Alabama heat is very different from Alaska

I know that some people have been checking in, waiting for me to post about our travels, so I will try to get y'all caught up to date. We are here in the deep south, and I'm doin' my best to adopt the southern accent, so we'll see if it gets incorporated into my writtin'.

Our team assembled one week ago today in Mobile, AL. We had a few days to get to know each other, learn the rules of the road, learn more about the work of International Justice Mission, and get in a training ride before we left town. Our training ride took us south down to the Gulf Coast (so by the end we can literally say that we went from the southern shores to the Canadian boarder). Besides being beastly hot, it was a gorgeous ride. The white sands were so hot that taking group photos in the sand was a bit on the painful side, but I think it was worth it for the photo opportunity.

We left Mobile on Monday morning and have survived 4 hard days of riding. Tomorrow we're just going 15 miles or so from the suburbs into Birmingham itself. In the 4 days we have encountered many kinds of terrain, roads, animals, and flat tires. Some roads have been very flat, winding country roads with hardly any traffic while others have been much busier roads with little shoulder. And hills. Yes we've encountered a few of those. Last night we stayed in Moundville, which was likely named for the number of hills surrounding it. And the church that is hosting us tonight is at the top of the highest hill in Birmingham. Climbing up that one was quite a haul for sure.

Besides all of the extraordinary people that I'm riding with, one of my favorite memories thus far was in the town of Moundville. There was a miscommunication about which night we would be there, so even though they weren't planning on us being there Wednesday, they packed out the church to hear about our mission. They were such a loving and prayerful group of people. The mayor even promised us a police escort out of town this morning, which was very special. It's not every day that the police stop traffic at the one stop light in town to let the 15 cyclists run a red light! =o)

All in all, the tour is off to a great start, but I think we are all thoroughly exhausted and ready for a weekend to rest and let our muscles regroup a bit. Thank you all for your continued prayers as we ride.