July 18, 2003 - Albany, GA

Forecast: 98 degrees, uncomfortable & humid in city

Road Condition: Good. I-72 South to state route 117E to state route 48E to sr 140E to I-75S to I-285E around Atlanta to I-75S to 300W to Albany, Georgia

Fuel: Super Unleaded $1.61

Miles Traveled: Kimball, TN through Alabama to Albany, GA: 366 (Total: 4,627)

Bike Update: Running good, but ready for a service

Road Trip Log Update: We began our day by traveling the Trail of Tears Corridor to Highway 117, crossing the Tennessee River. The day was cool to start with as we rode through the beautiful Alabama hills. The roads were smooth with plenty of long and winding curves. After traveling through Louisiana, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, and Georgia we have noticed that Southerners love three things: riding lawn mowers, bar-b-q, and church. About every 5 miles we would see at least one, and in the small towns there would always be all three. Along the long the way we met Edward and Ethan who were professional riding lawnmower racers who were cleverly disguised as teenage lawn care specialist for the summer. When asked if they raced each other who would be the winner, Edward was quick to say he would and Ethan agreed with a smile. Evidently they had tested the question before. The temperature began to rise as the skyline of Atlanta appeared on the horizon, and we knew immediately we had made a mistake in calculating our pass through the city. Anyone who lives in Atlanta would agree that 4 PM on a Friday is the wrong time to navigate Interstate 75. The traffic was stop and go for over an hour. With an extreme smog alert in effect and the heat coming off the concrete, combined with the heat off the engines of bikes, we were cooking. People looked at us like we were crazy. On the outskirts of Macon County we were greeted by our first sign of rain with a massive thundershower. The sky ripped open and let go. In the 90 seconds it took us to exit and find a gas station, we were soaked and laughing. The storm lasted 5 minutes with continuous lightening strikes and finished with a rainbow. With the threat of dark clouds gone, and the humidity high we headed back on the Interstate, bypassing raingear. By the time we crossed the Macon County line our clothes were dry. As we rolled into Albany we received a big Georgia welcome by the Kearce family. Our friend Kirsten was more than happy to help us to our room by carrying gear. The bikes are ready for a service and the plan is to take some time to enjoy a half day in Albany while they go in to see the mechanic at Flint River Harley Davidson.

Ethan and Edward races lawnmowers while they work	Kirsten
First rain shower in Georgia	Scenic route around Atlanta at 4pm on Friday!
Ironman's view of Sugarlips on the road
Click to see July 17, 2003	Click to see July 19, 2003