All my bags are packed . . .

I'm ready to go (home) . . . I think.

For the last seven weeks, my life was reduced to basic needs:

-Food: LOTS of it and ALL the time, and calories and nutritional value were not always the most important factors. Ice cream once or twice a day was not only normal, but desirable! When we found out that we got to eat dinner in a dorm: "OH BOY!!"

-Liquid: all kinds of liquids, and the colder, the better . . . pitchers of water, all you can drink pop, more chocolate milk than I've drunk in my whole life (for recovery purposes only, of course!), weak Gatorade which was de riguer at all Big Ride water stops . . .

-Shelter: A dry tent was home. Staying in a dorm room was like staying at a four-star hotel.

-Cue Sheets: These were our daily guides for living. Where were we, where are we, and where are we going? Look at the cue sheet. What day is it? The cue sheet will say. The burning question that all Big Riders would ask each morning was, "What time will cue sheets be handed out?"

-Outlets: When a Big Rider arrives in camp each afternoon, one of the first things he/she looks for (sometimes before searching for food, liquid, and a tent space) are electrical outlets. Any available outlet would quickly have cell phones, Garmins, and/or camera batteries plugged into it. Hordes of internet addicts would be huddled with their laptops around all available power sources.

-Towels: Yes, towels. Most of us used quick-drying camp towels, which only have one redeeming quality. They dry quickly. They dry themselves quickly. They do not dry a person quickly or satisfactorally. It's more like smearing the water around on your wet body, so any time we had a chance to use a real towel, it was a luxury!


Now, I'm at BWI (Baltimore airport), waiting for my flight home, and I've found an outlet. I'm fighting the urge to drink chocolate milk and eat massive quantities of high quality airport food. When I get home, will I be able to handle clean bath towels and a real bed? And all the outlets . . .


This group of 37 Big Riders was diverse. Our ages ranged from 19 to 69, we came from all over the country (Ash and Pauline came from Canada!), and we came with all levels of cycling abilities and experiences, but we all had one thing in common: The desire to do something amazing and to raise funds for a worthy organization.

We all accomplished our goals! We ALL rode all the way across the country on our bicycles!!!

I tended to ride with the same group of riders most days, and their pictures were featured often in this blog. There were many other riders, though, who were too fast for me, so other than hearing an "On your left, Diana," I rarely saw them during the day. Here they are:

Ed (and Mark)
Bob, Darrell, Cliff, and Bruce
Steven, DeWayne, and Chad
Noah
Austin and Rueben
Simon
James
The two Pattys: Patty Campbell and Patty Harm
Stephanie
Greg
Kevin and Jim
and Brendan

It was an amazing ride. Thank you all!

Day 48! The Final Day of the Big Ride!

Clarksburg, MD to Washington, DC - 55.7 miles, 4:24

Other than the fact that I woke WAY too early, surprised to still be in my tent, the day started out perfectly! It was dry, and there wasn't even any dew, so we were all able to pack up dry tents. That was important to me, because I knew that as soon as we reached the finish line I'd be putting my gear bag on the truck to be taken to Seattle. I didn't want to pick up a mildewy tent!

Our cue sheet said that this was a 53 mile ride, but we had time deadlines today, so there was no stopping. I didn't even take any pictures along the route. I didn't want to be late!

We rode along back roads (as usual) past farms, large houses, really large horse stables, and up and down Pennsylvania-like hills as we pedaled toward our final destination. As we crossed the Beltway (the freeway loop around suburban Washington, D.C.) the farmland disappeared and the houses became even more mansion-like. No surprise -- we were along River Road, heading toward Potomac, MD.

It was a beautiful, unseasonably cool Saturday morning, and as we were heading south, we passed large groups of cyclists heading in the other direction, out for their weekend rides. Some were friendly, but others were too cool to say "hi" to us. I wanted to ask, "Hey, how many miles did YOU ride this week, and where were YOU last Sunday?", but I realized that I didn't know where I was last Sunday, so I kept quiet. (I still have Big Ride-induced brain damage, and I'll need to check this blog or my old cue sheets to find out what I did this summer.)

Anyway, soon we reached the Capital Crescent Trail, a great pedestrian/bike path that was a former railroad. After letting the locals know that I wasn't from around here ("Which way to D.C.?"), we were off! After weeks of riding along quiet rural roads, cycling on a trail packed with runners, walkers, cyclists, baby strollers, dogs on leashes, and government workers was challenging . . .

On that trail there is NO Welcome to Washington, D.C. sign, so I have no real proof that I'm really here. You'll just have to take my word for it.

I'm in Washington, D.C. (There. It's on the internet now, so it's got to be true, right?)

So, the trail finally ended and we worked our way along busy D.C. streets to the Old Post Office Pavilion for a really great lunch provided by former Big Rider, Costa.
Big Riders enjoy their final Big Ride lunches.

Then, it was time to ride the few blocks to the finish line. Since he'd ridden before, Ash led a large group of us. Hey! Where were the paparazzi? Why were the streets not closed? Wasn't this a National Holiday? The Big Riders had arrived!

There was a small group of enthusiastic friends and family there who cheered as we arrived at the finish line. Charlotte, my good friend from college who now lives in Northern Virginia, was there to meet me.

I did it!

We did it! (I'm in the third row, on the left, still wearing my helmet.)

The day was a full one. I did some sightseeing with Charlotte,went to Ash and Pauline's Big Ride reception in their hotel room, then went to dinner with dozens of other Big Riders and their families.

It's hard to believe that it's over.

Day 47!

Gettysburg, PA to Clarksburg, MD - 50.4 miles, 3:53

It's our penultimate day of riding on the Big Ride!

Since we had a short ride, we had a late breakfast (7:00, instead of 6:00), and we left the campground at about 8:00.

It was a short, pleasant ride to the Mason-Dixon line, which is also the Maryland/Pennsylvania border.

You may not be able to see it, but at the bottom of the Maryland sign it says "Mason." Janet, Tracy, Barb, and I are now in our 12th state!
The route through the early part of the ride took us through gentle rolling hills, past small farms. Sam, Tracy, and Janet are enjoying the ride.
There was a nice little coffee shop in Taneytown, MD, and many of the riders stopped there for coffee. I, of course, had a hot chocolate! Here are Douglas, Jim, and Joe,
Catie, Letty, and Rachel,

Liz and Tracy,
and Liz, Rosie, Tracy, Sam, and Barb.
Our "big" city of the day was Frederick, MD, which has many old, historic buildings and some narrow, residential streets.
After we braved the traffic and got out of congestion, we were back in the country, riding along a hilly road that had almost no shoulder. It was beautiful, but a little scary, since the road was well-used by trucks. Some views of the Maryland countryside:
We passed a lot of "Washington slept here" signs.
We're now in Montgomery County, which is where I lived when I lived in Maryland . . . many, many years ago. I never thought I'd come back by bicycle!

We're at the Little Bennett Park campground for our last night of camping on the Big Ride, and it's wooded and really nice. It reminds me a lot of the campground at Easton, our first night on the Big Ride.

Tomorrow we ride into Washington, DC!

Day 46!

Rest day in Gettysburg, PA!

Our campground is a couple miles from town, so to get food on our rest day we had to either walk or ride our bikes. I've had a rule about not riding my bike on my rest days (why? because I need a BREAK from that bike seat), but today I had to break it in order to not starve.

Barb, Darrell, and I got our tired legs to pedal us to town for breakfast. We ate at the Lincoln Diner.

After breakfast, Barb and I walked around the downtown area of Gettysburg for a bit. It's got so many great old, historic buildings. There are signs all around downtown that tell and show pictures of what happened at that certain location during the Civil War. Also, any building that was standing during that time also has a small plaque that says "Civil War, 1863." There's a lot to see in downtown Gettysburg.
After Barb and I got some food for both lunch (from Subway) and dinner (from a grocery store), we got back on our bikes for the slow ride back to camp. After lunch, Tracy, Janet, Barb, and I signed up for a 2-hour bus tour of the Gettysburg battlefields. I never knew that the fighting took place over such a large area or over so many days: July 1-3, 1863. The battlefields have been very well preserved, so you can almost imagine what it was like at the time. It was really interesting!

We got back to our cabin minutes, if not seconds, before a strong thunderstorm passed through the area. Some of the young guys were having fun in the rain, as well as zipping up tents of those who were not there. They probably saved a lot of things from getting wet!

Our cabin was called the Silverhorse Saloon. It was great fun!

Janet, posing on the roof!
My cabin mates and I had a great picnic dinner of bread, cheeses, meat, carrots with dip, salad, wine, apples, and cookies. Here are Tracy, Rosie, Barb, Janet, and Liz.
Rosie's posing with Janet's little Eastern Bluebird, EB.
Here we all are in front of our cabin. Don't ask me why we're posing like that! (Tracy, Liz, Rosie, Barb, me, Janet)

Thanks to Tony for taking pictures for all of us. He was juggling six cameras!
Here is the Half Century Club of the Big Ride. These are all the women who are nearly 50 or 50+. Barb, 55, Tracy, 50 on 8/10, Liz, 51, Rosie, 52, Janet, 52, Pauline, 50 on 8/28, and me, 50. They're a great group of women that I'm lucky to know!

Day 45!

Bedford, PA to Gettysburg, PA - 104.6 miles, 8:50

Our day started early, about 4:30 AM, when a brief, but powerful rainstorm passed through our campground. After about half an hour it stopped, and we were able to pack up our wet tents and start our big day.

Our cue sheet said, "Huge day on the bike. This is the 'final exam'." We'd been told all along how difficult this day would be, and some people who did the ride last year said (in their blogs) that some hills were so steep that people had to walk up them! So, I was worrying about it. Not that I fear hills, or anything . . .

I rode with Patty and Tracy, my great riding partners! We all did it! And, I did it! I passed the final exam. I rode up all the hills without stopping or walking! What does this mean? Am I now so amazingly strong that nothing can stop me?

Or, did they change the route a bit from last year?

Some views from the morning.
(Yeah, they changed the route, but let me believe that I'm ready for the Tour de France for a bit, please?)

"The first 40 miles features several big climbs and treacherous descents." It also featured a treacherous ride through the second busiest truck stop area in the country, Breezewood, PA. Sam and Janet are enjoying the break and the traffic.

This was an absolutely beautiful ride, and the scenery was amazing. This part of western Pennsylvania is so pretty.

Here's Patty at the top of one of our big climbs.

Part of our ride took us along Grist Mill Road and Cowans Gap State Park. It was cool, shady, and so peaceful.
We also rode through several small towns. They're starting to look more and more colonial, with the houses close together and right near the street.

When we were nearing Gettysburg, we crossed the Appalachian Trail! I didn't see any hikers.

We're in Gettysburg now. We're staying at the Artillery Ridge Campground, and six of us (Barb, Janet, Tracy, Rosie, Liz, and I) are staying in one of the cabins. It's a nice break from the tent.

There is so much history here. Riding toward the campground, we passed all sorts of historic sites, cemeteries, monuments, plaques, etc. I hope to get out and see some of it tomorrow, my last rest day!