by Arend-Jan Koning
Monday, July 3rd 2000
De Funiak Springs, FL to Dothan, AL; 70 miles, 600’ climbing
Not quite the shortest day of them all with regards to mileage, but today is very likely to be the easiest day; it has the least climbing. The shortest day (day 8) is 11 miles shorter but has 13.5 times the amount feet of climbing.
This day, the hotel is serving breakfast from 7 am onwards, while PAC Tour adds the opportunity to eat some granola and yoghurt as well. We’re all pretty well fed when we set of at 7.30 till 7.50 for a short day of riding. Once again, the lunch will be served in the parking lot of the motel we’re heading for, because of the length of todays route.
We could be complaining about the state of the road going into Leonia, but instead, we enjoy the scenery (mostly forests, interspersed with small scale farming areas) the quiet traffic and the circumstances. To begin with, the clouds fend of the heat of the sun, which makes the combination of heat and humidity still bearable, but after about two hours the sun has won the battle against the clouds and start bothering us. The consumption of fluids, both on the bike as well as at the sag stops, is the main concern of the riders.
After 50 miles (and some road kill mainly comprising armadillo’s) into the ride, we’re supposed to enter Alabama, which I consider to be a photo opportunity, but there is no sign whatsoever marking the border, or welcoming us into Alabama; where is their pride in their state?
After the last sag stop it’s just another 10 miles or so to the hotel, which comes as a blessing to most of us, who suffer from the heat and humidity. Before we reach the hotel we pass along a road with smart houses on either side. To make up for the missing Alabama sign, the town of Dothan shows of their pride by marking their city limits three times within 1.5 miles.
Once again, it’s a bustling lunch in the parking lot of the local Holiday Inn where the shady spots underneath the trees are most popular. By 1.30 pm everybody has had their share of another superb lunch and can the crew start packing the van again.
Tomorrow will be different, with a roadside lunch, since the route will be twice as long as today. After two days of easy going, the real work starts. We are prepared…..