Day 51
Final Wrap Up

When we started in Astoria, a few had an idea of what to expect (several had ridden across the country with us before), but the ones who had never tackled a ride of this magnitude didn't have a clue of what it was going to be like.  I told them the first day that the fantasy of riding a bicycle across the country and the reality were two different things...I think they know what I meant now.  But no matter what they expected, they all grew as individuals as they defined new limits to their comfort zones, both physically and mentally, enduring beyond what they thought possible as they each faced the challenges of the ride in their own way. 

Riding a bicycle across the US is quite a personal accomplishment, but there's more to it than that.  I like to say there's no better way to see the country than from the seat of a bicycle.  You see so much more than driving a car, especially since most of us drive on boring interstates.  I wish I had a better sense of expression so I could describe what it's like, but I'll try my best.  From a bicycle, you see more but you also absorb the country...you smell the fragrances of the early morning as you pedal across the countryside, you hear the sounds of nature instead of the blaring car radio or the wind blast around your vehicle, you endure every emotion depending on which way the wind is blowing that day, you stand in awe at the vastness of the west, you feel every subtle change in terrain, and  you get stronger physically and emotionally everyday as you pedal your bike through every imaginable situation mother nature and man can throw at you.  What can I say except there's nothing like it and for those who have the will to experience it...those that do will forever be changed for the better.

The best part of the ride was not the fact they reached their destination, but rather it was the journey that got them there.  It was the experiences they had along the way and the relationships they developed with people they met along the way and with their new cycling family.  For me it was meeting people like Clarence and Sandra Reeves who owned the tractor collection in Michigan.  I've stopped every year since I first stopped to take a photo of the tractor they had sitting in their yard in 2000.  We just have to stop to say hello every year and to let them know how much their hospitality and friendship has meant to us as we travel through.  Sadly, this year we learned he has developed ALS and is in failing health.  Another reminder that life is so precious and short and should be lived to the fullest while we still have it.  Our prayers will be with them as the memory of their friendship will last forever.  Another example may be seeing the magnificent Grand Teton and realizing just how insignificant we all are in the grand scheme of things...a mere speck on the million year time line it took for it to develop.  Plus, it will be there eons after we all are gone.  Or it may be seeing the vast, rugged country our forefathers crossed with covered wagon to start new lives on the west coast and in some small sense trying to realize what may have driven them to give up all that was safe and familiar to face the unknown dangers that lay ahead.  There were thousands of examples just like this all along the way...and while riding a bike you have time to pay attention. 

I've done over two dozen of these rides and Barbara has done almost as many so why do we keep coming back?  We enjoy helping others achieve their goal of riding across country and we truly enjoy meeting the people.  What could be better than traveling around the country every summer and making friendships for a lifetime?  When I see the emotions displayed at the final meal or the tears that flow when they reach the beach, I know we're doing something that's important.  It's hard to describe the feeling I have when a grown man cries his eyes out on my shoulder while expressing his joy of finishing the ride...it makes it all worth the effort. 

As they go their separate ways, it will take them awhile to fully appreciate what they have accomplished but it will sink in eventually as they reflect on the past 7 weeks.  Tomorrow or the next day when they return home they will be flooded with questions from friends and family who will give them no more than about 5 minutes before their eyes will glaze over.  Family and friends will never fully understand why we would do such a thing unless they experience it for themselves.  Each rider had different reasons for riding and each rider got something different out of the experience; however, they all were affected in a positive way.  I will miss this bunch, they have been our family for the last 7 weeks and I realize we will never be together again as a group, but we will see many of them again on future rides...hope so.

I hope you have enjoyed following us across the country and I hope you will check back in on our ride down the West Coast starting in a couple of weeks.  I have gotten tons of feedback about the journal and I appreciate those who let me know they are following...believe me, that's what keeps me focused on keeping it up.  So in closing, on behalf of ABB and the friendly on road staff; Jeff, Jim, Deb, Karen, Barb, and myself, I hope you are blessed with good fortune and you are able to come join us sometime...you'll be glad you did.   M