Day 32: Lake City to St. Augustine, FL

Distance: 100 mi (161 km)
Cumulative Distance: 2,884 mi (4,641 m)
Average Speed: 17.2 mph (27.7 kph)
Climb: 2,946 ft (898 m)
Cumulative Climb: 138,312 ft (42,157 m)
Flats: 0Cumulative Flats: 17

Now for some overall statistics.
   Team average miles per day: 90.1
   Team average kilometres per day: 145.0
   Individual average miles per day: 67.6
   Individual average kilometres per day: 108.8
   Total time: 179:29
   Average speed in miles per hour: 16.1
   Average speed in kilometres per hour: 25.9

Since I started this all about a year ago, it is probably appropriate that I make tonights first blog entry - my riding partners will also contribute today.

Today was another sunny day and we took our “Victory Lap” - a relaxing final day over good roads with neutral wind conditions. We rode to our hotel, had lunch, and then all rode as a group to the beach for our final “Front Tire In The Atlantic Ocean” photo. It is poetic that we departed San Diego on 3/24 and arrived in St Augustine on 4/24. We were incredibly fortunate with the weather - one morning of misty rain in Texas and 30 beautiful days! Here are a few more statistics:

   Cans of beer consumed - about 150
   Bottles of wine consumed - about 30 (many “family sized”)
   Pounds of cheese consumed - lots
   Sore derrieres - one
   Feet climbed - the equivalent of more then 4 climbs up Mt Everest from sea level
   Accidents - zero
   Groups who left San Diego before us and we passed along the way - about 10
   Groups who passed us - none
   Nice people met along the way - many, many, many
   Not so nice people met along the way - almost none

Along the way as we met other groups going in both directions, we decided that we had a ride format that we all preferred. We were each involved in the ride every day and never were on the sideline as observers. We made many mutual decisions every day without conflict and got along wonderfully. We rode together at all times - some occasionally in front going up the mountains, some occasionally in front going down, and some occasionally in front in the hills, but always riding as a well matched group. We started as casual friends, but this experience together has created a lasting bond for us.
LEE

I would like to thank each of my partners for a wonderful month. We got along well the whole way, with no difficulties at all. I would especially like to thank Lee for organizing the trip, doing all the pre-work, and getting each of us to go.

KEITH

Unsere Reise ist geschafft. Wir hatten perfektes Wetter, die perfekte Gruppe, die perfekte Organisation.

Ich danke Lee, der diese Reise organisiert hat, David fur seine harte Arbeit mit Plog und jeden Tag die Strecke festzulegen ( mit George unserem GPS fur’s Rad ) und Keith fur seine super Arbeit mit unserer Unterkunft.

Danke danke danke.

GABY

We got ‘r done!

This blog would not be complete without accolades to Lee Chouinard. He was the initiator of the idea, he created the driver change format that was extremely successful, he and Fran drove their mini-van with the bikes and support equipment from Bonita Bay to San Diego, he provided folding chairs and a table that you have all seen in our lunch photos, he provided continual leadership throughout the ride; he was an inspiration to all of us.

A few more words need to be said about the SDS (Self Driven Sag) concept. While it meant that any one of us only rode ¾ of the way across the USA, the arrangement worked perfectly for us. We ended up splitting the longer rides into eighths. That meant one person did their ¼ of the days driving in two segments - and on the longer rides the opportunity to rest twice was a very welcoming thought to all of us. At the driver change locations, we topped up our water bottles, ate a banana or energy bar, redid our suntan lotion if it was required and gave out butts a short rest. A great way to do the ride.

So, Lee, from Keith, Gaby and Dave, a most hearty and heart felt thank you for all that you did to make us able to say: I biked across America!

DAVE

Day 31: Midway to Lake City, FL

Distance: 114 mi (183 km)
Cumulative Distance: 2,783 mi (4,480 m)
Average Speed: 16.8 mph (27.0 kph)
Climb: 4,898 ft (1,493 m)
Cumulative Climb: 135,366 ft (41,260 m)
Flats: 1
Cumulative Flats: 17

Last evening we decided to cut another day out of our ride by taking the most direct route to St. Augustine and by lengthening our last two rides. We did this because we are anxious to get home and because there are storms forecast for Sunday. The most direct route caused us to go straight through Tallahassee on a six lane road with no shoulders during the morning rush hour. Not the safest alternative. It did allow us to get a picture of the Florida Capitol Building.

While it was a long 115 mile day, the roads where good and the hills modest once we left Tallahassee. The winds were mild, but still in our face. It is amazing that we have not had a tail wind on this trip. On the other hand, we have had no significant rain, so from a weather perspective we have been very fortunate.

We received positive comments about our photo an old Southern mansion yesterday, so today we are including a photo of a newer Southern mansion. The Panhandle area is fertile and has a nice Southern charm as you ride through.

Dave once again found us a wonderful lunch spot, where we once again enjoyed a very comfortable picnic.

Day 30: DeFuniak Springs to Midway (5 west of Tallahassee), FL

Distance: 116 mi (187 km)
Cumulative Distance: 2,670 mi (4,297 m)
Average Speed: 17.0 mph (27.4 kph)
Climb: 4,527 ft (1,380 m)
Cumulative Climb: 130,468 ft (39,767 m)
Flats: 0
Cumulative Flats: 16

We are now in the Eastern Time Zone, Daylight Saving version.

Not a lot of activity today except pedalling. The roads were quite flat, although we did do some hills, the shoulders were smooth, the winds were light and the sun was bright. All in all, we could not have asked for better conditions for one of our longer rides. As usual, we had our post ride beer, debrief and discussion about the next day’s ride. If we deviate from the Adventure Cycling Assn route once again, we estimate about 220 mi to St Augustine, so today’s discussion centred on whether or not to “git ‘r’ done” and do two 110 mi days. That’s what we decided to go for so we should hit St A on Saturday afternoon and be back in Bonita on Sunday.

We met people again today who were charming, amazed at our activity and friendly. Gaby has the knack of finding these. While parked, waiting for the driver change to occur, she met Barb and Christine.

Another biker, Sid, from somewhere in the Carolinas, crossed our path. He’s a Lions member raising money for some cause for his club. He’s a loner, left San Diego well before us and plans to head north at Jacksonville for home. We chatted and gave him a drink of nice cool water.

A sheriff nabbed Gaby again today. It was a prank from another lawman that sent the guy on foot for a few blocks to check her out. After a minute of talk he realized he’d been had.

We happened to do a driver change at this picturesque southern plantation style home.

Time to ‘fess up. A couple of days ago the three guys were about a mile into the ride when Dave said: “I forgot my water bottles.” Lee immediately said: “me too.” Keith then also admitted he’d done the same. Don’t know what the probability is of all three of us having a “senior moment” on the same day, but it happened. Luckily, Gaby had not left the motel yet, so a quick phone call resolved the issue.

Day 29: Pensacola to DeFunaik Springs, FL

Distance: 78 mi (125 km)
Cumulative Distance: 2,554 mi (4,110 m)
Average Speed: 17.3 mph (27.8 kph)
Climb: 2,844 ft (867 m)
Cumulative Climb: 125,941 ft (38,387 m)
Flats: 0
Cumulative Flats: 16

Und hier mal etwas Info uber unseren Tagesablauf.

Nach gepacktem Auto und Fruhstuck radeln wir los. Die Strecke wird in 4 Teilstrecken zerlegt und jeder muss ¼ mit dem Auto fahren. Der dritte Fahrer sucht einen Picnic Platz ( im Schatten, bitte).


Der letzte Fahrer des Tages fahrt zum Motel, organisiert die Zimmer, entlad das Auto und….. wichtig, wichtig, stellt das Bier auf Eis.

Wenn die Radler ankommen, gibt es zuerst ein Bier. Jiiipppi.

Ca. 6.00 PM haben wir Wein mit leckerem Kaese und danach gibt es zum Abendessen und dann fallen wir ins Bett.

Life is GOOD.

I will start with last night. While Dave, Gaby, & Keith remained behind to do laundry, I took advantage of our being in Pensacola to visit my cousin Judy who I had not seen for probably 10 years or more. She arrived at the hotel to pick me up in a baby blue 2002 T-Bird in mint condition - very impressive!

We went out to dinner together and spent the evening discussing grandchildren, families, and the old days in Maine (and like everyone else our age, our medical problems). It was a relaxing and fun evening and we both vowed not to wait so long for another get together. For those of you who know Judy, she is a little older, but as spunky as ever! She also still remembers every bad thing I ever did to her when we were growing up! I arrived back at the hotel after dinner and Dave, Keith, & Gaby were just completing their evening cocktail hour before heading out to close down yet another restaurant.

This morning we awoke to another beautiful sunny day with light NE winds. We had probably our easiest ride of the trip. The scenery was pleasant, but not inspiring enough for many photos. Once again we elected to go off-route for a portion of the ride. We found a road with an excellent riding surface and chose to stay on it versus touring the country on rougher roads - a side benefit was that our modified route was also about five miles shorter. Dave selected a spectacular picnic spot with a covered table and bathrooms - Dave can now be credited with the best and second best picnic spots of the trip.

We arrived early at our motel and enjoyed a post-ride beer and relaxing afternoon.

Since there is little to comment on as far as today’s ride is concerned, I would like to take advantage of the opportunity to recognize the hard work and contributions of Dave, Keith, and George to the success of this ride. Gaby & I have had the benefit of pretty much sitting back and enjoying the fruits of their labor. Keith has handled all of our hotel reservations and lined up restaurant suggestions for us virtually every night. His creativity in finding spots slightly off-route has saved us a number of stays in ½ star motels!

Dave has worked tirelessly on our blog entries. We take turns writing them, but the time consuming work is in loading pictures onto the blog and publishing it. In addition to his work on the blog, Dave has supervised the work of George, and he has also been chief mechanic in charge of keeping our bikes working - no small task in view of all the problems which have been created by the road conditions.

George has been navigator and chief statistician for the ride. This has been very hard on him and he has frequently gotten frustrated by our off - route excursions. On occasion he has just thrown up his hands and refused to work anymore until Dave can coax him back. For those of you who are wondering who George is, and how he got into our group, George is a naval aviation name for electronic guidance devices on airplanes (autopilots) and it is the name Dave gave to our on-road electronic navigation system (his Garmin GPS) which has been invaluable on the trip.

So thank you Dave and Keith from me and Gaby!

Day 28: Bayou La Batre, AL to Pensacola, FL

Goodbye Alabama, Hello Florida!


Distance: 84 mi (135 km)
Cumulative Distance: 2,476 mi (3,985 m)
Average Speed: 17.8 mph (28.6 kph)
Climb: 2,655 ft (809 m)
Cumulative Climb: 123,097 ft (37,520 m)
Flats: 0
Cumulative Flats: 16

As we left Bayou La Batre this morning the terrain was like Low Country South Carolina, lots of marshes, rivers, and bridges, big and small.

 We went 20 miles to our second ferry ride of the trip, across Mobile Bay. Since the ferry only runs every 90 minutes we got there plenty early and enjoyed a cup of coffee while waiting for the ferry.

On the ferry we met a couple we’d seen on the road yesterday from Aspen, Colorado travelingfrom Louisiana to Savanah. We also had our first encounter with a couple of women from a group of 22 women doing the same route as us, organized by Women Tours, a bike group exclusively for women. We would pass and converse with many of these women throughout the day.

The ferry ride was 40 minutes and passed dozens of jack-up oil rigs inside Mobile harbor. Perhaps what is coming to Florida.

 There were also significant Revolutionary War period forts at both ends of the ferry ride.

Once off the ferry we spent most of the rest of the day riding right along the Gulf, with intermittent sandy beaches, high rise condos, homes, and beach businesses. We had lunch at the Florida state line, entering the last state of our trip.

We found a bike shop in Pensacola, where Dave and Lee had meaningful repairs. We finished our ride on the Scenic Highway along Pensacola Bay.

We have yet to mention our post ride activities. Each day we have a beer to celebrate the successful completion of the day’s ride as soon as we finish. We then shower and do chores, before getting together for cocktails, which are one or two bottles of wine, and one or two blocks of cheese, with some trail mix thrown in for good measure. Then it is off to dinner.

Day 27: Wiggins, MS to Bayou La Batre, AL

Goodbye Mississippi, Hello Alabama



Distance: 86 mi (138 km)
Cumulative Distance: 2,392 mi (3,849 km)
Average Speed: 17.3 mph (27.8 kph)
Climb: 2,812 ft (857 m)
Cumulative Climb: 120,442 ft (36,711 m)
Flats: 2
Cumulative Flats: 16

Lee didn’t even get out of the parking lot before he discovered he had a flat tire. That was just the first of two, so after the second one we changed his tire and hope we get to a bike store soon. We have depleted our spare tires, but we did keep one of the old ones for an emergency (we do have tubes left). Keith, Lee and Dave should each get a new spare tire.

Don't know the name of these but they line many of the roads in Louisiana,  Mississippi and Alabama.

As a result of our re-routing to a decent motel yesterday, thanks to Keith’s special effort, we had to do a bit of re-routing again today. We ended upon a highway that was not recognized by the GPS (it must be less that two years old) but had a smooth surface, a wide shoulder, was in the correct direction and was mostly downwind. Does it get any better than that? But, the downside was that we got lost in Biloxi. Took a bit of “tooing and froing” and some help from a local cable guy before we finally got sorted out. The roads did not have a lot of helpful signs.

Gaby had the lunch location task today and selected a nice shady tree beside the house of James and Lu. They were very hospitable. They brought out extra chairs for us, offered ice for our water bottles, said we could use their bathroom and gave advice on the route. Great support for bikers.

The picture says it all. It’s great to be in “Sweet Home, Alabama”. We are looking forward to a nice local seafood dinner.

Day 26: Franklinton, LA to Wiggins, MS

Goodbye Louisiana, Hello Mississippi

Distance: 68 mi (110 km)
Cumulative Distance: 2,306 mi (3,711 m)
Average Speed: 16.1 mph (25.9 kph)
Climb: 3,268 ft (996 m)
Cumulative Climb: 117,630 ft (35,854 m)
Flats: 0
Cumulative Flats: 14

We started out on what looked like another beautiful day, however as we were leaving the motel parking lot, Lee almost went down turning in a patch of gravel. In saving the fall, he stressed the wheel enough to snap a spoke. Our expert mechanic, Dave, went right to work and had it fixed and had us on our way in no time at all.

I am getting ahead of myself, however. Our adventure for the day actually started last night when Keith was attempting to find rooms for us for the evening. Two B&B’s were listed for the village we planned on stopping in, Poplarville, which was also the last possible stop for another 130 miles. The first B&B had one bed plus a fold out couch - but they had not yet prepared their place for business. The second B&B never answered the phone. A third option was some cabins about 3 miles off route - they however had only bunks (no linens) and no running water or electricity. We went to bed thinking it was going to be an adventure the next night. However, Keith, our hero for the day, worked on the computer into the wee hours and located a motel in Wiggins, which was off our route but which could be reached with a route modification. We immediately forgave him for riding off with the car keys yesterday, praised his perseverance in finding this alternative, and unanimously voted to ride to Wiggins today.

The route modification proved to be a blessing - the road conditions were great and it even shortened our ride by about 10 miles. It was a hilly ride, the winds were light and from the Northeast (not a factor in the ride) and we had a very pleasant and relaxing day. Early in the ride we crossed into Mississippi and shortly afterwards, Dave & Gaby, who had missed their coffee in the morning, leaped at the opportunity for coffee at Gators. Our hosts, Wayne & Pam, had opened for business about two months ago and were happy for a little business (I think they were actually even happier to have someone to talk to).

Pam had just rescued a turtle from the road.

We finished the ride early in the afternoon, before our rooms were available, so we took so we took our post ride beers in the breakfast room.