Day 57: Our First Baseball Game Of The Trip

It was the first time in a while that we made it to breakfast on time while staying at a hotel which meant good things considering being late means waking up 30 minutes early. The ride today was an easy 55 miles with steep rolling hills as we continued to push farther into the Appalachian Mountain Range.

At noon we had an arrival at the Children’s Therapy Clinic, a small clinic that focuses on learning with all type of disabilities in ages 2 thru 18. This visit was especially fun because we got to play with a bunch of the little kids that attend there. There were two boys I talked with; the 3 year old had down syndrome and the 6 year old had autism. Both of the boys were really well behaved and all smiles when we played. The clinic served us pizza for lunch while we hung out with the kids and talked about their favorite cartoons, action figures, and sports. It was a real fun time, I miss being a kid. They then showed us around to different therapy rooms where the kids are able to learn through mental games and physical play. The facility explained how they help people pay the bills that insurance wont on kids with disabilities. I was astounded at how little insurance companies will give for therapy sessions that are crucial in helping develop the kids. If insurance covers even most of therapy costs then your considered very lucky; one of the workers explained that therapy sessions run about $150 per session and can add up to $30,000 a year, that’s just crazy.

After a great session at the Children’s Therapy Clinic we headed over to lodging at the MLK Recreation Center. Dinner tonight was sponsored by Chuck Watt who rode in 1994; he was generous enough to take us all to a triple A baseball game and get us all tickets to the buffet line. He was a really nice guy and it was fun exchanging stories about when he rode compared to our trip thus far. That night the home team (West Virginia Power) won big. It was a really entertaining night getting to relax at the game as well as witness two of our cyclists duke it out in a boxing match with oversized gloves during the 7th inning stretch.

Everyone was real tired after the game and headed to bed quickly after returning. I had to patch some blown tubes as well as re-lube my chain from the water we encountered this morning. Soon after I joined everyone and fell fast asleep.