Breaking News June 26, 2005 9:00 pm EST: Bob just called. A woman marched up to him in a restaurant where he was eating dinner and said "I know you! From Suffield!" It was Carla Mancini, from the class of 1993. She has been living in Missoula, Montana since 1997 and loves it!
Bob is having a wonderful time. Temperatures have been in the 70s. They rode through a long stretch of construction on June 25. Bob says the RVs don't give them much room. The group is in the Rocky Mountains at 3000 feet.
The group has had several 100 mile days. Bob had one more than the others; he missed a turn and rode several miles out of his way. Fortunately, he checked his GPS, realized his mistake, and returned to the correct route. His little foray put him over 100 miles for the day.
One of the advantages to riding with this group is that they have a bike mechanic on staff. Bob's bike wasn't shifting quite right, so he had the mechanic, Uri, look at it Friday night. Uri said it was just dirty and gave the shifters and gears a good cleaning. Bob says the bike is working MUCH better. Uri says the bike can loose up to 15 percent efficiency when dirty.
The group is staying in schools and colleges at this time.
Sunday is a day of rest for everyone. The Cycle America's cross-country tour is actually made up of nine week-long tours. Bob says about half of the group is going all the way to Boston. Others will join them, ride for a week or two and then drop off.
Bob is quite taken with two men riding a tandum bike. It is a 55+ year old guy riding with his 72 year old father! Bob is going to take pictures and I will post them as soon as I receive them. Bob's PC cable for his camera will catch up with him in Aston, next Friday. I should start receiving pictures soon after that.
