Manteo   May 25 (Somewhere along the way I messed up the dates. Dates going forward are accurate.)

The ride up the Outer Banks was lovely—the ocean on my right, the Pamlico Sound on the left, the weather beautiful. It was also a lesson in insanity.

Amazing what a couple of bicycle mechanics
from Ohio accomplished.

On my right I saw an endless necklace of debris on the back side of the dunes. It was evidence of the high water from hurricane Irene last year. The water had not breached the dunes from the ocean side; this was water that was vacuumed out of the Pamlico and Roanoke Sounds one minute and then spit back plus more literally a couple of minutes later as the storm raged. The debris line was above my head. As I rode north on the island’s single highway I passed piles of smashed doors, windows and unidentifiable pieces of woods.

Twice all traffic stopped both ways—once for a road crew to paint traffic markings on the new road, the other time to allow front-end loaders to remove sand that had washed across the road due to heavy rain last night.

We had a roadside moment.

Luckily the traffic stop allowed me to ride across a temporary Erector-set-like bridge across Oregon Inlet without encountering any other vehicles. It is it was a narrow and scary crossing. The previous bridge had been destroyed by Irene.

The insanity is that this rebuilding of the road and bridges has been going on for years. Every time this necklace of shifting land that is the Outer Banks is hit with a big storm, not even a hurricane, the necklace is broken or severely damaged and massive, costly repairs have to be made. But, since thousands of people have built their homes and second homes on this fragile land I guess the repairs will be deemed essential, regardless of cost.

Further on a black SUV pulled to the roadside ahead of me, blocking my way. A man jumped out of the car and came toward me. “Are you raising money for ALS?” he asked.  “Yes, my sister has it,” I replied. “Here,” he said, putting a folded bill in my hand. “My buddy has ALS and I can’t stand to see what it’s doing to him. Good luck.” As he got in his car to drive off I looked at the bill. It was $50.

Jason and Mary Ann moved to Manteo on Roanoke Island so he can open an office for Edward Jones Investments. This week Mary Ann was named youth pastor at their church. And next week they’ll celebrate their first anniversary.

Over a delicious dinner of pasta Mary Ann talked about the agony she endured cycling an MS 150 ride north of Pittsburgh. It had been Jason’s idea; he had done the ride a couple of times before. Not wanting to disappoint the man she was dating, Mary Ann, after getting over the initial shock of riding 150 miles in two days, doggedly took to training. She made it and thoroughly impressed her man. However, as she came to a stop at the ride’s end she was so exhausted that she simply fell over, bike and all. That’s some love she has for Jason!

To make a donation to the ALSA, please go to: http://web.alsa.org/goto/deirdresride