Last night we had the end of the ride banquet. Toronto Mark and Sandy were the masters of ceremonies and we couldn't have picked a better pair than those two to run it. Their humor and wit was superb and they made everyone feel included. We had a few skits and songs, followed by award presentations. The evening was terrific which was a perfect ending to a fantastic trip. Thank you both.
Today we rode the last 52 miles to the Atlantic Ocean. It was an easy last stretch although there were still a few more climbs to be done. I guess a few people had mentally started to shut down the ride and when the terrain didn't follow suit, we heard a few groans. We had plenty of time to get to the school where the police would escort us to our waiting families at Wallis Sands Beach in Rye, New Hampshire. My wife, Aila, was waiting for me there. Joe, Alex and I took a quick dip in the ocean, after dipping our wheels as is tradition. Many people were there congratulating us on the completion of this adventure. Emotions were running a bit high, as we all knew that we would probably not see so many of our cycling adventure friends again. We had cycled across the country, but the real success was not in the journey, but that in doing so we had become like a family. Now that same family was to be broken apart and we all silently realized that. Some tears were shed and others had to hold them back.
It is hard to describe the feelings I have, now that this adventure has ended. Now that I am back home, I will take time over the coming weeks and months to reflect upon this experience. It has been an adventure that I really cannot compare to, although it has been beyond outstanding. The hard work, camaraderie, trying times, and common goals helped to bind us in a way that is beyond simple understanding. There is something about spending time together climbing mountains, pushing strong headwinds, getting drenched in the rain, or an unfortunate mishap, to glue the threads of friendship in a way not easy to describe. Perhaps it is the common goal that makes this special, or maybe that we were always there for each other. The long days and difficult rides were all a great pleasure, when shared amongst people who were destined to become great friends. I'll miss you all, but I'll never forget you.
I want to say thanks to my fellow Geldings, Toronto Mark, Joe, Dave and Baltimore Mark and our adopted filly, Alex, for making this adventure incredible. We learned a lot about each other and in the process, discovered a lot about ourselves. I have witnessed incredible changes in each of you, and your strength, stamina and friendship helped to carry me along the journey. We shared mountains and grasslands, smooth cycling and some hard work, small mishaps and laughter sometimes until we cried, as well as blizzard counts and of course, poor little Jimmy. It was our working together that sustained us in the tough times, but that is what helped to bind us together.
I want to thank the staff, for their high-quality, professional work, without which, this adventure would never have been so incredible.
I leave you all, with this departing thought:
Oh Lord, won't you buy me a carbon fiber ride,
My friends all have Treks, that they ride with great pride,
This old rusty clunker, well it just hurts my backside,
So Lord, won't you buy me a new carbon ride.

Here's the video from the police escorted ride to the ocean:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2JWWdA5jYM

Here's the GPS data from today:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43889389

Total data for the entire ride:
Miles ridden: 3,702.46
Weight lost: 9 pounds
Climb in feet: 106,663
Calories burnt: 220,890
Time riding: 225 hrs, 28 min
Average speed: 16.42 MPH
Maximum speed: 49.9 MPH, followed by 49.6 MPH

Let's see what the next ride brings.

I want to thank all of my readers. Your continued loyalty in reading my blog inspired me to keep writing. For those that donated to the Newtown High School Marching Band, and for those that will now that the ride is over, thank you.

This was the last regular sized riding day, as tomorrow is an easy 52 miler just to bring us to the beach. I say regular, but that really doesn't describe the ride at all. It was over 5,000 feet of climbing, and the kind of climbing that gives some people the willies. The climbs were abundant and steep. It's the New England type of hills and mountains out here, the ones that may not be too high, but sure can get the old heart pumping. The day started out with a cool temperature on our way into the last state of the journey, New Hampshire. There was a visible change, for the better, in the roads from leaving Vermont. The New Hampshire roads are generally much better than others I have been on. Jeff (from ABB), Joe, Alex and I started out together, with thoughts of doing the optional climb up Sullivan Hill. Along the way, we caught up to Baltimore Mark and Katie, who joined our little climbing party. As we approached Sullivan, a few of the riders got a little nervous, as it was their first time up this kind of grade. After some encouraging words we were off, taking on the climb. My GPS registered up to 37%, but that is clearly an anomaly. I know that parts of the climb were at the 25% level, but it was never any worse. This climb turned out to be fairly easy for someone who is used to New England climbs, and especially so as there were several lower percentage plateaus to rest but still climb on. The climb reminded me of Skiff Mountain, back in Kent, Connecticut, a climb that our clubs likes to do every so often. Skiff is more than twice as long as Sullivan, and doesn't have the plateaus to rest on. After we all reached the top, everyone was thrilled that we did it. It turns out that only about 8 of us made the attempt, and I know we all feel better for doing it.
After the 2nd SAG today, we then had to tackle the Joe English climb. This wasn't optional and in my opinion was a good climb of about 14% for a good half mile. There weren't any resting plateaus on this one, so it was just a continuous grind.
Tonight is the last night together and everyone is reflecting on the journey we have taken together. Over the course of the 7 weeks, we all became a close-knit family, there for each other when mishaps occurred along with enjoying the good times. I can't describe the feeling of accomplishment, but it is certainly there. We have done something that most people will never attempt. If you have ever thought about doing this type of journey, I would highly recommend it. You will likely discover plenty about yourself along the way, including that you are stronger in spirit than you might think. There is nothing like knowing that you have to finish the day, as a powerful motivator.
Tomorrow we have an easy ride to the coast, where in the final few miles we will be escorted by the police to the beach. Our loved ones will be waiting for us there and it will be a time of reflection, reunion and completion. I will be posting a final blog entry tomorrow or the next day, once I have a chance.
Here's the GPS data from today:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43716822
Let's see what tomorrow brings.

It was another perfect day for cycling, especially for the big climbs we had today. When you are doing big climbs, you don't want to have hot temperatures as the energy required for continuous climbing will already make you work up a sweat. The nice cool temperatures of today were just what the doctor ordered. Jeff from America by Bicycle and I wanted to do the ride and climbs of today together, as we both enjoy them immensely. We started out after his truck load duties were all done, which meant we were dead last to leave the hotel. It wasn't long until we caught up to the trailing end of the riders and after 4 miles, we had a very steep hill. This allowed us to leave a big gap between us and the riders that we just passed. Jeff was energetic today and by the 9^th mile, I had trouble keeping up to him. I later caught up to him by the 1^st SAG. Joe was there as well and both had some cute humor about my finally getting there. We left the SAG together and helped to pull Alex, who we caught up to and was trying to catch up to her mother, who had left 90 minutes before her. We did catch up to her mother about 10 miles up from the SAG. Alex and her mom then rode the climbs and the rest of the day together. In the meantime, Joe, Jeff and I headed towards the next big climb of the day. This was a 10 miler, up to 8 or 9% grade. At the base of the climb, Joe dropped off as he wanted to explore the Appalachian trail, which he plans to completely walk sometime. Jeff and I instead hit the hills standing up and kept powering up, passing other riders along the way. We made the climb quite easily and would have been the 1^st to the next SAG, except we stopped for a quick kielbasa and sauerkraut at a roadside stand. Still, it wasn't bad getting there in the top 5 or 6, as we had started the day at the end of the pack. On the descent down from this part of the Green Mountains, I recorded video and you can see it from the link below. I topped out at 49.6 MPH.

After leaving the 2^nd SAG, Joe, Jeff and I headed for the last climb of the day. It was another 3.5 to 4 miles to the summit of Hogback Mountain, which is part of the Green Mountain chain in Vermont. The climb was another good one, but the descent was a bit frustrating. Every time that we thought that the descent was starting, another small climb would appear. It took a while for the ups and downs to end, and for us to really get a good descent.

Along the ride today, we passed through both Bennington and Wilmington on the way to Brattleboro. All of these Vermont towns are very pretty. They are what you expect to see in Vermont: the quaint streets, the Victorian houses and shops, and the rivers that seem to like to flow through them. Large trees shade the streets and antique stores adorned the shopping areas. It is a very pretty part of the country.

Tomorrow is another tough climbing day and there is one optional climb that most people are planning on avoiding, however I plan on riding. It is the climb up Sullivan Hill. Apparently, this hill is about 1.5 miles up, but at a grade up to 20%. I've ridden grades like that before and even steeper. For those that have never had that pleasure, let me try to describe it. A 20% grade will require you to be in the lowest of gears, at least one of them. Your heart will be pounding likely past your maximum safe zone. Your ears will hear the beats of the blood flowing through your veins and your legs will feel like they are burning. After a while, every pedal stroke will come with some additional pain, which you learn to ignore. Your lungs will be demanding more and more oxygen, but your breathing will have a hard time to keep up. You won't be able to stop pedaling however, because at any angle over 20% there won't be enough time to re-clip onto your pedals if you do. You will see the top in the corner of your eye, and that is what keeps you going, knowing that it has to end at some point. Sound like fun? Well, the satisfaction of doing something hard has its own reward: knowing that you did it.

Here's the video from the 49.6 MPH descent (after about 45 seconds I am in the mid to high 40's for speed):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvZWoOqQdhI

Here's the GPS data from today:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43534214

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

Last night we stayed in Little Falls, New York. It is a quaint town that is situated along the Erie Canal. There used to be a water falls there, that dropped about 40 feet, but that has been replaced by a hydroelectric generator station instead. The town has nice small shops and restaurants, and seems to be a good place to live. Boats go up and down the canal.

Today we awoke to an almost perfect cycling day. The rain had gone through yesterday, cleaning up both the streets as well as the humid air. The sky was blue with some clouds to cover us. The air temperature was perfect and our group was riding together. We had a nice tailwind and only about 75 miles to ride, including some of it on a bike path. I was thinking how nice it was, just as we passed by the Swiss boys. Of course things change, and unfortunately they changed about a minute later when an elderly driver didn't see Margo coming and pulled out right in front of her, causing her to go down. She's alright, just a little bruised and shaken up, thank goodness. Our group was on top of it almost immediately and helped as best we could. The driver did stop. Be careful out there folks, cyclists are everywhere and there is nothing protecting us from your 2 tons of iron. The incident also shook up Toronto Mark a bit, so he didn't want to ride in a group for the rest of today, instead opting for a quick ride to the hotel. Joe, Baltimore Mark, Dave, Alex and I had other ideas and wanted to enjoy the day.

After a while, we rode along a beautiful bike path along the canal. There was fresh, smooth pavement and it was incredible. This once again beats out any other bike path I have been on. The part we rode on is really an extension of the Canal path from a couple of days ago. If you are ever thinking of doing a bike path ride, I would recommend following the Canal ride for as long as it takes you.

We had lunch at this drive-in style burger joint named Jumpin' Jacks Drive-In. It was okay, nothing great, but Baltimore Mark seemed to fondly remember it from his Rensselaer days. The staff seemed to speak their own language when you ordered something. It was English, just wild expressions for what was actually ordered. After lunch, Alex immediately got a flat tire, so Joe and I hung back to assist if necessary, but allow her to change the flat herself. She did fine and we got under way again. Part way along the bike path was the next SAG stop. Just when we arrived there, Joe got his 1^st flat of the entire trip. He was bummed out a bit as he thought he might make it all the way across without a single flat tire. He was so close to accomplishing this. While at the SAG, we met a group of college kids that were bicycling to Toronto from Troy. One of them had this strange, huge homemade bike that sat several feet into the air, and weighed with gear almost 200 pounds. There is no way to describe it, but there is a picture in the gallery.

The next two days are two of the toughest of the ride, with all of the east coast style climbing to come. That means the climbs will be steep, but not as long as the west coast mountains. Since I live and have trained on the east coast, I am looking forward to them. Some others are a bit worried. The weather is supposed to be good, so hopefully it will be a lot of fun.

Here's a video of part of the bike path ride:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LS9IyJ5pwA

Here's the GPS data from today:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43389169

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

Last night, the gang went out for dinner instead of the usual buffet, to celebrate our time together. It was the last chance we were going to have, due to the various upcoming schedules. It was appropriate however, to have the dinner in Syracuse as that is one of the locations of Dinosaur BBQ. This establishment has several locations and they are all great, if you like meat. We all had the ribs and they were excellent.

This morning we had 78 miles to ride, in a rather unexciting area of upstate New York. It would have been a rather ordinary day, except that about 10 miles from the start, we got poured on. There was rain and more rain. We needed to take shelter during the hard stuff, and so we invaded the school bus repair facility in a local town. They didn't seem to mind, so we waited there for about 15 minutes, until the rain returned to a level that was somewhat tolerable. It rained for most of the ride.

When the rain comes, any pace-line or group riding generally ceases as we need plenty of room around our bikes, as the brakes don't work so well. Unfortunately, Bruno from the Swiss team had a fall. He is fine, but a bit bruised.

Here's the GPS data from today:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43314703

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

This morning we intended to leave as soon as we could, as the day was going to be long, hot and humid. For once we actually executed what we planned. Mark, Joe, Dave and I were ready and able to leave by about 6:20. Baltimore Mark was running a few minutes late, but the gang decided to go ahead anyways. He likes to ride with others with some regularity, so we knew it wasn't going to be a problem. He eventually hooked up with Gary, Margot and their 2 friends, Nancy and Ann.

The ride out of Henrietta was quite beautiful, as we rode along the bike path that follows the Erie Canal system. This is one of the best bike paths that I have ever been on, at least on the paved part. Most of it is paved and quite smooth. It follows the locks and the canal for many miles, meandering by the various small towns along the way. Larger powerboats were docked at various locations along the docks, presumably with sleeping occupants within. Joe and I couldn't believe how many people were using the bike path, as many runners and local cyclists were coming and going, even though it wasn't even 7AM yet.

The bike path went by a village called Pittsford. Now normally this wouldn't be anything special, but we were told yesterday in rap, that we aren't allowed to ride our bikes on the bike path in Pittsford and that if we did, we could get a ticket. Huh? I couldn't believe what I heard, that we would be on a bike path, but the village laws don't allow you to ride a bike on it. The universe seemed to be out of whack, at least until I got to Pittsford and determined why. The bike path section that cannot be ridden on is only about 100 yards long and goes right through a busy pedestrian section along the canal. It seems to make some sense, once you actually visit it, as there would be a large mingling of walkers and cyclists.

Near the end of the bike path, Joe and Dave stopped to watch a boat going through the lock, so I waited for them. Mark went on ahead. Joe, Dave and I would end up riding the rest of the day together, occasionally catching up to Mark every now and then.

We passed through the town of Palmyra, New York, which I knew nothing about until Dave said that that is where Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormons came up with the golden plates. According to Wikipedia, in the late 1820s, Smith announced that the angel Moroni had given him a book of golden plates, containing a religious history of ancient American peoples. Smith claimed the book was written in an unknown language, which he translated by use of seer stones given with the plates. In 1830, Smith published this translation as the Book of Mormon and organized what he claimed was a restoration of the early Christian church. Apparently the town's people ran him out of Palmyra, along with other towns, until they settled in Utah.

The day went fairly quickly, as we didn't want to suffer the heat and humidity that the afternoon would bring. We arrived at the hotel by about 12:45, sweaty, tired and in need of water. As we checked in, a man behind us walked in and said “You must be the Geldings”, which is the nickname our group has. The man introduced himself as Katie's dad, and that he, Katie's mom and brother were all there to surprise her. They read everyone's blog, and could recognize us right away. Katie was riding with the Swiss Train (Daniel and Bruno) today and were about 20 minutes behind us. Needless to say, she was happy and surprised.

It's hard to believe there are now 5 riding days left, with 2 of the most difficult ones to come. People's minds are starting to think of the end of this adventure.

Here's the GPS data from today:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43153650

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

Yesterday was our last day of rest for the entire trip and it was in a really great place for doing a variety of things. We stayed overnight in Niagara Falls on the American side and were treated to an excellent fireworks show. My preference for today would have been to go and see a play in Niagara-On-The-Lake but alas, they are always closed on Mondays. Instead, several of us spent the morning looking at the falls from above and below on the Canadian side. It was a beautiful day and perfect for exploring a bit. I've been to the falls many times, but only on the Canadian side. After getting out of the huge crowds of tourists on the Canadian side, we ventured back over to the American side, for an Indian lunch and a great ice cream. Several others caught up with us at the ice cream place, as I guess we all have the same ideas when it comes to that delicious treat. Many of us then headed over to Goat Island to see the view from the American side. I've got to say, that the park in Goat Island is quite good and the view is still spectacular. There is nature all around you and the incredible commercialism that is rampant in Niagara Falls on the Canadian side, hasn't even begun to come into the Goat Island area. If visiting, your best bet might be to stay and look from Goat Island instead. Later Gerard, Eileen and I headed over to the casino to test our luck at blackjack for a few hands. Gary joined us later on, but we all gave up some money. My winnings from the previous night were given back today.

This morning, even though we had a 6:30 load, we were delayed as we had to have breakfast at Denny's after the load. The service was slow and both Toronto Mark and Joe were done way ahead of the rest of our group. Instead, the gang this morning ended up being Baltimore Mark, Dave, Alex and I, until a new person Nancy (from Connecticut) joined on at the 1^st SAG. Jeff from America by Bicycle joined us as well, but at the last SAG instead. The day was quite hot and extremely humid. We were all sweating buckets, and our core temperatures must have been quite high. We had to stop along the way only 7 miles from the last SAG. We all ended the ride together, but soaking wet from the sweat and all quite ready to hit the showers. I'll bet I'm at least 5 pounds lighter than I was this morning.

The area from Niagara Falls to Henrietta is more of the same rolling farmland that were have seen for many miles. I didn't find anything really worth photographing today, although some others came across a live camel somewhere. We never saw it, but we did see the pictures that others had taken. Tomorrow is supposed to be more of the same heat and humidity. Hopefully, an earlier start might be doable.

Here's the GPS data from today:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/43018022

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

We left Brantford, Ontario on our way to Niagara Falls, New York. The weather was perfect, starting out a bit on the chilly side and then warming up as we went along. Right away, Baltimore Mark had a wheel problem as it was shifting over on him. I looked at it and noticed that the front wheel quick-release wasn't on tight enough. After that was fixed, we got on our way, in the usual fashion for the gang: we start out on a warm-up pace, gradually increasing speed as we get going. It takes us several miles to get into the best pace. Jeff from America by Bicycle joined us again, as he seems to like to ride with the faster riders. Don also joined us. It was the 1^st time for him to ride with our gang.

After a few miles, we noticed that we had just ridden by the designated turn. Our group quickly turned around and got on the right track, but I noticed that up ahead, two other of our ABB riders (Dan and Bill) had missed the turn as well. Our yells were in vain, so I sprinted back to catch them. Of course on the return, our gang was way ahead of me, so I had some work to do to catch up. Later, Baltimore Mark had mentioned that they simply slowed down to 18 or 19 MPH, as if that was some type of soft pedaling. It took about a mile or so to catch back up. Not long after that, Don was having some type of chain problem. We stopped once again, and I took his back wheel off to see what the problem was. The whole cassette (the gears) just fell off into my hand. I guess it was my day for chasing and fixing. I didn't have the tools to help Don, but the SAG was on their way. Once again I had to catch the group, but this time Baltimore Mark and Dave hung back with me. We caught half of the gang after the next turn, as they were waiting for us. Toronto Mark and Joe had gone on ahead, but we would later catch back up to them as well.

The day progressed and we made it to Niagara Falls, Ontario. The gang split up into a few groups, after Mike and Karen had taken a bunch of pictures of us by the falls. Niagara Falls has sure changed over the years. You might now say that it is one of the tackiest places you could possibly imagine, with a huge variety of touristy museums, shops and restaurants. It is hard to believe the display that goes on there now. I remember fondly the days from the 1960's before any of this tackiness was around. So much for the “good old days”. At least the falls are still unencumbered and quite beautiful. We walked up the sidewalk all the way to where the water starts to fall over the Canadian Horseshoe Falls side. People kind of looked at the cycling clothes that we were wearing and the bikes we were pushing. We might have looked a bit strange to them. One group of tourists wanted to take a picture of the falls, so Mike from ABB started to get out of the way. They said that they wanted him to stay, cycling clothes and all, as his jersey said “Canada” on it. They thought that he was a real Canadian and wanted his picture. The irony is that he is from Alabama instead. After lunch and some Italian gelato, we headed out to cross over the bridge and through customs to get to the America side. We seemed to pick a good time, as it only took about 30 minutes to get through. The officer hadn't seen any of the other cyclists, but that was probably because he just started his shift. He was a bit curious about our trip and then let us through. It was an easy process.

Tomorrow is the last rest day of the entire trip, so there won't be a blog entry. We will all get to explore more on both sides of the falls, starting tonight, as we are all going onto the island to watch the fireworks display. Tomorrow, many are going on the behind the falls tour, where you can walk around and see the water pouring over, from the inside, or some on the Maid of the Mist boat tours. I'll probably do one of the tours and then a bit of the casino.

After 6 weeks, here are the statistics of the ride so far:

Miles ridden: 3,150.53

Climb in feet: 88,845

Calories burnt: 187,546

Here's the GPS data from today:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/42828700

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

London is a very nice city, about 350,000 people with a variety of things to do. It has been rated as one of the best places to retire to in the world. We spent the night there after entering Canada earlier in the morning. Yesterday, many of us cyclists went over to the local bicycle store and some purchased jerseys adorned with the Canadian maple leaf. This morning, the group of people who had purchased the various cycling jerseys with the Canadian flag on them, were all wearing them. At least for today, they felt like honorary Canadians.

We left this morning, later than usual, on a short 66 mile ride to Brantford, Ontario. This city is known for 2 things: the hockey legend Wayne Gretzky and Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone. Other than that, the city was unremarkable. In fact, the areas we rode in from were run down and being destroyed to make way for more modern buildings. It is not the best example of a Canadian city.

Early in the ride today, I fell back a bit and intentionally rode with some other people than the usual gang. I caught up with Gary and Margot, and Michael and Matt who ride the tandem. We had good conversation and made our way through the soybean, corn, onion, ginseng and tobacco fields that make up the farmland in this area. We caught up to Alex and later Jeff from America by Bicycle. We all ended up riding in together, although the light rain made it less than pleasant. Somewhere along the ride, we stopped at a roadside fruit stand and about 8 of us had a cherry seed spitting contest, both for distance and accuracy. It was a close one between Gary and me, but Gary nudged me out in the last round.

Unfortunately, one of the riders, Dave, ran into some type of oats or other substance that was accidentally dropped on the bridge, causing him to fall and slide along. He wasn't hurt, but I am sure it wasn't a good experience. Mike from America by Bicycle had to stop all of the riders to warn us about this mess on the bridge, because there was no way to ride over it without falling.

It's hard to believe that there are only 9 days left. It seems like an eternity ago that we started on this adventure, not knowing whether we were strong enough to complete it. I believe that no-one feels anything except that they will be able to finish it now. This has been an extraordinary experience to say the least, but 50 days will certainly be enough. Life needs to return to normal, and go on.

Here's the GPS data from today:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/42582891

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

The day had come that we were to cross over the bridge and enter Canada. For most people there was the excitement of going into a different country, some for the first time. There was a lot of talk about it and many didn't know what to expect. For me, I was crossing over to visit the city I grew up in, and to see Mom. Memories of my youth were abundant.

Last night, I offered to the group to take them on a tour of Canatara Park, the beach and then under the bridge in Point Edward. It would be to show them a couple of the nicer parts of Sarnia, instead of just heading out past the busy mall and shopping area. When asked, every one of the 50 some odd cyclists said that they would like to follow my route, every one except Toronto Mark as he had a conference call at the same time. I hadn't expected to have such an overwhelming number, but I guess that they would prefer to see some sites, instead of simply cycling along the farms fields that cover the land between Sarnia and our destination, London.

In the morning, we started to get everything ready to head over the bridge and were ready to go by 7:00 for a 7:30 crossover time. You see, this is a fairly big deal in getting us over the bridge. The twin bridges in Sarnia are two very busy ones, with a huge amount of tractor-trailer traffic. They actually close down one of the bridges while we are going over. No other traffic is on it, other than us 50 or so cyclists and our 3 support trucks. The other traffic had to simply wait. Once at customs, we waited while the officer basically asked if we were carrying any weapons, and then simply let us all go through. We didn't even have to show our passports. The whole process was easy and fast.

On the other side of the bridge is where I started the special tour. We would head down about a quarter mile, where my mother was waiting to meet us, and had a stash of butter tarts and Nanaimo bars waiting. I would imagine that she felt a bit overwhelmed when I brought the whole gang, as she really didn't know how many to expect. The gang was quite kind and greeted her with the special America by Bicycle “Hi Mom, my name is ...” greeting, all done in unison of course. After a couple of photos, I led the long line of cyclists into Canatara Park and to the beach. This is a beautiful park basically across the street from where I grew up. It is quite large and was originally purchased in 1932 by a special donation of $10,000 by Mrs. Hanna. The park was to remain generally undeveloped, and available to all residents of the city. It encompasses a small lake called Lake Chipican, and also is along the shore of Lake Huron. After a few pictures, we headed out of the park and down under the bridge, for a few more shots. The previous day we were looking at our location, from the other side of the river.

The rest of the day was quite fast paced as I sped along to catch my usual riding partners. I had dropped back to the end of the pack, to make sure that everyone was fine, from my little tour diversion. It took me about 10 miles to catch back up to my cycling buddies.

At the 1^st SAG, people were sampling the butter tarts and Nanaimo bars. I'm not sure which one was more of a hit, but they seemed to like them, judging by the comments and thank-you's that were being said. The roads today were all good and fairly flat. The winds were generally behind us, but occasionally we had to cut into it a bit.

Here's the video from crossing over the bridge:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4M7LMwCOQI

Here's the GPS data from today:

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/42442034

Let's see what tomorrow brings.