Whatever you choose to call it, Route 66 is arguably the
most legendary piece of pavement in America (apologies to Broadway and Wall Street). So it came as no surprise that Gene’s
excitement at riding its famed blacktop would rub off on the kids.
After rising ridiculously early to backtrack to Ash Fork so
Gene wouldn’t miss those 17 miles (see yesterday’s blog), the four of us headed
back to our luxurious Motel 6 accommodations (see yesterday’s blog again) with
plenty of the time for the Sarah, William and James to have a swim in the
indoor pool before donning their Connor’s Army Ride Across America jerseys.
When Gene pulled into the hotel’s parking lot two hours
later they all hopped on their bikes and, with various versions of “Get Your
Kicks on Route 66” playing in their imaginations, they headed off to live out
so many people’s fantasies.
I, of course, drove ahead to chronicle this historic moment
in Connor family history.
As I filmed the four of them weaving their way through the
morning tourist traffic I almost cried at the amazing memory they’ll have for
the rest of their lives. Then they
passed me and all I heard was:
“Stay in a single line.”
“Stop at the stop sign.”
“Don’t ride next to each other.”
“Look before you ride across the street.”
“Single file!”
“Guys, pay attention to the cars.”
And I felt a moment of guilty but gleeful validation as Gene
experienced for a half hour or so what I’m going through every day.
You see, there are three of them and there’s only one of
me. Controlling them when they’re
excited and want to run off in three different directions is as difficult as keeping
three cats in a straight line through a seafood market. And on this trip they’re excited about
something almost every day, so I spend a lot of my time herding cats.
Of course, I’m usually doing it on foot without cars whizzing
by within inches of their pedaling legs so he was definitely getting short end
of the stick.I let myself spend a few moments zenning out while listening to my music on the radio, before gathering my kittens and heading off towards our next stop.
For Gene's very different view of the same journey, check out his blog at www.ConnorsArmy.blogspot.com
To learn more about Connor's Army go to www.ConnorsArmy.org
To see exactly why we're doing this go to www.SunriseDayCamp.org
To make a tax deductible donation go to https://www.wizevents.com/register/register_add.php?sessid=1809&id=1056
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