Hello All!
Man! what a ride! I can't believe it, 4,194.9 miles from New York City to Los Angeles, no rest days, hot and cool, rain or shine, wind and hills, flats and thrills. What a ride. It still hasn't really set in, I guess I was so stoked at the beginning that I really made the 42 riders, it all seemed surreal and too good to be true. Well, it wasn't exactly a luxurious bike tour across America with all the bells and whistles, it was still hard work even though it was supported. You could think of a million excuses not to ride your bike every morning for 58 days straight. I'm tired. It's boring. Today's gonna be a hard one. I did it yesterday. Yada yada yada.
But I did it. Every morning I woke up and I told myself I could do it and I got on my bicycle. The first 2-3 weeks were probably the hardest. The first week was really hard but I was so excited and impressed with all the miles I was doing, it kept me occupied. By week 2 and 3 your bottom has never felt so wonderful and your knees and legs couldn't be more thrilled you signed up for this!
Riding from San Diego to San Clemente was really cool. We were along the coast a lot, and that was my first glimpse of the Pacific Ocean, which just solidified going Coast to Coast for me. I didn't get to dip my wheels in the Atlantic or the Pacific, but I don't really care, I've seen both via bicycle on this trip and that is enough for me. The last 2 days weren't easy days either. I was thinking they were gonna be pretty short, but they were both in the 70 mile range or so. The cue sheet on the last day was so messed up and confusing that everyone that didn't SAG added a good 10 miles. Yep. You think it's the last day? You think it's only 65 miles today? NOPE. Get lost at mile 65 and realize that you still have a good 10-15 left in an unfamiliar, busy, busy town, ugh. That was so frustrating and it completely broke my spirits. Being completely lost in the city limits of LA, my iPhone got pretty messed up from the heat and abuse of the tour so it was not dependable at all. Here I am at the Long Beach Airport, 20 miles from the end, and I still DO NOT understand this cue sheet. So I called Nick and Blaise (b/c at least the phone part of the iPhone works!) and between the two of them I remembered enough street names and verbal directions to get back on route. Oh Lordy. But it's over. I made my way to the Holiday Inn LAX, thinking that I'm dfl, and Mr. Roy is about a block in front of me! And he hits all the lights and I get all the reds, and Roy totally beats me to the finish line on the last day. Haha. But I wasn't the last one, several people came trickling in from the North and South route after I checked in and got settled.
The last day was very stressful for me. As soon as I arrived, I had to get all my bags and everything I've accumulated over the last 2 months out of the van and truck and get everything ready to go tonight, so I could leave first thing at 5:30 am in the morning :/ So I grabbed all my gear, I took a quick celebratory swig of whiskey from Chris's bottle (for him of course,) I got a bike box, and I started packing up my bike and minimizing all my stuff, trying to be as efficient as possible. It took my hours and hours to pack up my bike, people were constantly coming in and out of our room, drinking, celebrating, hootin' and hollering. I took a short break to eat some pizza. I final got Fedex worked out for my bike, after no help at all from my Tour Managers that rudely told me I was "on my own," apparently making it to LA wasn't just for us riders. And I took off for Mountain Bike Oregon the next morning. Which was awesome!
It's good to be back in Lititz. Not that I want to stay here forever, but there's nothing wrong with the fresh smell of chocolate in the air on a warm, sunny afternoon. I got in Monday around 11:15, after my final flight was delayed over an hour. The right engine wouldn't start. My little Campy missed me! and Isabel told me I've lost a lot of weight, which is always nice for a lady to hear! I'll have to tell my Pop that. I can't wait to go to Cafe Chocolate and see Selina, it's the best chocolate and coffee in the world, and I'm extremely confident in saying that. So if you're ever in Lititz, PA check out Cafe Chocolate and the Wilbur Chocolate factory. They're the only reason I still live here!
I got Belle in on Tuesday morning, not even a full 24 hours after I got in! FedEx mistakenly overnighted my bike across the country. I hope that doesn't cost me a fortune! I was glad to see my bike in so soon though, didn't give them enough time to beat it up at all. So I unpacked and built up my bike, gave her a full tune up, tightened and lubed, and she runs like a brand new DREAM machine! Love her!
So the moral of this story is basically this: RIDE YO BIKE! Yep. Ride your bicycle across the country, everyone in the world, every day for 2 months. Ok, maybe not that drastic. But really, ride a bike most preferably, or just do what you love. Life is short, don't put off things you've always wanted to do. I learned a lot from all of our various riders. We came in all shapes and sizes, we were all different ages, from a 21 year old female to Roy at age 73! From our hardcourt bicycle messengers to brand new cyclists that have only been cycling a year, to everything in between. I learned a lot about people, life, the road, bicycles, maintenance, fitness, food, and the humongousest state ever: Texas.
I really want to thank a couple people that made this tour possible..... First and foremost, I want to thank 42 Below and Javelin for coming up with this idea and sponsoring me to have a once in a lifetime opportunity. I can say first hand that 42 Below Vodka is delicious and you should try some. I was also thrilled to ride for such a good cause: The Alliance for Biking and Walking. I also want to thank Josh at Cycles Plus in Huntington, Long Island, he outfitted me with my wonderful bike, a Specialized Tricross (Belle,) he did a 3D Body Geometry fit, and totally hooked me up with all my spare parts, clothing, equipment, and everything we could wrangle our brains for that I might need, that I really never ended up using! I highly recommend Cycles Plus if you're in that area, they know their stuff, and they carry the best. A big thank you to all my friends and family that supported me: Gabe, Terry, Nora, Pam, Andrea, Megan, Josh, Selina, Thomas, Shelby, Christie and Brian, James and MaryRea, my little nieces Maci and Ana, and all others I might have missed, but were still there in spirit.
Most of all, I want to thank my wonderful Parents. Their endless love, support, and encouragement for all the crazy shit I do keeps me going. I love you guys so much, and I couldn't have done anything without you. You're the BEST parents I could've asked for.
And thank you Isabel, you've been a great supporter. Thank you for logging my miles, updating my blog every day, giving me motivational speeches on days I didn't feel like riding, and not subletting my room while I was gone for 2 months!
And a BIG thank you to my Trusty Tricross, Belle. She logged every mile of every day with me, good times and in bad, she took care of me and I took care of her. Great bike.
Thank you all for reading, as Nick would say "I like you all."
Ride on!
Francesca/Franimal/Chesca/Fran/Frantasia, etc etc
Stayed tuned though, I'll put up some of my favorite pictures from the trip when I get them all uploaded in the next couple o' days!
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