Thursday, August 6, 2009

FINAL CHAPTER

Final chapter. I’m going to throw out random thoughts and hope most of it will make sense. This whole thing started a few years ago as a crazy and completely unrealistic project. The more I talked about it without fully understanding the magnitude of the effort the harder it became to back down and back out. It seems a million years ago and at the same time it seems like a moment ago that I started out from Virginia. The night before leaving I don’t think I slept more than a few minutes. I was surprised by my high level of anxiety and trepidation. I shakily got out of bed, got dressed, couldn’t eat very much and jumped in the van for the ride to Yorktown and our starting point. Everyone got completely soaked standing around in the pouring rain trying to get organized to hit the road. Lots of pictures, wheel dipping and a last hug and kiss goodbye. Then everyone mounted up and started pedaling. From the start to somewhere in Kansas I questioned my ability to complete the ride every day. For a long time I was sore all over, real pain in my left knee, and if the butt sores got any worse I was done for sure. I can remember the hills of Missouri(we all agreed that this was the hardest part of the trip) as I crested hill after hill praying that each would be the last for the day. I knew if I could just get to camp and rest, I’d refreshed for another day. There were days going uphill that I thought how easy it would be to get knocked off by a side view mirror so I could just lay down and rest. Miraculously somewhere in Kansas it all turned around. After adjusting my seat up and down I found a spot that seemed to distress my knee and that stopped hurting. The neck and back soreness just naturally went away. I found ways to move around on my seat to change the pressure points and the butt sores while never going away became manageable. From that point on the riding became much more fun. I knew I would make it to the pacific barring a real crash or some other serious injury. My expectations for the whole experience were exceeded by 1000%. I learned how far my limits were both physically and mentally; way beyond what would be assumed without getting pushed beyond the perceived limits. Seeing the country at 12 m.p.h cannot be matched. I would have to say the single best part of the trip besides eating everything was the people we met and talked to while stopped for refueling in the small town cafes. These are the real Americans with real lives and no pretention. They were universally hospitable, curious, and interested. I can’t imagine how many vehicles passed us over the 4000 miles, but I can only remember two instances of discourtesy. I am very proud to share that I was one of only two riders who never walked his bike up part of a hill. Only two of the group was able to ride every fabulous inch. The rest of us fell short(no pun intended) for one reason or another. Mostly it was caused by mechanical breakdown that couldn’t be fixed on the road. I missed one day in Kentucky due to illness. What would I do different next time? First of all I don’t think I’d ride cross country again, but there are so many regions of the country that could be ridden in a few weeks and there’s organized rides. I’d love to think the grandchildren at some point would like to go on a week or two ride with boopah. I would certainly like the next ride to be a bit more upscale. Sleep in a bed and have meals catered or eat in restaurants. Mechanically my bike was perfect, but for future ride I would like to have fatter thus safer tires so it would be easier to ride off road when called for. As much as I’ve enjoyed doing this blog I would not do it again. It became an obligation and point of stress especially as I hunted around some days for internet. Also, next time I would try to enjoy the journey with less focus on the destination. I was always fearful that any extra miles for side trips or on days off would diminish my chances of successfully reaching Florence.
p.s. if any of you have individual questions, comments, criticism, need clarification, or simple want to communicate with me rather than use the comment section of the blog please email me at golden1231@earthlink.net and I will respond by email.

6 comments:

  1. Hey Joe,

    Thank you so much for sharing every part of this journey with us. I hadn't realized how much of a pain it had been for you at times, but the upside of it is that at least now you'll have a "written" record of the journey to keep and look back at for years to come!

    Love you so much!
    Donna

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  2. i share with Donna the sense that we never fully appreciated the immense discipline it took to complete all parts of this grand journey. And i am struck by how universal were some and how local were other challenges and their solutions. Thanks for the RIDE! david and ann

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  3. and i'm reminded of some wise words from Yogi: if you don't know where you're going, you might not get there and 90 per cent of the game is half mental. david and ann

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  4. Hey Joe....Congrats on your journey!!! Very proud of you! The mental and physical discipline it took must have been phenominal. Your family is very proud of you!!
    xo,
    Dav

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  5. The physical woes I can understand; the mental discipline is beyond me. How easy it would have been to just stop and walk away. but besides your sense of accomplishment, the comraderee you brought to a group of unknowns (those riding with you and those blogging with you) is unmeasureable. You might not realize how many people you've touched and changed in some positive way. I'll miss the commentary but love you always.

    mimi

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  6. Yes, Joe, You have touched a lot of people. Ollie

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