Trail Angels

Day 18: O'Neil to Columbus- 121 miles. Two Trail Angels in one day

I left O'Neil early to watch another sunrise. Ten miles down the road I noticed that Cody and Jarred (who I have ridden with in the race) were just behind me. I stopped and waited for them - we then rode together and chit chatted about the adventures of the last couple days. We then saw an old tank and stopped to take pictures. Just when Cody was climbing on the tank and posing, I must have been hallucinating because I thought I saw my friend Don Day ride by. We continued taking pictures of the tank, and suddenly there was Don Day. Don had texted and asked about my route and had come out to finish the Cowboy Trail together. It was very special to see Don - I had been on a mental roller coaster for the last two weeks. To have Don there with me was special. We rode about 40 miles together taking about my race and the adventure race Don had participated in. Once we reached Norfolk, Don had to go to work and I needed to ride solo to Columbus. After about 5 miles riding solo to Columbus, I saw a rider moving towards me. The rider yelled out, and I stopped not knowing who the rider was. The rider then pulled up next to me and it was another friend - Robb Finegan. Robb and I had planned to ride together tomorrow but I did not expect to see him today. Wow - two Trail Angels in one day. This was a very special day. I felt honored to have two friends come and join me over 100 miles from our homes. If any two people would understand what I've been through it would be Robb and Don. Robb competes at a very high level in ultra endurance bike races and has competed in Race Across America. Don has competed in ultra distance gravel bike races and in Adventure races that are multiple days in length. Very special day. Robb then treated me to the Valentino buffet where were ate multiple serving. I finished the day with 121 miles, while Robb finished with 150 miles. Tomorrow Robb and I will ride 80 miles to Lincoln where I will get some much needed rest.