Finis - or is this just the beginning?

Trying to tie up the loose ends from the experience of Tour du Rouge is like counting chickens in a barnyard.  HOLD STILL!

The Ride.
Its over.  Six days, 526 miles, Houston to New Orleans.  The headwinds of the first three days were challenging, but as Allen Bazard, our ride director promised, they just served to make us stronger later in the week.  The road surfaces in Louisiana were challenging at times.  Just as we suffer through pothole season in Northern Illinois, the roads in Southern Louisiana are subject to winds and water.  There appears to be little effort to pick up debris and roadkill alongside the road.  This adds to the challenge of riding on the shoulder of a four lane highway as sometimes was necessary to get from here to there in the area.  For you riders, we had 1,280 feet of elevation gain for the week.  For context for non-riders, I rode 48 miles from my home shortly before I left and saw 1,800 feet of gain.  And Illinois is flat, right?  Allen's best surprise, to him and to us was that the worst road on the ride, the five miles in and out to the lunch stop at St. Joseph Plantation on Thursday had just been repaved.  The surface was as smooth as a baby's bottom.

Without reservation, this was the best supported ride (of any length) I have every ridden.  Kudos to Dory Cayten, our tour director, and all the Red Cross staff, volunteers and local community leaders for all their work in making this ride such an enjoyable experience for everyone associated with the ride.

Southern Louisiana.
Before I left for Houston to begin the ride, I bought eight cd's of Zydeco, Cajun music and southern blues to get in the mood for the ride.  During the ride we were treated to local music including Waylon Thibadoux and his Cajun band in Morgan City.  My observations of local people indicated to me a people who love their music and way of life.  I overheard a man, older than me, explaining that the only reason he didn't go dancing every night was that there were two nights when no clubs were open.  Sort of reminds me of when as a taxi driver during student days in Boston the call would go out for a fare to the local church hosting bingo that evening.  The ladies would complain that there were nights when no church offered a bingo game.  Or bike riders who wonder why the ride is 'only' six days long.

Another aspect of the local culture we enjoyed was food.  From smoked sausage poo' boys at the Apache field office for lunch, to Cajun-spiced pork chops in Abbeville, to gumbo in Morgan City, bread pudding everywhere and Jambalaya at Audubon Park in New Orleans while massing for the parade finale we had a great sampling of local specialty fare.  Genuine and very tasty.

I have to say I was unprepared for the gentleness and openness of the local people.  So this is a loose end.  I am intrigued by the culture of the region.  I will be reading, listening and eating to expand my knowledge and experience.  I'm sure I will enjoy.

The Red Cross.
Saturday morning after the ride I was sitting in the coffee shop of the Hilton Riverside when Joyce, one of the volunteers who traveled with us all week was walking by.  I asked her to stop and chat.  On the tour, Joyce's job was to pilot the ERV (emergency response vehicle) at the end of the route, following the last rider to make sure no one was left behind or imperiled.  She also pick up the signs set out to mark the route.  Joyce lives in New Orleans and volunteers in crisis's.  One day she may be helping victims of a household fire with essentials like clothing, food and temporary shelter.  Another day may find her working at a shelter set up in a community center for flood victims.  As we talked her concern about the flood waters flowing down the Mississippi was clear.  The reason she volunteered to support the Tour du Rouge was simple.  The funds raised go primarily to disaster relief.  She wants the ride to continue to grow because the funds raised provide direct relief to disaster victims.    
I don't know if all of the volunteers and staff of the Red Cross have such generous hearts, but what I heard on the tour from talking with them indicates it would be hard to find one who doesn't.  I really feel good about having raised funding for the Red Cross and am positive it will be put to good use.  Overall the ride raised approximately $250,000 for the chapters in the Gulf Coast region.  I am proud to have been part of that effort.

Somehow I don't think the Red Cross is done with me, nor I with them.   It was a good bike ride.  It was a greatly gratifying experience.

The blog will continue.  Next up, the road trip home.  Please share your comments.  I love the feedback.  While the focus will continue to be impressions while cycling, there will be occasional forays into economics and Illinois politics.  Fair warning.