Pictures (Duathalon 4 the Dream)

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Day 1

We got a pretty early start this morning, 3:50am. I picked Charles up around 4:20a we loaded the van and left the church at 5:03am. There wasn’t much traffic of any kind on I-20 this morning so we had a nice easy drive to the state line. In fact, we made it to the state line a little after 7:00am. Charles was able to get some sleep on the way up so when we got to the line he was ready to go!! He averaged about a 9 min per mile pace that enabled him to get to the checkpoints on schedule. He would have been ahead of schedule but was forced to make a restroom break in downtown Lincolnton. I was able to get a power converter for my laptop at the local Radio shack, the ladies that worked there were very nice and interested in what we were doing. So I hope they are checking the site out today. At the bike exchange everything went pretty smooth except Charles somehow managed to step in an ant bed, yikes! Fortunately he was not bitten too bad.

The bike ride has been pretty uneventful so far. He is about 50 miles in and it is a quarter till three……..finished the 80^th mile at 5:57pm!!!!! In Bogart, GA tonight.

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Day 2

Well.... Thanks for all of the support it has been very helpful to Charles!!!

We started the day off a little later than we did yesterday it was 7:07am when we woke up and starting getting ready for the next leg. It was nice to get to sleep in though! After morning rituals we finally got things rolling at 9:03am. Charles was not doing so well and was very sluggish, the fact that the hills in Athens are HORRIBLE didn't help either. Seriously the van was having trouble making it up a few of those hills, of course it's Chevy so what do you expect. Anyway, he was running a slightly slower 10 minute pace and finished his 10 miles of running around 11:30am. if you're wondering about the math there he took a couple of breaks along the way. Once I shoved 4 or 5 bananas down his throat he started to perk up and was anxious to get on the bike. We began the biking portion in Monroe, GA, pretty place and relatively flat. Charles was smoking it moving at about a 19 - 20 min per 5 miles pace, which barley gave me anytime to beat my laptop with a hammer!! Sorry, just a little frustration coming out. Anyway when we got to Between City, yes that's the right name, Charles needed some extra padding for his seat so I went ahead 4 miles and quickly purchased a seat cushion. When I came out Charles had already passed me and was waiting for me about 2 miles down the road. Did I mention he was smoking it? At this point he needed to refill his camel pack with water and an electrolyte pill and everything was going pretty good. We made our way through pretty smoothly till the hills started getting a lot steeper and longer so it was becoming increasingly challenging. The funny thing was that when we got to Stone Mountain Charles got pulled over by a police officer, no not for speeding even though he was smoking it. Apparently someone called in saying that Charles was in the middle of the road. That is typical Atlanta drivers though they can't tell the difference between an emergency lane and a real lane. Once Charles told the extremely nice officer his story and where he had been he was completely fine and allowed us to continue. As we went through CRAZY Atlanta I followed close behind Charles with my hazards on so I could protect him during that portion of the trip. After 70 miles for the day we ended up in Austell at 6:35pm and should be in Downtown Douglasville between 9:45am - 10:00am tomorrow. It would be AWESOME to see people we love cheering us on so if you are near Bankhead Highway (US 78) Saturday at that time we would love to see you!!

Please tell people about the website that is what Charles wants so if you have friends or family please send them a link!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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DAY 3

Wow wow wow!!! I don't know what else to say. Charles just completed 200 miles in 2 1/2 days!

We started the day off at 9:12 am with 50 miles left to be completed. Charles was feeling real good this morning and was very anxious to get to Douglasville. it was extremely nice to have a fan club waiting for Charles in downtown Douglasville. Special thank you goes out to S.T.O.P and Denny Singleton for letting us use his parking lot as a cheering ground. As the people were waiting to have Charles pass by I informed them that this was the 160 mile mark. It was at that moment the fact that he was almost done really began to sink and as I was considering all that the crowd began to cheer. Charles was coming Close now and when the noise level got high it was emotionally overwhelming to say the least. Some of those in the crowd began to tear up and I had to fight back tears as I was taking pictures of the moment. Charles said later that he wasn't sure if should've just stopped and started hugging people or just keep on going. Obviously he kept on going but the fans were an absolute energizing source for the rest of the trip! The Facebook comments were also a tremendous help along the way and because of that it wasn't long before he made it to the finish line in Alabama!! There was not much danger today but there were MANY MANY yard sale obstacles to avoid. Day 3's total mileage was 50 and he crossed that finishing point at 1:30pm.

What an amazing journey! Thanks Charles for letting me and all the others be a small part!