From Brinkley we headed to Little Rock, the capitol city of Arkansas, and had a build day there. The ride into Little Rock was awesome. I rode with Kevin and Kelly all day and we had a lot of fun talking and taking pictures. The ride was really interesting too. We had a neat lunch spot in a city park along the way, and once we got close to the city we took a local bike trail up to and over the Arkansas River. It was absolutely beautiful. People finally appreciated the Arkansas scenery after an admittedly poor first impression on the eastern side. The church we stayed in looked like a ski lodge, and had big comfy couches and a giant projector and screen that we could watch movies on. Our build day in Little Rock was a first for us on this trip: Deconstruction. A man bought a house and is remodeling it basically from bare walls, so he invited Habitat to salvage anything they could sell in the ReStore. Profits from the sale of these items go to fund the building of new Habitat homes. DECON WAS AWESOME. Tools required: sledgehammers and crowbars. I was on the crew working in the kitchen, and we removed the cabinetry (which is a lot harder than you think when you're trying to keep it intact for resale). When we got to the countertop and lower kitchen cabinets though, they were deemed unsalvageable, and we got to go to town tearing them out. If you ever get the chance, destroy something for a good cause. It's invigorating.
From Little Rock we rode our first century (a ride of over 100 miles) to Clarksville. I was excited 1) because it would be my first century and 2) because I have a lot of family who live about 20 minutes from Clarksville. The ride was actually really great. Laem and I started the day off flying and before we knew it we were at lunch. I kept loading up on GU periodically so I could keep it going, and I felt great the whole day. Molly joined us for the last 30 miles or so, and I'm so proud of her for pushing through even though she was feeling kind of sick. We sang a whole lot of 90s boy band music, which always helps the miles pass. We stayed in a dorm at the University of the Ozarks, and my cousins Kenny, Sarah, and Tracy came to see me! It was awesome, we drove around a bit and got milkshakes at Sonic, and it was just really good to see them and catch up. The A/C wasn't working in the wing of the dorm I was sleeping in, so they brought in an industrial fan...I was so tired the noise didn't even faze me. It did, however, prevent me from hearing the wake-up call and Allison had to pry me out of my sleeping bag about 15 minutes late. I got it together though.
Between Clarksville and our next stop, Fayetteville (home of the University of Arkansas) we met the Ozark mountains. I can't believe I'm saying this, but they weren't that bad. I suppose I am getting stronger, but I almost don't mind climbs anymore. Until my back starts hurting. Then I loathe them. The Ozarks were not nearly as intense as the Blue Ridge in NC, but they also didn't have very impressive descents. The ride down the mountain is what makes the climb worth it! But it was really beautiful. Our church in Fayetteville was right in the middle of town, just off Dickson Street...primo location. We had a potluck dinner with people from the church, local Habitat for Humanity, and a local cycling club. One of these people walked into our room before dinner, looked right at me and goes, "Are you Brooke?" "Yes..." I replied. She says, "I'm your cousin." Typical Arkansas, right? Haha, but really, I met my 2nd cousin Ony who I had apparently met a few times before when I was very young. She is a member of the cycling club that came to our dinner, and had seen my Dad a week earlier at the family reunion. He told her I wasn't there because I was on this cross country cycling trip...and here we are. Randomly met a family member.
I also got to hang out with Kenny again and my other cousin Lauren in Fayetteville when we went out to Dickson Street that night. It's just so good to see them and get to hang out with them, especially while I'm on a trip like this. It's so neat that we are traveling through these areas so close to my family and where I have so many great memories.
So we were in and out of Arkansas in under a week. We're making serious moves now...no more baby 30-40 mile days for us. It's pretty cool though that people are actually impressed now when we tell them where we came from. We'll try to enjoy the long days in the plains while we can...Colorado and the Rockies are coming in hot!
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