Saturday, August 1, 2015

How I Spent My Summer Vacation

I called my little trip Chasing America because I guess that's what I was doing -- chasing down all the goodness this country has to offer, grabbing it by the collar, and dragging it home with me so I could share it with my friends and neighbors.

I hope I was successful.

(Here's a link to the photos I took. Chasing America)

The Stats:

I was on the bike for 56 days.

I traveled 19,190 miles.

I averaged 342 miles a day.

My longest ride was 770 miles on 22 June. I rode from Mount Pleasant to El Paso.

My shortest ride was 104 miles on 21 July. I rode from New Jersey, through New York City, to Port Jefferson on Long Island.

I traveled through 43 states.

I saw all five of the Great Lakes.

I put my feet in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.

I ate salmon in Oregon, aligator in Florida, and lobster in Maine.

I didn't get sick at all.

I dropped my bike once in Two Harbors, Minnesota. I was on a parking lot. My engine was off. My kickstand was up. I felt stupid.

I never had a flat tire or ran out of fuel.

I lost numerous amounts of water bottles, a rain jacket, my wife's "Mark Said It Would" umbrella, and 10 pounds.

I got hit in the head by a bird. I was wearing a helmet. The bird died. (Moral: birds should always wear helmets when they fly.)

I never saw a moose in New Hampshire.

I never saw a bear in Pennsylvania.

Nobody tried to kill me in Amsterdam, New York.

I met wonderful people all over America.

I only recall one person being rude. I was talking to "the newlyweds," he was in a big pickup truck, he had an external PA system, he told us to move along. That was it. One slightly brusque encounter.

Here's the map of my entire route:


How I Spent My Summer Vacation

Would I do this all again?

Well, maybe not tomorrow.

But, yes.

OF COURSE!


3 comments:

  1. I've thoroughly enjoyed reading your blog. Thank you for sharing your experiences! I hope to have an experience like that myself one day. Hopefully sooner than later. Should you find yourself in Cleveland, I'll leave the light on for ya.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you very much, Carrie. And I'll let you be the first to know: I plan on making another attempt on the world record during the summer of 2017. Maybe I'll find myself in Cleveland, looking for a place to stay for the night. Do you have a twitter or Instagram account I can follow?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Looks like I've got some reading to do. You've got a nice collection of photos there.
    Certainly a nice way of spending the summer.

    ReplyDelete