...where the sidewalk ends.

After a solid month of travel and somewhere around 2,000 miles of cycling, I have arrived in Key West, FL. Man, I sure have worked up a thirst, is there any place around that I can get a...oh, I see. It's been quite a trip (that isn't really over yet, but...). I got this t-shirt at that hostel in Charleston with a quote on the back that reads "There are no yesterdays on the road." That has never been more true than on this trip. Really, there are no tomorrows either, I'd say. Traveling by bicycle really sort of requires that you stay focused on the present. Too much time reflecting and you start to feel frustrated, like so much time has passed and you've made so little progress...as well as the inherent dangers of spending so much time on busy highways, cars and semi-trucks flying by only inches away from you for hours and hours every day. You just really can't think about it or it starts to wear on your brain. Also, planning too far ahead becomes really pointless also. Its impossible to predict the wind, the reliability of the bike and the reliability of your body. The absolute best way to travel by bicycle? One hour at a time. So here's to 800+ hours of travel and 2,000 miles of pedaled highway. Thank you to everyone who has checked out this blog, left kind messages/emails, donated to the Red Cross! Literally every bit of support along the way has helped to keep me positive and to make the trip all that much more enjoyable! P.S. I'm still going to ride up the gulf coast of florida to alabama, so anticipate at least a few more updates with more pictures. Once I'm back behind my own computer, I'll also post a bunch of videos and a more thorough picture-diary. Until, then!

15, um, seconds of fame!

here's a little blurb about the bike ride in the Monroe Evening News! very nice of them to spread the word!

Carolinas, North and South.

The trip has taken a welcome turn for the touristy as I've arrived in several cities that I just couldn't breeze through in a day: namely Charleston, SC (although Savannah, GA is great, too). I'm doing 100+ mile-days like I was a real cyclist and all the aches and pains inflicted by the Appalachian mountains have all disappeared! Halloween is almost here and I'm riding around with a plastic pumpkin on the front of my bike...which people seem to like 'cause they honk (and not the "Get-Off-the-Road-You-SOB" kind of honk but the "Hey-I-Like-Your-Plastic-Pumpkin" kind of honk...the difference is subtle but you learn these things out here on the road...) Hope everyone is still doing great and that you all have outstanding Halloween plans! These photos are in sort of disjointed order but: friends from the hostel enjoy free champagne and appetizers up and down King St. in Charleston for the annual Designwalk event. The sun peering out of the clouds on the long and sea-legs-testing ferry from Ocracoke to Cedar Bay Island (Outerbanks, NC). A few very kind bike shop employees who gave me a spare tube on the house, in NC. The annual Notso Hostel's Pumpkin fest featuring Pumpkin Mac n' Cheese, Pumpkin Lasagne, Pumpkin Soup, Pumpkin Salad, Pumpkin Glazed Chicken and, of course, Pumpkin Pie. I can't thank everyone at the Notso Hostel enough for their hospitality and just general, all-around coolness. You guys have a great place there in Charleston and I know I'll be back!

Photo Update Part Two

Well, I made it to the Atlantic coast finally. That means no more mountains, but it has also turned out to mean no more unseasonably warm days. Good incentive to pedal faster in a southward direction, I guess! I think the theme of the last two weeks-worth of pictures would be decidedly, uh, bucolic? In order: downtown Elkins, WV in the morning, B&B in Monterrey, VA, a view up one of VA's hilly roads, some excellent dating advice from the VA Park Rangers, and the last photo is of the Atlantic shore in Kill Devil Hills, NC during our morning gail-force wind conditions. Hopefully they'll be blowing in the right direction! Hope everyone is doing well and I'll keep you posted! -Pat.

Smattering of Photos from the Trip Thus Far!

The trip is going great! The climbs are getting more and more intense...but I guess it goes without saying that the downhill parts are pretty thrilling! Definitely the fastest I've ever gone on a bicycle...and for once in my life I passed a car that was going the speed limit!...Blew right by him! In the photos you can see a couple places where I camped at night, a few shots of some little towns that I road through in the West Virginian hills, some of OH's finest highway and me, cooking noodles at the picnic area of an OH McDonalds. By the way, that turtle totally smoked me on an uphill climb and I still owe him a beer. Hope everyone is doing really well and I look forward to hearing from all of you! Love, Pat.

Some photos from my Red Cross trip

Here's a few photos from my trip down to Mississippi, working for the Red Cross after Hurricane Katrina.  In order from top to bottom: My co-managers at the shelter serving meals to another RC volunteer. A volunteer I met near Waveland, standing on a piece of a house. Overhead shot of one of the shelters where I lived and worked. A Red Cross friend, Emilee, and I hanging out with the National Guard in New Orleans on our day off. 

Hey, everybody!! Welcome to Pat's Bike Ride: THE BLOG!!

That's right, I'm franchising this thing! So far I've got Pat's Bike Ride: The Email Address (patsbikeride@gmail.com) and Pat's Bike Ride: The Bike upon which your eyes can feast at this very moment! So now, we have the requisite blog. I'll try to stop at libraries, friends' houses etc. and use their computers to keep you all updated on how my trip is going, put up new pictures, reviews of local restaurants (and their bars) that I stop at along the way and anything else I can think of. At the very least, you can follow along with my descent into madness and really brutal neglect of personal hygiene as I attempt my first-ever long-distance bicycle tour. I am headed out from my driveway in La Salle, MI to Key West, FL...via Norfolk, VA. Wish me luck! (Or wish me a few more sorely lacking brain cells.)