Big Bend Road Trip - Day 1

Route:	Pembroke, NC -to- Tuscaloosa, AL
Miles Today:	544
Total Miles:	544

Just finished the first day on the road to Big Bend National Park in Texas. 544 miles later, I have made it to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, which of course, is the home of the Crimson Tide and Big Al. I did not make it to the University and will not do so tomorrow, so I may have missed my only chance to walk on the campus of a national champion football program.

I had a bike change today, and that's taking a little to get used to. Lots of miles on I-20 today, but the plan is to put the miles on the first part of the trip and get out to Texas as early as we can. Another big day tomorrow and then things settle down.

A few observations from the road:

• Interstate 20 has more road gators that I have ever seen on any road anywhere. This was even more apparent in Georgia. I guess they don't clean their roads in GA.
• I added the following states to the list of "States I have ridden a motorcycle in": South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama.
• This is the first time I have ever been to Alabama.
• I knew that I was in Alabama when I saw 2 kids next to the hotel trying to shoot something out of a tree with a BB gun.
• After dinner, I walked out of the restaurant and ran into 4 men discussing whether or not someone was going to be red-shirted next year. Subject: Alabama Football. Apparently this subject is common down here.
  
• Saw a few things today I have never seen before. A large C-Band satellite dish lying just off the road (Alabama) and a Harley rider riding in the East bound lane with no shirt on (Georgia).
• The first 35 miles in Alabama had a 55mph speed limit. A big change when you leave Georgia's 70 mph limit. Alabama Po-Po were EVERYWHERE. After 35 miles, speed limit jumped back to 70 mph. They must need money in Alabama. If I am right, we will see the same thing when we leave the state in the morning.
  
• 10 Hours on a bike is hard for a professional desk jockey.
• I saw the spectacle of Talledega Superspeedway from I-20. Big doesn't even begin to describe it.
• I crossed the Chattahootchie River and it took me a while to remember the Alan Jackson song.

The clerk at the hotel looked at me odd when I told her the story of how Tuscaloosa got its name. Briefly, the founders of the then unnamed Alabama town took a break from naming deliberations and went to the circus for a break. During the opening parade, an aging pachyderm at the end of the parade was noticed by an Italian migrant worker. He took note of the dangling tusk of the old elephant and shouted "Look, Tusk a loose-a!" The town founders heard the exclamation and the rest is history. The clerk just said "I hadn't heard that."