Home At Last

I have been home for a week via Delta, but my bike came home today via UPS.  It reminded me that I promised another post.

 

We rode 21 of 24 days through parts of 13 eastern states.  According to CrossRoads' cue sheets, we rode 1,594 miles; according to my odometer, I rode 1,643 miles.  The difference is explained by computer calibration and bonus miles that I rode deliberately or otherwise.  I got one new mirror, three new tubes and two new tires during the ride.  I got a new personal record for my fastest 100-mile ride, under five hours on October 7 in North Carolina.  Most importantly, I enjoyed the company of old and new friends and all of them finished safely.

 

Compared to the 2008 LA-to-Boston trip (XC08), the 2011 Eastern Seaboard trip (ES11) was about half the time and distance (~1,600 miles in 24 days vs ~3,400 miles in 48 days).  Maureen and I liked the shorter time away from home.  The average daily mileage was about the same (78 vs 79 miles per day).  XC08 had about eight times as much vertical climbing as ES11 (146,000 feet vs 18,000 feet); in fact, after the seventh day, and from central New Jersey southward, ES11 was very flat and the biggest climbs were on bridges.  The longest day on ES11 (118 miles to Charleston) was not much longer than the longest day on XC08 (115 miles across the Mojave into Arizona) but it was flatter and cooler.  On XC08, we saw two oceans, but only twice - on the first and last days.  On ES11 we saw only one ocean, but on a dozen days.  There were no ferry rides on XC08; there were four on ES 11.

 

My average rolling speed on ES11 was 16.4 mph; on XC08 it was 15.0 mph.  I'd like to think the increased speed was because I am now a stronger cyclist, but I think the flat roads and frequent tailwinds had more to do with it.  My maximum ES11 speed was 49.2 mph in Connecticut, about the same as my XC08 maximum of 48.7 mph in New Mexico.  The NM hills were longer both up and down, but the CT downhills were steeper.  On XC08, we had four helmet-cracking crashes which took riders off the bike for two days or more.  On ES11, no helmets were cracked and no riding time was lost because on crash-caused injuries.

 

ES11 could not match the WOW factor of riding across the whole USA from the Pacific to the Atlantic.  But we did recapture the simple life of eat-sleep-bike and the satisfaction that comes from riding many miles in all sorts of weather and getting faster and stronger while doing it.  We did recapture the joy of experiencing varied scenery and local foods, accents and customs.  We enjoyed each others company, humor and support.  I don't have final figures for the donations made to Catholic Charities during the ES11 ride.  But I, the CC staff and the families that will be helped by your donations are grateful for your generosity.  Thank you for your your prayers and support.

 

Have a safe ride and a good day.

Comments

[True Religion outlet]

Sunday we got up to a down-pour, and headed to the early service at our church. Our church has just completed a huge add on that has more than doubled the size of the church and it was the first Sunday in the new sanctuary. It was a beautiful service, and it was packed! After church we headed home to change since it was much cooler than expected, then we headed out to my parents and it rained the entire drive, thankfully nothing severe although we were a little late. We had a delicious lunch and then the kids had egg hunt #2. My mom has a huge basket of fake apples in her living room, and David always plays with them, instead of putting eggs in his basket, he loaded it up with apples.