Day 42 - Horses to the Barn...

For some of us, the last full day of riding on the cross country tour started out as "I'm going to take it easy and not ride too fast" but with the threat of afternoon thunderstorms it quickly turned into "damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead". In the end, it was an exhilarating and successful ride from Vermont through New Hampshire and into Massachusetts... We have made it to our destination of the metropolitan Boston area and tomorrow we ride the final 19 miles to the Atlantic Ocean.

Day 41 - @ 1 w/ the bike

Surgery may be required to remove the bicycle from my rear end when this tour is over, but today was one of those days when I felt like part of the machine instead of just the operator. A strange but exhilarating experience on a multifaceted day of breathtaking ascents and incredible descents in the "green mountain" state of Vermont.

Harold "the Hammer" and I spent most of the day eating pastries and drinking coffee as there was no rush to get anywhere fast. The pastry highlight of the day (and of the tour for that matter) was homemade strudel prepared by a friend of two of the XC riders, Stu and Sandy. The treats were hand delivered to our second SAG stop and we were strudel powered for the final ascent up Hogback Mountain. It was a fine and memorable day...

Day 40 - Albany, NY

There is something significant about forty days on a bicycle, but I can't think of what it is right now. It feels like I left Manhattan Beach a very, very long time ago.

We followed the Mohawk River for most of the day, passed through Schenectady and now have only two more days until Boston. Tomorrow promises to be another beautiful day as we cross into Vermont and the town of Brattleboro...Oh, yeah, we get to climb our way there!

Day 39 - Little Falls, NY

World's Smallest Church...

World's Largest Cow...

A relatively easy day of riding took us to Little Falls, New York nestled in the Mohawk River Valley and the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains. The city is home to Lift Lock 17 on the contemporary Erie Canal that is one of the highest canal lift locks in the world.

It was a somber day for me after my friend Roy and I collided while riding early in the day. Although I was unhurt, Roy went down and spent much of the day being checked out by doctors before being released and RIDING to the hotel where he arrived earlier this evening . The mishap was a graphic reminder that while we have logged more than 3,000 miles, we're not yet at the finish line and vigilance remains paramount.

Day 38 - SUNDAY!!

NHRA? No. Tour de France? Hardly. But today reminded me of the old radio commercial that advertised race day w/ a big "SUNDAY" followed by the sound of loud engines and squealing tires. I think I smelled some burning rubber as flat out sprinting and "show me what you've got" was the order of the day for some of us with big hearts and small brains. Trouble is, we're all stronger now so there is little relative difference between us as compared to almost two months ago.

We're down to the last four days and little more than 300 miles to go... Little Falls, Albany, Brattleboro, VT and Boston await our arrival.

Day 37 - Too Fun!

Time is running out, but we're having fun and laughing a lot. Hamburg to Canandaigua and the Finger Lakes is a popular cycling spot for good reason. Good roads, scenic vistas and a fair bit of climbing... Is there anything better?

I was one of the few riders to get caught in a late afternoon downpour in the last five miles of today's 95 mile ride. It rained so hard at one point that I could hardly see my hand in front of my face. Some of the smarter riders took shelter at a local farmhouse and completely missed getting wet. If you're going to get wet, why not get soaked?

Tomorrow we ride to Syracuse.

Day 36 - New York!

The Erie Police Dept. was more than happy to give us a motorcycle escort out of town this morning and it was a blast running through red lights as a pack of mad cyclists.

It was a sunny and cool day of riding as we entered the "Empire State" and travelled along the banks of Lake Erie en route to Hamburg, just outside of Buffalo. Tomorrow we enter the Finger Lakes region, destination Canandaigua.

Yesterday, a small group of us drove (yes we actually got into an automobile) to Niagara Falls. It was a highlight of the tour for me as I've never before visited this magnificent natural wonder.

Day 35 - Tailwinds!

Yesterday: bad roads, headwinds, threatening weather

Today: good roads, tailwinds, sunny

Today was the reward for enduring yesterday's slog. It was a day of fast and fun cycling once again. Happy to have made it this far. It gets serious on Friday when we cross into New York.

Lunch at an old fashioned root beer stand on the border of Ohio and Pennsylvania was a highlight today.

Day 34 - Leaving the "Midwest"

Today was another of those "just get it done" kind of days... 91 miles from Wooster through Akron to Youngstown, Ohio was a day when the camera never came out. I'm admittedly a bit tired from riding over 530 miles in the last 6 days.

Tomorrow we ride to Erie, Pennsylvania, then we rest before the final 7 riding days to Boston!

Day 33 - I Went Back To Ohio... Way Back!

Today was a touchstone to the past, a lesson learned and an adventure of the best kind.

The touchstone began at mile 16 when I realized that the tour was not just going to take me through Delaware County, but through the city of Delaware, Ohio and past the the Ohio Wesleyan dormitory where I first met Pamela, the love of my life, almost 30 years ago. Yes, the tour took me about 30 feet from the place I called home when we were undergraduates all those years ago. Admittedly, I was giddy about the surprise of it all and felt as though I was 20 years old all over again. I never stopped smiling for the rest of the day...

The lesson learned was that Ground Hog Day can never really last forever. Good or bad, time pushes forward. The past is gone, tomorrow is uncertain and today is a gift. That's why we call it the present...

My adventure was leaving the group to explore the Ohio Wesleyan campus and also my once hometown of Galena. After that, I was on my own to navigate the 75 miles to Wooster on an alternate route. My trusty steed and my Garmin didn't let me down... A most satisfying day indeed!

Day 32 - I'm Getting Used To This...

I was awakened by Sunny & Cher's "I've Got You Babe" on the clock radio. Went to breakfast and returned to the room to pack. Bags downstairs, then the bike. Rode the bike for many hours. Did laundry then had lunch. Posted on the blog then went to dinner. I will be asleep before 9:00...

Where did the last week go? Oh, yeah, it's Ground Hog's Day on the XC Tour...

Day 31 - Getting Wet

It took thirty days, but we finally got wet. It was raining at dawn and just kept on throughout the morning. In Southern California, we don't get many chances to ride all day in the rain when the temps are in the mid to high 70s. It was wet, but it was warm.

Tomorrow we ride the last "official century" of the tour.

Day 30 - Crawfordsville To Indianapolis

Today's highlight was visiting the Major Taylor Velodrome in Indianapolis that is named after the African American sprint cyclist and world champion at the beginning of the 20th century. My first time visiting and riding on a velodrome, it was great fun climbing "the wall" of the track and trying to get the bike up to 30 mph. I have new found respect for the racers who far exceed that speed and do it on a single speed bicycle!

Our back road excursion from Crawfordsville to Indianapolis was prettier than I was expecting for a ride through central Indiana. The 70 mile route was full of twists and 57 turns through fields, farms, neighborhoods and city streets. It was a good day.

One more day in Indiana then 3 days in Ohio followed by a single day in Pennsylvania. We will ride 465 miles in the next 5 days...

Day 29 - Bozos On The Bus

Back at it after a day of rest, we crossed into Indiana and the eastern time zone today. The terrain was a bit more scenic with hills, woods and a stretch of the ride on a river road.

I spent part of yesterday exploring the town of Champaign and the University of Illinois campus. It did make me feel a bit old as most of the people around me were about three decades younger than I am. I was probably mistaken for somebody's father... good practice for a few years from now.

Today was decorate your helmet day. As you can see, we really are just a bunch of bozos.

Day 28 - That's a lot of corn...Really!

The last two days of riding were about working hard and getting the job done. The weather and terrain were unremarkable, but we did ride 195 miles on flat country roads and boy, is there a lot of corn out there! Maybe it just looks like so much because I was on the bike. Either way, there's not much else to say.

For those of you that have cycled with me over the years, you know that I prefer the hills. I have taken the opportunity of the last couple of days to work on my flat road skills...(i.e. pedal real hard for a real long time until I get real tired)

Tomorrow we rest and then ride into Indiana on Thursday.

Day 27 - Springfield, IL

High clouds gave cover from the sun as we rode a century through the Land of Lincoln...

Day 26 - Milestones

A massive thunderstorm passed through overnight and gave way to one of the most beautiful, crystal clear, blue sky mornings I have seen in some time... It was a day to savor, not to hurry through as late Spring in Missouri was in full splendor.

Milestones today included the first 2,000 miles of riding, the first (and only) Mississippi River crossing and my first flat tire.

Day 25 - Recovery

Last night.








This morning.



The road less traveled.

There are two secrets to completing this tour. First, it's mind over matter. Control your mind and you're half way there. Sure, 3,400 miles on the bike is a long way, but it's really more about making it to the next SAG (support and grub) and then making it to the end of each day. The second secret is recovery... Get to the hotel as early as possible, eat, rest and get ready for the next riding day. Today I learned to recover while riding 148 "roller coaster" hills. Conserving and expending energy at precisely the right time made this potentially difficult day a lot of fun.

This morning we followed the storm that began last night. It was another stroke of luck that everything happened in front of us and we never got wet... Tomorrow we cross into Illinois.