Rosedale to Max Meadows, Va. - Aug. 7

The church had a cupboard-full of food for bikers. I got up at 5:30 and made pancakes and drank coffee while waiting for it to get light enough to ride.

I left around 6:30 and rode up a 2-mile climb toward Hayter's Gap. Some westbound riders couldn't say enough about how hard this climb was, but it wasn't as long for eastbound riders and it was a neat switch-backy ride up and down.

I decided not to go to Damascus, opting to travel Route 11 for a while. This road runs parallel to I-81 and shaves off about 20 miles and also avoids some major hills. We took this route in 1987.

It was smooth sailing along Route 11 and I was in Wytheville at 12:30, having ridden some 75 miles.

I'm staying in a hotel about 15 miles from Wytheville, near I-81.

Tomorrow I plan to ride to Troutville.