Day 8

Got a call from Joe. Our friends are currently in Baltimore, Maryland. After falling off pace a bit while visiting Cam's grandmother, they made up time by riding 111 miles yesterday and 80 miles today, breezing through Pennsylvania (including Mennonite country) and into Maryland. Baltimore isn't the most bike friendly city in the world with massive grates that line the streets. Joe discovered this little piece of information first hand as he went head over heels (literally) after hitting one with his front tire. Luckily, Joe's face hit the ground first and his bike landed on top of him resulting in no harm to the bike itself... Joe walked away damaging only his pride. Our friends head to D.C. tomorrow where the ride should improve with bike specific paths and flat land prevailing throughout D.C. and the upcoming Outer Banks of North Carolina. The weather has continued to be nice, however, the mugginess of the south is beginning to be felt as they continue south. Other than some odd looking sunburns Joe, Cam, and Andrew are doing well.

Day 1 - 6

From Cam (received May 28th):

Here's a quick rundown of what's been going on.

Day 1 - Boston, MA to Sutton, MA. 47 miles, 75F and sunny. Much of the ride was on the marathon route, and we actually rode over the starting line. The end of the day was hilly, but not too bad. We camped the first night at Sutton Falls campground, ate MREs and went fishing, (no bites).

Day 2 - Sutton MA to Windsor Locks, CT. 61 miles, high 80s sunny and hot. Big hills in eastern Connecticut, but it flattened out as we got to Windsor Locks, which is on the Connecticut River. Stayed at a Motel 6 at the airport. Subway was consumed.

Day 3 - Windsor locks, CT to Pine Plains, NY. 66 miles, mid 90s, very hot. Headwinds and brutal climbs out of the Connecticut river valley. More brutal hill climbs and headwinds. Climbed Mount Canaan in CT and Winchell Mountain in NY. Andrew broke and repaired his chain on Winchell Mountain. No campgrounds available, hard to find hotel rooms. Ended up staying in Millerton which was behind us, but the bed and breakfast owners picked us up and dropped us off the next morning. Joe took a bubble bath.

Day 4 - Pine Plains, NY to Middletown, NY. 91 miles, mid 80s, partly cloudy. Rode through Hyde Park and crossed the Hudson River in Poughkeepsie. Got a little lost in backwoods Orange County, NY. Middletown SUCKS! It's like Worcester, but smaller and trashier, plus the Days in is not where we expected it to be. Dinner was a pizza delivery debacle.

Day 5 - Middletown, NY to Belvedere, NJ. 83 miles, light rain in the morning, high 80s/ low 90s in the afternoon. Most of the day was through the Delaware Water Gap, crossed briefly into Pennsylvania. Andrew broke chain again, went a little crazy, kicked a guardrail and flung his broken chain tool into the woods. We contrived to get ourselves between a mother bear and her cub while in the middle of a brutal hill climb. (the bears were on opposite sides of the road, with the cub out of sight) People in cars thought it was funny, people on bikes (us) almost pooed a little out of fear. Stayed in the European wing of a bed and breakfast (shared bathrooms, almost like a hostel) in Belvedere, a tiny smudge of a town.

Day 6 - Belevedere, NJ to Doylestown, PA. 71 miles, overcast, light rain, low 80s in the afternoon. Spent today along the Delaware River, flatter and smoother than other days. We found ourselves leading the memorial day parade in Frenchtown, NJ. Found a bike shop, Andrew bought a bling-tastic Wipperman chain which can (hopefully) withstand the raw power of his legs. We were saluted by an army officer blasting bagpipe music in his car. It put the fighing spirit in us. Tonight, we are in Doylestown, PA at my grandparents place.

The roadkill chronicles:

deer, squirrel, cat, rabbit, opossum, snake, birds (various), grounhogs, porcupine, fox, skunk, frogs, shrew, lizard, turtles, mouse, chipmunk, raccoon.

Now for some pictures!

Entering Connecticut on day 2


Entering New York


In front of the sign for new jersey, we've been there for a couple of days, but there hasn't been a welcome sign.


(New Jersey is lame.)


Entering Pennsylvania

Day 4

I just got off the phone with Cam. After 4 days of riding our friends are on schedule and in good spirits. They are currently in Middletown, NY and are headed for New Jersey. So far, there have only been some minor aches and pains and lot of chafing. Cam did note a bit tendonitis in his knee, but otherwise feels fine. As for the bikes themselves, some small roadside repairs needed to be made but have not slowed them down. Since taking off, the fellas have stayed at a couple of camp sites and a couple of hotels. The amenities have been acceptable. Cam discovered Dawn makes for a great soap/ shampoo replacement (though I wouldn’t be so daring as to try dish soap on my hair). The only major complaint is a lack of toilet paper and a plunger in their current hotel room bathroom which Andrew single-handedly destroyed. Of the towns they have passed through, MillertonNY has been the most pleasant. However, they’ve been surprised at the overall ‘hillbilliness’ in the towns that seem so close to New York City with Middletown, NY topping the list where someone attempted to steal their pizza dinner.

Tomorrow they head for the NY/ NJ border. Eventually they will make their way to Cam’s grandmother’s house where they hope to send pictures and their own notes from the road.

Day 1

All ready to go.


In front of the Photonics building at BU.


And...


they're...


off!!

Graduation, prelude to madness

On May 20th, the class of 2007 at Boston University will complete a quest that began four years ago to become college graduates. For three of these students another journey will begin. Cameron Hall, Andrew Leach, and Joe Polnaszek are on a mission to bike from the plaza at Marsh Chapel to southernmost point of the continental U.S., Key West. Officially set to leave on the 23^rd, their journey will consist of 35 days of riding over 1657 miles.

Since I must remain behind, I will keep you up to date on the group’s trip with notes and pictures from the road. Also, check out our group on facebook.