The Date Is Set

It is t-minus 48 days and counting as we have set the date for the start of our journey to Maine. June 17th, a Sunday, is now official and I expect to take 16 days to cross the border from New Hampshire into Kittery. The date was moved back, moved up and shaken all about because of the uncertainty of a couple of events we might still be working. The last of the three possibles is at Fort Lauderdale Country Club on June 15th so we just said if we get that one, great. If not, we will leave on Sunday anyway.
That works out better as well because now I can contact the Jacksonville bicycling clubs and ask if they would join me as I start out from their area.
Also am planning two fundraisers -- one at Elite Bicycle Store in Miami on June 8th and one in Jacksonville on the 16th.
It hasn't stopped raining since Saturday afternoon and more of the same is scheduled for Tuesday.
I guess that is what the trainer is for -- riding indoors and going nowhere. Already have close to 100 miles on the trainer since friend Bob Wechsler brought it over last month.

What a Wash Out

The weekend started out with low expectations because of a weather system which seemed to be parked over South Florida. Saturday the radar at 6 a.m. showed showers offshore and somehow, we were able to get to Key Biscayne and back to Kendall without any rain, though the rains overnight had soaked the area. I left Joe to head south to Black Point to see if I could get in 70 miles but when I arrived at Deering Estate, the mist turned into sprinkles and every where I looked -- south and west -- cars were coming with wipers and headlights on. Not a good sign. So, I cut it short and got home before the sky dropped, finishing up 54 miles.
Sunday I was not riding because of an event we had scheduled in Broward but once again, the radar showed the entire area covered in reds and greens (rains). The event was finally postponed until the end of May and as I sit and write this before noon, we are now under a flood watch. It hasn't stopped raining since about 4 this morning.
Probably will get on the trainer this afternoon and watch some television and ride for an hour.

A routine 60-miler

Last weekend was the MS ride here in South Florida and Saturday's weather was so bad with heavy winds and rain coming down sideways, the first day was cancelled. As was my training.
Sunday was windy but none of my guys decided to ride but I went out and rode the usual route, even sneaking into Cape Florida State Park and taking a break at the Key Biscayne Lighthouse.
But on the way out of the island, a small group of about 12 slid past me at a comfortable 18-20 mph pace and I asked their destination. Deering. So, as we headed directly into the wind going south, I hid behind and sometimes inside the group and rode to Deering Estate. The short ride to the house completed a 60-mile trip and when I got home, I discovered Allison had come up from Key West for a couple of hours and it was a great surprise.
Because of an event Sunday, I will only ride one day this weekend and hope to latch on to another group and do 60 or more again.

Two Months Away

Still unsure of the exact date we are leaving even though we are about two months from departure. Our friend Kenny from Nike in Orlando might get us involved in two tournaments the week of June 10th and we might also have an event in Fort Lauderdale on the Friday we are supposed to be in Jacksonville. I think it will all work out in the next couple of days.
Right now, the route has us working hard the first couple of days -- 120 miles the first day and about 100 the second so we can quickly scoot across Georgia and get to Myrtle Beach, SC. Then it will be about 80 miles the next couple of days. We plan on taking 2 days on the Outer Banks even though it is just 100 miles so we can relax, do a bit of tourist stuff before taking three more days to get to my brother's house in New Jersey. Once past Manhattan, the mileage drops signficantly as the elevation changes come into play. But for those who live in South Florida who know it is 250 miles from Miami to Orlando, the distance from New York to Boston is just 200 miles so even if it takes me 4 days to do it, we will still be able to finish up in about 15 days.

Windy Is Not Just an Association Song

Sidekick Joe Rodriguez and myself hit the roads today thinking that the weather will surely drench us before finishing the ride to Key Biscayne. We were wrong, beating it back to Kendall before the rains came about 5 minutes after we were home. But the ride was one of extremes -- with wind gusts up to 30 mph on the key, you can image what it was like going into it and what it was like the other way. I love the expression -- let the wind be at your back.
The top of the KB bridge we were struggling at about 11 mph but the other bridge-- Bear Cut -- I was out of gears and rolling, if you call it, at 7 mph. Needless to say it was windy. The white caps on the ocean were large enough to surf on. And with the wind coming at us from 11 o'clock, we had trouble staying in our lane as it buffetted us to the side.
Of course, coming back down the KB bridge, Joe hit 48 mph without really working and I was at 42.7.
We received a gift certificate over the weekend from the ferry company which will transport us from Delaware to New Jersey. It won't cover the entire cost, but I think we can probably find $12 somewhere to pay the difference.
Waiting on word from a national hotel chain to be our sponsor for the trip.

If You Don't Ask......

Welcome Seastreak to the 2012 Cure for Cancer Tour. The ferry company which carries thousands of commuters from New Jersey into Manhattan each day, has agreed to provide me a one-way pass for my ride in June. While the ticket is less than $30, it is the donation which counts. They wrote to me this morning and said "your undertaking is commendable" and that they would be happy to help me get to my destination.
The ferry carries only passengers so Bobbie is going to have to drive around the city, across the George Washington Bridge and meet me somewhere above Manhattan as we enter the final leg of the trip to Maine.

Personal Best

One thing is for sure with all of the miles I'm doing -- I'm actually getting pretty competent on the bike. Today I hit a personal best on the flat -- 29.7 mph. Our little group was drafting behind this one guy with me being last in the line when this pack of about 100 riders came whizzing up next to us. We were about 21 at that point -- the pack was about 26. When the last rider cleared me, I had some energy left (the rest stop was 2 miles away), I pulled out and caught the pack right as we went past the Key Biscayne golf course. I looked down and saw the speed was 29.7. Haven't broken 30 on the flat yet and for sure without the big group blocking the little wind there was, I wouldn't have been there either. But it was a great feeling to accelerate from 21 to 29 -- my bike handled it extremely well.