I've been home a month now, a busy month. I didn't have any "re-entry into the real world" problems. I used Picasa Books and turned by blog into a photo journal, and I'm really pleased with it. It will be a great "memory saver" of our amazing trip. After riding almost 2000 miles on my bicycle, I FELL OFF it during our club's July 4 Mini-Triathlon, and broke my forearm. I wore the rubber off the heels of my shoes on our trip, and when I put my foot down to stop, my shoe slipped and I fell. I knew my shoes were slippery, but just had not taken time to replace them. BIG mistake, riding with unsafe gear! It costs me six weeks off the bike.
After all the complaining I did about our tour being too long, I'm already thinking that I still want to ride coast-to-coast. I've been on the computer, checking out cross country tours. My clock is ticking, you know, so if I'm going to do it, it needs to be NEXT summer!
I've added photos of all the riders on our tour so you can see them again, individually. It was a great trip with an amazing group of women. Thanks again for following along with me.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
Saturday, June 14, 2008
We're Here!! At the END!!! Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
The five who rode all the way.
WE MADE IT! Our adventure ended today at Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada. After thirty days of riding with six rest days, and 1,943.5 miles, we reached our final destination. Mike, Preston and Angie, were there to greet me. Wow!!! It's over! Our ride today was the shortest one of the trip, just 28.8 miles. Anne's husband, Ben, rode in with us. We stopped for lunch in Niagara-on-the-Lake and Mike, Preston and Angie met us there. After lunch, I rode on to the hotel with Anne and Ben. Preston was waiting with camera in hand as we rode into the parking lot of the Hilton Garden Inn, and took the pictures (above) of Anne and me, and Laurie and me. We had our closing banquet in a restaurant on the 26th floor of a hotel overlooking Niagara Falls. The view was beyond wonderful! After a great dinner, and my last day of calorie splurges, Laurie closed the trip with a few wild and crazy awards. Over the last five weeks, she has gotten to know us pretty well, and her awards were hilariously appropriate. I got the "Minimalist" award for being the only one without a huge handlebar or trunk bag on my bike, for biking with only one water bottle, then dumping any extra water I had in the last few miles, and a few other things I did to keep my bike light enough to ride up all those hills. We ended the evening with a few songs that some of the riders wrote, and sang to us. Vickie's was my favorite--"Oh, I come from Alabama ......"
I'll be back in a few days with some closing comments on this bike ride to Canada. Mike, the Davidson's, and I are going to be tourist before we fly back to Monroe on Wednesday. Thank you for following along with me.
The top photo is of the five of us who rode every mile of this 1,900+ mile adventure.
Today's ride 28.8 miles, Total miles 1,943.5, 30 riding days, 6 rest days
Hamburg, New York to Niagara Falls, Ontario
Crossing the Peace Bridge into Canada
Me, Kathy, Judy, Jennifer, Anne
Today we rode into Canada. It was a short day, just 45.6 miles, but it was Combat Biking for the first 20 miles. Almost every one of us got lost leaving Hamburg. The cue sheet had a miscue! It was rush hour, traffic was bad, and no one we asked could tell us which way to go. We finally got back on route, then we had to bike through Buffalo. That is where we entered the Combat Zone--but remember, we're tough now, so we made it through. We crossed the Niagara River on the Peace Bridge, and entered into Canada just before noon. We all had passports ready, but after being directed, then redirected where to go, the border agent hardly looked at them. He was more interested in where we had come from and where we were going. Jennifer had made plans and gathered everything we would need for a Champagne toast after we crossed the border, but things were still so crazy that we postponed it until we got to the falls. One of our group bumped into another and fell, we couldn't find our first street because of road construction, and we were all getting really hungry. Everything got better, though, when we found our bike path, The Niagara Recreation Trail, and began our ride on into Niagara Falls. The path ran along the river for the next 17 miles. It was actually a good way to approach Niagara Falls. We watched the river as it divided, then became swift. We could see the spray from the falls, we heard the roar, then we saw the rapids. Our first view was of Horseshoe Falls, and it was just awesome. We made pictures, made our toast (with Coke in our plastic wine glasses, and just looked at one of the Wonders of the World.
Today's ride - 45.6 miles, Eight States, and now CANADA!
Me, Kathy, Judy, Jennifer, Anne
Today we rode into Canada. It was a short day, just 45.6 miles, but it was Combat Biking for the first 20 miles. Almost every one of us got lost leaving Hamburg. The cue sheet had a miscue! It was rush hour, traffic was bad, and no one we asked could tell us which way to go. We finally got back on route, then we had to bike through Buffalo. That is where we entered the Combat Zone--but remember, we're tough now, so we made it through. We crossed the Niagara River on the Peace Bridge, and entered into Canada just before noon. We all had passports ready, but after being directed, then redirected where to go, the border agent hardly looked at them. He was more interested in where we had come from and where we were going. Jennifer had made plans and gathered everything we would need for a Champagne toast after we crossed the border, but things were still so crazy that we postponed it until we got to the falls. One of our group bumped into another and fell, we couldn't find our first street because of road construction, and we were all getting really hungry. Everything got better, though, when we found our bike path, The Niagara Recreation Trail, and began our ride on into Niagara Falls. The path ran along the river for the next 17 miles. It was actually a good way to approach Niagara Falls. We watched the river as it divided, then became swift. We could see the spray from the falls, we heard the roar, then we saw the rapids. Our first view was of Horseshoe Falls, and it was just awesome. We made pictures, made our toast (with Coke in our plastic wine glasses, and just looked at one of the Wonders of the World.
Today's ride - 45.6 miles, Eight States, and now CANADA!
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Erie, PA to Hamburg, NY
OK! I'm done with LONG rides! Anything longer than 60 miles, you can count me OUT! Today we rode 86.5 miles from Erie, Pennsylvania, to Hamburg, New York, and believe me, that will be my last long ride for a long time! The best thing about the ride was the Margarita's we had tonight for crossing into ANOTHER (our eighth) state. We left Erie this morning at 6:30, and we were late leaving. Most of the group had already gone. Getting out of Erie was crazy. We were on a very busy highway with a lot of traffic for a long time. When we finally got out near the Lake Erie shoreline, it got better. There were miles and miles of Concord grape vineyards on one side of the road, and Lake Erie on the other. THAT was nice. I didn't expect to see so many grape vines, and the views of the lake were wonderful. Again, it was like riding along an ocean. There was a big group of us at the first SAG stop. Our SAG driver today, Georgia, scored a huge hit with the coffee drinkers of the group by serving Starbuck's coffee along with our usual drinks and snacks. Some of the women saw a bald eagle along the way. I didn't. I'm sorry I missed it. About mile 40 we hit a headwind. The roads were flat, and the wind just went on and on. Kathy, thank goodness, is so strong, and she pulled us through it. The few miles I was out front felt like climbing big hills again. We got a break, finally, with a left turn that took us through a series of pretty little villages along the Lake Erie shoreline. They were nestled among the trees with cape cod style houses and big green lawns. Closer to Hamburg, we passed million dollar (and plus) homes behind long stone and iron fences, with wonderful views of the lake. I was surprised that the road we were on in front of these beautiful homes was so bad. It was like riding an obstacle course, missing all the pot holes. We had a great view across the lake of the Buffalo skyline as we neared Hamburg. Kathy, Judy, and I got to the Holiday Inn at 2:30--an eight hour ride, including our multiple stops. It was way too much fun for me. I got lucky tonight and have a room to myself. NICE! Tomorrow's 43 mile ride will be like a walk in the park after today. Anne, Jennifer, and Marilee had enough left after their 88 mile ride, to ride an additional 12 miles of loops through the neighborhood to end their day with a full century--100 miles!
Today's ride 86.5 - Total miles, so far, 1869.1
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Austinburg, Ohio to Erie, Pennsylvania
Joyce, Me, Kathy, Judy, Anne
Joyce at the Dairy Oasis in Lake City
Judy and Joyce. . . where's Joan???
Today I rode from Austinburg to Erie with The J-Team, Judy, Joan, and Joyce, and we laughed the whole way. They are a fun group. Judy lives in Colorado in the summer and Arizona in the winter, Joan is from Richmond Hill, Ontario ( a suburb of Toronto), and Joyce, one of our youngest riders at 51, lives and works in Apple Valley, Minnesota. We rode along the shores of Lake Erie for a long while--it looked like we were riding beside an ocean. We have ridden our bicycles from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes! Wow! We're one hungry bunch of women, and we rarely pass up a good place for ice cream along the way. It was close to noon when we saw bikes at the Dairy Oasis in Lake City. Dessert before lunch? Sure, why not! Before long the place was swarming with women in spandex and biking helmets, all eating ice cream. Yum! We passed a lot of vineyards today, and acres and acres of nursery plants and Christmas trees. We entered Pennsylvania at mile 30.5 on the cue sheet, our seventh state. They must have a network of bike routes here, because we followed bike signs that showed that we were on their "Z" route. For a state that appears to be bicycle friendly, three of our women got yelled at by motorist today. I would like to spend a little more time in Erie. We saw a lot of great old homes and churches on the way in today, and they have an old historic downtown near the waterfront. We're in Pennsylvania just one night. Tomorrow we'll spend the night in Hamburg, New York. Three days left--tomorrow is the last long one--88 miles. Guess I can do ONE more long ride. Then, CANADA!!!
Today's ride - 57.4, Average 12.8, Riding time 4 hours, 27 minutes
Joyce at the Dairy Oasis in Lake City
Judy and Joyce. . . where's Joan???
Today I rode from Austinburg to Erie with The J-Team, Judy, Joan, and Joyce, and we laughed the whole way. They are a fun group. Judy lives in Colorado in the summer and Arizona in the winter, Joan is from Richmond Hill, Ontario ( a suburb of Toronto), and Joyce, one of our youngest riders at 51, lives and works in Apple Valley, Minnesota. We rode along the shores of Lake Erie for a long while--it looked like we were riding beside an ocean. We have ridden our bicycles from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes! Wow! We're one hungry bunch of women, and we rarely pass up a good place for ice cream along the way. It was close to noon when we saw bikes at the Dairy Oasis in Lake City. Dessert before lunch? Sure, why not! Before long the place was swarming with women in spandex and biking helmets, all eating ice cream. Yum! We passed a lot of vineyards today, and acres and acres of nursery plants and Christmas trees. We entered Pennsylvania at mile 30.5 on the cue sheet, our seventh state. They must have a network of bike routes here, because we followed bike signs that showed that we were on their "Z" route. For a state that appears to be bicycle friendly, three of our women got yelled at by motorist today. I would like to spend a little more time in Erie. We saw a lot of great old homes and churches on the way in today, and they have an old historic downtown near the waterfront. We're in Pennsylvania just one night. Tomorrow we'll spend the night in Hamburg, New York. Three days left--tomorrow is the last long one--88 miles. Guess I can do ONE more long ride. Then, CANADA!!!
Today's ride - 57.4, Average 12.8, Riding time 4 hours, 27 minutes
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Hudson to Austinburg, Ohio
Me, Kathy, Judy, Anne
Rain storms moved through Ohio last night, and we woke up this morning to much cooler temperatures. Yesterday was my least favorite ride so far, but part of today's ride definitely made my Top Ten Favorites list. I loved the Amish community we passed through--beautiful farms with big white houses and barns. We saw several black buggies on the road, and a pony pulling a cart full of kids, pastures with big, beautiful work horses and cows, and lots of gardens. All the buildings looked so well maintained. There was not one bit of liter. The men with straw hats and the women and little girls in long dresses and bonnets looked like a picture out of the past. Just beautiful! The last 7 1/2 miles into Austinburg was on another Rail Trail, The Western Reserve Greenway Trail. We got rained on again, on the trail, and have to lift our bikes over a downed tree, but riding without traffic is so nice.
I have to clean my bike and lube my chain after the rain today. That is NOT one of my favorite things about this tour. I finally got the hang of pumping up my tires, but I still don't like that either. Four more days and Mike Hartt can take over those things again! I can't wait!
Today's ride 62.9 miles - Average 13.8 mph - 4 hours, 33 minutes riding time
Rain storms moved through Ohio last night, and we woke up this morning to much cooler temperatures. Yesterday was my least favorite ride so far, but part of today's ride definitely made my Top Ten Favorites list. I loved the Amish community we passed through--beautiful farms with big white houses and barns. We saw several black buggies on the road, and a pony pulling a cart full of kids, pastures with big, beautiful work horses and cows, and lots of gardens. All the buildings looked so well maintained. There was not one bit of liter. The men with straw hats and the women and little girls in long dresses and bonnets looked like a picture out of the past. Just beautiful! The last 7 1/2 miles into Austinburg was on another Rail Trail, The Western Reserve Greenway Trail. We got rained on again, on the trail, and have to lift our bikes over a downed tree, but riding without traffic is so nice.
I have to clean my bike and lube my chain after the rain today. That is NOT one of my favorite things about this tour. I finally got the hang of pumping up my tires, but I still don't like that either. Four more days and Mike Hartt can take over those things again! I can't wait!
Today's ride 62.9 miles - Average 13.8 mph - 4 hours, 33 minutes riding time
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