Almost Maine...

Gorgeous fall day in New Jersey with just enough of a cool bite to the air that I felt a preview of what the mornings in Maine, New Hampshire and upstate New York might be like...Wore a long sleeved jersey and was comfortable but it was 55 and the sun was out - at 40 or 45 it might be just a tad more invigorating. Do you like a bit of irony? Tracy (our tour leader) sent out an email to inform us that there is a Harley Davidson rally scheduled for Daytona Beach the weekend that we arrive. My personal memory bank lights up like 4th of July fireworks at the mere mention of Harleys. I may have to find a back alley entrance or perhaps organize the pelaton as an escort to get into town safely. So, fifty-five miles, almost 3000 feet of climbing and a 15.5 average for today - ready or not, Portland here we come. Am looking forward to the reunion with the XC09 friends and meeting all of the others....I am psyched and excited.

Almost ready...

One of the rules for this trip is the thirty pound weight limit for luggage - did you ever try to pack for a four week trip and limit yourself to thirty pounds? I have been packing and repacking off and on for the last two days. We obviously can't spend all our time in spandex so a minimum supply of "civilian" clothes are required. And one set of biking stuff is hardly enough - we do tend to sweat a bit and after a (short) while that tends to draw frowns and funny looks from people. So I'm happy to say I think I've got the packing done and it came in at exactly 29.1 lbs. Now I can only hope that Tracy's scale is as accurate as I think mine is.

One of the complications of packing for this trip is the expected variables in the weather. The predicted morning temperatures in Portland Maine this time of year are around 40-45 in the morning (we get underway about 7:30 every day) while we should be seeing numbers like 70-80 when we get to South Carolina and south. I went out for one of my last training rides this morning with the temperature at 51 and even with a long sleeved shirt under my cycling jersey I felt the cold for a good five miles until I was warmed up enough to not notice. I promptly came home and added ear covers, warm socks and cold weather, long sleeved bike jersey to my duffel bags. They tell me that it is possible to see temps in the thirties in the mornings in Maine - I think we will all be praying for lots of sunshine.

Rday - 7

Can you believe it? Seven days until we leave Portland Maine and start our trek to Florida. I have stuff all over the place but, honestly, have not even begun to pack. Thirty pound weight limit? Hmmm, maybe I had better start sorting and checking things out. My training has been so discombobulated because of the housing issues that I have been a little concerned that maybe I would be spending the first week trying to ride myself into shape, not really something I wanted to do. I have been out on the bike for the last three days in a row - first time all summer that I have managed three consecutive days. Yesterday Tom Ryan (my roomie) and I did a 50+miler with lots of good hills and some unfamiliar (to me) roads. We had to skip some of our more familiar training routes because of bridges out, roads a bit sketchy, etc. And today all I had time for was a late afternoon 3o miler but I kept it in the big gear and really worked for the couple of hours I had....I think I'm ready but always there is that feeling that I should do a bit more: a few more hills maybe, just one more century. The moment of truth is rapidly approaching. We have 25 riders and the email boxes have been filled with exchanges of introductions and photos this past week or so. The folks from '09 I already know, of course, but based on the emails it looks like a really great group overall. All but one have done a cross-country (or at least part of one) and most have done them with Tracy's Crossroads group. We have people from all over the country: California, Michigan, NC, NY, NJ of course, Illinois, etc, and three from outside the US: an Israeli, an Englishman, and one from Canada (French as his first language). I've no doubt it will be a terrific ride. And finally, the good news of the day: we have sold our house. After almost six months and one aborted sale we signed the contracts today and the deal really looks firm. It came as a bit of surprise but I am so relieved to have it resolved and not have to leave Susan with that mess and worry while I'm gone. We will move probably the middle of November but in the meantime Susan can plan a trip to Florida and I can ride without the constant stress of two houses in the back of my mind....

Getting closer

Wow - less than two weeks to Portland. To be very honest I am equal parts excitement and dread. When this trip first came up I was sure we would be in our new house and that Susan would join me in Portland for a few well earned days of holiday in celebration. As it turned out the sale on our house fell through after we had finalized the deal on the new house - and, of course, the result is we are still trying to sell the old house (in perhaps the worst real estate market of all time) while postponing the actual move until we get that elusive buyer. I have visions of negotiating either the sale or rental while standing on the side of the road in Kitty Hawk NC or some such place....At the same time the emails with introductions and photos of the ride participants has been flowing all week and I cannot help but get excited over the prospect of riding every day with new and old friends. Last week we had rain virtually every day (remnants from the tropical storm that hit the gulf) and it was the perfect week to get my bike into the shop. I got it back Friday and was out yesterday for the test run. Alex, the mechanic, told me the bike would be like new and he did not exaggerate. There is nothing like the first ride after ride after a complete tune-up. Everything is smooth and quiet, nothing but the whir of the wheels and (new) chain and the occasional click-click of the gears. And the first 40 miles or so were truly perfect. I hardly got out of the big gear except for the hills and even they seemed easy. I pulled into one of my favorite country deli's for a quick rest stop and all was well with the world. As I was leaving I immediately noticed that some of the overcast was becoming ominously dark and darker from the only direction I could take to get home....To cut to the chase I had a few sprinkles almost immediately but nothing serious and I kicked it up a notch and figured I would pull into my driveway well before the storm. Wrong! With maybe 12 miles to go the skies literally opened up and the water came down in the traditional buckets. I was on good road but with the ground saturated the roads flood almost immediately and I found myself slowing to a crawl trying to see, trying to avoid passing cars and keeping the bike stable in the heavy water at the side of the road. Finally, with both bike and rider thoroughly soaked, I found a school where I could run up on the porch and wait it out. Needless to say, it did eventually lighten up and I headed home for shelter and a hot shower. The bike has been cleaned, re-oiled, and sits in the garage drying out - tomorrow promised sun and temps back up to 80. I've had my unplanned training in bad weather and for the next few days it will be sunshine or nothing. A final bit of irony: I've always been safety conscious but probably more so since my encounter with the Harley. When I had the bike in the shop I purchased, among other things, a rear flashing light for the bike. I was specifically thinking of early morning departures, dark days, and the possiblity of rain. It is an LED type red steady or flashing light and it is the brightest thing I have ever seen. The store claims it will be seen a mile away and it definitely can be seen through heavy rain and mist - exactly what I wanted. And, you guessed it, it was still in the bag and not on my bike yesterday. That will not happen again, believe me.

Gone but not forgotten

Irene came through a week ago but the effects linger on. Susan and I had a small forest of fallen branches, about four hours without power, and a few anxious moments while the stream at the end of our property rose up and over its banks - but no closer than maybe 30 yards from the house. However, not everyone was so lucky. I was restricted to short 30/35 mile rides for most of the week but today went out for a 75 mile tour. For the most part I had no problems but there was plenty of evidence of Irene's impact. The roads, especially the real country roads, still have lots of loose gravel and dirt where the streams and creeks overflowed. In a couple of cases bridges were out and more than a couple of instances where the asphalt was completely washed away and I was forced to walk the bike around the barriers and over the disabled road. Also still lots of areas without power and more than once I was maneuvering around the big construction vehicles of the power companies who are still removing fallen trees and trying to re-string their electric wires. That being said it was a gorgeous day for riding today and lots of cyclists out in Mercer and Hunterdon counties. For some I'm sure it was an escape from wet basements and and filling out insurance claims forms but we are into September - we won't get too many more of these sunny, warm summer days.

I did remember my camera for a change and so herewith a few photos of some of the hurricanes reminders. The covered bridge is the last one still in use in New Jersey. The water came within a foot of the bridge but no damage was done. The house with the blue tarp was cut almost in half by a falling tree - fortunately the occupents were not at home, there would not have been any survivors....And, final thought: less than three weeks to Portland. Much as I am stressed out over the dual house situation I can hardly wait.

Tick, tick, tick.....

The time is getting closer...less than a month and we will be in Portland Maine setting alarm clocks for 5 AM and heading down to Florida. I'm starting to get excited but at the same time am never sure I've ridden enough or climbed enough hills. I was out yesterday and tried to combine both the climbing and distance. I finished the day with 82 miles including one long stretch along the Delaware River of maybe 30 miles of just flat out cruising. And on the coming and going I managed to climb a total of 3800 feet - so my training conscience felt good last night and my legs felt like it was time for bed. Lots of miles to go but its all part of the adventure. And what's with this East Coast weather phenomona? First the earthquake - how rare is that in Virginia? Because of my years in California I knew instantly what it was but could not quite believe it. It did no damage here but did re-arrange a couple of pictures on the walls and certainly gave my New York born wife something to think about. And now we are getting our first full-blown hurricane of the season. The TV weatherman had his tracking map ending at exactly Portland Maine on last night's forecast. Tracy always says a little weather just adds to the story we can tell when we finish the ride - I can only hope she has room for a few extra umbrellas in her truck. And for all you non east-coasters, the hurricane lasts a little longer than an earthquake but usually the sun comes out the next day - assuming survival we will be ready to roll.

An early test

We are psyched and looking forward to Portland Maine. Tom Ryan and I set our clocks early and got up for the Princeton Freewheelers annual biking extravaganza on Saturday morning.With all the stress and nonsense over my attempts to sell our house I was not at all sure I had enough miles to date. And so it was with some trepidation that we chose the century but I was the instigator so there was no backing out. Although there was threat of T-storms the weatherman cooperated...a bit humid but temps only in the 80s (as opposed to the 90s we have been experienceing) and a bit of a breeze (per Tom: constant headwind). The course this year ran through central New Jersey in and out of small towns as well as a long run through the McGuire military base where we were entertained by the sounds of weekend reservists practicing their gunnery skills. Also skirted a long scenic lake and lots of horse farms and fields of corn and beans that make NJ the Garden State. And, as you might guess, while there were a few rollers here and there but it is mostly flat which is not a bad thing for century on a warm summer's day.

Bottom line: we did 105 miles at a 15.5 mph average and I think consumed about a dozen bottles of water between the two of us. We hooked up with a couple of "fellow travelers" at one point and up a little five person pace line - lots of fun for the 8 or 10 miles we kept it up - we ended at a SAG stop but the others were the ones who were panting and ready for a break not us (sorry if that sounds like bragging, guilty as charged).

So we sat with our post-ride lunch and agreed that we will be ready for Maine and our east coast adventure. Speaking for myself I have some riding to do between now and then but we know the base is down and we are looking forward to meeting up with our XC09 mates and pedalling down the East Coast.

TdF, Juniors and Seniors...

Up early (for me) this morning and out of the house and the road by 9:05. The day promised to be warm and humid but no rain. I have a century coming up next Saturday and decided that today would be the day to run the test. So I headed out for the hills of Hunterdon and then straight north up the Delaware River to Frenchtown. I deliberately skipped Federal Twist (long climb, hits 22/23%) and chose to go for distance. With that being said I finished with respectable 84 miles, almost 4K of climbing and a 15 mph average...I think I should be able to do my flat century without too much trouble. The highlight of the day was 5 or 6 miles of riding with a boy I'd guess was 12 or 13. He appeared before me on a long, rolling but mostly downhill stretch of road at about the 60 mile point for me. He was dressed in full racing kit, right down to the shoes, and was wearing a time-trialer's helmet. When he saw me coming up on him he kicked it up a bit and kept looking back to see where I was - seeing that twisting head/helmet was so much like watching some of the chase scenes in the Tour last week I had to smile. Every time I would close on him he would look back and kick it up again and move out to maybe a 20 yard gap. I really wasn't looking for a race but every time we would go into a downhill I would inevitably start gaining on him again without even trying, a function of outweighing him by at least 50 and maybe 75 pounds. Finally, on one fairly long stretch I did in fact pass him and shouted a "looking good" as I went by. He immediately locked himself onto my wheel and I pushed it up a little bit and pulled him up the next couple of miles - all uphill. At this point we were coming into the next town and I was starting to look for my turn. All of a sudden he launched his attack and giving it his all passed me and started moving away, all the while turning to look back and see if I would respond....My left turn came and my last sight of this aspiring Andy Schleck was the young man half standing and twisting his head around to see if I was going to respond. He had great form on the bike and was working so hard I had to smile at this little mini-race he had started with someone who could be his grandfather...Breaking Away in the NJ cornfields.

Yes!!!!

What more need be said?In the mail today was the CrossRoads East Coast ride jersey. Not that I need motivation but it does make my heart move up a couple of beats and maybe push up my training rides as well. We are now under two months until we convene in Maine and I'm looking forward not only to starting the trip but to meeting up with all the folks who rode XC09. One of the pleasant surprises in the package from CR was short note from Tom Dunn indicating that he would be riding with us. The more the merrier....

On other fronts...The training goes well. The weather has been awful the last week or so: temps over 100 and humidity close to the same number but for the most part I have manged to get in the miles I want. I'm well over 500 for the month and that is a good thing. I'm looking forward to my first century of the summer in a couple of weeks - I'd like to put in a request to the weather gods for temps in the low 80s and clear skies, no humidity please.

The house is still on the market and we have started doing the little maintenance items on the new house. I am not at all comfortable with this two-house nonsense but am trying to stay cool about it. We have deferred moving since the current house shows so much better to prospective buyers with furnishings but I suspect we will have a decision to make before the ride.....one of several little nightmares that occasionally have me wide awake at 3 A.M.

Where Lindbergh Once Flew....

The construction site looks like any other - big, heavy earth-moving equipment, raw earth and lots of speculation over what is coming next. Well to me this site is a little different. This was, until very recently, one of the last grass runway airports in the country. Up until a year or so ago it was still certified and in use. On weekends when I would pass by on a ride (it is actually about 4 miles from my home) and invariably see at least one plane take off or land, sometimes flying right over my head on the approach. A couple of years ago the elderly aviator who had owned/operated it announced he could no longer afford the property taxes and would have to sell. A bit of a bidding scramble broke out and for awhile it looked like it would become one more housing development in an area that (I think) already has more than enough housing developments. In the end my town and the neighboring town got together and bought it for a park/soccer field complex and the construction vehicles are now busy tearing everything up in hopes of having a playing field (pitch?) ready for the fall season.

My thought is that the soccer fields are far better than more McMansions but the passing of the airfield is also kind of sad. The field had a long history and was actually used by Charles Lindbergh when he lived in this area (his kidnapped baby was actually found at a roadside about five miles further on). The three old planes sitting in the weeds behind the deteriorating hanger are about all that is left of this little bit of local history. I'm hoping they keep both the building and the planes around just as a reminder of another era...

And so I wandered into the Sourlands on this hot and steamy morning looking for shady lanes to stay out of the sun - it hit 93 eventually - and roads that had strategically located corner stores so I could keep my water bottles full. The horse sculpture was new - was at the entrance to a horse farm that commands one of the best views in the county and is at the beginning of a pretty decent climb up to the one-time home of the same Charles Lindbergh (everything is related).

And final story....At the bottom of Lindbergh road is a little store much used by local cyclists. I bought my drink and joined an older gentleman ("older" can be a relative term) sitting on the porch. He almost defined the term "grizzled". Wiry and wrinkled and with skin like leather he later admitted to being 83 years old and laughed when I said I was 71. When I commented on his riding all these hills he kind of snorted - this is what I do, he said - cycling is a way of life. His only concession to age seemed to be the way he laid the bike down to get on but when he took off he was immediately into a pace that would be the envy of many a younger rider....I will add him to my short list of hero/role models.