Ride Across America for Jim Popp

Dr. Mark Popp sporting proudly the Ride for Jim jersey honoring his brother Jim, prepares to climb on his bike again after lunch in Williamsburg, VA

2010-08-24T13:14:00.001-07:00

Howard, friends, and family enjoy refreshments at the halfway point in Charles City, VA

2010-08-24T13:11:00.000-07:00

The 2010 Ride for Jim Finale riders briefed on the route by Dr. Haar

2010-08-24T13:10:00.001-07:00

Dave Jenkins, prior to the Finale Ride, smiles as we all acknowledge our appreciation of his coordinating the Richmond Ride for Jim events

2010-08-24T13:09:00.001-07:00

Dr. Jack Haar addresses the Finale Riders of Ride for Jim 2010 in Richmond, VA

2010-08-24T10:36:00.001-07:00

Welcome back, team!

2010-08-15T06:43:00.000-07:00

Welcome back hugs for Howard from mother and sisters

Past and present riders of Ride for Jim celebrate arrival in Beaverdam, VA and anxiously await the Finale Ride of August 22 to conclude the TransAmerica crossing! To be continued.....

Howard's family poses for picture at his welcome to Beaverdam celebration

Howard celebrates seeing wife and grandchildren upon arrival in Beaverdam

Anne Rose, sporting her Ride for Jim tattoo, stole my heart in Beaverdam

Howard and buddies reunion

Jack's dog bite and new tattoo

2010-08-09T13:50:00.001-07:00

My tattoo en route to Beaverdam from Farmville

2010-08-09T13:49:00.001-07:00

The Ride for Jim team had swollen to 8 riders from Farmville to Beaverdam

2010-08-09T13:48:00.001-07:00

Early morning ride out of Farmville to Beaverdam, VA

2010-08-06T11:50:00.000-07:00

The team peddles into Farmville, VA

2010-07-31T17:59:00.001-07:00

Barn in Chatham VA

2010-07-31T17:58:00.001-07:00

ED Millner joining the team in Chatham, VA

2010-07-31T17:57:00.001-07:00

Alex enjoying rest

2010-07-31T17:56:00.001-07:00

Strolling to dinner in Chatham, VA

2010-07-31T17:55:00.001-07:00

Shade alongside Road outside of Danville

2010-07-30T19:37:00.001-07:00

Jordan at hilltop in VA

2010-07-30T19:32:00.001-07:00

Ride for Jim reaches Continental Divide

2010-07-30T19:31:00.001-07:00

JD Rooney and Friends meeting in Winston-Salem

2010-07-30T19:28:00.000-07:00

Amy and Doug Gardner early morning in Winston-Salem

2010-07-30T19:27:00.001-07:00

Elliott joins team in Winston-Salem

2010-07-30T19:25:00.000-07:00

Ride for Jim enters Virginia near Danville

2010-07-30T19:24:00.001-07:00

We hit NC line en route to Sparta

2010-07-30T13:26:00.001-07:00

Ride for Jim 2010 at my parents home in Abingdon, VA

2010-07-29T08:32:00.001-07:00

Kayakers on the New River in VA

2010-07-29T08:31:00.001-07:00

The team pulls a Sparta, NC hill in front of an approaching storm

2010-07-29T08:30:00.001-07:00

Ride for Jim enters North Carolina

2010-07-29T08:29:00.001-07:00

Small world......Bill Herman, stopped to ask us directions in Grayson County, VA....turns out he knew our Dr Jim Popp through his work with Novartis

2010-07-29T08:28:00.001-07:00

Jack, bitten recently, tries his dog whispering tactics to evade a repeat

2010-07-29T08:26:00.002-07:00

A farm scene near Green Cove, VA

2010-07-29T08:26:00.001-07:00

Ride for Jim team members upon arrival in Abingdon, VA

2010-07-29T08:25:00.001-07:00

Finally.....we reach the VA line

2010-07-29T08:24:00.001-07:00

Sunset at the Breaks Interstate Park on KY and VA border

2010-07-29T08:21:00.000-07:00

Celebrating our Abingdon, VA arrival over dinner with family

2010-07-29T08:20:00.001-07:00

Howard's summer cyclist tan....and bike wreck knee "boo boos"

2010-07-27T08:19:00.001-07:00

Jack's Kentucky badge of courage.....a dog bite

2010-07-27T08:17:00.001-07:00

Howard sight's down the wheel he replaced in Damascus, VA

2010-07-27T08:16:00.001-07:00

My Dad intercepts us in my hometown of Abingdon, VA

2010-07-27T08:13:00.001-07:00

Nancy and Jack Haar joined us Berea, KY and here help Howard with bike problems

2010-07-24T10:29:00.001-07:00

Ride for Jim enters the Kentucky Appalachians

2010-07-24T10:28:00.001-07:00

Jack and Nancy Haar and I study maps for tomorrow's ride to Hindman, KY

2010-07-24T10:27:00.001-07:00

Jordan cools off under the stars in Booneville, KY

2010-07-24T10:26:00.001-07:00

We love the steep grade notice for trucks.....always signals the end of a steep uphill.....like this one outside of Hazard, KY

2010-07-24T10:25:00.001-07:00

Handsome log cathedral in Buckhorn, KY

2010-07-24T10:23:00.000-07:00

Horse hitched to our hotel in Lebanon, KY

2010-07-22T07:26:00.001-07:00

Hillside cemetery in Beech Fork, KY

2010-07-22T07:24:00.000-07:00

Trail encounters in the Land of Lincoln

2010-07-21T08:16:00.001-07:00

Thunderstorms in Lebanon, KY delay today's ride

2010-07-21T08:14:00.001-07:00

Alex crosses the Ohio river into Kentucky

2010-07-20T05:45:00.001-07:00

A scenic Western KY soybean farm

2010-07-20T05:44:00.001-07:00

Dog encounters are common in Kentucky.....Jordan out ran this one

2010-07-20T05:43:00.001-07:00

Fellowship with cyclists and a free dinner all thanks to Bob and Violet Hardison of Sebree First Baptist Church, KY

2010-07-20T05:42:00.001-07:00

Jordan with new friends, Pastor Bob Hardison and his wife Violet in Sebree, KY

2010-07-20T05:40:00.001-07:00

Howard prepares to set up camp in Centerville, MO town square

2010-07-18T09:41:00.001-07:00

Sunrise high atop the Missouri Ozarks

2010-07-18T09:40:00.001-07:00

Indebted to the Bike Surgeons in Carbondale, IL.....repairs and service overdue since Pueblo, CO

2010-07-18T09:39:00.001-07:00

Jordan and Howard cool off while Alex and I check into motel in Harrisburg, IL

2010-07-18T09:38:00.001-07:00

Sunset over the Mississippi River

2010-07-18T09:37:00.001-07:00

The group sets out across the Mississippi into Chester, IL and Missouri is in the rear view mirror

2010-07-18T09:36:00.001-07:00

Jordan riding at 5:30 a.m.

2010-07-16T12:21:00.000-07:00

Grateful for air-conditioned meeting facility with cots in Ash Grove, Missouri

2010-07-14T14:05:00.001-07:00

Ozark Mountains farm, Missouri

2010-07-14T14:04:00.001-07:00

6 am visit to laundromat in Ash Grove, Missouri

2010-07-14T14:03:00.001-07:00

Alex and Karen on Missouri 38 ride by field of hand cut oats on Amish farm, east of Hartville,MO

2010-07-14T14:02:00.001-07:00

Football practice in Pittsburg, KS....I couldn't stay away

2010-07-13T13:57:00.000-07:00

Howard's road burn in Pittsburgh, KS.......He's OK!

2010-07-13T13:55:00.000-07:00

Ready to take on Missouri, six states behind us

2010-07-13T13:54:00.001-07:00

Eastern KS is beautiful green, rolling hills, not flat, and much like home.

2010-07-12T13:06:00.001-07:00

Karen's awesome Sunflower picture

2010-07-12T13:05:00.001-07:00

Doug sweating profusely in the Girard, KS heat and humidity

2010-07-12T13:04:00.001-07:00

Josh Smith pays Dad a visit in Newton, KSN, dinner at Montana Mike's

2010-07-11T07:31:00.001-07:00

Waiting for crop duster to stop spraying so we don't get covered with pesticide, Eastern KS

2010-07-11T07:29:00.001-07:00

Held up by a train in Eastern KS

2010-07-11T07:27:00.001-07:00

Our stopping place - Bed and Breakfast

2010-07-10T13:24:00.001-07:00

Howard commits the cycling sin.......just kiddin'.....going for repairs

2010-07-10T13:22:00.001-07:00

The generous and gracious owners of the Bicycle Oasis, Elaine and Dan, we camped in their yard, and one of us enjoyed their pie

2010-07-10T11:21:00.001-07:00

Newton, KS sunflowers on the other side of the road.....note how all the flowers face the same direction

2010-07-10T11:19:00.001-07:00

Newton, KS sunflowers

2010-07-10T11:17:00.001-07:00

Karen and Alex venture along a dirt road detour en route to Hesston, KS

2010-07-10T11:15:00.000-07:00

June 29

2010-07-10T05:26:00.001-07:00

Rawlins to Walden...110 miles. Left KOA after usual breakfast and camp breaking. We went through town of Sinclair, which is home headquarters for Sinclair oil and gas. They have a large refinery there . Our route took us onto Interstate 80 for 13 miles. We met some other nice bikers in Saratoga, where we exited the Interstate and took a Gatorade break. My left knee began to hurt today so I took Motrin to help. We had just pulled out when we met a Unicyclist. Unique rider stories get passed up and down the line, like they are legends. As there were no services for the next 50 miles, we loaded up on groceries. Tired, with sore butts, we rode onward uphill. We ran into a rain, hail, and lightning storm. We watched concerned as a train separated an antelope from its fawn. We saw a Bald Eagle, red fox emerging from their den, an antelope sprinting beside us for miles, and a deer running right down Main Street. We went through a mosquito storm in the town before Walden. We checked into a motel and ran to dinner. We swaggered back to the motel and crashed!

Pizza and Sunflowers in Kansas

2010-07-09T19:05:00.000-07:00

Howard commits the cycling sin.......just kiddin'.....going for repairs

Karen earned, and ate, the whole pizza, 113 miles... Bezine to Nickerson, KS

Our stopping place in Bezine, KS

The generous and gracious owners of the Bicycle Oasis, Elaine and Dan, we camped in their yard, and one of us enjoyed their pie

Karen and Alex venture along a dirt road detour en route to Hesston, KS

Newton, KS sunflowers

Newton, KS sunflowers on the other side of the road.....note how all the flowers face the same direction

Wheat storage in every town in Eastern CO or Western KS

2010-07-08T19:52:00.001-07:00

Howard, the farmer, enjoys watching wheat harvest

2010-07-08T19:51:00.001-07:00

Sharing the road with a combine.

2010-07-08T19:49:00.001-07:00

Corn fields are everywhere in Kansas

2010-07-08T19:47:00.001-07:00

We reach Kansas

2010-07-08T15:17:00.001-07:00

2010-07-08T15:14:00.000-07:00

Huge pile of wheat in Kansas

2010-07-08T15:12:00.001-07:00

Karen Cook's first ride with our group through a Kansas rainstorm

2010-07-08T15:06:00.001-07:00

June 27

2010-07-08T15:04:00.001-07:00

Lander to Jeffrey City....59 miles. We liked Lander....the City Park was peaceful. We had a tough uphill climb of a butte that seemed to go on forever. After topping it, we enjoyed a tailwind. Lunch was at Sweetwater Station, which was really a rest stop. We anted up our possessions and enjoyed Oreos, hamburger buns with peanut butter, beef jerky, trail mix and oranges. We pedaled into Jeffrey City, a small town that suffered through losses when a uranium mine closed there over 20 years ago. The place was desolate and fitting of a modern day ghost town like something out of a sci fi movie. Split Rock cafe was sort of a help yourself place....staff seemed busy with laptops so we cleaned the table and Howard brought food straight from the grill. Four of us crammed in one motel room whereas Dave chose to sleep outside in his tent. We rode our Bikes to the Sweetwater River, about 3 miles to jump in for a swim. The gravel road beat us up, the mosquitoes tried to eat us up, and a big snake at the swimming hole watched us. We went back to our room, showered, talked and laughed and passed out early.
-----------------------------------

June 28

2010-07-08T15:02:00.000-07:00

Doug Gardner - After breakfast, we rushed to get out of town, as the mosquitos had intensified. We found the faster we rode, the fewer would light on us. We had a moderate uphill with a crosswind. My ears are now dry and chapped from exposure under the helmet. We rode along roads that had previously been part of the Mormon Trail, Pony Express, Oregon Trail, and Chief Washakie Trail. We ate a second breakfast at Granny's Cafe. We all agreed WYO roads were the worst. There was little shoulder, there were potholes, cracks and ripples. RV's were a constant problem, passing oh so close. The last stretch of the day was 33 miles to Rawlins, WY. We had a long straight stretch with a huge hill to climb at its terminus that we stared at for hours as we crossed the valley floor. Plenty of time to think about what was coming. Rawlins had a nice KOA with pool, which we enjoyed as our laundry was spinning. The Bike shop we were counting on was closed. Jordan's tire had ripped and Howard had loaned us his and we wanted to replace it. We rode bikes to a great place to eat called Square Shooters. Steak, apple pie, the works. We rode back to camp, made calls, wrote in journals, then has sweet dreams of doing it all over again.

Western Kansas

2010-07-08T14:53:00.001-07:00

Huge pile of wheat in Kansas

Karen Cook's first ride with our group through a Kansas rainstorm

Jordan likes lunchtime naps....this one in Ness City, Kansas

Eastern Colorado and Western Kansas

2010-07-08T14:37:00.000-07:00

Wheat storage in every town in Eastern CO or Western KS

Howard, the farmer, enjoys watching wheat harvest

Howard, the farmer, enjoys watching wheat harvest

Reaching Kansas

Corn fields are everywhere in Kansas

June 27-28

2010-07-08T14:34:00.000-07:00

Lander, WY, to Jeffrey City, WY....59 miles. We liked Lander....the City Park was peaceful. We had a tough uphill climb of a butte that seemed to go on forever. After topping it, we enjoyed a tailwind. Lunch was at Sweetwater Station, which was really a rest stop. We anted up our possessions and enjoyed Oreos, hamburger buns with peanut butter, beef jerky, trail mix and oranges. We pedaled into Jeffrey City, a small town that suffered through losses when a uranium mine closed there over 20 years ago. The place was desolate and fitting of a modern day ghost town like something out of a sci fi movie. Split Rock cafe was sort of a help yourself place....staff seemed busy with laptops so we cleaned the table and Howard brought food straight from the grill. Four of us crammed in one motel room whereas Dave chose to sleep outside in his tent. We rode our Bikes to the Sweetwater River, about 3 miles to jump in for a swim. The gravel road beat us up, the mosquitoes tried to eat us up, and a big snake at the swimming hole watched us. We went back to our room, showered, talked and laughed and passed out early.

Jeffrey City, WY, to Rawlins, WY....After breakfast, we rushed to get out of town, as the mosquitos had intensified. We found the faster we rode, the fewer would light on us. We had a moderate uphill with a crosswind. My ears are now dry and chapped from exposure under the helmet. We rode along roads that had previously been part of the Mormon Trail, Pony Express, Oregon Trail, and Chief Washakie Trail. We ate a second breakfast at Granny's Cafe. We all agreed WYO roads were the worst. There was little shoulder, there were potholes, cracks and ripples. RV's were a constant problem, passing oh so close. The last stretch of the day was 33 miles to Rawlins, WY. We had a long straight stretch with a huge hill to climb at its terminus that we stared at for hours as we crossed the valley floor. Plenty of time to think about what was coming. Rawlins had a nice KOA with pool, which we enjoyed as our laundry was spinning. The Bike shop we were counting on was closed. Jordan's tire had ripped and Howard had loaned us his and we wanted to replace it. We rode bikes to a great place to eat called Square Shooters. Steak, apple pie, the works. We rode back to camp, made calls, wrote in journals, then has sweet dreams of doing it all over again.

Ride for Jim - Jordan, exhausted, naps at lunchtime in Haswell,

2010-07-06T05:02:00.000-07:00

Enroute to Hennley CO

2010-07-06T05:00:00.000-07:00

Ride for Jim - Crop duster at 6 AM in Fowler, CO.jpg

2010-07-06T04:59:00.000-07:00

Crop duster at 6 a.m.

2010-07-06T04:58:00.000-07:00

40 miles

2010-07-06T04:56:00.000-07:00

2010-07-06T04:55:00.000-07:00