Any randonneur who has done the NC 600K hosted by RBA Al Johnson is familiar with the El-Berta Motor Inn on Market Street in Wilmington, NC. For years the motel has served as the turnaround on the event, the place where the crew devoured a few slices of pizza and grabbed a couple hours of shut eye before heading backing up the course to Raleigh, like the riders in the above picture.
The motel made the newspaper today because of its connection to Michael Jordan, the former basketball star who hails from Wilmington and who will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this week. The Raleigh News & Observer is running a three-part series of Jordan. The first installment, which appeared today, chronicled Jordan's early years in Wilmington, including his part-time job cleaning the pool at the El-Berta, where he earned $3.35 an hour.
The article also points to the imminent demise of the El-Berta, stating that the pool "will soon be demolished along with the 82-room inn."
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