It’s kind of hard for me to describe to you what I “feel” after riding a bike 3,800 miles across the country for the last 47 days. Frankly, today seemed just like any other day of the past 7 weeks – I got up, ate a bad breakfast, got my luggage out to the van on time, prepped my bike and listened to the route talk and went out and cycled the prescribed route. Other than having rain for 4+ straight hours during the ride, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. But when we turned the final corner at the Crescent Beach State Park with all of us carrying the American Flag and we could see the Atlantic Ocean, I realized that this last ride was significantly different.
We have become a team and worked together for many weeks to get from the Pacific to the Atlantic
We have all made great life long friendships through shared physical and mental challenges along the way
We have shared meals, met new people and learned about each others lives, families and career experiences
What an epic adventure this has been! I have been immeasurably blessed to have this once in a lifetime experience and I thank God for His providence that kept me strong, safe and healthy for the duration of this trip.
I have to say that I learned a lot since we started pedaling in Astoria, OR on August 13th.
People are generally the same across our great nation – our customs and accents might be a little different from state to state – but if you treat people with dignity and respect, you get much more in return.
We need to be kind to each other – I can’t tell you how much you can benefit from being away from the TV, news and sports media and other daily distractions. There is a lot of anger generated in this country (political, race and class) by all of that and it’s not productive. Unplug it for a while.
Most people in the states love our country and want to make it a better place to live. We all need to find common ground on our objectives and not pursue a zero sum game where it is winner take all.
What a great country we are so fortunately blessed to live in! And to see it “from sea to shining sea” from the seat of a bicycle has been nothing short of amazing. I am sure that it will take some time to get back to a normal routine once we all get home. Am I glad I did it? Yes, of course. Would I do it again? In a heartbeat, but only if I didn’t have to train for a year to get prepared!
I hope that you’ve enjoyed this blog and have been able to benefit from it. I certainly have enjoyed writing it and crafting a story that you might be able to feel a part of.
And to our outstanding Trek Travel guides Brent, Marty, Michaela, Caleb and Bev – a huge “Thank You” for making this trip so memorable. You guys are the best! I will never forget you!