Day 43 - 68 miles Canadaigua to Syracuse, NY

Today was an easier and shorter day and a good day for me to get back on my bike after the crash the day before yesterday. Right from the hotel there were issues. First, I was nervous which didn't help at all, and my seat was a bit off center. So, I went back and had that adjusted. Out on the road I noticed my bars were pointing sideways just enough to make me crazy, but the truck was close by and the adjustment just took a minute. So, I was off.

A wonderful (very) English gentleman rode with me his morning to keep an eye on me. And, I was very glad he was with me. We started slow and never got any faster. New York State is really very beautiful. We rode by a lake and stopped for pictures which was relaxing and a great way to help keep the pace slow. I noticed there are lots of 9-11 memorials along the roads and in the parks here. It's very sobering.

As we neared 30 miles I was obviously feeling the results of the crash and stopped several times to clear my head. My legs are feeling pretty good, but my upper body is sore. The big problem is my head. Riding over any sort of bump in the road really does hurt and then makes my stomach feel "odd". At 32 miles the SAG van came looking for us because we were so far behind the group and I took a ride. It was OK for the first day back and I'll try a few more miles tomorrow.

The big highlight of the day was our visit to the Erie Canal. The place we stopped was truly beautiful. I took quite a few pictures and enjoyed the other riders as they came through. An extra bonus was a group of ladies who'd just finished a Sunday church social and had cake left over that they insisted we eat!

It's weird to think that I'll wake up at home in my own bed a week from today. This time has gone by so fast and I thought I'd come to conclusions about a few things by now, but I haven't. Maybe on the plane....

Day 42 - 94 miles Hamburg to Canandaigua, NY

I did not ride today after my crash yesterday. Last night it was very hard to find a comfortable position, but I do feel like there were four or five hours of good rest in there some where.

Several extra keys were issued for my room so I could be checked on last night and this morning. I didn't have to do a thing. Our mechanic inspected my bike and gave it the "OK" with a caution warning about the carbon frame. Apparently due to the nature of the carbon you can't always tell if the integrity of the frame is intact.

As predicted I am quite sore, but more on my right side, opposite the side I landed on. It's a whip-lash...from behind my right ear down my neck is sore and tender to touch. The rest of my entire body just hurts. On the left side I'm scraped and bruised, but not too bad. The major impact was to my head as I said yesterday. Thank goodness for helmets!

Enough of that. The day was cool to begin this morning and then turned warm. There was quite a bit of climbing through really lovely countryside. I rode in the SAG 2 van-- we stopped several times on our way and wrote encouraging words on the road for the riders to read, for instance: Who will be DFL? (dead f$@"ing last) It's an honor that we celebrate now. You can earn it by getting lost, sightseeing for a really long time or just being the slowest person that day. It's much harder work to be last - you're on the bike for such a long time!

The weather was spectacular through the SAG stop in the Village of Avon. We set up at the fire station in the town square. There's a park across the street and small stores. All very nice. As soon as all the riders came through and we were getting ready to leave clouds rolled in and the rain started. It poured! The temperature dropped and it hailed - the van was looking like a great place to be. We did pick up three soggy riders along the way to the hotel. Everyone else rode through it, except for the really fast people who were already done!

We had a nice dinner tonight and I'm ready to get a long night of rest. Tomorrow my plan is to ride half the day and see how I feel on the bike.

A few closing comments---
The concern for me shown by this group today has been almost overwhelming. Very heart-felt words of concern and encouragement. When we left LA were told that no one would be left behind--that we were doing this together through what ever happened along the way. I'm very sure that no one every expected so much could happen in such a short time.

Six more days to the beach in Boston.

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Day 41 - 78 miles Erie, PA to Hamburg, NY

Twenty miles outside Erie I hit an irregularity in the road and went down hard. Fortunately, my helmet did it's job by cracking in three spots and saving my head. After a ride in the ambulance, x-rays and a variety of other tests I was cleared and discharged. Tomorrow I can expect to be very sore and stiff. My head is fuzzy, but that will mend.

The good news is the doctor was really cute. Even better news is that I was riding behind our "resident medical professional" Mary Ann, who saw me fall, performed the initial assessment and moved me out of traffic. I owe her a big favor!

The bad news is that I missed most of the day of riding and will miss riding tomorrow. However, as I've said before, this is all part of the journey.
Amazing things are happening to (most) every one in the group. Relationships that will last a life time based on this new common experience have formed. We take care of each other in physical and emotional ways that have grown out of mutual need combined with individual strength and weakness both on and off the bike.

One other note before I sleep. Outside Erie this morning the land scape looked so much like Northern California. The from the road I could see the lake (which looks like an ocean) over acres of vineyards. It was absolutely beautiful. I wonder if I should have been paying more attention to the road?

A week from today we ride into Boston. What a trip!

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Day 40 - Rest day in Erie, PA

This morning I rented a car after breakfast and headed to the mall with the girls for some retail therapy. As you know, I believe strongly in the healing power of the mall! In my book it's right there in line behind the bike shop.

After that we went to lunch, did our laundry and generally took care of all the business necessary to tide us over for another week until we roll into Boston. I can't believe the journey is almost over - I choose to focus on this as preparation for what ever is next rather than an ending.

So my bags are packed again with bike stuff in one bag and non-bike stuff in the other. I did have to ship some stuff home to get it everything in. :)

Back on the road in the morning.

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Day 39 - 89 miles Niles, OH to Erie, PA

Not every day is a good day, but every day has it's own unique brand of charm. Yesterday was cold, but today was colder and windy and pouring down rain. We were freezing!

At 25 miles there was a coffee shop packed with most of us soaking wet and shivering. The (very nice) lady couldn't make coffee fast enough. It was funny because she handed us a whole roll of paper towels to dry our soggy selves off with and then she took pictures of all of us with our cameras. The local farmers just looked at us like we were crazy.

Somewhere down the road lots of us opted for a "bump", or ride in the van. There's only so much you can do when you're freezing as you continue to remind yourself that it's all a part of the adventure.

At 61 miles we had a SAG stop at the White Turkey Rootbeer stand. Turkey sandwiches are their speciality and well worth the time to stop.

Off we went to Erie to begin our fifth and final rest day. The lake looks like an ocean. It seems odd to be this far north in cold weather knowing it's warm at home. It's also confusing to have a rest day on Thursday - just seems like it should be Saturday.

Tomorrow I've arranged for a rental car to see the lake. This isn't the rest-only plan that I thought was in order, but seems like the thing to do now that we're here. That's one of the best parts of the tour - just taking one day at a time and either going with the flow or figuring it all out along the way.

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Day 38 - 93 miles Wooster to Niles, OH

It was very cold today. I left the hotel with my vest and arm warmers on, but could have used knee warmers, as well. It's unusual that it wouldn't warm up all day long, but it didn't.

We started out climbing again today for about 40 miles and then it did flatten out just a bit. Somewhere along the way we passed two very large lakes that I'll have to identify later. We tried hard to convenience ourselves that we'd reached the Atlantic....but we knew better. It was just hard today. Cold and hard.

I've developed a click in one cleat that driving me crazy!!! Yesterday I called Steve to get some clues on what to look for and I was able to reduce the frequency of the clicking, but didn't completely get rid of it. Tonight I'll work on it some more.

We are really tired at this point and look forward to our fifth rest day the day after tomorrow. It's funny, because a week ago we talked about all sorts of things that we wanted to do on the last rest day. Now, other than our laundry, we all agree there are no plans. We truly do need to rest.

Tomorrow is supposed to be colder than today. That's not bad news, it just means that we need to dress right - and everyone of us has the right clothes for most anything we might encounter.

I know I've said it before (probably several times), but this is the hardest fun I've ever had. It's great to be here. More tomorrow!

Day 37 - 97 miles Marysville to Wooster, OH

Most of the group rode 97 miles today. Those of us (me) who weren't paying attention rode a few more...

Today was a very hard ride. Lots of climbing, but then the fabulous pay-off on the downhill side. The challenge today was the climbing didn't start until mile 73. But, there was only 20 miles of it. Ouch-

Actually, there were some climbs earlier in the ride. Two bridges were out but we were able to get through--our SAG vans had to detour. One of these was a crazy climb up from a river bottom. Part of the bridge had cracked off and dropped into the river. We had to stop at the fences blocking off the break, walk around, and then climb straight up out of there from a dead stop. The staff, being the great people they are, sprayed "Oh Shift!" on the road just before the fence.

Everything here looks healthy. The crops are so green. The horses and cows are most often blonde and look gracefully beautiful out in the green pastures. Nothing looks more healthy and peaceful than the Amish children. They work in their gardens and they wave when we ride by. One little boy was sound asleep on his front porch.

Tomorrow is another long day--honestly, every day will be a long day until we're in Boston. It's all good -

Time to sleep now.

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