Day 69

THE FINISH LINE: SAN FRANCISCO!!!!

Miles Biked: 55

Wow......I biked to San Francisco.....As I sit here from a hotel near Yosemite Park stealing their Internet, up the street from my cabin with no electricity...I continue to play back this summer over and over again. It all started with an ambitious Corey Morenz in early November who asked me: "Want to bike across America this summer" and me being naive and stupid......said "sure, why not." Back in November it was just a pipe dream. It seemed so easy to say yes. I was looking for an excuse to put off the real world as long as possible and biking over some of Americas largest mountains in blistering heat just sounded like the perfect idea. I remember sitting there in a heap of exhaustion on June 2nd in a beautiful church in Ridgefield Connecticut after a 45 mile bike ride asking myself 1) What the hell had I gotten myself into and 2) Was I actually going to be able to average 70 miles a day, cross the Appalachians, the headwinds of the mid west, the Rockies, the desert, the sierras, and everything in between. Well I did it! I, along with 22 of my comrades, can now say we spent a summer biking across America.

Day 69 brought us out Napa, through amazing wine country and into the Bay Area. The biking Gods decided to mess with me one more day giving me a flat in my tire while I slept, and another, 10 miles into the ride, to give me a grand total of 24 flats on the trip. It took me 30 miles, but I caught up with the front of the pack just before Sausalito.....our regrouping station. From there I ate a delicious burger and looked at the Ocean for the first time since we sat on a beach in Connecticut during orientation. A group of us sat giddy eyed looking into the San Francisco from across the bay in shock. "Wow, we biked across the country".

We waited as everyone filed into town, met by the van......and started out as one large group towards the bridge a couple miles away. Adrenalin filled by body the closer and closer we got to the bridge. I was so excited for the bridge that just before seeing it I hit Emma's back tire. Luckily for me it was a slight hit and she didn't lose any control. As we approached the bridge we realized the side usually designated just for bikers was closed, meaning all traffic had to go on a single side of the bridge. As we realized this.....I also realized my foot would not come out of my cleat which made me chuckle.......since this problem has been the reason for numerous 0MPH falls, and I could picture myself falling on the bridge (luckily it didn't happen). As we crossed the bridge I just kept saying over and over "wow, I biked across the country". The bridge was covered with tourists who looked baffled at all of our hooting and hollering.......some cheered even though I am pretty sure they had no idea what they were cheering for. Then it was there.......the end of the bridge......with screaming parents and family members.

I had received a phone call from my parents in Saulsalito telling me they were stuck in traffic and would most likely miss my bridge crossing. Amazingly they made it to the bridge on time.....but drove to the wrong end......and watched us slowly bike by. In any event, when I arrived at the end of the bridge my parents were no where to be found but out of the mist a man approached me.....asked if I was Ben Handelman.....and I squealed with joy. My Uncle Bruce who I haven't seen since I was maybe 14 had taken a flight from LA early in the day, unexpectedly, and had been hanging around the bridge all day waiting for me to arrive! It was one the best surprises I could have asked for. My parents eventually made it to the right side of the bridge, congratulated me....and we all headed down to the Beach so the celebration could get underway. We started with a ceremonial champagne spraying. Every time I looked at someone, champagne was shot directly into my eyeballs. We then dipped our tire wheels into the San Francisco Bay, and followed that with a full body flop. HBC ended with everyone smelling a little of salt water and cheap stale champagne. After a night of shoving 20 people into a cheap hotel room to party, we all departed our own ways. The next day I explored the city with a few HBCers, came within 10 feet of catching a record breaking Barry Bonds home run, and just like that my HBC experience came to an end.


The experience of HBC hasn't fully set in yet, but already I can see changes in how I perceive things. I know any goal can be reached, even when you think it seems impossible (4,200 miles....wow). I see America a little differently now after seeing everything from the happiest people in the world in New Harmony, Indiana.....to those towns dealing with meth addicts and unemployment like Gypsum, Kansas. I found out how generous church folk are.....and how many different kinds of lasagna they can cook. I found out how you can't take any moment in life for granted. One of our riders is still seriously injured and has finally made it home to Denver to recover. I think about him every day. Most importantly I found how taking risks will bring you rewards that would otherwise be unobtainable. HBC has shown me places I would never go, introduced me to amazing people I would never have met, and helped me get my fat ass into shape. I lost 20 pounds on the trip....but more importantly I lost an old perception of America. Thank you to everyone who made this summer possible and amazing.....and thank you to those who kept up to date in my progress (as well as fellow riders) across the good ole U-S- of A. Well......I've put off the real world long enough.....but now I can go in saying I'm heading in with a better perspective. Wish me luck!

Day 66,67,68

Napa is not Just Auto Parts

Miles biked: 53
71
60

Hello from the wine capitol of the world...Napa, California! In 24 hours I will have already crossed the Golden Gate Bridge and be swimming in the Pacific Ocean. I hear it is cold this time of year.....but with the amount of champagne I plan to be drenched in....I'll need a quick bath!

From South Lake Tahoe we climbed from the lake up to 7,300ft....our last high climb on the trip. From there, it was a vacation to Placerville. We dropped over 5,000 feet in less than 50 miles! Our trip took us along Great American River which Mr. Muha informed was the start of the gold rush. Along the route Pat and I hit our final mile milestone......4,000 miles biked. The mark came in a construction site. Pat and I slowed to chalk our accomplishment when a little construction car pulled up with two burly men inside. The door swung open while I was chalking the "Biked" and he said in his construction like tone "What the F@#$% are you guys doing". When I told him how far we had come he responded with "well....I guess I can't stop you....just don't get hit by the heavy equipment."

Placerville was a small town that is only known for the days they used to hang people in it. But my definition of small town has changed.....so I guess we could call it a small town with people that actually live there. From Placerville we headed down the hillside of the Sierras to Sacramento! The ride continued along the Great American River which took us to this amazing bike path. The bike path was over 30 miles long and Pat, Corey, Collin, the Giz, Lisa, and I decided to double pace line. We flew around the curves and small hills into downtown Sacramento where we had lunch. It appeared to me that in the .5 seconds I was in the city....there wasn't much there except the capitol. I'm sure I can be proven wrong though. We ended our day in the college town of Davis.

In Davis I found a beer that had 9.8% alcohol content that would make the entire state of Utah faint. The town had a little downtown section, but the highlight of the night came when a homeless man temporarily stole our food cooler which was outside. Francis chased the cooler down and generously gave up a loaf of bread and honey. The church we were staying at seemed to be a headquarter for the Davis homeless. Pat and company met two who called themselves "T" and "Pantera". What beautiful names.

From Davis we biked to Napa county, home of endless fields of wine. Today's ride took us out of the Central Valley over one of the last mountain ranges we will face....the coastal range. Early in the day I had my 5th fall (all of which have happened while going 1mph or less). As I approached a stop light it turned yellow....I ran through it....and decided to wait on a sidewalk for Pat and Collin who were behind me. As I jumped on the sidewalk I saw there were sprinklers spraying the lawn in front of. I decided to slow down and decide on a path through the H2O. Apparently I thought too long and my bike came to a stop. Before I could unclip from my pedals my body came crashing down onto the soaking wet pavement. To top off the fall, a sprinkler head turned and sprayed me as I laid on the ground with Corey pointing and laughing hysterically. It was a great start to my day. A quick 1,300 ft climb, and an amazing curvy downhill has brought me into downtown Napa where I am California dreaming about the ocean. Wow.....this all ends tomorrow.....including this blog. This summer has been quite the adventure. I think I have experienced every emotion on this trip while getting a pretty good perspective on what America really is! Make sure to check out the grand finale blog in the next few days with TONS of pictures (I promise). I'll see many of you soon!!!! SAN FRANCISCO HERE I COME!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't have new pictures on my computer yet.....so to hold you over, here are some Nevada-Tahoe pictures.

Day 62,63,64,65

CALIFORNIA!

Miles Biked: 75
112!!!!!
105!!!!!
0 (much needed rest day)

Hello from South Lake Tahoe, CALIFORNIA! We have entered our 13th and FINAL state in a bike trip across the United States. While some may simply come to California, we in HBC south are forced to earn it. To get to South Lake Tahoe we biked nearly 220 miles in two days, through brutal headwinds, scorching desert temperatures, and one of the most brutal climbs on the entire trip into the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Somehow I survived and am in a state of ecstasy as I will hit the 4,000 mile mark tomorrow and San Francisco in FOUR DAYS!

From the tiny town of Eureka we headed over a few more mountain passes continuing on the loneliest highway in America to the town of Austin. The scenery continued it's monotonous views. We continued to bike into a headwind (that has been blowing since Utah) and right before we hit Austin we had a 2,000 foot climb.....with a quick downhill to another immediate climb. The whole second peak thing was really unexpected and made everyone a little grumpy going into "town".

Austin wasn't much of a town. Here is the Austin, Nevada Profile:
Population: 400
Number of Gas Stations: 2
Number of Motels/RV Parks: 1 (which is also a Baptist Church.....where we spent the night)
Grocery Stores: ZERO (closest one is back in Eureka)
Closest Walmart/Movie Theatre/Sign of Real Life: 112 miles.....in Austin....our next stop!

We woke up bright and early to beat the desert heat and headwinds. Since we average 15MPH on the bike, there really is no way to beat either of those....but it makes us feel better to wake up before the sun is out. The good news about our ride from Austin to Fallon is we lost a lot of elevation.....the bad news is it gets hotter when you go down. By the end of the day I was biking in Salt Flats through 101 degree temperatures (that's air temp, who knows what the actual temp of the asphalt was). While most of the ride looked like 99% of the rest of Nevada there were some highlights. About 60 miles in, we came across the "shoe tree". The shoe tree is a tree alongside a dried up stream that has hundreds of shoes thrown in it. The locals are not sure why, and I'm not even sure how the tree is even there, considering it's one of about 3 trees along Highway 50. Lisa, Reuben, Sarah, and I stopped to toss some shoes in (from the pile of rotted shoes at the base of the tree). Just before the tree I was discussing with Claire how I wanted to throw my shoes in the grail of where crappy shoes should go. We made a plan to hide my shoes in a bush with chalk markings that no one else would recognize. After going to the tree I didn't see my shoes.....but later Claire informed me she hide them with a large chalked arrow pointing to a bush that read "Ben.....ASS CREAM". I think it is even better I did not find them to confuse motorists until the next time it rains (they average 6 inches a year....it could be there awhile). After I made it to Fallon I dived in the city pool, watched two teenagers make out on the front steps, broke even on a quarter slot machine in the quickie-mart, talked with a church member for 30 minutes about brothels(he did all the talking while I looked for ways out), and called it a night.

From Fallon we headed to CALIFORNIA....but like I said...we had to earn it. The headwinds picked up just outside of Fallon and lasted for the remaining 100 miles. We treked across the capitol, Carson City and then headed South. As I chugged along with all my might to go 12MPH we hit the Sierra Nevadas. From the distance they didn't look any larger than what we had been coming over, but upon closer inspection I realized they went straight up like a cement wall. We headed South for awhile before we started our climb. The pass was built straight into the cliffs and was a 9% grade for 9 miles. The headwinds became so strong going up, there were times I thought I was going to be blown backwards. For people in cars, I must have looked pretty foolish going 4MPH. One car of teenagers even thought it would be funny to hang out their window and bark at me. I gave them a friendly West Virginia wave. Upon reaching the top I cried with joy as it was all downhill to Tahoe. The lake might as well have been the Pacific Ocean. As soon as we crossed the border Lisa exclaimed "wow, people are better looking in California" and after coming through West Virginia, the bible belt, and the desert.....she may be right (better water here).

So here we are in Lake Tahoe. It is amazing this town even exists. They had a devastating forest fire come through earlier this summer that took out over 250 houses. There are plenty of "Thank You Fire Fighter" banners still hanging over pubs and restaurants. Today we relaxed as best we could. I got to sleep in.......till 7:30am. Then we hit the beach and Casino where I lost $20. Tomorrow we will climb out of the Sierras and head into Placerville. From there, we pass Sacramento to the Bay Area and the finish line. Come on legs.....last me four more days!

Thank you everyone for their comments! Those messages made my day!

Day 54,55,56,57,58,59,60,61

Viva Las Vegas

Miles Biked: More than you

Eureka! I'm in Eureka, Nevada! I must apologize to those who may have been wondering where the hell I've been since Green River, Utah. I'm on the loneliest road in America, Route 50. And I'm not just saying that because there is nothing out here...they have self claimed it that title. I have been dealing with no cell phone reception, no Walmarts, very few cars, no trees, and as close to no people as you can get. Before the trip I had pictured a desert from the cartoons that had flat roads and had enormous battles between wild coyotes and road runners. Instead....I have yet to see a cactus and there are mountains, after mountains, after mountains. Just today into Eureka we climbed 4 mountain passes and sit at over 6,000 feet. So much has happened since my last blog, and I'll do the best I can to describe it and still make it down to the showers at the Eureka City Pool.

Day 54 did the best it could to try and kill us. We woke up at 4:15, raced to get our gear packed, and rolled out for our 106 mile day. The trip took us into more ranch country before hitting Capitol Reef National Park in the afternoon. Just after lunch there was a pace lining accident which sent Pat and Chris to the hospital with minor non life threatening injuries.....but it did produce 8 stitches and an awesome Mega man like soft splint. Both were back on their bikes the next day. Not only did we have to bike over 100 miles but we had over 10,000 feet of climbing. The largest hill came at the very end of Capitol Reef at mile 90 and didn't end until our final destination in Torrey.

From Torrey we had a 75 mile day that included about 8,500ft of climbing which felt great on legs which had turned into Jello. The ride however was amazing through Escalante National Park. We traveled up, over, around, and through some amazing red rock canyons. We must have looked good doing it because several tourists stopped along the road to take pictures of me. I thought about it later....and maybe they just have never seen someone who looked as miserable as I did that day.

The next day we had a decent ride to the city of Panguitch. The ride took us to the edge of the touristy part of Utah...so we took advantage by driving to Bryce Canyon (which had passed along our ride). Bryce Canyon is one of those places you need to see in person. The next morning the Panguitch Lions club decided to serve us up some breakfast and a nice old man walked up to Alex. The man was a retired teacher who now writes a little section in the local paper called "The Knot Hole" and he asked the one person you really shouldn't ask for an interview. Alex quickly proclaimed himself the President of the group, and Pat Muha as his Vice President. He wrote down Sam is the oldest member at 32, married, with two kids (he is single and 25). He described how we've eaten 312 pounds of lasagna on our trip. Alex got an email today from the very nice old man.........EVERYTHING was printed.

From Panguitch we said goodbye to the beautiful red rocks and hello to Range country. We headed to Milford in the heat and with a horrible headwind. The scenery hasn't changed much since Milford. We have entered our 12th State Nevada and our final time zone (Pacific). For the past week we have biked along Route 50 which has nothing on it but mountains and ranch land. I have seen very few cows (one was rotting in a field). I'm not even sure what they can eat out here. The heat can be bad, it is dry, and there seems to be a headwind every day.

One of our stops was in Baker, where we ate dinner with the School of the Natural Order. http://www.sno.org The "school" was a community of a group who took on a philosophical view of religion that followed the teachings of Vitvan....a Hindu teacher now dead who moved the school to Baker in 1957. The group believes it is OK to reject God....but you cannot reject the conscious universe. It was an interesting dinner to say the least and a very refreshing break from churches.

From Baker we headed to Ely (eel-E) for our day off. The trip included two more mountain passes and quick dinner before we headed off to NEARBY LAS VEGAS. When I say nearby....it was a 4 hour drive....but that was close enough to pack 15 of us in the van for a night at the Excalibur Hotel on the strip! Our van did not pull to Vegas until 12:00am due to a couple of serious car crashes (one which we were the first car on the scene) but we made it eventually! Luckily Vegas doesn't start waking up until about 12am so we had a blast traveling to several casinos, losing money, and buying over priced drinks until the wee hours of the morning. The next day I snuck into the Caesar's Palace pool with Corey and Andrea where I spent a large portion of my day doing what I like to do best......nothing.

Today we jumped back on the bike and have made it to the ole mining town of Eureka! We are now 3 days away from California and only 7 riding days away from San Francisco. It is unbelievable to think that we have biked over 3,600 miles and are truly on the last leg of the trip. The next few days might be the most difficult with a 117 mile leg approaching in two days, with what is supposed to be our hardest climbing day the following day. Once we hit Tahoe, we'll start descending, and the party will begin! Hope all is well, I'll try and get some pictures on here in the next few days......but who knows since I am on the loneliest highway in America.

PS: I'd love for people to start blowing up my comments page (located below this) so I can see where everyone is reading from. Tell me where you are, it will help me bike faster.

Day 53

"If You Can Not Tell....This is Extreme Lightning"

Miles Biked: 55


Hello from Green River, Utah! You would think with a name like Green River I would be in a lush valley. Nope, I'm smack dab in the middle of the desert. Our trip today took us from the beautiful sandstone rocks of Moab, to deeper into the dry Southwest......and now it's just sand. This is the kind of town that only exists due to the interstate running through it. It's fun to think any day we bike less than 70 as a quasi day off.

Last night was one of the most fun nights on the trip. After a swim in the lap pool at the Moab City Pool and a wonderful free dinner from the church......a nasty thunderstorm started to roll in. As HBC-ers sat in the parking lot oooing and ahhing at the bolts of lightning, Liz and Andy were kind enough to start the van and drive us for a better view up in Arches National Park.

The van included quite the crew. Corey, Pat, Myself, Francis, Bertoli, Colin, Claire, Liz, Andy and the Birthday Boy 21 year old Craig. As we drove up the switchbacks, the storm became closer and closer. The lightning from the storm was so intense bolts would stay in the sky for several seconds. The clouds turned the sky dark before the sun went down, the wind picked up, and flashes could be seen from all directions. Just as the storm was getting good Liz pulled into a parking lot where tourists were sitting outside of their cars staring upward like chickens caught in the rain. A National Park ranger pulled in and over the mega phone exclaimed....."If you haven't noticed, the lightning is extreme, get back in your cars". What she really wanted to say was "Excuse me dumbasses, but that lightning will kill you...stop being idiots". You could tell from the sarcasm in her voice. The storm continued to pick up and all in the van were going crazy with each boom of thunder. It was really awesome to see the lightning light up the sandstone towers and cliffs all around us. We decided the storm was getting really bad and should start heading down off the plateau and down out of the park. A couple miles from the entrance, a park ranger had stopped traffic. Slowly we were informed a 2,000,000 year old portion of sandstone had fallen from the storm into the road, and was blocking our exit. Heavy Machinery was called in, and we would have to be "patient". That boulder falling in the road was one of the best things that has happened to me on the trip!

Drinks were passed around, cookies sent by mothers that were left in the car were eaten, and we triple dog dared Gizmo to take a Birthday stroll past the line of cars behind us in his birthday suit. When Gizmo returned we triumphantly started a dance party that rivaled Toad's. The dancing started with singing of "every time we touch" and moved to Pat and I jumping over seats and starting a mosh pit to Sandstorm. Since the sky had cleared the party moved outside where the van became a tool to get leverage so our dance moves could be heard. The dancing continued as Pat gave a wonderful performance of Queen in front of the van's headlights. 30 or 40 minutes into the party a National Park Ranger made his way down the line of cars.......he passed us....told us it would be another 15 minutes or so....continued on his way.....made it two cars past the van.....then backed up......

As he approached the van, the music was turned down. A young Ranger then explained the reason for his return visit.......STREAKING. It appears that someone behind the van did not enjoy the entertainment provided by the Giz. According to the Ranger "streaking" falls in a grey area in the law of the park.....and while there is no law against it.....it is discouraged. After a few apologies from Liz and Andy we could tell that the Ranger seemed proud of our activities to pass the time from the boulder, but grey rules are grey rules.

Eventually the boulder was removed, and we headed back to our camp to spend our last night in Moab. Our ride today took us on the Interstate which was fun and we are all getting amped for our 112 mile ride to Capital Reef tomorrow. Hope all is still well. Happy Pioneer Day everyone (A Morman Holiday that was described to me as a 4th of July, although I doubt they chug down their 3.2% beers)!

Day 50, 51, 52

Dry Utah

Miles Biked: 85
80 (95 for me)
0

Hello from lovely MOAB, UTAH. We have entered the 11th state on our bike trip across the United States, crossed another milestone (literally), and are enjoying a day off in the middle of the desert. Thank God, because my legs were telling me if we had one more day with 2,000 ft climbs, they were going to fall off!

From Day 50 we woke up to Andy telling us that instead of a 55 mile day......he had rerouted us to make the trip 85 miles. Apparently the road he originally had us on was dirt for 50 miles. The ride took us South towards the San Juan part of the Rocky mountains. We climbed back up to the side of the Rockies in an uphill that took the wind out of me. I passed the two guys we saw on top of Monarch (the guys with no helmets and chain smokers). After lunch Pat and I stopped to mark another Milestone.........3,000 MILES BIKED!!!!!!!! We then headed out of the edge of the mountains along side the San Miguel River......which turned into the San Miguel Canyon. The walls of the canyon shot upward at least a thousand feet and red rock appeared. We had finally hit the desert. Eventually the road shot up and out of the canyon, meaning we had quite the climb (but quite the view) and the afternoon took us to Naturita......a podunk border town in Colorado that had little plant or people life.

A group of us decided instead of spending our evening activities in Naturita, we would shuttle an hour back into the Rockies to check out Telluride. Telluride is one of the most amazing towns I've ever seen. The town sits at the bed of 3 mountains which closes in the community. Bob Dylan was playing a show in the parkwhich Francis and Chris attended, but a group of us decided instead to hang out and watch the Tour De France in a sports bar. While walking away from the bathroom I noticed several Uconn Husky Championship posters on the wall. As I shouted to Bertoli "check out this Uconn stuff" a waitress told me half of the staff was from CT including the owner who she introduced me to. Much of my night was spent chattering over hot spots in CT. Apparently back at the homestead in Naturita the remaining HBC-ers tracked down beverages to play beirut with. Colin and Pat won two out of three.

The next day we headed out of Colorado and into Utah! I decided I wanted to beat the heat as much as possible....so I flew out of the gate with Corey and Chris. We winded down alongside the San Miguel river for 14 miles before the van came speeding up behind us. As I stuck out my "thumbs up" with a smile, Claire was hanging out of the passenger seat with my most feared phrase on her lips "you went the wrong way".
Me: "For how long?"
Her: "For 14 miles"

It appears our directions were a little screwy and I had missed a turn that was in town. Instead of biking back (up hill), I jumped in the van which dropped me back off at the start and I was an hour behind the lead group. The day led us down into the town of Bedrock which only contained a general store which looked like it hadn't changed since 1890. We then found ourselves biking towards the end of the valley with cliffs and mountains all around. Lisa and I played the game "where does the road go". She won.......straight up to the left.

We climbed for the next 20 miles through curvy switchbacks that took us up one mountain, into a canyon, across the state border, and up another mountain. By the end my legs were giving up, and the temperature was rising. Lucky for us......it is cool in Moab......95 degrees. That's 10 degrees below their average! We biked by some awesome red rock before entering the town.

Last night all of the 21 year old HBCers headed over to the Moab Brewery to try and understand Mormon Utah Liquor Laws. It appears that in Utah, you cannot buy a beer over 3.2%. Not only that, but if you go to a normal bar you have to pay a membership fee. Since we were at a restaurant, we didn't have to pay a fee, but when Lisa wanted wine she had to leave the bar area (which only sold 3.2% beer and nothing else), get a table 5 feet away in the restaurant, and order from there. The mood in the bar was a little strange with people struggling with the amount of liquid in their drinks. The Moab brewery was alot of fun even with the confusion and the best part of the night was buying "growlers". A growler contained 64 ounces of beer, came in a cool jug, and could only be purchased as a "to go" order. Gizmo happened to be turning 21........so we bought him a growler and hit the road.

When we returned we found out the Giz had tried to enter a bar at 12:00 Eastern time......which didn't fly with the Moab bouncer. After a growler was drunk and a nude bomb of streakers attacked a room full of sleepers the clock struck 12 and Gizmo turned 21. Unfortunately for the Giz......the only bar open in town after 12 was the one that rejected him. So myself, Francis, Bertoli, Lisa, and Craig headed down to the bar to let him buy his first legal drink. As soon as we walked in the bouncer now bartender looked at Giz......instantly remembered him.....and told him due to him trying to sneak in as an underage drinker (3 hours underage) he was not welcome. That answer was not acceptable for Francis who threw a tantrum, a scary man was called to kick Gizmo out of the bar, Francis made a scene and we left. Gizmo goes down as the first person to get kicked out of a bar on their birthday in 3.5 seconds! Well done!

Today's day off started with a rafting trip that I thought would have HUGE rapids. Instead it had about three class one rapids that were more like ripples. It was fun to jump in the Colorado River and float down it. We all agreed our tubing in Boulder Creek was 100 times more extreme. When we returned I got my bike tuned and wrote this blog. Apparently it will be pretty hot the next few days and I'm going to try and get some hiking in tonight in Arches National Park. Three more states of biking and I'm done.......wow!

Good news for those who love pictures....Pat has thrown his pictures up online (up to St Louis)......you can view them at http://picasaweb.google.com/patrick.muha

Day 48,49

Lighting up Colorado

Miles biked 86

65

Hello from Montrose, Colorado! While climbing up a Gondola at the top of Monarch Pass, I took out my camera......pointed it to the ski area.....and snapped. Unknowing what I had captured I looked down at my camera.....hit the review button.....and the picture above is what I saw!(I chuckled like a school girl for an hour in joy) After my horrible luck with losing my wallet and losing my camera case with my passport and new digital camera....it was all worth it to get such amazing luck with this PICTURE. I love Colorado!

Day 48 was a tough one. It was so tough I had memories of the pain in my legs from Johnstown PA (although not quite that bad). The day before the Yalies made the decision to climb as high as they could up Mt. Yale. Mt. Yale is a peak over 14,000 feet. They climbed for about 3 miles before getting pelted with sleet and hail and turning around. There are plenty of Ivy peaks.....Mt. Harvard......Mt. Princeton.....my dad even says there is a Mt. Columbia. They haven't found a peak high enough to name Mt. Quinnipiac yet.

Day 48 seemed to start well....we went downhill. Only problem with going downhill.....you have to then go uphill. Our climb started from somewhere around 7,000 feet and didn't end until we hit the top of the Monarch pass at 11,312. I was climbing at my usual turtle pace a few miles from the top when I heard the clear Kentucky accent of Francis flying from behind...."I'm coming for you Big Poppie!" Francis then whipped by with Andrea on his back wheel. The site of a tall lanky Kentuckian with a bright red beard passing me was enough to make me laugh and forget about the pain in my chest and legs to get me to the top. Upon arriving at the top we ran into the dumbest cross country bikers. They were two kids who left from just north of Boston....had no helmets.....no bike clothes....and were smoking cigarettes. Amazingly I've run into these kids about 3 times in the last two days, not sure how they have made it this far.

On the top of Monarch pass a few of us took a gondola ride up to the top of the mountain (where I captured my picture). The view was amazing, and it was fun to see the road we had climbed up. The way to Gunnison was mostly all downhill which made the remaining 40 miles a little easier. Our host was the Gunnison High School Gym. I am happy to say I drank a Fat Tire Beer in the gym.....which means I get to cross off "drink a beer in high school" of my life things to do. At 4am, Sam was awoken by the Gunnison Police...since he was sleeping near the door. Apparently they thought he was free loading in the gym, and had to convince the officer that he was not alone, and there were 21 other creepy college students sleeping in the gym.

Today's ride was amazing as it took us through some very cool Canyons. We also lost 3,000 feet of elevation which made for some good opportunities to make the Dignified 5-0 CLUB!

The 5-0 club is a group of elite riders who have hit the very difficult 50MPH on those tiny wheels on their road bikes. Before today it had just 2 riders (Corey 50.8 and Sam 50.3). It has always been on many of our minds to try and reach the club, but the conditions have to be just right. You need a long hill, no head wind, steep grade, and minimal curves. We had two descents today. The first one was about 5 miles long where Pat jumped out, flew down the mountain, and joined the club at 50.3. I on the other hand got stuck behind a wide load truck that was going down the mountain at 27MPH. I am happy to say I started my own club "Passing two trucks, one being a Wide Load" and cruised the second half of the hill over 40. When we came into lunch Pat and Andy (who hit 50.2) were boasting their new speed.....which I think got the speedsters thinking about the CLUB (including me). Right after lunch we climbed 4 miles.....and a downhill sign awaited us.....I pedalled as fast as I could as I winded down the mountain and just came up short of the club at 49.5MPH......but there were notable speeds!

-Corey pushed the record to 51.3MPH

-Pat then crushed that record with a performance of 52.8

-Sam then came down with the NEW RECORD at 53.0 MPH!

-Steven and Colin joined the club with 52 and 51MPH respectively.

I've decided I'll take life over hitting 50MPH.....but if the opportunity looks right.....I think I'll make a charge for the club!

So today's ride almost looked like something out of an old Western Movie. Pat thought John Wayne was going to show up and just start shooting things. Corey, Emma, Beth, and Andy took a detour to climb a rock wall face. I had more fun sitting at the bottom yelling "echo, echo" and hearing the sound come back. I believe we are officially out of the Rockies, although they are looming in the distance. I'm not sure what the terrain looks like to the West.....but we are one day from being done with Colorado and then we arrive in MOAB UTAH.......holy crap we've biked a long way. According to Pat's Odometer 2,895 miles.

Hope all is well at home....heard there were some Tornadoes (which pissed off the weather loving members of HBC who couldn't believe CT got Tornadoes but not Kansas). Time to check out Montrose.

Day 45,46,47

Rocky Mountain High

Miles Biked: 37
85
66

"And the Colorado rocky mountain high Ive seen it raining fire in the sky
You can talk to God and listen to the casual reply
Rocky mountain high (high Colorado) rocky mountain high (high Colorado)"
-John Denver

Hello from Buena Vista, Colorado (which my non Spanish speaking friend Lisa says means "Nice View")! I've been in the Rockies for four days, crossed the continental divide twice, now know what it means to climb a mountain........and I'm still alive and kicking. Not only that, but I'm psyched to bike everyday in the most beautiful state in the country.

Pat and I almost peed our pants from joy on day 45 when we found out the shuttle would be dropping us off just outside Idaho Springs. So we missed nothing from our intended route! As soon as we were dropped off we headed straight for the continental divide and Berthoud Pass. We started the day right where Pat and I ended at a little over 8,000 feet. The climb took us into switch backs for 12 miles straight up. I used to think the hill by my house in Morris was a tough one. After climbing Berthoud pass to around 11,300 feet.....I chuckled to myself. The climb actually wasn't that bad. I'm not going to say it was easy......I'm not even going to say I wasn't chugging for air as sweat poured off my body.....but it was do-able. When I saw the van parked at the top I actually asked myself why it was stopped. I figured since my body wasn't ready to keel over in the fetal position.....this couldn't be the top of the pass. It was, and whatever goes up, must come down!

As I winded down the mountain at speeds of over 40MPH I decided I needed to stop and throw my sunglasses on or my eyeballs were going to fall out from the wind. The trip took us into ski country, past Winter Park ski area and to a YMCA Ranch just outside of Granby for the night.

As I woke up in the morning and headed out I realized there are entire forests full of dead pines (and when I saw forests, it includes entire mountain sides). Reuben, who is from Colorado, explained that they are having one hell of a problem with a bark beetle which is laying larva in the tress and causing a major forest fire problem. Day 46 took us on an 80 mile trip to Frisco. I am in love with the Rockies because there is no rolling. There is up, down, and an occasional flat. Our first 40 miles took us from 8,750ft down along the Colorado River to 7,100. Then we headed up in the afternoon. Amazingly the climbing was so spread out it didn't really feel like we climbed to over 9,000 in Frisco.

Before we reached Frisco we stopped in Dillon....an outlet town right off the highway. We decided to go to the Pearl Izumi bike store. Just outside the store Beth stared at my face and then said
"Ben you need to get some chap stick"
Beth had looked at my lips.....and instead of seeing dry chapped lips she saw black. Beth thought that my lips were so sunburned, they had turned black.
Seconds later Emma told me me I had Oreo cookie stuck on my face......we both just looked at Beth......realized she thought I had third degree burns on my lips.......and laughed. Hopefully if my lips turn to black from the sun Beth will call an ambulance, not suggest chap stick.

Frisco was an awesome mountain ski resort town. There are several major ski areas in driving distance. The group I was riding with got in early and we headed over to Po-Boy's....a local pub. A group of us spent the afternoon drinking Po-boy punch (a blue concoction that nobody had any idea what it contained). The pub loured us in with a rumor that your first drink cost the temperature at 4:20 (40 degrees.....40 cents; 30 degrees.....30 cents). Apparently they only do that in the winter, which we didn't understand from a business point of view. When we went back to the community center we were staying in I found out Claire had befriended two kids who were hiking the Colorado Trail. The kids spent the night HBC styling it with us on the hard floor and waking up at the ass crack of dawn.

Today we headed East toward Freemont Pass. The climb took us right by Copper Mountain Resort which I was really excited about because my Mom and I skied it back when I was in high school looking at colleges. Freemont Pass was a 12 mile climb up to 11,318! My average was about 6MPH. (Tour de France Cyclists go 18MPH up hills). The rest of the day was awesome....since we dropped down to just under 8,000 feet in the town of Buena Vista. We stopped for lunch in the highest incorporated town in America, Leadville (10,200ft).

When I arrived in Leadville I headed out to see if I could get my original jersey fixed. The zipper fell off back in Kentucky, I bought a new Zipper, and haven't found a place to fix it.......until today. I walked down a block or two to a place called "Ben's Sewing". I almost jumped in the air from shock and joy......walked inside and asked if they could fix my jersey. A very large woman behind the counter responded "oh we don't do sewing here". Apparently they only sell sewing stuff. I had no response from disbelief.....walked next store to the laundry mat where I was greeted by my new friend Sharon. Sharon was happy to go home and sew my jersey for $9. I asked her when I can get it.
"Well.......why don't you head down to the softball field after 7:00"
"The softball field"
"Yeah, I umpire softball games at night"
"And.....I just wave you down in between innings?"
"Yeah.....I'll keep it in my bag."

Currently it's 7:55......Sharon's games got rained out from some thunderstorms, and she says she'll call me when I can come over since she put it off all day. What a weird business transaction.

Tomorrow we head West for good. Supposedly it's a 86 mile day with a trip back over the continental divide. I think once I get my jersey I'll pack it in for a good night's rest.

Some interesting facts:
-I've decided to grow a mountain Beard. It looks pretty good so far. Pat Muha is growing one as well. I'm gonna chop mine off once we are out of the Rockies.......Muha.......who knows.
-The temperature in the mornings is in the 40's. I look pretty sexy in tights.
-I almost hit a deer on a bike. It was trapped from a cliff on my right, there were cars to my left, and the deer was flipping out........I'm lucky I wasn't in the Volvo.

Last HUGE climbing day tomorrow.......then all down hill to San Francisco.......right?

Day 44

Renegades

Miles biked: Unspecified


Hello from Boulder, Colorado......again. You may be asking yourself, "Ben, why are you still in Boulder." The leaders decided somewhere in the middle of Kansas after the accident they needed a second day to rest and clear their minds. By taking an extra day it would prevent the group from biking into the mountains today to Idaho Springs and tomorrow since they need to shuttle us to Granby. So I asked the leaders if Pat and myself could bike to Idaho Springs today...sleep there....and meet the crew in Granby tomorrow. Our request was shot down.....and two renegades were born.

Pat and I woke up at 6am, strapped into our bike gear, and headed due west into the Rocky Mountains. Climbing into the Rocky mountains was quite the challenge. 18 miles of straight uphill brought us to the mountain town of Nederland, 8,200 feet above the spot I dipped my tires into the Atlantic Ocean. From Nederlands we headed South on the Peak-to-Peak highway.

The Peak-to-Peak highway is exactly what it sounds like.....several climbs and decents along the front range of the Rocky Mountains. As Pat and I wondered how far Central City was (a town where we needed to make a turn) we saw a sign......6 miles. The next 6 miles may be the most fun I've had on a bike on this entire trip. A quick decent sent us flying downward at speeds over 40MPH. I topped out at 46, Pat at 44. 6 miles after flying through the cut of the mountain we saw a sign for a town.....elevation: 8,000 feet! I'm not sure how high we climbed today but I can assure you we climbed to over 9,000 feet.

Unknowing to us, Central City was full of Casinos.....and old people. We asked Jim at BullWhacker's Casino how to get to Idaho Springs. He pulled out a tiny little card, and drew us the craziest direction map I have ever seen anyone draw. It only contained lines and dots.....except for one road name.....which we should NOT take. Somehow the map worked and we climbed up some switchbacks onto a gravel road. The gravel road passed some old gold mines, climbed some more, swung around a mountain and led us to "Oh My God Road"

"Oh My God Road" is not some made up name I concoted, but the actual name on the map. As soon as we saw the road Pat and I both knew where the name came from as we repeatedly said "Oh My God". The road must have had 30 hair pin turns, was gravel, had no railing to protect you from going off the road, and a 2,000 foot drop off. Pat decided the road name should be renamed to "Holy Shit" and I think adding "Oh my F@#$%^ God" would be a little more acurate. As we winded down the road both our hands killed from clenching the brakes as hard we possibly could. The road ended right smack in the middle of Idaho Springs.....and Pat and I celebrated by chugging Gatorade at a gas station. We had reached our goal.....now we had a problem....getting back to Boulder.

We had originally planned to take Mass Transportation from Idaho Springs to Denver to Boulder. Problem is.......there is no Transportation of any kind (including taxi's) to Idaho Springs. There was only one option...continue to bike.

We hopped back on our bikes and thanks to the help of a lady at the visitors center headed down the mountains towards Golden. Our directions took us to Route 6. As we biked down the mountain we quickly learned that Route 6 is not a bike friendly road. No shoulder...strong winds...lots of traffic...and it winds. The route had several tunnels that reminded me of going into a cave in a video game. Just as we were about to leave the mountains we saw a small crowd of motorists pulled over and pointing to the side of the mountain. So we pulled over and took a look at a small herd of wild Big Horn Sheep. It was like a gift from God.

Our ride ended in Golden, home of the Coors Brewing Company that is closed on Sunday's. Our grand idea was to take the bus from Golden to Boulder....but the bus doesn't run on Sunday's. So we were forced to taxi it and here we are in Boulder ready to get shuttled somewhere near Granby tomorrow! What an crazy day of riding.

Day 40, 41, 42, 43

So....those are mountains

Miles biked: 80 something
70 something
60 something
0 Much needed rest!

Hello from Boulder, Colorado! As I traveled through the town I have decided this town is AMAZING. Then I got to thinking...this town may be amazing due to our travels on HBC. Boulder is the first town we have been to with more than 2,000 people in weeks. Boulder is the first town we've been to with people under the age of 60 (and in large numbers). Boulder is next to the mountains. And finally, Boulder is not in Kansas. Whatever the reasons are for loving Boulder.....I am very happy to be at the edge of the Rocky Mountains!

Boulder hasn't come with all good news. Two of our members have decided to leave the trip. My longtime friend from elementary school Morgen left two days ago, and Nick Krug took off home to Dallas today. Our group of 27 has now dwindled to 22 and somehow I am still around.

Our journey through Colorado took us to the smallest town on the trip yet. Cope, Colorado has a population of 80 people. Everyone is a farmer. The closest Grocery store is 45 miles away. The town consists of a church...a gas station....and a steak house. I showered at the house of a Canadian who married a North Dakota farmer who moved to Colorado and became a crop duster. We talked a lot about tornadoes.

From Cope, we headed into the fog to Strasburg. I must say I enjoyed my stay in Strasburg better than Stroudsburg, PA (where my wallet still continues to watch "Knocked Up" at the mall in the Stroud 7). Strasburg is the home of the golden stake, where the railroads from East and West met. Just before dinner a nasty storm was brewing nearby. Apparently softball sized hail was reported on the roads we had biked through in the morning. Strasburg only received heavy wind which wasn't windy enough to wake up Craig who had fallen asleep outside in the grass. Actually nothing could wake up Craig.....even when we threw a stray cat on his face.

From Strasburg we headed past the Denver airport to Boulder. We knew we would see the mountains and I spent the entire morning staring off into the distance. I finally saw some blobs through the thick summer Haze. The blobs became clearer and clearer and now tower above us. I wonder if the altitude will effect us. We are currently at over 5,000 feet and will continue to rise. Night time in Boulder brought us to a very cool strip with restaurants and bars. I decided I would have a very easy time being educated as a Colorado Buffalo (grad school?).

Today we climbed in the van and went tubing on Boulder Creek. I was expecting the kind of tubing you see in CT with large wide bodies of water. This kind of tubing was a little different. The water was on the edge of the mountains and contained rapid after rapid in a skinny little creek. The leaders rented and extra tube...duck taped a trash bag to the bottom of it and filled it with cheap beer. It was a Yale education being put to full use. It was pretty funny to watch people dive out of their tubes to rescue the beer tube from escaping downstream or flipping over in the rapids.

Tomorrow Pat and I are heading into the mountains and I can't wait to find out what calf pain really is!

Day 39

"This Wind Blows"

Miles biked: 72

Hello from St. Francis, Kansas! While riding through the beautiful Kansas headwind, Gizmo uddered the words "this wind blows" an thus a blog headline is created. Today marked the final day of Kansikah and there is cheerfulness in the air as people plan their last presents. Claire, who is not a very big drinker got a beer bong. Nick Krug was presented with a collection of small toys and an Elvis poster. I recieved a homemade sprite hat that I remember being for sale in an antique store in Gypsum. The excitement has continued throughout the day. The end of this great Holiday means we have also reached the very end of Kansas and as beautiful as the country side can be....I believe everyone will jump for joy when they see the Colorado sign tomorrow. I think a few may even make love to the sign. Today's ride took us 35 miles north of Colby, and then 50 miles straight West. I have decided to move to Kansas and run for Governor with a promise to build a new and exciting road system.....it will be called: THE DIAGONAL ROAD....GENIUS!

Today I realized I had major sleep deprivation and stopped in every single town between Colby and St. Francis....which was 2. The first was the town of Alwood 30 miles into the ride. There was a block in the downtown that had speakers and played country music outside the buildings at all hours of the day. We stopped at a doughnut shop and were asked by everyone we saw where we were going. I don't think they get very many outsiders.

Our next stop was thanks to mother nature. About 15 miles outside of our last location we could see a large thunderstorm brewing and heading in our direction. We sat and pondered if we should try and beat the storm, or stop in the town we were currently in. Apparently God heard us, and a crack of lighting followed by an ear deafening boom crashed within a mile of us. We stopped in the town of BIRD CITY! The school mascot for the highschool was the Cougars which made no sense to me. I was thinking more along the lines of Hawks or Eagles. We sat in a Cafe to wait for the storm to pass where some old locals told me the town was named after the the famous sea Admiral....Admiral Bird.
Local: Did they teach you about Admiral Bird in school?
Me: Ummm....I don't think so

I then asked a man how big St. Francis was and he said "14".....so I asked in shock "people?" He answered back in more shock..."no 1,400 people". Trust me when I say it is believable to think there is a town with 14 people around here.

Today's conversation mostly had to do with Chiggers. Chiggers are microscopic bugs that live in the grass.....then climb on you and eat away at your flesh. While I haven't had any Chiggers, I have had plenty of bugs jump up from the grass and stick to my arm and leg hair.

Well this is it....Goodbye Kansas.....Hello Colorado and the West!

Day 36,37,38

Rough Days

Miles biked: 81
86
66
Our trip has had a horrible accident. About 9 miles outside of Luray, Kansas one of our riders was hit by a car. It was a very scary day, and continues to be a scary recovery. He was transfered to Wichita and will remain there for the next couple of weeks. The good news is he continues to get better everyday and make progress and my prayers are with him and his family.

We sat in Luray almost in shock. The next day, 11 of us decided to ride, 5 had left the night before to go to the hospital, and the rest decided to clear their mind in the van.

The trip to hill city was a hot one. The thermometer hit 103.....there were two banks on the way in......one had an eletrical sign that said 109....the other 111. To top things off, the headwinds were blowing very hard, making each pedal stroke impossible. In Hill City, the entire group went to the municiple pool to cool off and just hang out together. I challenged Gizmo to a diving board competition, in which I of course was the winner. Pat went down the pretty impressive waterslide about 400 times to try and get as much leverage on turn #2 as possible. He even had personal advice from life guards and 14 year old boys ( and a 6 year old). I was impressed with the progress he made. Later that day I watched a man walk his dog with his car. He let the dog out of the door in a park. Sat there as the dog ran around.....beeped the horn....and the dog ran back to the car. I thought the dog was going to get in the car, but instead the car drove slowly down the street as the dog followed! Very strange. At night the 5 in Wichita came back which feels pretty good to have everyone back on the trip.

Today's trip was a vacation......only 66 miles. More people joined us on the bikes and now we are in Colby Kansas. The hills have dissintegrated and now we are in the Midwest I have stereotyped in my head. There are endless corn fields in all directions. Today we did get a chance to celebrate as Granpa Sam turned 25. We honored him with a shrek themed birthday party and a Hanah Montanah singing card. We have one more day in the state of Kansas, can't wait to see a chance of scenery.

I hope all are well and are staying as safe as possible.

Day 35

Humans awake before 6am?

Miles biked: 87

Hello from Gypsum, Kansas! Population 413. Today's ride led us out of the great city of Emporia through more rolling hills of Kansas. On HBC we have now agreed to stop listening to locals who say "oh, once you go a little west, it will be flat". We've been hearing that since St Louis!

Today's wakeup call was at the ungodly hour of 4:30am. Last night someone said wake up call was at 4:30 and I laughed at them. I really thought it was a joke until Andy was staring down at me this morning. I really wasn't sure if I was going to be able to function but I realized it was actually better than waking up later. I was in such a comatos for the first 30 miles, before it hit me I was on a bike in Kansas I only had 50 miles left! Plus we beat the heat which reached 95 today and is supposed to be 97 tomorrow!

Today we drove by some fun town names. We started by going through Americus. The day was later spent going by Manhattan and Tampa. I personally wanted to stop in Tampa.....but the 90 degree heat without the ocean just wasn't worth it. Half way through the trip we stopped at a bakery in the town Council Bluffs. Lisa found a pamphlet that said "Corey" and was so excited that it matched Corey Morenz she screamed a profanity. I looked around the bakery at the crowd of women and children that crowded the tables.

As we came down a hill at mile 60 or so I saw a dump truck coming off a gravel road. The truck waited for awhile looking at us, seeming to wait for us to pass. As Nick, Colin, Lisa and I came within a few hundred yards, the truck pulled out releasing a dirt cloud behind it. The only problem was that the cloud of brown and black was not dirt....but cow menure. I immediatley looked back at Colin and Lisa who both looked as if they were going to fall off their bikes, vomit, and die from the stench. I thought their look was so funny that I broke into uncontrolable laughter. As I became short of breath from laughing I would suck in air filled with the stench of hundreds of pounds of rotting cow crap, which almost made me pass out as well. Oh Kansas......

Pat got his shirt washed last night, although he still made me smell it this morning, and it still kinda smelled like urine. According to the Pastor of this church 30% of the people of Gypsum are retired, 30% work in factories, and another 30% collect welfare. The town has three stores....a Cafe, a general store kinda thing, and an antiques store. The guy at the antique store was so happy I spent $2 on a shot glass (present for Kanikah). I think I may have single handedly raised his profts 200%. There is also a gas station that is only open when the owner feels like working. According to one local, if it is a good fishing day, don't expect it to be open. That is my kinda gas station......where do I sign up?

So I'm off to Lucas Kansas or Luray (the name is being debatted before me by Morgen and Lisa). According to the locals......it gets flatter from here....but please..... refer to my opening paragraph!

Day 33+34

Smell my Jersey

Miles biked: 85
0

Hello from Emporia, Kansas! The home of our rest day and our 4th of July celebrations! I certainly need the rest after about 250 miles of biking in three days! We have moved out of the flooded farms of Iola and biked to a town that has over 25,000 people. At this point in the trip it feels like New York City. Yippie!

In my last post I mentioned we were going to the Iola airport. After I blogged that day, we ate dinner with the church and were shipped to a small airport on the outskirts of the city. I don't think anyone was ready for what awaited us. The church had arranged for us to have free rides in these crazy parachute fan flying machines! The "aircraft" looked like go carts with a huge fan attached to the back and a large parachute that hovered above it. Everyone got the chance to ride at heights of over 600 feet above the ground. Some, like Pat, had adventurous pilots who chased after Deer and coyotes. I had more of a standard flight that was really amazing!

The next day as we awoke in the church, Pat Muha was drawing attention. I walked over and Pat demanded I smell his jersey. I reluctantly agreed. The smell was horrible! It reeked of a very strong scent of urine! We are all convinced it was a failed Kaniska gift. In any event, it did not stop Pat from throwing the jersey on and wearing it for 85 miles. When he arrived in Emporia he had symtoms of Uritoxication.(sickness from smelling urine too long)

At the start of the day I decided to celebrate the Holiday in style. I wore a 4th of July bow tie, pinned a flag to my back, and had mini flags hanging on my bike and helmet. It seemed to get a positive response on the road. About 45 miles into the journey we came across the small town of Gridley, which had shut down their "Main Street" and had a couple of tents and activities. I bought a hat, played some bachi, ate a chili dog, walked past the car show, and watched some motorcyclist awe the small crowd with wheelies. I have decided I have never felt more American than celebrating the 4th with the town of Gridley Kansas. Some little girls even asked if they could have their picture with me and Gizmo.....HBC-ers have become such celebrities.

The ride into Emporia was easier for me than most. More than half the group took a wrong turn on Highway 99 and rode anywhere from 90-111 miles compared to my 85! Corey walked in after 106 miles with a smile on his face. "I got to do a century on the 4th!" I was happy with the bare minimum. On my ride in I passed a meat factory and almost got giddy when I saw the cows in the final pen before entering the "chopping block". Poor cows.....but I think everyone should be able to see where meat actually comes from. It does not smell pretty. Last night we HBC style celebrated the 4th by sneaking over to a dog park and lighting off illegal fireworks that I bought in Missouri. I bought a $25 pack called the Pyro-Predator which entertained us. Throughout the night there were fireworks being lit from all directions. We were also given one of the most beautiful sun sets I've ever seen! The night ended by most of HBC dancing and singing in the church parking lot to "I would bike 4,000 miles" (instead of I would walk 500 miles).

On my day off today I was able to help lead a bike clinic at a local day camp. The funny thing was none of the kids had bikes, so Corey, Lisa, Beth and I made up a relay race to entertain the youth of Emporia. I'm not sure when I'll get a chance to blog again since I'll be in the middle of nowhere Kansas. Make sure to light off all of your extra fireworks and think of the pyro-predator and me!

Day 31 + 32

Happy Kansikah (pernounced Chansukah....or close to Hanukah)

Miles biked: 82
81

Hello fromm 22 inches of rain Iola Kansas! It appears someone has done something very wrong around here, and God dumped 22 inches of rain on the town in three days! I was never a very religous man, but after staying in all these churches I have decided it is def. God's fault I had to smell the stench of stagnate water for most of my 80 miles of biking today. Half of the town we are staying in was forced to leave by the government. Although, I must say.....while I did see plenty of flooded farms.....no floating cows. Maybe they sink.

Today marks the first day of Kaniskah (chan-su-kah). Apparently Kansas sucks so much to bike through our leaders have declared the entire state a holliday......The leaders made everyone pick a name out of hat....and until we leave the state in 7 days....we must buy presents for our person(secret santa style). Today I recieved a key chain from my mystery giver that said "I'm not that girl....yet" It is proudly hanging on my camelbak for everyone to see.

Yesterday was our last day in Mizzilly. I have decided I never ever want to live in Missouri. While deciding 6 months ago on what I should be doing with my life....biking sounded better than "real world". Now I realize it is a great experience to find out exactly where I never want to go again. While everyone was extremely nice.....I just can't picture myself living in a place with town after town with a population under 200 people.

The hills of CT, the appalachians, the rolling hills of PA and WV, the roller coaster of Kentucky and the Ozarks of MO are now behind us. According to all who have ever been through the state of KS.....the hills are truly behind us. Now all that lies ahead is some little tiny bump called the rocky Mts. How hard can it be? The leaders keep down playing the difficulty of the rockies although I'm not sure how you downplay 37 miles of straight climbing in one day. I think I will enjoy Kansas while I can.

In two days we have biked over 160 miles. My legs feel like Jello...and I am told we will have another 80 miles tomorrow. According to the pastor there will be some sort of plane ride tonight. In Camdenton we stayed at a Church camp. I decided to go swimming with Lisa, Ali, and Liana in the pool. We got permission to swim even though campers littered the pool. While I was still doing 360 degree cannonballs off the diving board...a camp director came up to the girls and made them put shirts over their sport bras. The main benefactor of their "indecency" was me.....as he handed me a free T-shirt as well just so I wouldn't be left out. The night was spent sleeping in old cabins with beds before we headed out today!

Today I rode with an array of HBC riders. Apparently up ahead of me as I neared the state border...Sam and Andy decided to bike naked across a river called something along the name of "Dryhard creek". I passed them as they were putting their clothes back on. Moments later a call came to Andy from Emma.....who was standing at the state border ahead with 4-6 state police officers. Half were from Missouri, and half were from Kansas. All were looking for two "naked bikers". Apparently someone called the state police and said they almost "ran off the road" when seeing Sam and Andy. I think I would come to a near crash after being blinded by the whitness of Andy and Sam's Ass myself! In the end no one was arrested, the Kansas State Police just asked Emma to tell the rest of HBC to "Keep it on in Kansas" which I think is a wonderful state motto!

So......after 6 days of straight rain, it is wonderful to have a second straight day of dry biking! It is even more exciting to see that the town of Iola did not float away. Tomorrow is the 4th of July and I plan to put as many decorations on my bike as humanly possible! Go see some fireworks! (I bought $25 worth in MO called the Pyro Python)

Happy B-day America!

-Ben

Day 27,28,29, 30

Missouri is Mizilly (as in hilly)

Miles Biked: 0
80
65
60

Hello from Camdenton, Missouri! We are now well into the "show me state" even though I have no clue what that state motto means. The last few days have brought adventures as we had to cross swinging bridges, cross unfinished bridges, and somehow Gizmo built a personal bridge for a stray dog to our van.......and now we have a dog.....ah yes......Missouri.....

My day off in St. Louis brought me to all parts of the city. For being the "gateway to the west" I was expecting a little more. There were no cabs, very few city buses, and one metro line. The city seemed to be built in blotches. The Downtown was not very close to the Universities. The Park was not close to the cool shopping. The cool shopping was not close to the downtown and so forth. I'm not sure who decided on the urban development of the city, but they should consider change. In St Louis I got new gloves, checked out the arch, walked 47 miles, and slept. The real excitement came the next day on our trip to NEW HAVEN!

That's right. New Haven Missouri.......home of the shamrocks......and nothing else. Population 600. No Pepe's. No Toads. No nothing. Just 600 Irish loving folk. We showered at the municipal pool which made me wonder why Morris CT, population of over 2,000 does not have a Municipal pool! There was even a water slide (that was 7 feet long). I got a hair cut, went with shopping crew to the market (no super), and called it a night.

The next days travel brought us into the foothills of the Ozarks. Remember that time I typed in my blog "the hills are behind us"?...........I lied. Steep, curvy, rolling hills greeted us as we approached Rte D. As we came to Route D a large sign exclaimed "Detour: Bridge out". With a quick phone call to Miriam in the van she told us that the groups in front of us decided they would try and cross the river. As I biked down the road to the tiny river, I looked ahead as I saw HBC bikers tight rope walking an unfinished bridge that was 25 feet or so above the water. The bikers were going across on skinny steel beams, bike and equipment in hand, screaming like school girls the whole way. I decided that the high road was not for me....took off my jersey.......hoped off my bike......and dove into the creek/river/watery thing. The water was just low enough for me to carry everyone's bikes to the otherside. I enjoy low risk decisions with the same result and so did the other 20 bikers behind me. We started a river crossing that rivaled some I had completed in my days in the 5th grade playing "Oregon Trail" the computer game. Somewhere along the way Andrea decided she did not want to get wet and paid a river crossing fee of $5 to Francis who happily put her on his back and dragged her across. Gizmo thought it would be a great idea to try and throw his shoes across........which was a horrible idea. He threw them........they landed 3/4 of the way.....and then he left them there. After 15 minutes he finally made his way to the other side.....where he could only find one shoe. I'm not sure why he didn't realize bike shoes sink. Anywho........Corey offered to find his shoe for a River drudging fee of $25. Gizmo agreed and Corey found it at the bottom of the clay river in minutes. The lessons learned at the end of the day.......the low road is so much more fun. The road winded up and down to Vienna......population 600. Morgen and I gave an amazing slideshow in front of an audience that didn't really care.....but made a great "Welcome Habitat Riders" sign out front.

Today Andy led us down a terrific road in the middle of nowhere called "Swinging Bridges". I had a feeling the road would be interesting when I realized the road was unmarked and was unpaved. On the route were two steel cable bridges. Just as I approached them, the van arrived and decided to zoom across the bridges even though the van was most likely over the weight limit and several wooden planks were loose or missing off the second bridge. It was something straight out of Indiana Jones. Somehow the van crossed unscathed, with all passengers still alive. Today marked the 6th straight day of rain......which sucks to bike in. I just received word that the town we are supposed to bike to in two days, Iola Kansas, is under a mandatory flood evacuation. Can;t wait to find out how the leaders work that one out. Sooooooo........coming into the state of Missouri I had no idea what it would look like.......and being in the state several days....I'm still don't know what to think....and continue to ask myself..."what the hell does the Show Me state mean?"

Hope all is well!

Day 21,22,23,24,26

You Can Find me in St Louis!

Miles Biked: Alot

Hello from the gateway to the west....St Louis Missouri! Since the last time I've written in here we've gone through three states in 6 days! The hills are behind us, and a whole crap load of corn is in front. Welcome to the Midwest!

Louisville Kentucky almost seemed like day off. After a quick 40 mile bike ride (that Miriam said would be 20) I tried my luck with several HBC-ers at Churchhill Downs...the horse racing track home to the kentucky derby. I lost $6 on two races, but it was worth the $2 price of admission just to see horse jockeys up close in person. I am convinced there is a jockey farm somewhere in South America that produces these amazing small creatures. At night we all partied in club 113.....which is not a club, but a dorm room at the University of Louisville. I relived my days of living in the dorms and then it was time to leave the bluegrass state and hit up Indiana.

So no one told me.....but Indiana has hills. Not mountains, but I was surprised that I was rising and falling. We biked through the rolling hills of Indiana to our destination of Saint Meinrad. The town has a population of 800, but the Abbey was the size of Westminster Abbey. The day brought on our first bit of hard rain. So our wet shammy's (butt padding) were ecstatic to reach something with a roof. I'm not sure if I saw any monks, but I did see lots of old people. I keep asking myself if organized religion will be around in 40 years. Everyone seems to be 60 or above in these churches.

From Meinrad we biked through torrential down pours to the town of New Harmony. The rain took out my cell phone (although it seems to be breathing life today). New Harmony lies in the middle of no where, yet holds millions of dollars worth of fine art. We were given a tour of the town by the 93 year old widow of one of the towns earliest decedents. She is solely responsible for bringing in the kinds of art work the town has......and will talk you ear off about anything and everything seen in the town. Although New Harmony was beautiful, it creeped me out. I passed through several poor farming towns before reaching it, and it was out of place. So I was happy to move on to Thompsonville, Illinois.......population under 800.

Thompsonville sits also in the middle of nowhere......and thanks to Miriams route......we ended up on gravel roads for 10-15 miles. Gravel roads and road bikes don't go well together. The terrain was so rough I lost my brand new camera and passport (only form on ID) somewhere along the route. Corey put it best while biking when he said "I feel like I'm in a third world country! The roads were littered with stray dogs and even an angry hawk! Upon arrival the pastor took us all out to eat at a BBQ place on his bill.....I don't even want to know what he spent.

From Thompsonville we were supposed to go camping.......however a nasty thunderstorm broke out, and Beth talked to a local police department, who apparently called a church, which is why we apparently stayed in a gym in Chester Illinois. Chester.....as I'm sure you know......is home to the creator of "Popeye" the cartoon. Corey traveled down to the Popeye museum in his time off, bought a hat, took off his shirt, and played the roll of Popeye (minus the spinach) for the rest of the day. The town was small and contained the worst smelling Dairy Queen in the country. It smelled of a mix between sweat, ash tray, and human feces. I passed on the ice cream.

That leads us to today! The ride took us through more corn fields to the banks of the Mississippi. I passed over well behind most of the group due to my 11 mile detour (took a wrong turn) and now I am hours away from giving my first HBC slide show! Sam, Colin, and Andy decided to bike across the Mississippi naked. I'm not sure how they avoided arrest. I on the the other hand prefer to bike fully clothed. Well I am being summoned to leave.....I hope all is well with everyone! Time to go explore ST LOUIS!!!!!!!!