Heifer International charity ride, May 9, Mobile, Al

May 9, 2008

Mobile Alabama

We spent the morning touring Richards DAR House, one of the historic mansions of Mobile, this one owned and administered by the DAR. The wrought iron on the outside balconies and porch terraces was gothically spectacular, while the interiors were resplendent with late Victorian decor, intricate Rococo Carrera marble mantle pieces, brass chandeliers with gothic fantasy beasts, oriental rugs and ante bellum mahogany furniture, high four poster canopy beds and lots of Victorian knick knacks. A lot of the furnishings were original with the house while others were donations but period. The DAR guide was charming and chatty, so the tour was an interesting insight into the antebellum period of Mobile history.

The afternoon was occupied with an organizational meeting for the tour. It was the first opportunity to meet the guides and the other riders in the group. It was a bit discouraging to discover that 3 miles into our first ride there is what one of the guides referred to as of a “kind of high” hill in the form of a highway bridge across the Mobile Bay followed by “some kinda rolling hills” 13 miles later. This from a guide who rides the notorious “highway to the sun “in Glacier National park for fun! I know what I mean when I say “kinda high” I just want to know what she means when she says “kinda of high," and "kinda rolling"!

After the meeting my sister Kris, who is also riding, and I went out for a wander around town and a gelato while others in the group attended a bike repair and tire changing demonstration which gave those who had had their bikes shipped in and assembled at the bike store, an opportunity to do a final safety check on their bikes. The day finished with a group dinner and took an early night to get ready for tomorrow’s ride from Mobile to Bay Minnette.