hungry as we are, mealtimes are special because it gives us an opportunity to meet and bond with our hosts and the communities we ride through. In Avon Lake we were excited to learn that we were each staying with host families in the community (so far we have stayed together mostly on church floors). In addition to getting some quality time with these generous families, we slept in beds and could take liesurely showers!

Sitting with my host family (Phil, Maureen, and their daughter Erin) over a delicious glass of water (hydration is important!), we got to talking about food and riding. Together (with the help of technology) we discovered that I had burned over 3,500 calories on the day's ride and that we, therefore should go out for ice cream. Sidenote: I hail from a small town full of dairy farms and am a self-proclaimed ice cream snob. Mitchell's Ice Cream is delicious.

I've been doing a lot of thinking about what and how I eat since starting this trip. Properly fueling your body is vital to keep your legs moving and stave off "hanger" (anger due to hunger) and bonking. Bonking is what happens when your body runs out of fuel and you still have 30 miles left to bike. I don't suggest it. If you've never seen bonking, it looks like this.

Even after eating a bowl full of oatmeal with blueberries, scrambled eggs, bacon AND sausage, and two of Kim's famous power bars, I still bonked before lunch today. Hard. Ask Jamie, I was useless. Fortunately, I refueld at lunch and was obnoxiously peppy for the rest of the day.

Love, 

Michelle;