Hopkins 4K for Cancer

July 22, 2003

Three Cheers for Jamie and Joel
Day 52

Warm Springs, NV to Tonopah, NV



On this trip, we depend on the kindness of others for food and shelter. Each night, strangers welcome us into their churches and high school gyms and provide us with dinner and warm conversation. We have seen the generous spirit of strangers and you might expect us to be desensitized to it, but we were all taken aback by what happened today.



Today’s ride was not too difficult. We woke up early because we were all eager to get back to civilization. We biked a little over 50 miles and went over four low ridges. Once we got to the top of one ridge, we could pretty much see across the valley all the way to the next ridge. The climbs were kind of long, but they were not steep. We got into Tonopah early enough that we did not experience any significant heat.



In Tonopah, we took showers at the local pool, went to the library to check email, and explored the town. Some of us discovered a gas station that made incredible shakes. Eventually, we made our way to a Mexican restaurant where we ate lunch. Then, we made our way over to the city park, where we had been scheduled to stay.



We were eating a delicious dinner of hot dogs, pasta salad, baked beans, burgers, cookies, and cupcakes when the wind picked up. It would sporadically pick up and die down, and it occasionally brought a very light drizzle. The strange weather did not stop us from playing on the seesaws and swings, though.



When it was clear that the wind was not going to go away any time soon, Jamie and Joel, who had helped cook dinner for us, told us that they worked at the elementary school and offered to let us stay there. In addition the school had a TV and movies, it was four miles closer to tomorrow’s destination, and Jamie said that she would make us a pancake breakfast in the morning. We were sold on the idea of sleeping in the school. We relocated just in the nick of time. As soon as we had finished unloading the truck at the school, it started to rain steadily.



Jamie and Joel did not stop there. They even told us to contact them earlier next year so that they can do even more for next year’s stay in Tonopah. We were all very lucky to have met Jamie and Joel. We’ve been in pretty desolate country lately, so we have had very little contact with others. Interacting with Jamie and Joel helped remind us of why we are doing this trip. I hope we meet more people as warm as Jamie and Joel in these last few days of our trip.



Rajeev Mahajan