Epilogue and Finale

I have been home for over a week and I am at a loss as how to end the story of Fast America South 2008. The ride has to be broken down into individual stories and the group story. Some of the individual stories I really don't know. They are woven into the group story. Then there is my story which you have read. The thing about my story is it colored by my perspective. Everyday I wrote about the day from my point of view. From my point of view the ride was about how I rode, what I saw and a little about how I felt. The whole story is about all the people on the ride and our collective experience. The days when we would leave Rap together and go to dinner as a group of twenty or more. Some of the time that would be my only interaction with some of the others. Except to say "hello" and "on your left" as I would pass them. The thing which you feel and can't convey is how quickly we became one unit and that every joy and horror that happened to one of us happened to all of us. We all had our individual motives for wanting to ride across America. We all said things that Mike got to record in heard on the road today. I'm sure many of us said things that were not fit to put down in print. Towards the end of the ride there were a few times when I was just ready for the ride to be over. I am proud to say that I rode "every fantastic inch". In Ft Smith I saw a helmet mounted camera, now I wish I had that little gem when the tour started. Having everyone's photos from the tour kind of makes up for not being with them. Some have asked me if I would do a tour like this again and the answer is yes and no. While I liked the over all experience, being away from all the things that are so familiar and taken for granted everyday but are so missed when they aren't part the fabric of life. To all the blog junkies I'm sorry you went through withdrawal at the end of the trip. All your kind words were as important to me as I would check twice a day to see what others comments would be. It is also amazing to me how many people think that I have writing talent. My impression of my writing is it's just a rambling narrative. Some times it just seemed to meander all over the place. I'm glad you enjoyed it. Next time I do something that needs blogging I will bring a laptop. I spent hours every evening thumbing the blog on my blackberry. I never looked at it like a chore but I sure think I could have made quicker work of it with a real keyboard. So to close all I have to say is thank you for following my story.