The End has Come

Good news and bad news. I safely made it to Revere Beach. The bad news is the ride is over. The bikes are packed up, the vans stripped of all Crossroads extras and the Ryder van is packed for the trip back to Denver.

So backing up to yesterday. There were two state crossings - Vermont and Mass. And boy were there a lot of hills getting there. Some of them were quite steep as well and quite a challenge to climb. 90 miles with 5000 feet of climbing. I was about 15 miles from the destination when it started raining. I was hurrying along when I saw a rider coming up the other way. I didn't pay any attention as I was focused on traffic and potholes. Then someone rode up behind me and asked "can I ride with you for awhile?" I turned and it was Chip Wry from 2010. What a wonderful surprise. He had come to the hotel after work and hopped on his bike to come out Nd ride in with me. I was so happy to have him lead me in with the traffic and rain. Then when we got to the hotel there was Geoff. Great to spend time with both of them. And Ilze from ES11 was there also to meet Mike. Lots of other family members were there to greet the riders.

Today was the ride to the beach in the rain. Even though the weather was gloomy the mood at the beach was very festive. Jack, Jen, Doug, and Linda were all there. Jack helped me dip my front wheel in the water. Tonight is the banquet and then XC13 will officially be over.

Brattleboro Vt

Wow. It is almost over. It is so hard to believe. The time has really gone by fast.

I do have to admit that this morning was not one of my better riding days. There were hills right out of town Andy legs didn't like them. Them it started to rain. I didn't like that although I really was quite a wimp about it. Then my bottom doesn't like the saddle. So you see where I am going with this. Yup I talked myself out of riding at the first SAG. That is easy to do when you have been on the ride before and have set no specific goals for this one but the goal to have fun. So I kept Robin company in the sweep van.

Robin and I had a good time on the seven mile climb. We were parked about a mile from the top. Having no cow bell with us, we decided to make our own music. Rocks pounded on the guard rail can really be quite loud as they echo down the mountainside in the rain. At one point Don Berens from ES11 joined our concert. Don had very kindly ferried one of the riders from the hotel down the road this morning. The rider had left his wallet on Ruby Tuesday the night before. Since it didn't open until late in the morning, Don was indeed a life saver to him.

We crossed into Vermont today. The painted animals on the street corners in one of the towns were cougars.

Oh yes the picture of the riders is of the early morning scouts. Hank, Jeanne, Sherman, and I. I don't think it is a coincidence that the early scouts are the two oldest men and two oldest women riders. But we do a really good job of reporting back on any unexpected construction on the roads.

On to Albany

The riding today was fantastic for the first 60 miles. We rode through the Mohawk Valley and it was beautiful. The picture is from the top of the hill where we had a SAG stop. Fortunately there was no fog from the storms yesterday.

Don Berens from ES11 rode out from his home in Latham to meet us. The early morning scouts found him at a store about 20 miles from Little Falls. I got to ride with him for several miles. Then he burst away to catch Hank at the top of the hill before the SAG stop.

Riding through Schenectady later in the day was not great fun. Parts of the town were not amenable for stopping for food or water. Fortunately I reached the hotel before a big thunderstorm hit. I think everyone was in by then. I did get caught at Target though and had to wait awhile to walk back to the hotel.

On to route rap.

Across NY to Syracuse and on to Little Falls

We are quickly marching (cycling) across New York. On the way to Syracuse we crossed the 3000 mile mark. It is very hard to believe that we have come so far and are so near the end.

Unfortunately the day to Syracuse was marked by an accident. Coming through Waterloo my riding partner fell. The shoulder had a very hard to see curb on it. So when he went to get out of the traffic lane his bike went out from under him. Fortunately he had no broken bones but did suffer severe road rash. Thank goodness for bicycle helmets. They do their job. I was right behind him and was sure I was going down also. But somehow my bike stayed upright and only suffered some spokes needing adjustment. Hank will be back on his bike tomorrow.

We have been riding along the Erie Canal for two days. It is amazing to think of the commerce that went down that river in its hayday.

The best thing about going through Syracuse is seeing my friend and former CSC colleague Shelia. She came and picked me up and we had a very nice dinner and caught up on our lives since the last time I saw her in 2010 when I came through.

We also passed what is claimed to be the worlds smallest church. If you look closely, you can see a blue heron attending services (on the left). Oh yes and you can see that you can evens lie the job of luggage delivery fun if you want.

Canandaguia NY

We are now in the beautiful finger lake region of upper New York State. Another great weather day with sunshine and some heat. I woke up this morning and really did not feel like 93 miles in the saddle. But out I went leaving early with Hank and Tracy (Crossroads owner). As I was huffing and puffing trying to hang on their wheel going up the hills, Tracy asked how far I was riding today. After trying to respond "the whole way" Hank suggested I get in the truck at the SAG at 30 miles. Then I could ride in with h and Tracy to the hotel and deliver bags to the rooms. That way her husband Larry could hop on his bike and get a nice 60 mile bike ride. Didn't take me long to think about that one. So the three of us had a fun, laughing trip to the hotel. There are good things about having done this before. I can have an excuse to cut the ride short when I feel like it.

Today Don Berens joined us to ride to the first SAG. He lives in New York and was on the East Coast ride on 2011. It is so much fun to see riders from past rides. I also received an email from Craig Probst. He, Sam Watson, Chris Hall, Jyl, Jim Hall, and Ann Smith were all doing Bike Virginia. They were all on the XC10 ride. It is wonderful the friendships you make on these rides.

A week from today this will all be a memory and I will be in Boston with Jen, Doug, Jack and their family there. Then Jack and I will fly to South Carolina on Sunday.

Now in New York

After a very nice rear day in Erie PA we pedaled 80 miles to Hamburg NY. So the hearty group has crossed into another state. We left Daniel this morning. He had joined us in Topeka and at Erie he left to go home to Annapolis Md. He is pedaling there by himself. This was his plan from the beginning. I enjoyed watching him relax over the days he rode with us. We will miss him. Larry Potter has rejoined us and will go the rest of the way to Boston.

I enjoyed the rest day in Erie. The stay at the Sheraton down on the lake was superb. I could have used another day of rest. This day seemed particularly hard. At one point I wanted to get off my bike and just ride in a van to Boston. But I got over that a few miles down the road. I think I have reached a fundamental limit of the amount of gels I can consume. They now almost make me gag. I don't even want to know how many I have used on this trip.

We rode along Lake Erie all day. We could see the lake most of the time. And we saw a lot of vineyards. Many of them seemed to be growing Concord grapes. There were a few vineyards here and there. But no stopping at them.

Now we turn east and travel through New York for several days.

News fromOhio

Wow. Riding through Ohio can be very, very tiring. Fortunately I am now in Erie on a much needed rest day. I honestly don't know how the body puts up with the day after day in the saddle. Mine is seriously complaining right now.

Here is a summary of the last 4 days of riding:

Marysville 104 miles 1923 ft gain

Wooster. 80 miles. 3366 ft gain

Niles. 95 miles. 4268 ft gain

Erie. 94 miles. 2323 ft gain

The hills going to Wooster were the steepest in the trip. And they occurred in the last 25 miles. Someone said they saw 17% on their Garmin at one point. I was too busy trying to keep from falling over from going too slow to look at the Garmin. I didn't walk any of them but was sure glad when they were over. The day going to Niles was supposed to have less climbing. Maybe the hills were not as steep but there sure were a lot of them.

The country was beautiful. Maybe I spent more time looking around this year. Or maybe the rain has kept everything greener. Anyway I really enjoyed the countryside. We are starting to see vineyards in addition to soybeans and corn. So the climate is changing. Speaking of climate. There was rain going to Marysville for the first part of the ride. However the days have been exceptionally cool. So the riding has been very comfortable from a temperature standpoint.

Yesterday we crossed into PA after stopping at the wonderful root beer stand as we left Ohio. Yummy root beer floats. A highlight of the trip. And eat your heart out you riders who had to stay at the old downtown hotel. We are at the Sheraton Bayfront. It is wonderful. I have a view out over Lake Erie and watched a glorious sunset last night.

I cannot believe this trip is almost over.

Now in Ohio

Today was one of the best days of the ride. We left Richmond in a drizzling rain to cross the border into Ohio at about mile three. Right after shooting a picture of the sign and starting down the road the sky's opened up and I was quickly soaked through. At about mile 16 I began to think that maybe my riding day would be short. But the rain let up so I convinced myself that I could make int to the SAG at mile 41. The rain quit and the quiet country roads were wonderful. So off to the second SAG I went which was at mile 78. By then the weather was almost sunny and the wind was very favorable. So along with Jeanne, I decided to go for the full 104 miles to Marysville. There were some moments of doubt as we has to climb out of town. But a gel and some Ibupropen at the top of the hill gave me a boost. And it was downhill with a tailwind after that. The countryside was fantastic. So I was very glad I has continued on.

Tracy was on her element today. We encountered a bridge under repair. Normally this would have resulted in a detour. However because it was Sunday and no one was working she just has us walk our bikes across. She loves being able to do this.

More long days coming up before Erie.

Riding through Indiana

The last two days have been spent riding from Crawfordsviille to Indianapolis to Richmand Indiana. Since Indiana is not a very wide state, tomorrow we will cross the state line to Ohio. Two weeks from today the ride will be over and everyone will have gone their separate ways. That is hard to believe. However we have a lot of miles to cover and states to go through before that day comes. So it is time to stay focused on the journey.

The story of Indiana is corn fields and soy bean fields. The farms all seem to be well taken care of with very neat and tidy farm yards. Today we saw the first of the Amish farms. At one there was a baby colt that could not have been more than a day or two old. I did not see any of the buggies on the road bit saw evidence of them having been there. I also saw a team of two horses pulling a large wagon.

So many weeks ago I road with Janel from Ohio. She was only on the trip for two weeks. Today she did a surprise sweep down and found us on the road. It was so much fun to see her again.

The weather forecast is not promising for the century ride to Marysville tomorrow. But it will be what it is.

To Champaign - Rest Day - to Crawfordsviille

So the day to Champaign seemed much longer than the 107 mile day to Springfield. Funny how that works. It was 87 miles. Most of the riders felt that way also. I guess we knew that once we got there, we would have a rest day. For myself I had pushed really hard going to Springfield. I think my body was running out of energy. But I made it in. I stopped at the bike store to buy a new rain coat. However the only ones they had in my size were black. Now why do they make cycling rain coats in black? So I will continue to get wet if it rains.

Upon arrival in Champaign I immediately saw Hank, Champ, and Mike from ES 11. Mike will be riding, Hank will be riding half the day and staffing the other half. Champ lives nearby and was visiting and hosting wine and cheese parties in his room. Fun to get together again.

Today was helmet decorating day and the riders had some great creative helmets. Such a fun way to start the day. Hank pulled me to the SAG where he had to stop riding and get on the truck to deliver bags. That was a big help to me. Champ rode with us to that point as well. The rest of the day I was on my own.

We are now in corn and soy bean country. The corn is not very tall due to late planting because of rain. And we crossed into Indiana today.

To Quincy Illinois and on to Springfield Illlinois

For those of you who follow the blog daily you will notice a couple of days when I don't post anything about the ride. I have to admit those are days when I am not happy with my ride.

The ride to Quincy was one of those days. We left in the morning with a threat of rain. I noticed after a few miles that I wanted the ride to be over quickly. Then I told myself I should be enjoying the scenery because I may never be in this location again. That improved my mood for a short time. But alas the improved mood quickly disappeared when it started raining. I got wetter and wetter and started thinking I was not having fun. The other alternative was to just accept being wet and looking at the positive aspects of the ride. Bottom line is that I got in the van at mile 50. I did enjoy the rest of the day in the van talking with Robin. But I wasn't particularly happy with myself.

Oh yes, we crossed the 2000 mile mark.

This morning I faced a 107 mile ride to Springfield. I really did not want to get up and do it. But Jeanne and I had promised each other that we would stick together and so the whole ride. So off we went at 6:30 am. It was amazing. The ride felt good from the beginning and I enjoyed the day. We did the entire ride. A cloud cover, tailwinds, and some flat terrain helped that. But Illinois is not all flat. We had quite a large number of rollers during the day.

Traveling Missouri Rolling Hills

The last two days going to Chillicothe and Kirksville have been great for scenery and tough for hills. There has been an abundance of rain so the fields are all green and lush. The cows have been out grazing and the horses have been running through the fields. The weather has been perfect. Today it did her up to 90 on the bike but then a cloud cover took over.

Yesterday in Maysville the local historical society welcomed us to their little town. One gentleman got up at 4 am and made delicious cinnamon rolls for us. Several people turned put to welcome us as we rode into town two by two. What a nice event.

Both days involved many a climb. Some of the riders really likes the roller coaster hills. They would get enough speed going down to make it up the other side. I practiced it but the more tired I became the harder it was to get up the other side. At least I made it through every mile.

On to Illinois tomorrow.

Last Day in Kansas

We have finally finished riding on Kansas and are now on St Joseph Mo.

Here are some myths about Kansas which I can now verify the truth or non-truth about them.

Kansas is flat: False. Two days ago we climbed 6000 feet and yesterday 2000 ft. Very little of where we rode was flat.

Kansas is pretty and scenic: True. Lots of green beautiful scenery. And of course lots of grain elevators.

Kansas is windy: Absolutely true.

The prevailing wind is from the SW. False. We had NE winds every day but one and that day it was SE. Crosswinds and headwinds.

Now we have the Missouri rolling hills. You can see below the task we face the next two days. Hope I can get lots of speed going down to get up. Had the mechanic check my shifting last night to make sure the cables had not stretched too much.

Kansas Winds to Topeka

Yesterday was a rest day in Abilene. We started the day by getting haircuts. Carol's sister lives nearby and used to be a hairdresser before becoming a long haul truck driver. She gives great haircuts. The most dramatic was Chris Oliver having his beard shaved. He looked at least 10 years younger. Robin and I decided to go short and spiked. It was fun. For lunch we went downtown to a small cafe. They had a strawberry sandwich on the menu. So I had to try that and it was delicious.

Today there was some question as to whether we would start on time because a thunderstorm just finished passing through. But the thunder stopped and the rain let up. So off the early riders went in the rain. Fortunately it did not last long. So it was just wet roads and more wind. And it was from the NE. So crosswinds and headwinds again today. We are still paying for the good day in Oklahoma. The ride was 105 miles and I did 59. Might still be out there if I tried to do the whole thing. The countryside was fantastic. Back roads with little traffic. Fields of green and cattle and horses the entire way. Oh yeah and rolling hills.