We went to bed on Saturday night not knowing the ride options were going to be for Sunday. It's a moving target for our ride organizers because all the recent rains are bringing the river level up and some previously planned docking locations are now underwater. Jan and Bill (the owners of the company that makes our bikes and the touring agency that plans these trips) have been furiously consulting with the boat captains and lunch caterers and van and truck rentals on a daily basis). In any case, at the 6:30 AM Sunday morning route talk, (we're already in riding togs, slathered with sunscreen) we are told that if you get off the boat with your bike at the mandated 7:45, you would either have to ride 70 miles because the boat would be moving to the next port during the day OR choose to ride 30 miles in the morning to lunch at "Ground Zero" for the birth of the blues, then sit in a bus until 4:PM OR sit in the bus on a ride to lunch, then ride 40 miles on the bike (delivered to the lunch location in a Rider truck) to the boat and make it by 4:PM when the boat pulls away OR stay on the boat all day. BUT FIRST, there will be a "Convocation" at the old theater in the small town of Helena, Arkansas at 8:AM. So, decisions, decisions. Plus it is now RAINING with rain predicted pretty much all day.
Let me tell you, these riders are intrepid. The vast majority were suited up in their biking rain gear and pedaling up away from the boat as we boarded the bus for the Convocation in our street clothes, deciding to sit the day out on the boat. The Convocation was a black Baptist preacher offering a prayer and thanks to Jan and Bill for bringing us all out to fill up their theater, which rarely happens in that tiny and decaying town. Reverend Hughes then introduced
"The Hughes Sisters," five of his sisters and nieces, who sang several heartfelt gospel songs without any kind of accompaniment. One more prayer and we were back on the bus as probably more than two-thirds of our group took off in the rain on their tandems and singles. We spent the morning in the "Mark Twain Lounge", full of river artifacts, books, Twain memorabilia, heavy, dark Victorian furniture and a large picture of Samuel Clemens surveying all. I worked on the blog while Joe tried unsuccessfully to upload pictures. The internet is very very sketchy on the boat, hence the delay in this getting out to you.
By lunch time (or before) of course the sun was shining brightly, but it was definitely windy. It would have been a long day no matter what and we were satisfied with our choice. Explored the boat a little more and had a great nap in the afternoon. The evening show was terrific. Some great musicians, calling themselves the "Suns of Memphis" who took us through a rollicking show of Elvis (complete with gold jacket), Jerry Lee Lewis (fantastic antics on the piano including playing with his foot a couple of times and kicking out the piano bench), Carl Perkins ("Blue Suede Shoes", of course) and Johnny Cash. They ably recreated the feel of the "million dollar quartet" we saw in the famous picture at Sun Studios in Memphis, without being cheesy impersonators. I LOVED it. Felt 13 years old again. So, so fun.
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