Day 7 - Meadville, PA

Eric here. Carson is soaking in a peppermint bath, which he deserves after this day, which featured crippling rain, face-burning headwinds, roads closed due to construction, countless uphills over the horizon, 18-wheelers driven by shoulder-hugging lunatics, freeway sections unfit for biking, treacherous downhills, and a more-than-a-mile stretch of gravel road (thanks, Google!). I have been biking about 15 miles a day, out in the morning with Carson and then back to the car, and so I have started to learn firsthand just the slightest bit about what must be necessary, physically and mentally, to cover more than NINETY... day after day after day. Those of you following this adventure, sending good thoughts and encouragement, need to realize that right now, Carson exists in a sort of alternate reality: one that other super-athletes might recognize, but incomprehensible to the rest of us. (Carson: thanks for the comments... I read them all, but haven't had the time to respond.) I consider myself a witness to something truly amazing.

I remember reading somewhere, perhaps as a child, that America's defining physical characteristics include great, sweeping flat plains. Those obviously are not in the Northeast, but I sure hope they come soon... Ohio? Pennsylvania, pretty much, is permanently out of the running as a bicyclist's paradise.

Day 6 - Kane, PA

The day is done.
104 miles, 12 of which was a detour.
You know when you go to a movie with certain expectations and then the movie isn't quite that? The bike trip hasn't been like that exactly, but it has been much tougher than one might anticipate.

Day 5 - Wellsboro, PA

We wish it could be called "Swellsboro." Today the body started to fall apart, not to mention the still-pins-and-needles fingers. Too too too long on the bike. Too many hours. Very difficult day. Today's fortune: Mountains, headwind, fatigue don't for good cycling make. I think tomorrow will be a tell-tale day for the quality and length of the rest of the trip.

Day 4 - Tunkhannock, PA

The first time I was in Pennsylvania was in 1996. I was in one of two vans loaded to the gills headed on an overnight drive from Boone, NC to New York City. It was part of some trip a first-year college class I was in was taking. I woke early in the morning to find Pennsylvania - with mountains as silhouettes. I looked over to Amanda from Pittsburgh and said, "Pennsylvania looks like the moon with trees."

Today PA felt like that. Hard, slow, grinding day. All's well that ends well, though - and Tunkhannock, a nice, old town, is drenched in sunshine.

First American Bicycle-Sharing Program

Day 3: Milford, Pennsylvania

In September 2007, Frommer's Budget Travel named Milford, Pennsylvania, second on its list of "Ten Coolest Small Towns in America." From what we can see through the rain and fog, it seems pretty nice.

Although a planned "short" day, it was a tough day. (Eric: "Thanks for nearly killing me on State Bike Route 9, New York!") Rains and 45 degrees throughout - along with lots of shivering. An italian lentil dinner was the critical factor in helping get through the day's ride. High in iron and carbohydrates!

This evening, we drive back up to Poughkeepsie to be on Vassar College radio.

Day 2

Windsor Locks, CT to Poughkeepsie, NY. 93 miles.
Thoughts: auspicious start with broken valve stem and front derailleur (to tired to check spelling). messed up waffle iron. great weather again. lots of roadkill...rabbit, 2 birds, skunk, unidentified, squirrel. terrible roads in eastern New York, though little to no traffic. Tired but okay. Unreliable internet connection making this post difficult and shorter than expected. Final thought - bicycling is really fun downhill and with the wind....otherwise, it can be extremely difficult. With a capital E.
Final final thought: Yesterday's sunburn still burning. Tomorrow onwards to Milford, PA...then driving back to Poughkeepsie for the radio show. Eric has created the coolest VIDEO for We Add Up...more soon.

Day 1 Ends

Thank you to everyone who came out to Amory Park this morning for the bike trip send-off / 30th birthday celebration. Special thanks to Theresa for organizing it. The weather was beautiful and the food was great. I don't think she was responsible for both?!?! (Actually, I was responsible for the weather -- Eric.)

Katie and Jordan did the entire ride today in rock star fashion. It was supposed to be ~ 99.5 miles, but ended up being 108.6 miles due to a late-ride missed turn. Who knew northeastern CT was so hilly? The major casualty of the day is my left leg, which is badly sunburned. Soon to bed to rest the leg and body. .... Poughkeepsie tomorrow. ps Today's We Add Up video clip, which should be posted sometime in the next week or so was dedicated to the action: "Bike"....maybe tomorrow's will be "Pass It On" on the campus of Vassar...?

Sub-Three Hour

Yesterday, six days before the bike trip begins, we watched the women's Olympic marathon trials loop back and forth between Boston and Cambridge. Seeing the 146 women all still in one, peloton-esque pack rise over the Mass Ave bridge was pretty magical. Deena Kastor won in convincing fashion, coming from about two minutes behind to take the lead with ~ 2.5 miles to go. A few years ago (before her name was widely known - and before she was a Kastor) while jogging in Grant Park in Chicago, a friend of mine and I bumped into Deena and had a brief, friendly hello. She was sweet....didn't even stop her watch.

In about an hour, the 112th Boston Marathon will be run to nearly perfect conditions: 45-55 degrees and overcast skies with minimal headwind. Two friends of mine have their pace set for beating Lance Armstrong. I say: watch out for his posse.

Bike Around the Globe