DAY 2: GLEN ST. MARY, FL - LIVE OAK, FL

Made it out of Jacksonville! Today I rode a bit faster - averaging around 17-8mph, most of it in a pace-line. We played Categories for a good hour before lunch, with the leader calling out the category and everyone in the line calling out an answer until someone messed up - then the leader dropped back and the next person pulled and picked a Category. Our categories were Bike Parts, Brands of Bikes, Elements from the Periodic Table, Gas Stations, Types of SUVS, Methods of Contraception, Sexual Positions, Capitol Cities, etc...it was fun.

We rode 55m today, so we're now 115 into the trip. It doesn't seem like much, but the miles will start to add up pretty quickly and we'll move through the South faster than I'd like.

We stay in the gyms of churches (churches with gyms? who knew??), and the churches tend to supply food. I'm starving all the time though; no amount of peanut butter or ice cream can possibly be enough.

We stopped at the site of the largest Civil War battle in Florida (picture below); apparently the South Won, which made the man setting everything up very happy.

I guess that's about it. It was a short day; I was in the next city by 12:15. Now it's 3:30 and I need a nap. People are going to stop being on their best behavior and start getting cranky soon, I think. It's going to be interesting as true personalities start to appear.

The only other thing that happened today was that my cleat broke on the way to ice cream this afternoon. I still haven't gotten my shoe off of the pedal. I didn't fall, but I had to walk back to the church barefoot, and now the bottom of my foot is burned from the hot sidewalk. And I didn't even get the chocolate shake I really wanted...

I'm feeling a little out of it right now. The weather has been cooperating and it hasn't been nearly as hot as it could be...but I'm still drained by the end of the day. It's a nice kind of exhaustion, but it's still makes me pretty damn tired.

We have a presentation to on Affordable Housing tonight at the church, but other than that, we're all free. Most of the time that's the case...all we have to do is get from city to city, sometimes give presentations, and otherwise just hang out and explore the town. I've been trying to practice a bit everyday. So far it's been pretty manageable; I think I'll be able to stay in decent shape. It's making me actually look forward to practicing. It's relaxing to warm up slowly and play a little Bach; it gives me a little space to do my own thing.

I've gotta say - I never quite thought I'd be doing something like this...but here I am...