Day 48: Madison, Florida

We are in Madison...Florida.

Ah, short day today after sleeping in (6:30 AM) and a leisurely breakfast after a lovely night in a hotel.  We had about 47 miles to bike.  The weather was clear and would reach the mid 80s.

We rode with Udi and Ken.  Judy rode with her friend Bill and our staff person Rose today.  It was a nice ride, though Lisa had tire issues (rubbing on the frame) and a chain that jammed, but minor problems.  Jeff is changing the tire back tonight from the Schwalbe Marathons back to the narrower and lighter tire. (Side note:  Jeff found a wire in his tire, so ended up changing his as well).


The first SAG was at Tupelo's Bakery in Monticello.  Great food and an interesting shop with unique items.  They also have lots of dog items and obviously their logo has a dog.  We liked them right away!  Here is a little bit about the history of Tupelo the dog and the way they continue to honor his memory:  http://tupelosbakery.com/Advocacy.html

Our overnight is in Madison, FL, (we hold a special fondness for anything named Madison!) and we are staying in the fitness center at the local community college.  The Madison County Courthouse is located here and it was 100 years old in 2014.  It was the 4th courthouse built in Madison County, the other 3 having burned down in the past.  This courthouse is the only one in Florida that has never been added to or expanded.

On our way to Madison, we stop in Greenville, the boyhood home of Ray Charles.  We have a guest speaker tonight, whom we met in 2013, an amazing woman who grew up with Ray (or RC, as he was called then, and how she refers to him to this day).  We will write more about Miss Pritchard tomorrow. 

We also stopped by a beautiful area on the Miccosukee River.  It was extremely picturesque! Probably took the most pics there at any one place on the entire trip.  Guest speaker tonight is one of our favorite.  More on that tomorrow!