Day 48 - Burlington, MA to Boston’s Revere Beach, MA - 17 miles - 200 feet of climbing - 1:30 hours in the saddle

Final Tour Stats - 3,462 miles - 97,752 feet of climbing (18.5 miles up) - 217 hours in the saddle

Parade Ride….Atlantic Ocean….Jubilation….Lobster Roll

Over the last 10 miles of yesterday’s ride, I felt a growing sense of pride from knowing that I was just a ceremonial ride away from achieving my goal.  A goal that was long dreamed of and trained for.  I was very fortunate that during the course of riding 3,462 miles, I did not suffer from illness, incur an injury, have an accident or experience any equipment issues.  I did have a split lip for a couple days from too much sun in the desert and a few days of Wahoo direction issues such that I had to read the physical cue sheet (and almost ran into a curb reading it yesterday!).  But these were nothing that would prevent me from continuing the tour.

Last night we had our awards banquet.  I proudly received my EFI certificate for riding Every Fantastic/F#$king Inch of this vast country from Coast to Coast!  15 of the 23 riders accomplished this feat, which we are told was an amazingly high number of riders.  This was a talented, dedicated and lucky group of cyclists!

                                                        EFI Certificate presented by Paula Farmer, Owner

Today’s festivites started with the final appearance of the Route Rap Rappers performing on a stage (back to the open box truck) for the first time.  They sang a rendition of Born in the USA with the other riders joining in on the chorus.  After that we all sang America the Beautiful.  Not sure the Brits knew the words of “Oh beautiful, for spacious skies…..” nor would I expect them to!  The ride to the beach was lead by Jean, who lives in the area.  The goal was to stay together as much as possible.  There were a few separations due to traffic lights, but we all re-grouped at Dunkin Donuts.

From the re-group spot we rode the final procession 2 by 2, lead by one of the vans to Revere Beach.  There we were greeted by an adoring and awestruck crowd of family members and well wishers.  There were smiles all around (and congratulatory hugs, high fives, fist bumps, whoops and hollers, etc). It was a joyous moment!  Now time to go dip the front wheel in the Atlantic Ocean after 43 days of riding!

After pictures and a box lunch with bonus wonderful Whoopi Pies made by Lee and Lisa’s daughter, we said our goodbyes.  Erika and I headed to the Seaport District of Boston for a celebration lunch on the waterfront at ReelHouse with Nicolette, Michael, Violette and Michael’s mom, Carol.  Enjoyed a beer, lobster rolls and other delicious foods.  Celebration continued at Trillium Brewery and Cisco Brewery!

And before you know it, the 7 week trip was over!  It seems like both a short trip and a long trip, all at the same time!  I have so much admiration for my fellow riders.  All the riders that started the trip also completed the trip, despite the hills, heat, cold, rain, hail, and long  days in the saddle.  

One of my motivations for making the trip was test myself on an endurance event.  While this ride was physically and emotionally challenging, it was also doable (with adequate training).  I postponed this trip last year due to torn meniscus and so glad I did.  I got to thrive on the ride, instead of just survive.

Many thanks to my wife, Erika, and the rest of my family for their love and support during my training and the last 2 months away from home.   And to my Cawley Partners family for picking up the slack while I was away from work for 2 months.  And to all those family and friends that sent supportive and inspirational texts, they meant more to me than you may realize. 

More reflective thoughts in the coming days…..

SavorED the Journey // AchievED the Goal

Day 47 - Brattleboro, VT to Burlington. MA - 91 miles - 4,797 feet of climbing - 5:47 hours in the saddle

1 Day….3 States….Tramp House….Rhododendron….Boston

Today was Grand and Glorious in so many ways…..from the cool weather to the blue sunny New England skies to the scenic route including hills and curves to the last major day of riding to achieving the goal. We started out in Vermont, crossed the Connecticut River into New Hampshire then on into Massachusetts.  NH did not have a proper welcome sign, so a state liquor store sign had to suffice!  Then had to ride very fast to jump back onto the pace line with Peter, Mark B and Spencer.  Got a pic at a proper NH state sign on the way out of the state!

Generally a hilly day with lots of climbing.  Our big hill at mile 20 was challenging, but as experienced riders, we shifted into a proper gear and pedaled up.  Just past the top of the climb was the Tramp House, where Hobos would stay as they were passing through.

Amazing New England scenery today with plenty of woods, lakes, white churches with tall steeples and rock fences.  The flora picture today is of rhododendrum.

Erika was at the hotel as I rode in about 2:15.  Was so happy to see her!  There was a banquet tonight to celebrate our coast to coast accomplishment.  Tomorrow we have a celebratory ride to the beach to dip our front wheel in the Atlantic Ocean!

Savor the Journey // Achieve the Goal

Day 46 - Troy, NY to Brattleboro, VT - 80 miles - 4,948 feet of climbing - 5:37 hours in the saddle

Hill….New State….Hogback….Covered Bridge….Roadside Stands….Flora

Today ride is the 2nd biggest climbing day of the entire tour.  As we rolled out of Troy this morning, it was cool and sunny.  At mile 4 we met our first challenge of the day, a relatively long hill for this early in the daily ride.  The legs hadn’t fully woken up yet.  This was just an introduction of climbing to come.  No pacelines today, so here are some scenery pics from the early part of the ride.

The Stop Sign Lady told us we were mentioned on the local TV news in Troy last night! 

                                            Anyone need an Adirondack chair?

We crossed into Vermont, our 13th state.  Two more states to go and we will set foot in both of them tomorrow.  A quick pic and headed up the road.

After SAG 1 at mile 32 we started the big climb of the day, Hogback Mountain.  My Wahoo shows a 7.6 mile climb with 1,575 feet of elevation gain.   And remember in the profile, green means 0 - 3 percent grade, yellow means 3 - 5 percent, orange means 5 - 7 percent and red is just plain nasty!  For future riders reading this blog, the first 3 miles and last 1 mile of the climb was easy, the middle 3.6 miles was challenging, but quite doable! I even took some of these pics while pedaling on the climb.  Erika sent me a supportive text while I was on the lower part of the climb.  My biggest cheerleader!  Strava shows the segment to be 9+ miles, starting near the rest stop in Bennington.  We climbed high enough to ride past a ski resort!

After the summit, it was a spectacular downhill!

Rode on/through a one lane, wooden covered bridge.  That was a first for me on a bike!

Beginning in Ohio, and becoming more prevalent as we ride East, are the roadside stands selling everything from firewood (don’t know the difference between campwood and firewood), flowers, eggs, fruits, vegetables, baked goods, honey, maple syrup and even popcorn!  Most work on the honor system, with the cash placed in a padlocked box.

 

The wildflowers along the road are so beautiful.  And the ferns are abundant in this neck of the woods!

Just one more day of riding, before the ceremonial parade to Revere Beach in Boston!  I can’t believe we are about to complete the journey that I have thought about for so long.  Anxious to hug Erika tomorrow in Boston.  Then see Kenly, Daniel, Isabel and Jonah back in Dallas on Saturday and the following weekend, see Sam, Katie and Olivia on Naples Island.  I am grateful for the support and encouragement of my family!

Check out this Relive video of today’s ride.

https://www.relive.cc/view/vxOQQ4p4nMO

Savor the Journey // Achieve the Goal