Patti
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Excellent. We followed a bad weather front all the way down, but stayed behind it and missed all the bad stuff. Hattiesburg still has quite a bit of damage from the previous tornado, which went right by the hotel. Our ride days were perfect, weather wise. It was cool Friday morning but warmed up to the mid 70's with clear skies. The Trace was very enjoyable. It was wonderful to find a place where they have clean, fully functional rest stops rather than filthy port potties and broken water fountains. The ride was beautiful. The overnight stay in Prentiss was nothing to write home about but it was comfortable enough for one night. My favorite place was a stop in Bassfield, at the A.F. Carraway Store. A true, small town, general store, stepping in the door was like stepping back in time. The store opened in 1919 and they have a guest book for visitors. The weather on Saturday for the return trip was equally beautiful and just a bit warmer. Once we got back to the turn off for the hotel, Steve and I decided to go on down to the trailhead at USM. We spent a few minutes riding around campus and noting the tornado damage still evident in the area. We ended up with right at 85 miles for the two days. On the way home on Sunday, we took a side trip to Brandon to check out the bike shop. It wasn't open. We had forgotten it was Sunday in Mississippi. However, the owner was there, saw us looking in the windows and invited us in. What an amazing store. I counted over 50 recumbent bikes and trikes. Definitely a worthwhile destination for any recumbent rider while traveling in Mississippi. Thanks for recommending it!
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