Joining the group

Hello Friends & Family!

This note is coming to you from the K-12 school library in Mitchell, OR. It's a small (SMALL) town between the central and eastern parts of the state. Many of you know that I have embarked on a cycle tour with three friends I know from Antarctica. Geoff and Danielle Miller planned this trip while on the ice and Gift and I committed ourselves before the end of the season. The three of them began on the Oregon coast, at Florence, on May 15. They arrived in Bend several days later and, after sharing with them the joys of the numerous breweries in town, we set off together. G & D are riding to Maine, while Gift and I are going to bow out in Denver. G & D have succeeded at long cycle tours previously...Gift and I are freshmen. We'll make a good team with our various strengths, weaknesses and personalities.

On my first day we had fairly flat terrain....this was a blessing since I've never pulled a trailer and really haven't been spent much time cycling. Also, this was my first time clipping in to pedals. I was somewhat nervous because we had numerous miles with a fair amount of traffic. I only fell once and it was not while riding. It was at the end of the day and it was when I came to a stop and unclipped from one pedal. The weight of my trailer pulled my bike to the side before I could get the other foot unclipped and I tipped. I escaped with nothing more than a few scratches on my leg and elbow, and a bruise on my pride. We made 50 miles that day.

Day two was a more challenging day even though we rode fewer miles. 41 to be exact. We climbed a pass through the Ochocos (I didn't have to walk my bike!!!) and it was also quite cold and windy. On a positive note, I felt more comfortable on the bike and I didn't fall! Last night we decided to stop here in Mitchell. As the weather had deteriorated quite a bit, we opted to share a hotel room. The price was right when split between the four of us, and a hot shower after the cold day was a welcome treat. Unfortunately, Geoff started feeling less than topnotch last evening. He got worse throughout the night-maybe he's already sick of spending days and nights with three women?? We had a mellow morning today, waiting to see if he improved. By noon we decided not to ride today and to let him recuperate and hopefully be 100% for tomorrow.

In the meantime, the three of us chicas are exploring the sleepy town of Mitchell. So far we've found a caged bear named Henry, free expired cheese at the grocery, a hotel that I am certain is haunted....and really friendly folks. We could be delayed in worse places than this!

We are in the process of creating a blog and will give the site to you all as soon as we are organized. We hope to write at least once a week and post pictures of our adventures. With any luck, we'll have interesting and amusing stories to tell at all turns! As always, it's wonderful to hear from everyone when time allows!

From the road......happy summer to you all!

Amy