oriented

On Sunday, the day before what is my certain doom begins, we had a two hour orientation with all of the other riders. There are 27 riders. The youngest is 16. The oldest is around 70. Most riders are teachers, students, or retirees. Two girls just graduated from high school, and this is their second cross country bicycle trip(!!!). There are 3 crew members, one of whom is a bicycle mechanic.

The trip will take 48 days -- from Monday, June 20 to Saturday, August 6. 40 of the days will be riding days, and the other 8 will be rest days. You can find our route and schedule here. Most of the nights we'll be camping, but on special occasions we'll be in dorms, churches, gyms, etc.

Our shortest day is 42 miles (our last day), and the longest is 112 miles (eek!). We will average 83.3 miles per day. On riding days, we have a checkpoint every 20 - 30 miles where the van stops and we can refuel with water and snacks. Lunch is provided on the road, and is generally peanut butter and jelly sandwiches we make ourselves. Dinner is also provided / catered, which is also amazing.

At orientation, they stressed the importance of safety and told scary stories about bicycling accidents -- broken femurs, being clipped by a car mirror, etc. -- that definitely drove the point home. I didn't need scary stories though. I needed a pep talk. I was already shaking in my boots!!

They also warned to really start slowly and not to push yourself too much. "Spinning", or pedalling quickly (60 - 80 rotations per minute) in a lower gear, would be easier on the joints and was recommended. The crew leader, Charlton, commented that one of the challenges of the first week would be getting people to go slowly so as not to get stress injuries. I told him not to worry one iota -- I excel at going slowly. I will be a great leader in this area! :o)