Harry with another wild and crazy hat!

Me and Barbie-loved her hat

Me, Darrell, Barbie, Magic Mike and Wild Harry

Busy week. Put about 200 miles on my bike knowing I would not be riding for few days as the Cross Roads group would be in Champaign this week. My plan included riding to Crawsfordsville In. and possibly on to Indy. Harry arrived from London Monday and I picked him up at the airport in Champaign. After dropping off his bike to be assembled, we spent a little time at Hubers to hydrate properly and Harry was dropped off at the hotel to catch up on sleep and recover from jet lag. The next day brother Larry treated us to a BBQ. Harry, ever the carnivore, devoured two well done steaks in addition to vast quantities of food and drink. Larry's other guests delighted in Harry's accent and quaint British colloquialisms (spanners, puncture, shag, etc). On the way back to the hotel, we were required to engage in another "pit stop" at Hubers. (Hey Hubers, you are getting a lot of publicity here!! How about a freebie once in awhile?) Darrell, another 09er, flew in from Knoxville Tenn. He is going to ride from Champaign to Erie. On Wednesday, Barbie flew into Champaign , we picked her up and enjoyed a nice reunion luncheon. That evening, Magic Mike, another 09er who currently lives in Springfield, about 90 miles southwest, joined us and we all headed out to have a nice dinner. The restaurant was an Italian one, Bastias, where those of us who were going to ride tomorrow, (Harry being the exception) carbo loaded on their fine Italian pasta cuisine. Of course Mike had a steak, sent it back as is his usual custom when it does not meet his exacting specifications, and we all enjoyed a fine dining experience. Mike was a tad worried when he first learned that the establishment had real cloth covers on the tables, but I assured him he could tuck it into his shirt and nobody would have complained. I could tell he was greatly relieved to be given this option.
The forecast for Thursday's ride was a possibility of rain and thunderstorms with a westerly wind 5-10 mph. That would have been a fun ride. Ha! Little did the group realize that when a preponderance of 09ers congeal in one place to ride bicycles, the wind will not be gentle and it will be directly into our face!! That, indeed, was the case!!
Awakening at 5:00 a.m. I immediately checked the local weather channel. The good news was that the rain potential was not very high. But, the bad news was that the wind was blowing from the east at 15 mph, gusting to 21 mph. including all points in our biking path to the east. That meant that the 80 mile ride would be into a 15-20 mile ride the entire day. I was looking forward to the challenge. However, without going into detail, family circumstances arose preventing me from joining the riders. I could have ignored the family situation but there would have been a dear price to pay so I wussed out. Never fear, the wind gods will make it up at some point. Thus ended reunion week with the 09ers but I am eagerly following Barbies blog.
On a final note, I saw Tracy and Rick. Both, of course, were part of the support staff for the 09 ride. Rick looked his usual fit self having recently recovered from illness and Tracy looked like she could still ride circles around most of the riders on tour; me especially. It was great seeing all of those people (yea, those people) and I look forward to seeing more this fall on the East Coast ride.

Sunday, I signed up for a fundraiser ride in Chicago to promote green energy. It turned out to be a beautiful day and somewhat windy but it was the first time I had ridden along Lake Shore Drive for 25 miles. I was joined by my son Christopher and his friend Cindy. It turned out to be quite an interesting experience. I had no idea that the south side of Chicago had this impressive bike trail. I will probably do more riding along Lake Michigan in the future. Also, as you can see from the picture Christopher is not wearing biking shorts rather khaki cargo pants. We who have ridden for some distance know the dangers of biking without equipment intended for that purpose. About four miles into the ride he indicated a"chaffing" sensation. I think in the future if he rides any distance, he will opt for the spandex even though it doesn't look as "cool" as regular shorts.
On another note, I'm looking forward to meeting with Wild Harry and Barbie in June as Barbie finishes her ride across the country. Hopefully, Magic Mike will join us in Champaign to have a mini reunion. Also, I'm also looking forward to the East Coast Ride in September and, as Jim reminded me, to not go into training mode too early. He is absolutely correct as I am recovering from "overuse" injuries as I write this. I will back off and begin a more reasonable training agenda later.
Also, if Lance Armstrong did indeed use EPO, how was he able to avoid detection for those 500 drug tests. (Yes, I am aware that the last entry was a non-sequitor) More later!!

Just finished a 40 miler to test all body parts that have been malfunctioning the last few weeks. All in all it was a good day. The wind was somewhat problematic as it was blowing from the south at 15-20 mph gusting up to 25. I also rode through the Mackinaw river valley to work on hilly terrain. My focus was to maintain a good pace without worrying about doing it at what I consider a fast pace. If I abstain from watching my computer speed, I do okay. Half way through the ride I met the boys at the Busy Corner for breakfast. I usually do not ride immediately after eating a big breakfast but two pancakes, bacon and coffee did not substantially hamper the second part of the ride. However, the wind picked up speed so half the way home I had a tailwind and the rest of the way was a substantial cross wind. Also, I am always surprised, but at this point shouldn't be, at the number of dead animals on the road. Spring is usually the time I observe the most road kill on the route I take. Today there were two possums, three deer, two skunks, three squirrels, an assortment of unidentifiable squashing and one armadillo. Okay, you caught me, I lied about the armadillo but I think that is an inordinate amount of road kill. I blame it on global warming!!
On Sunday the XC011 group started their cross country adventure in Huntington Beach. It looks like one of Tracy's smallest groups at fourteen riders. When they arrive in Champaign on the 8th of June, Barbie, who began in 09 with our group will be completing her journey to Boston with them. Wild Harry is flying in from London to join Barbie and the group. He will be riding to Boston also. I plan to ride from Champaign to Crawsfordsville IN. and possibly Indy as part of my training rides prior to the East Coast trip. As it happens, Magic Mike from the 09 group moved to Springfield Il. last week. I will attempt to have him meet us in Champaign and we will have a mini 09 reunion. Since Champaign is my hometown, I shall appoint myself host and tour some of the watering holes that most tourists are not acquainted. Obviously Bud lite must be served or Harry will be greatly disappointed. Enough for now, but the picture in this entry comes from Jim Lyle who was at the start of this years ride. I had forgotten how steep the road from the beach was but looking at the picture it brought back memories. A great way to start a 3,400 mile ride!!

Ahhh. Finally a week where riding outside is not a constant battle with the weather conditions. Back into training for the East Coast Ride. Currently riding 35-40 miles a day but last Wednesday I got to "feelin frisky" and did a 60 mile jaunt to Leroy. My usual watering hole was open so I could replenish "vital fluids". This is a picture of Doris, the owner. Her tavern was a regular stop during my training days before the big cross country ride.

On a more somber note, Fred, one of our group of cross country riders died on April first. Oddly enough it was not a biking accident, rather, he was cutting down a tree and it fell on him. His wife Susan informed the 09 group of the accident. Our sympathies are with Susan and the family on their loss.

I haven't heard from Hank in awhile but I assume he is signed up for the East Coast Ride. Also, Teddy Herrera, whom I wrote of in earlier blogs, has finished his ride. He started in Sacramento CA. rode to Boston, then to Miami Fl. throughout the south to LA and back to Sacramento. 11,000 miles. I met him in East Peoria at a breakfast place, he stayed at our house for the night and I rode with him to Metamora to get him on track to go to Chicago. It looks like he is using that experience to promote awareness of childhood obesity. I wish him luck and will probably keep in contact with him. Here is an interview with him at the local Sacramento TV station. Enjoying the weather and will keep up to date on the East Coast ride. __Winning!!!

Teddy Herrera Sacramento News Video Breaking news video, sports video, weather forecasts, live-online video for.

The weather is getting a bit better for outside riding. Even though the temperature was mid 40's I did a 40 mile ride. The wind was a moderate 10 mph from the south so that wasn't much of a factor. I was glad I hadn't lost much over the winter in terms of conditioning since I was close to my usual time for that distance. It looks like the upcoming week will provide more days outside. It's supposed to hit the 60's by mid week.
It is official. After exchanging e-mails with Hank and he indicated he was going to do the ride, I signed up for the ride from Maine to Florida in September. While it ends in Datona Beach, I plan on riding all the way to Key West. While that is tentative right now, it is in the planning stage. It looks like about half of the 09 riders are going to do the journey. It should be a blast.
Also, Harry is coming to the states in June and we plan on riding with Barbie from Champaign to Crawsfordsville and maybe Indy. We'll see. Looking forward to the adventures!

Friends I met during my ride in southern Illinois

Starting out from my son's house in Carbondale

Just returned from southern Illinois where I did much of the training for my cross country trip. Completed a 52 mile round ride from Carbondale to Anna and back. Quite hilly terrain but nothing like the mountains. During the winter I ride a stationary bike at the local rec center. I program it to do random hills. After riding through southern Illinois I have determined that random hills on a stationary bike aren't!! I plan on signing up for the East Coast Reunion ride from Maine to Florida after physical exam next week. Hope it's not to late but I didn't want to sign up before some doctor tells me I am a physical wreck and assign me to a nursing home to be kept under lock and key!! It looks like the outdoor riding season will be arriving shortly and I can't wait.

Just returned from a trip to Key West Fl. I rented a hybrid Trek 700. Ronni rented a Cruiser. The attendant at the bike shop said they don't rent many touring or road bikes because there is very little demand for them since most of the bicyclists just want to "putter" around the island. I haven't ridden a bicycle that large in about 5 years. It was like riding a dinosaur. It reminded me of my old Specialized Crossroad that is now in the possession of my youngest son in Carbondale.
One of my objectives while vacationing was to determine if I could ride from Homestead Fl. to Key West and I found it would, indeed, be possible. In addition to using the bike as my principle means of touring Key West, I also took two trips close to Marathon Key and back for a total of approx. 40 miles. I was surprised at how many of the smaller keys between Key West and Marathon actually had bike paths on them. The only shoulder riding was between the keys and they were as large as and in some cases larger than those we rode during the cross country trip. So, it looks like I will be doing that ride in the future. The only real difficulty would be crossing the "7 mile bridge". While the shoulder is wide enough, it was littered with more rubbish than what we encountered riding the interstates in the Southwest. Many flat tires, or punctures, would be expected during that part of the trip. The other difficulty would be that there is no "bail out" area to the right. There is only a retaining wall followed by a quick and hasty plunge into the Gulf of Mexico. Extra care must be taken here. However, on the drive back to West Palm Beach, a biker was actually traversing the "7 mile bridge" so I is definitely a possibility.
I talked to Hank over the holidays and he indicated he is still interested in biking the East Coast with the Cross Roads group. Regardless of his decision I am pretty sure I will do this ride. Because it ends in Daytona, I plan on continuing and finishing at Key West. Now, the only real detriment would be how my right knee holds out. As you all have seen, since my knee surgery in 1996 I wear a knee wrap while I bike and, for the most part, it does a fine job of stabilizing my knee. However, in about the last month it has really troubled me and it looks like I will need to see my specialist and determine a course of treatment. I am not looking forward to the dreaded.....K---R----------. But we'll see.
On another note, for some odd reason, I continue getting requests for me to present my cross country Power Point presentation to various groups. I recently tweaked it and presented it to the Washington Historical Society featuring many of the historical spots I visited. In September the Tazewell County Retired Teachers Association would like me to present at their monthly meeting and they insisted they pay me. I will of course decline any financial remuneration and defer it to the Central Illinois Alzheimer's association. That is about it for this and now I have to go shovel about 17 inches of snow!!!