Here is a partial write-up on the bike ride this summer......more to come in the Wheelman magazine...if I finish this writing exercise.
My dream began in 1985 when I first heard of Thomas Stevens' 1884 ride from San Francisco to Boston on a Columbia Ordinary (Penny Farthing) bicycle. I had just ridden on a 1980 TREK in 14.5 days from Huntington Beach to Virginia Beach with Lon Haldeman, Susan Notorangelo, and 15 others, on "Rapitours". At the post-ride banquet, all riders were given the Seven Palms Press abridged reprint of Thomas Stevens' "Around the World on a Bicycle".
Since Thomas Stevens' ride in 1884, the records show many other Wheelmen have crossed the US on "Ordinary" bicycles. Jack Castor has researched the topic and provided the core of the following listing. Others have filled in many other details:
As a new Wheelman member, on my way to the annual Wheelman meet in New England, in 1992, I was reminded of Thomas Stevens' ride when I was in Brimfield, Mass and I spotted Steve Carter riding down route 20 on his record ride. I was surprised to see him, but quickly took a picture as he passed. Later, I signed his Guiness Log as a witness to his ride. This chance meeting reminded me of the old desire and started my planning for the Millennium ride. The planning was focused on the acquision of what I dubbed a "Transcontinental Quality" Ordinary (Penny Farthing) bike.
Earlier in 1992 at the International Veteran Cycle Association (IVCA) meet in Belgium, I had ridden my first High Wheel Century on a borrowed 54" Columbia Expert. I also met many European veteran cyclists including Tony Huntington. Tony had just retired from teaching industrial arts so that he could pursue cycle restoration as a full time activity. By 1994 I had found several ordinary bikes, but none were of a quality to take the abuse of a transcontinental ride. That same year I was referred to a farmer in Monon, Indiana who had a 54" 1887 Rudge Light Roadster. It had a very strong frame with absolutely no rust. However, it did have wheel problems as well as other issues which needed to be corrected. At this point I had also ridden from Paris to Praha on a repro 53 inch "Kennedy". On this ride, I learned a lot about cross country riding on antiques. However, I was by no means ready to attempt a transcontinental. My control skills were not yet instinctual.
In 1995, Tony Huntington and Loren Hufstettler were planning to ride from Edinburg, Scotland to the IVCA meet in Harlem, The Netherlands. They invited me to join them, so I took the opportunity to take, for restoration, the 54" Rudge along with a 54" Columbia Expert which needed a lot more work, to Tony in Yorkshire . The next year (1996), Tony had the Rudge ready to ride in time for the IVCA meet in Appenzel, Switzerland. He was planning to ride with his wife Elsie and a friend, Joan Hunter. I enjoyed the 900 mile ride on the newly restored Rudge, as it was flawless and comfortable. I knew it was a transcontinental quality machine. But I was still not ready. I understood the diet and body chemistry requirements of the ride, with the need for electrolites (learned in my 1985 transcontinental), and the schedule and training needs. But work was preventing proper training. Also monthly business trips to Korea had me eating way too much, and it showed. I was fat and out of shape.
The summer of 1999, I decided it was time to commit to it for 2000, or I would be getting to old to challenge Steve Carter's record. Also, there was the National Bicycle Greenway ride on Washington, with it's transcontinental riders focusing on a demonstration at the Capitol Building on Aug 22, 2000 to get support for better cycleways. Additionally, the Wheelman meet was scheduled to be in Salisbury, Md on the Delmarva peninsula in July. Thus I could ride SF to Boston, and then ride to Maryland for the meet....then to Wash DC.
In October, when visiting Gary Sanderson, who was one of the planners for the Salisbury meet, I mentioned my intention. He indicated that for the longest ride to the meet, I should not ride down directly from Boston, but rather return to Albany and ride down from there, as a continuation of the ride across up to that point. He promised to provide a good route since he knew the area and had done Albany to Doylestown as part of his longest ride to a Wheelmen meet from Milwaukee. He indicated that he would want to ride the last part with me. All of these factors caused me to commit to a late May departure from San Francisco, passing> by my home in Lisle, Illinois (as Thomas Stevens did) to Boston, then (if time allowed) place my bike on US 20 at the point which I had passed where Rt 9 turns South to proceed to Salisbury for the ride to the meet.
In planning the trip, I knew I would need to have support if I was to do an efficient run. I had heard about other riders and their support teams...many scary stories as well as good ones. Fortunately my brother Ted was wanting to see the country after spending the last 20 years in the Boston area and he was eager to take on the assignment. He is very mellow at this stage of his life, and is good at details and planning.
Leaving home in Illinois on the way to San Francisco for the start of the ride, my brother Ted and I had quite an adventure. We went via Golden, Colorado where I was planning on moving later in the summer, and took the planned support vehicle, a 1984 Winnebago RV, and my 92 Aerostar with a 5x8trailer. I was going to leave the Aerostar and trailer in Colorado. On the way, the Winnebago had electrical problems which could not be corrected in time to use it as a support vehicle due to parts availability (it had a Renauldt chassis), so I switched to the Aerostar with trailer as the support plan. From Golden, however, the Aerostar blew the transmission before we were into Wyoming. It was towed to Laramie, where the trailer was left at the AAA there before towing the van the next morning to Cheyenne for AAMCO to do a full rebuild. The manager of AAMCO indicated that it was not designed for mountain travel pulling a trailer. He added that even with the new trannie it would probably fail again with our planned use.
While Ted and I were waiting for 2 days for the repair to complete, I rode around Cheyenne to train at altitude(6200 ft) and looked at used car lots. I was lucky to find a 1 year old Dodge 15 passenger van which had the engine and transmission to make the trip, and which (by removing 2nd, 4th, and 5th rows of seats) would meet the needs to carry food, luggage, workshop, and spare bikes. Leaving Cheyenne at6:30 PM of the second repair day, we drove the 2 vans to Laramie and left the Aerostar with the trailer at AAA offices after swapping things around. The trailer had the Dodge's spare seats and the Dodge had everything for the trip. We arrived in San Francisco 24 hours and 1100 miles later....with 7 hours before I planned upon starting the ride. I now had abandoned vehicles in Colorado and in Wyoming...but the ride was nearly on schedule. Ted and I had a quick dinner with a high school classmate living in San Francisco at 10:00 PM and then hit the sack.
Day 1: Friday May 26: It was a very foggy, cold, and windy morning at the beach across from Golden Gate Park on Friday May 26. I left the beach at 5:40AM and headed across the sand and into Golden Gate park by the Windmill, where I had been told others had started. It was the kind of day which made Samual Clemmens write the phrase "the coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco". However, after crossing the Bay Bridge, the sun was out in Oakland. Later that day it was over 90 degrees as I followed the Sacramento river inland. My brother was providing support with great care. I never wanted for drink or food... as it was always no more than a few minutes away on the side of the road.
In the support van, I had 2 spare bikes: * 56" 1885 Victor restored by Jim Spillane with brake lever by Craig Allen * 54" 1886 Victor restored by Kennedy with spokes redone by Huntington. I also had a full bicycle tool kit, a spare Brooks long distance saddle for the Rudge, spare spokes, an extra set of Rudge Pedals off another Rudge, and tire material from both Tony Huntington in England and Fitch of Adelade, Australia... making it easy and fast to put on new rubber.
The first night was the Friday of a holiday weekend, and all the motels were full. Thankfully I had a League Of American Bicyclists "Hospitality Homes" directory and found a member's home just beyond Auburn. We had to commute to and from it from my stopping point which was short of Auburn. I had covered 128.3 miles and had probably ridden 20 miles more than I should have, as my route planning for the first day was poor, and I had to improvise to get the San Joaquine bridge at Antioch where I crossed the Sacramento river. I had 54 miles at that point. It should have been 30 to 35. The rest of the trip I was more careful to plan before riding.
The second day was all up hill...and then some down to make more up. The back roads were hard to follow parallel to I-80, however, our host from the night before had given a detailed map of the county which solved this issue fully. It was interesting that these kind folks indicated that hey had hosted some of the 1984 riders on the Thomas Stevens Centennial ride. By the end of the day, just over 57 miles were covered (probably 20 - 25 miles on foot) and I was very happy that I was "riding" that day wearing hiking boots. I decided to continue this approach for all of the mountains. The night stop was at a motel at Emigrant gap which was empty on a holiday weekend. When getting into the room it was obvious why this was the case.
Day 3 (May 28) was very beautiful...over Donner Pass and down through Reno and 65 miles into Nevada on the shoulder of I-80. However, it was not a great road. The California downs were steep with tailwinds of 20MPH making hiking in places prudent again. At Trukee, I witnessed an accident ahead which killed several people. Further down, the shoulder of I-80 narrowed to a grit covered 24 inches width next to the short guard rail as the road dropped down Truckee canyon. Here I had my only fall as hidden broken pavement grabbed my front wheel and tossed me left onto the right traffic lane. There were squeals as cars veered to miss me. I was up and off of the road very fast and walking through the grit until the road improved at the Nevada border.
The best way to cover this part is to have your support behind you with flashers on and you ride in the traffic lane. It would have been faster and safer. I made better time in Nevada on the flats with the tailwind and ended up with a 107.7 mile day. This night I greased the front bearings, pedals, and head as well as changing the rear tire. The only other thing I considered doing was re-calibrating the cyclometer since it was reading about 1.5% low judged by the mile markers on I-80. I decided this could not be done without losing the mileage already recorded, so I left it as it was. Walking distance for the day was about 15 to 20 of the nearly 108 miles.
Day 4 (which started at 5:38 am on the bike) drilled into my head and my bottom the fact which I had been warned about by James Allen and others: There are rumbles on the shoulder across Nevada. At most times you just had to ride them. The traffic is too heavy (with tandem "oar carrier" rigs from the mines weighing 100 tons passing each other as they pass you) for you to consider getting in the traffic lane. What had been tail winds the evening before had changed to headwinds by morning. As the day wore on the winds died and it became hot. The riding day ended at 6:45 PM in Winnemucca at the Super 8. It was the second Super 8...and the next 20 nights would have 19 Super 8s just because the 800 number makes it easy...and I had no energy to waste on finding a local motel. Total miles: 113.2.
Day 5: With a 5:25 roll out from Winnemucca at 4400 Ft elevation we climbed 700 feet with headwind over a period of 3 hours and 23 miles. It got better as the next hour and a half covered 18 more miles with side winds and a net 1800 foot drop. At 11:15 and after 50 miles Ted had a lunch set aside the road. At noon, we had covered 55 miles and were at Battle Mountain Smoke Shop....specializing in Fireworks and Cigars. It was an interesting sight with a crowd of Indians in front who stared at me as much as I stared at the setting in the desert. If the fireworks did not injure them, the cigars were sure to kill them in the end. At 4:25 after averaging 10 MPH for the afternoon we crossed another Emigrant Pass. Then after Carlin, a dangerous Tunnel on a curve with heavy trucks and no bike lane/shoulder....opened to the road to Elko. We stopped at Elko for the night with 125+ more miles under the tires....8:10 PM.
Day 6: We were on the road at an early dawn... 4:45 AM. After this early start, we rewarded ourself with a restaurant lunch 50 miles later in Wells at 10:50. This was a 1 hour lunch, as opposed to the side of road 10 minute lunches. Then Pequop Summit was at 72 miles, 6970 ft, and 2:37 PM. The goal for the day, Wendover, Nev/ Wendover, Utah was achieved by 6:25 PM after 109+ miles. I greased head and adjusted it as well as tightening both tires before going to bed. Also, as was the case each night I called my daughter Pati with a report for the Web page she was maintaining at: www.geocities.com/ heartland/garden/4934/bikeamerica.htm. She updated me on each of these calls with noteshen folks had sent to her (as web master) on their reading of my travels. Some were helpful moments on road conditions. Others were just encouraging greetings. All of these were welcome. Also, I made my daily call to my realtor about progress selling my house in Illinois.
Day 7 spent was the crossing of the Salt Flats. It was supposed to be an easy day, but heavy construction on the highway and strong headwinds made the relatively flat 116 miles harder than anticipated. New tar and chip surfacing in progress mandated walking for about 10 miles. The otherwise monotonous scenery was broken at one point where someone planted a decorative metal tree with meter wide metal fruit on the north side of the road. The Salt Lake City Super 8 was located at 8:21 PM after 13.5 hours fighting winds and bad surfaces....at 4200 ft elevation.
Day 8 involved the city crossing from 4200 ft in West Salt Lake to 4700 on the East side, rejoining I - 80. Next was a long climb to Parlies Summit at 6800 ft on the way to Park City. The weather was superb as was the scenery. Along the way Roger Glazier of the Park Record newspaper stopped me for photos and an interval to be published that weekend in Park City. He promised to send copies. Like 50% of these promises, I still await the copy. But he got his interview. From Park City, the I-80 dropped down Echo Canyon to I-84 junction at 5200 ft. An alternate route through Ogden would have saved 1600 ft of gain and drop. I- 80 then climbed East to Wyoming where we stopped for the night at Evanston, after another nearly 2000 foot climb. The mileage total for the day was 92. The time on the road was 6:32 AM to 7:13 PM.
Day 9 started at 5:38 AM at 6900 ft followed by breakfast on the road 9 miles later at 7500 ft. The day continued up and down with sequential readings of: 6640 ft at 8:55AM, 7240 ft at 9:43 AM, 6380 ft at 11:00 AM, 6000 ft, then 6400 ft before exiting I-80 for a side road along the river coming into Green River, Wyo. This road provided a scenic view of the road, where I watched a moose below walk into the river from the North side, then hike and swim across. It was a wonder that his heavy rack did not push his head below the water. Continuing past Rock Springs at 6:05, we continued on to Mile Post 122 exit at 7:48PM for a total day of 117.5 miles in 14 hours.
Day 10: Picking up at MP 122 exit at 6:04 AM and 6120 Ft, the road climbed to 6780 ft with headwinds by 8:30. At 11:30 after more ups and downs, I crossed the continental divide for the first of 3 times at 6930 ft. The next 2 crossings were at 2:15 (6820 ft), and 4:35 PM. At 5:00 we passed through Rawlings where we would come back to stay that night. Continuing, there was construction with really bad "kibbled" surface for 4 miles before detouring through Sinclair with it's refinery. At 8:00 we stopped for the day at Walcott at 6760 ft. Distance: 115 mi in 14 hours.
Day 11: We left Walcott at 6:14 AM and 6760 ft elevation at 6:14 AM. After dropping to 6500 ft we climbed to 7700, then up and down 7220 ft, 7660, 7400, 7780, 7500, 7700, 7400 then new sprayed and chipped surface on the I-80 shoulder until 50 miles were under tire at 1:00 PM at 7660 ft at Mile post 285. Scenery was typically wild west, with long views and dry scenes with rocky outcroppings. Mountains in the distance added interest to the south. The afternoon was slow with 22 more miles in 2:45 before a violent wind storm forced me to walk the last 5 miles on a lovely gentle down grade into Laramie. There we sorted out the abandoned van which had been intended as the support vehicle, and had a sit-down breakfast at the Chuck wagon restaurant, discussing with the Laramie media the ride across. Laramie had been the staging area for Thomas Stevens in 1883/1884, and the local newspaper had just written it up 2 weeks before. Thus they were very interested in my ride. As I rode away from the restaurant at 5:45 PM, and headed East again into wind and construction, I could see ahead the 8600 ft summit (the highest point on the crossing). 4 miles later, with media leapfrogging my ride to take photos, I was surprised by the appearance of my daughter Susan and her fiancée Gary McDonald appearing. Susan rode on a mountain bike with me until the grade made my dismount and walk the last hout or the summit. It was 8:00 PM as we topped the climb an stopped across from the Lincoln Statue at Mile Post 323, having covered 88 miles for the day. I had expected to get much further, so reservations and plans to meet Colorado Wheelmen were in Cheyenne, 37 miles ahead. Susan and Gary worked to help shuttle the abandoned van and trailer to Cheyenne and Ted and I drove to the Super 8 motel where we met my other Son -in -Law, Dan Krehbiel (who had brought provisions from Golden) and Colorado Wheelmen member Dave Walker, who was eager to ride with me part of the next day on his 58" Rudge. Later that night new, and wildly enthusiastic, member Paul Brekus arrived with his 52" "Boneshaker" and indicated that he wanted to ride in the morning also. We got him situated in Dave's room by midnight and indicated that the morning ride was not for a cheap replica, but we would pick him up as we came through Cheyenne for the more flat ride to the East.
Day 12: After a 5:00 rise, Dave, Ted and I drove back to the Lincoln statue and pushed off at 6:24 for the 2400 ft drop over 37 miles into Cheyenne. the weather was lovely and the road superb with new construction on 2 lanes completed, but traffic still detoured on the other 2 lanes. Thus Dave and I floated down a new private 2 lane road for major sections. At 8:45 we were in Cheyenne with 37 fast miles under our tires, and woke up Paul. While he was getting ready, we had the free super 8 breakfast. At 9:15 we left the hotel and road to Cowboy Dodge (where I had bought the van 2 weeks before) to request quick door repairs on the rear door. Instead of getting repairs, they wanted to have a news clip shot and said to wait for the media to arrive. Reluctantly, we waited and a film crew and newspaper did appear, and we finally pushed off from Cheyenne at 9:55 headed East across the plains of Eastern Wyoming with 20 MPH tailwinds and nasty (Nevada like) rumble strips. Paul has a real handicap with his "Boneshaker" compared to Dave's and my Rudges. At 10:50, Dave and I stop at the van and Ted prepares a snack while we wait for Paul. As Paul finishes his snack, Dave determines he should head back to Cheyenne to get back for appointments in Denver. Paul wants to ride a bit further, so I told him to go ahead while I help load Daves bike in the van for Ted to drive him back. As I push off from Mile point 376, I see Paul's silhouette against the horizon cresting an overpass a half of a mile ahead. Then as I crest the overpass, I cannot see his silhouette. Proceeding, I see at first one road kill on the road, then a second. Pulling up, I see Paul is face down, on the shoulder, with blood flowing from his mouth and nose, and he is unconscious with no sign of breathing. No cars have spotted him. I Yell down at him he name loudly 2 times as I bend over him...then I signal traffic to stop with 2 Jumping Jacks to get attention. 5 cars pull over, as I now bend over him again and yell his name loudly in his ear. This time there is a quick jerk in his body and he is breathing and moaning, but lying still on his face. I borrow a cell phone from one of the stopped drives who has just called 911, and I call to the Cheyenne Super 8 to have them send Dave and Ted back out to mile 377.5. Paul then stirs more and wants to get up. We encourage him to stay down until emergency services arrive. I ask for the phone number to call his partner Barbara in Denver, and he gives his home number. After leaving a message for Barbara, I have Paul speak into the phone so she can tell that he is somewhat OK. However, he had had a bad concussion and shattered his helmet totally. As a martial arts black belt and instructor, he had learned to fall with hands down. Doing this from his ordinary, as the bike collapsed with a fork attachment to wheel failure, had made his head be the first point of contact rather than shielded by his arms. After emergency services took Paul away, I hit the road again from Mile 377.5 at 11:50 with 55 miles under tire and many off bike experiences. The ride to the Nebraska border is very fast....but the wind changes abruptly at Pine Bluff. I then start the Nebraska Headwinds. At mile 4 in Nebraska, I face a slight grade with winds which force me to walk. I exited I-80 at mile 8 and head the 3 miles to Bushnell where I use a bank to use phone and fax machine and get a sale contract and witness signatures for the sale of my home in Illinois. Also, I take a meatloaf late lunch in the local diner to get shelter for a few minutes from the upper 90 degree winds. At this point, I have ridden the last of my I-80 riding. I 80 was both good and bad. The shoulders were away from traffic, but the surface was clearly designed to get autos and trucks back on the road. If it was made for autos and trucks not to like, there is no reason that bikes would like it. But it was relatively safe...graded out well in the mountains, and signed well so you were never getting lost. The rest of the trip was totally different, having to fight traffic for a side of the road, worrying about finding turns, as well as worrying about traffic seeing you in bad weather conditions.
At 4:15 I headed East from Bushnell on US 30. The heat and headwinds died after an hour and I started to really get a rhythm going as I saw an old tractor coming in the other direction on US 30. The old farmer in worn field clothing gave a dramatic salute to me as he passed. I saluted him back. Later I learned from Ted (the farmer had then stopped and talked to Ted on the side of the road) that he was the owner of Cowboy Dodge...as well as the owner of several ranches (hundreds of square miles) in Eastern Wyoming and in Western Nebraska. He had seen me that morning at his dealership in Cheyenne...and was surprised to see me pass through one of his ranches now on the same day. I stopped riding at Nebraska Mile Point 44 on US 30 at 7:55 PM with 128 miles and an amazing set of memories for the day. Plus I finalized a contract for sale of my Illinois house!
Day 13 (June 7) I hit the road at Mile Post 44 at 6:15 AM. 27 miles were covered before breakfast 2 hours later, and I was happy to have good riding before the heat and winds built up. The next 4 hours only yielded 36 more miles, as the temperatures hit 95 degrees by noon. At 3:25 it was 1:01 degrees F on a bank sign in Ogallala. I was using sump cooling techniques by pouring water all over myself and letting it evaporate and cool my long sleeve shirt and (under-helmet) hat as it dried. However, sump cooling can only do so much, so at 3:35 I retreated to the friendly confines of a (minimally) Air Conditioned Burger King for 1 hour to drink Milk Shakes to drop my core temperature. At 4:35, as I rolled away from the Burger King, the bank signs read 105 degrees. This was not a comfortable thought...or feeling, but I could not afford to waste more time with Whoppers and shakes. At 6:30 I took another Air Conditioning stop. This one for 30 minutes. I finished the day at 7:50 PM at mile post 152 on US 30, west of Sutherland Nebraska. The day's total was 108 miles. During the day I had literally laid down tracks....ruts in the soft asphalt of the melted road. This is not the kind of "laying down tracks" you really want to do. Usually it is easy to ride more miles than the temperature is in Degrees F. This day it was hard. But I made it! 108 Miles versus 105 degrees. My evening call list now had an additional entry, to check upon how Paul Brekus was recovering from his fall.
On day 14 it was already 68 degrees as my riding started at 6:13 AM at Nebraska Mile Post 152. At 8:50 I reached North Platt and saw Ted's van in a laundry parking lot at mile 177. I stopped in to let him know that I was going by so he would know which way to drive. As I continued to the ESE the wind built up to 20 MPH from the SSE. By 11:30 we ate lunch at Mile Post 196, and it was 96 degrees. The wind was now gusting strongly affecting control on the narrow shoulder of US 30 as trucks zipped past. In the next 3 hours, I covered 17.5 miles and the temperature was hovering around 100 Degrees when I quit for the day at Mile Post 213.5 at 2:30 PM. Wind was gusting (according to the Weather Channel) to 35 MPH from the South East. US 30 was still pointed ESE, so it was an angling headwind with the side component trying to push me into the traffic. I had walked about 8 of the last 17 miles and had concluded that it was pointless continuing in the heat and dangerous winds. Ted and I had a good Buffet dinner, watched the weather channel in the hotel, and got to bed early. The temperature had continued to rise to well over 100 degrees after I stopped for the day, and the wind only got stronger. Daily mileage was 61.5 on a flat road in Nebraska! Both Jim Ogland and the James Allen/Rick Stumpf team had also found Nebraska to be a deceptively difficult state to cross. Even with their warnings, I was not expecting these devastating conditions.
For day 15, I had hoped for a weather change. I got it, but not how I wanted. The strong winds of the day before only got stronger, but stayed from the SE. I started riding at 5:30 with a 72 degree temperature. I had covered 12 miles arriving in Cozad at 7:00AM, with winds already up to 20 MPH. To add to the fun, there was 6 miles of construction which made riding space even less than US 30 normally provided...and made the wind buffeting even more dangerous. At 9:50 after 4 hours and 20 minutes, I had covered a total of 31 miles. After 2 more hours I had added only 13 more miles. The winds were now 30 MPH with gusts measured by the weather channel at 45 to 48 MPH. I was at this point at the famous (to those who read about the other transcontinental riders) "1733 Ranch". There I made the obligatory stop (which I was happy to do due to the hot wind) to see the proprietors: Nick and Rose Ponticello. I had hoped for Air Conditioning. However, this souvenir shop of the 1930s, at the 1/2 way point (1733 mile point) on the old route from San Francisco to Boston, had not been updated. Its souvenir stock was also vintage, and the blind Rose and the nearly deaf Nick (each about 90 years old and 4 foot tall) were eager to show off all of their souvenirs of the early last century (Nick pointing toward things with his cane as he braced himself against the counter). They also tried to get me to take tiring material which had been left by other Wheelmen on past crossings. All of it was used, and I would not be surprised if some had been left by Thomas Stevens himself. Nick explained that the folks who had left the rubber said that someone would come along and need it. I was not that someone, since it was the American style with the soldered on centre wire. I use the English approach with no torch needed. As we left, they made Ted and I promise to stop in again the next time we were in the Midwest. After leaving Nick and Rose, I rode about a mile and stopped for the day at the Mile 270 historical monument built to commemorate the Kearney Mill on the West side of Kearney, Nebraska. The day's mileage was 56.5 and the total elapsed time was 8 hours and 20 minutes. In the hotel, I did a total servicing of the Rudge:
For day 16, I decided it was bad luck to hope for a change in the weather, so I did not. This worked, and the wind died before our start at 5:46 AM with the temperature already at 76 degrees. There was still no wind at Gibbon 15 miles later at Mile post 285. At 10:00 we departed US 30 to connect with US 34. At this point I had 48.5 miles under tire as we crossed the Platt river. At 11:13, we celebrated covering 60 miles with no wind by eating aside the road. Menu, as most days: Cold corn in the can, Cold baked beans in the can, Cold Sardines in the can, 2 quarts of cold skimmed milk. At 1:00 I passed Ted who was filling the 8 gallon water tank at a pump in a cemetery. The daily odometer reading was 74.5 miles. At 3:15 the ODO was reading 92.4. By 4:50 we had 104.7 miles, and the flat roads had changed to rolling hills as we were approaching Lincoln on US 34. The weather was reasonably hot, but it was relatively refreshing after the severe heat and winds of the preceding 4 days. At 7:55 PM we stopped for the day at the corner of I-180 (which US 34 had evolved into) and the Superior Street ramp on the North West side of Lincoln. The daily mileage was 133.62. All of the hotels in Lincoln were filled due to graduations, so we had a 40 mile commute to out of town lodging. It would have been a good day to use the Hospitality Homes book, but I was in a Super 8 habit and failed to consider the option.
Day 17's ride started at 6:33 AM after commuting back to I-180 and Superior Street. At 8:30, after 18.5 miles on US Rt 6, we were at Greenwood. It was warm and sticky. Due to a study of the maps, and consulting with a bike rider on the road in Lincoln, I made a decision to turn East on Nebraska Rt 66 East to US 34. This was a shorter route than James Allen had taken, and it would avoid the Omaha suburbs. What I did not know was that it was extremely hilly, had no shoulders, and had a long section of construction with "nibbled" roadway which required a lot of walking. At 1:08 PM we crossed the Missouri river on the Rt 34 bridge and were in Iowa. It was good to get Nebraska behind us. It had been the toughest state....a wolf in sheep clothing. The winds and heat, although without high humidity, had proven to be far worse than mountains. Now the weather was going to make a dramatic change again. After Nebraska had rolled out it's hottest and windiest early June on record, we were destined for the Midwest's wettest late June in many years. Route 34 in Iowa was without verge (shoulder), and had heavy truck traffic. Thus the rear view mirror was constantly checked. Many times I heard trucks blast at me from behind, and looking back I could see the truck coming taking the whole lane with no movement to pass or slow down. Traffic from the other direction was preventing the truck from moving around me. Thus I had to dismount and get off of the road many times, if I valued my life. After 3 hours of using Rt 34, at 4:37 PM, the odometer read 71 miles. I then spotted a friendly car appeared coming west flashing it's lights and slowing down. My daughter Pati and her husband Dan Krehbiel were returning to Colorado from a wedding in Illinois. I had told them that I was going to take Rt 34, so they dropped south from Rt 80 to meet me on the road. It was a nice 15 minutes as we hugged and they took pictures and a video on their digital still camera, which Pati put on the web site. After this reunion, I was free to leave Rt 34, so I turned north on M16 to H12 East and faced headwinds with a series of sharp short hills for several miles. This route made the hiking boots very welcome even in Iowa. I stopped riding at 93.5 miles at 8:18 PM and commuted South to the Red Oak Super 8 motel.
The 18th riding day began at 6:23 at county H 12 intersection with a country lane west of Rt N 47. I headed East then North to Rt 92 then East through Griswald where the first of the Midwest super storms hit. It was very hilly and the winds came up from the East until each storm approached. Then the wind would quickly change from 20 MPH head to 50 MPH angling tail wind with lots of flying debris....in less than 1 minute. At 11:10, I had only covered 31 miles. After a half hour more, 34 miles. I was walking up headwindy hills...then walking when the rear 50 MPH gusts came up. When it was not storming, it was too sticky for the "swamp cooling" to provide evaporation, so there was no cooling benefit. The methods for the dry west did not apply to the land between the rivers. Thus I resorted to frequent ice water sprays to cool my head and shoulders. The coldness of my drinks became more important also, since sweating also does not cool you at high ambient humidity levels. The only cooling is by direct application of cold material...to the skin or inside by drinking to lower core temperature. At Winterset, the road flattened out but the headwinds only strengthened. At 8:10 PM we stopped for the day in Indianaola with a 103.6 mile tally for the day. This was not the same Iowa I had ridden on 6 Ragbrai rides with 3 of them on an ordinary. If there were storms those years, they were polite and stayed at night. Also, the folks who laid out Ragbrai did a studied approach, while I was again getting sloppy in my research, and making poor choices. Thus, Iowa seemed far tougher on this ride.
On day 19 I was in the saddle at 5:39 AM at the corner of Rts 92 and 65 in Indianaola. It was already very warm and sticky and winds according to the radio were from the South East at 8-10 MPH . By 8:05 I had only covered 20 miles with steady effort, due to the rollers and wind. The hiking boots were still appreciated. At 12:25, after nearly 7 hours and only 51.2 miles we reached Oskaloosa. The road had a bad surface on the traffic lanes and the shoulder was covered with bands of "rumble strips" which rivalled the worst in Nevada. By 2:30 I was approaching Sigourney when a monster storm let loose with hail stones whose cross-section was the size of nickels. I retreated into the shelter of the parked van and ate corn, beans, and sardines until the violent part of the storm had passed. Riding in the drizzle which follows the passage of the storm front possible. However you need to carefully watch the traffic in your rear view mirror, in case the traffic is not watching out for you. At 3:03 I was harassed by an old white Chevy truck with License plate 651BMZ. I noted it, but never followed up with authorities. At 7:00 PM with 99.5 miles on the odometer Route 92 detoured onto County G 36 and bypassed the town of Washington where we had made the reservation for the night. This caused me to ride more than I would otherwise have for the day...and we continued until a late dusk at 8:20 PM. The lack of traffic on the county road allowed me to safely ride further into the twilight than I would have otherwise . We stopped at the corner of X17 and G36 East and North of Washington and commuted the 15 miles back to the motel in Washington. The odometer read 114.6 miles for the day.
On day 20 I was back in the saddle at 6:15 AM facing strong winds from the SSW and riding SSW on X17 to reconnect with Iowa Route 92. It started to rain about7:00 AM as I crossed the Iowa river on 92. The rain strengthened and I diverted to Rt. G40and 305 to avoid the traffic in the heavy rain. It was still raining, but not storming as we pulled into Muscatine at10:15 with 29 miles on the trip meter. The Mississippi river bridge was under repair, narrowing it to 1 lane. Thus I decided that I could not ride the 1 mile across during the time the shared lane was allocated to East bound traffic. We therefore headed North East in Iowa to the Quad cities on scenic Rt. 22. It continued to rain all of the way to the outskirts of Davenport. We crossed the "Government Bridge" onto the arsenalis land at 1:50 with the sun coming out. It was welcome! After entering Illinois we made our way onto Rt. 5then off at Barstow road. with 72 miles covered. Flooding of the road made for a diversion as we headed north to Illinois Rt. 92. Heading East on Ill 92 ween countered a short strong storm as we crossed the Rock River bridge, then turned NE onto Prophetstown road as a dramatic rainbow shown against the black clouds to the East, from the storm which had just passed. At 6:15 we entered Prophetstown with 100.25 miles on the trip meter for the day. Strong tailwinds which were following the storm carried me along at a nice pace so I was not ready to stop. The country roads were very rough but they had no traffic. It was a route I had ridden a few times with a friend who had grown up in the quad cities. The calm nature of the roads and pleasant relaxing scenes made this route a welcome change from the busy roads in the rain earlier in the day. After 28 more miles, at 8:35 it was starting to get dark. We stopped at the corner of Rd 950N(Sterling Rd) and Illinois Rt. 26, having just passed through Harmon a few miles before, and commuted to a hotel in Rock Falls. The days total miles was 128.5 .
On day 21 I was in the saddle at 6:05 AM after commuting back from the Rock Falls motel. I headed east from Rt. 26 on Sterling Rd with the welcome assistance of continuing tailwinds. At 10:00the trip odometer read 40 miles as I called friends in Naperville who wanted to see me as I came through town. At 1:30 I visited the office of my real estate attorney who would handle the closing on the sale of my home, and was assured that all was well. Five minutes later I stopped in Downtown Naperville where several friends from work had gathered. Also, the proprietor of an antique shop there had notified 3newspapers: the Chicago Tribune, the Daily Herald, and the Naperville Sun of my trip. All three were represented there with photographers as well as reporters. It was quite an experience, as they competed for the best story and photos. One of the photographers even laid on the ground to get the angle he wanted. I then headed out the Old Plank road which was most likely the road Thomas Stevens travelled into Chicago and which passes 100 meters from my Lisle home. I stopped at home at 2:00 PM to read important mail and pay bills, which had been piling up. At 3:30 PM, with 77.2 miles on the trip meter, I remounted and rode out my driveway wending my way East and South East on a series of back roads through the Chicago suburbs. At 7:50 PMI stopped for the day with 111.65 miles covered at the corner of US6 and Illinois Rt. 50 (Cicero Avenue) and commuted to sleep.
On day 22, Carey Williams rode with me starting at 6:20 AM. We were headed East on US 6which would be used as the road for Indiana and half of Ohio as well. After riding 13 miles we crossed the border into Indiana, having experienced road construction and heavy traffic. At 9:15 our odometers recorded 28 miles and we were benefiting from SW winds. At 10:10 Carey headed back toward Chicago with 34.6 miles recorded. I had really enjoyed his company. At 11:30 it was 44.5 miles; at1:25 it was 61.1 miles. Northern Indiana is a relatively easy ride after getting out of the Urban areas which surround Chicago. As Ted and I continued East, the Amish community of Nappanee was passed at 97 miles and 5:15 PM. With 118.8 miles under tire, I stopped for the day in Ligonier, at the corner of 5, 6, and 33. There was a deli in the IGA on the North side of the intersection and I had a taste for ribs. They had them there, and they were quite meaty and well spiced. I think I ate over a pound of them, and, after my nightly call list, got to bed.
At 5:39 AM on day 23 I rolled away from the intersection of Rt. 6and Rts 33 and 5. At 8:35with just over 30 miles I ate a roadside breakfast at US 6intersection with Indiana Rt. 427. One hour later (CDST 9:39) we crossed the timeline and it was EDST 10:39 at Odometer reading41.4, on the border of Ohio. Four hours later, we entered Napolian,Ohio with 77 miles recorded. at 3:15 we left Napolian with 82.5 miles covered. Conditions were reasonable on Rt. 6but the shoulder was not wide. Winds were acceptable and variable. We circled south of Bowling Green at 103 miles, as head winds started to develop. Storms were brewing which would hit with a vengeance over night and the next day. At 7:02 PM an18 wheeler which was approaching westbound pulled into my lane and would not return to his lane. I left the road and with raised fist expressed my feelings about his actions. He in no way slowed or showed any responsibility to play by the rules. The Machiavellian expression "Might Makes Right" was operative here, as my option of holding my legal ground would have only gotten me killed. Arriving at the Burger King in Fremont, Ohio at 9:05 PM and having covered 133 miles we found:
We commuted to Sandusky Ohio's Super 8.
On day 24 we lingered at the starting point due to the heavy storms in Fremont. While sitting around in the Burger King, we talked to Skip Young and LarryBartson who had held morning residence there nearly every day for decades. They explained a more hard to find route than Rt. 6 which offered lower traffic as well as less miles from Fremont to Huron. Since it was still storming as I pedalled off at alate 7:17 AM, I took it. Cars speeding in the rain cannot see you, so the lower traffic route was truly attractive. We used Rt. 412 to Rt. 101 to Castalia. We covered flooded roads. After 2.5 hours, the strong head winds and rain had allowed 18.8miles to be covered. At 11:00 AM we stopped for a bite at the side of the road at the NASA Plum Brook Station on Bogart St. with 26 miles covered. By noon we were Rye Beach Road on old Rt. 6 at the Huron Bike Path....31miles. The next 4 hours only added29 more miles as the winds continued to favour others. At 5:25 PM we were approaching Cleveland with Odometer at only 70 miles, as we were warned to not get caught in East Cleveland at dusk. There was a decision to be made to save Cleveland for a Monday AM or run it on Sunday night...and try to get through to a safe base. We went for it, and what a ride it was. In East Cleveland, which goes for ever, there were a multitude of folks on the street, porches, and corners. Nearly all had something to say about my passing. Most were very friendly, but there was an element who were yelling out "What is that bike worth" and" I want that bike". One young man rode straight at my front wheel on the wrong side of the road as if playing chicken. I let him deflect, as I wanted to continue making progress. I was sure that if I stopped, other's hands would be on the bike, and it would be spirited away to make an exchange for drugs. I ran all stop lights, to prevent loiterers from having time to seize an opportunity. It was quite a ride as fast as I could, until just as twilight appeared, we emerged from the East side of the challenging section. Stopping time: 8:46 PM; Miles: 100.1at the Willowby Police Station (a safe place to load up).
On day 25 we were back at the Willowby police station for a 7:00start. The riding was relatively uneventful as I headed East on US 20 passing Geneva, Ohio at10:07 AM having covered 29.25 miles. At noon, the distance was 45miles under tire as we passed North King Elementary school. By 6:00 PM we had passed Harbor Creek and had 90 miles under tire. It was getting dark as I dismounted in front of St. Stephen Bar and Hotel in the centre of Brocton, New York. The distance covered was 119.8 miles, in 14hours.
Pushing off from St. Stephen Bar on day 26 at 06:30 the goal was Carl and Clarice Burgward's Pedalling History Museum in Orchard Park, New York. We arrived there after 5 hours and 10minutes with 49.25 miles covered. Carl had lined up reporters and TV news reporters and had a bus tour there as I rode up. After a few interviews and a lot of pictures, I gave a bike maintenance demonstration, greasing the pedals, front bearings, and head. Then we went down the street for a quick lunch (Thanks, Carl) and I was off to the East again. A few miles further, at 2:04 PM, and odometer reading 62.3miles, I stopped in at the brand new Broadway Veterinary Clinic which Melinda Gibson was about to christen in a Grand Opening. It was very impressive. After a short conversation with her, I headed down Rt. 20. At3:00 PM we crossed the Genesee county line with 71.55 miles for the day. Riding was relatively easy. However, by 5:00 PM it was getting hilly with 86.27 miles covered. At 7:00 we passed the intersection of Rt. 36 with 101.28on the trip meter. the riding day ended at 8:29 PM 1/4 mile East ofI-390 having just passed through Avon, New York. The days mileage tally was111.44 miles in 14 hours.
On day 27 the start was at 6:10 AM with rain and head winds from the se. After 5 hours and 30 minutes I had only covered 38.5 miles but the wind was changing to be a 20 MPH side wind from the South as we entered Waterloo. There were, however, severe storm warnings on the radio. By 4:00 PM with only 67 miles, the severe storms hit. I sat out 1 hr and 45 minutes of dramatic weather. Starting again at 5:45, I rode East on Rt. 20until 8:35 PM where I called it a day with only 85.5 miles covered at the intersection of Rt. 11A(Roland Road) and US 20.Here I met a local jumbo cyclist who asked : "Why are you riding onRt. 20? All of the locals ride across state North of here on Rt. 5." I had put a fair bit of wear this day on the hiking boots.
I started day 28 failing to heed the advice of the jumbo rider from the night before. Continuing East on Rt. 20 at 05:58 I walked up and down a very steep hill and had covered only 4 mile sat 7:10 AM when the intersection of Rt. 11 presented itself. Finally understanding the wisdom, I turned North on 11, passed the 11A junction (which I could have been at 2 hours before) and continued toward Syracuse. Then, wanting to avoid the downtown, I turned East again onRt. 173E at 7:45 AM. At 8:30 I had 14 miles on the Odometer as I ate breakfast in Jamesville. By 9:55 the progress was not much improved, as I had 22 miles covered in 4 hours. At 10:20we got to the intersection of 173 and Rt. 5 with 25.6 miles in 4hours and 22 minutes of hard work. There was no joy in Rudgeville! However, things were about to change. Heading East along the Erie canal route I had covered 44 miles by 12:15. At12:55, we passed Kirkland, NY with 51 miles covered, as we crossed Rt. 233.Erie Lock # 19 was passed at 2:50 and odometer at 66 miles. By 4:55 it was odometer 85. At 5:50 the reading was 92.61 at the intersection of Rt. 5 andRt. 67 east of St. Johnsville. The century mark passed at 7:12 PM as I rode over the Palestine bridge. Things sped up over the next hour, as I rode toward Fonda, NY. At 8:15, I stopped at Stewarts Ice Cream Shop in Fonda with 111.43 miles under tire, and some joy had returned. This joy was somewhat shattered as we were refused in the nearest Super 8...at Amsterdam, NY where we had a guaranteed reservation. It took a little searching to get an alternative. My trust in Super 8 was now dashed!
Leaving the Fonda, NY Stewarts on day 29 at 5:45 AM, I quickly road east and was in Schenectady, 25 miles down the road by 8:05 AM. A modern biker had ridden with me for 2 miles and offered to show me an Ordinary which was in the window of the bike shop at which he worked. After a quick stop to see the Columbia Expert(52" as I recall) I headed east again on 5. Arriving in Albany, I needed to get back on US 20.After a few wrong turns, I found the bridge and rode across the Hudson River by 10:00 AM showing 42.3 miles on the odometer. In a few minutes, I passed over NY Rt. 9, where I would return a few days later to head south continuing my ride to the Wheelmen/IVCA annual meet in Salisbury, Maryland. Of course, after crossing a river you go up hill. By 2:10 I was at1200 ft climbing the Berkshires and crossing the NY / Mass border. The odometer read69.4 miles as I spent 1/2hour changing the rear tire and greasing appropriate points. Starting again, the apparent summit was only a mile later at 70.4, at 3:00PM with altimeter reading 1520 ft. Fifteen minutes later I entered Pittsfield, Mass. At 4:15 PM we made a quick stop at the Lenox rest areawith83.5 miles on the odometer. At 6:19 PM we were at 1800 ft, after climbing from what I thought was the summit. the odometer read 98 miles. At6:30 the readings were 100 miles and 1400 ft.I had walked some of the downs as there was no shoulder and heavy traffic with construction. The cool evening air and gentle downs which followed allowed me to speed to Westfield, Mass arriving at 8:32 in dusk with 122.15 miles on the odometer.
On the 30th day on the road, I started from the Elm Motel at 5:10AM. After passing just North of the old Columbia bicycle plant, I continued east on US 20and passed through Springfield, Mass. This was home of the Springfield Roadster Highwheel Safety. Also, the route passed just south of Chicopee Falls, home of Victor Cycles. At7:37 I had covered 20.0 miles. At 10:00 AM I rode through historic Sturbridge (40.1 miles on odometer ) , having just passed Brimfield's antique fields where I had witnessed Steve Carter's crossing 9 years before. At 1:35 PM, with 70 miles under the tires, I passed Northbourough,Mass. The traffic in the east is less friendly than in the west. Roads have less consistent shoulders. The riding is taking more and more concentration, and I am using Ted in the van behind as a shield often when there is no shoulder. About 3:30Ted left me with instructions to get to a restaurant in Watertown, Mass. He drove to his house in Watertown and got his bike and his son,Bayan, also with his bike. We met at the restaurant and the three of us rode together, at first on trails which Ted knew, then on the road since the trails had low branches not suitable for Hi bikes. At about 5:40 PM EDST(2:43 PM PDST), we ride onto Rowe Wharf in Boston. There we are met by Jim Spillane and his friend, John, who drove him up to Boston. Jim has welcomed many transcontinental riders to Boston. Soon there were folks coming off of a large power boat which was docked there to give me a bottle of champagne . Other tourists there on the wharf where the Boston Tea Party was held at the birth of our nation, were very interested in what I was doing as I held the Rudge over the water and carefully lowered the front wheel into the salt brine to complete the salt to salt ride. It was 5:43 PM in Boston on June 24, 2000. I had left the beach inSan Francisco 29 days, 9 hours and 3 minutes before. This last day was 103 miles long bringing my total mileage to 3218 on the odometer, which read 1 - 1.5% low based upon I-80 mileage markers.
ON Ride day 31
On Wednesday June 28, I remounted my Rudge just east of Albany NY at the point where Rt. 20 goes East and NY Rt. 9 heads south. This time I turned south, on bike route 9, rather than staying eastbound on US 20 as I had a few days before. After about 10 miles of flat riding down the east side of the Hudson river, I saw a few ordinaries ahead, and soon joined part of the international riders group. They are looking for other members of their group who had actually stayed on the west side of the river. That night, we all stayed in Hudson, NY. I had covered only about 40 miles. While in Hudson, I discovered an 1884 54" Columbia Expert with an interesting history: It had been owned from 1910 to 1953 by a acrobat who rode it on a tight rope (without tires) in a circus in Madison Square Garden for many years in the 20's and 30's. Since 1953 the person from whom I later purchased it owned it.
Having completed my first goal, I took a couple off days to catch up with E-mail and to be social with Ted's family as well as visit Jim Spillane in Connecticut. Also, I stopped in at Gary Sanderson's home in New Jersey before connecting up in Albany, NY and getting back in the saddle for the completion of the ride to the IVCA / Wheelmen annual meet in Salisbury. Irene Sanderson indicated that Gary was already on the road with the international riders who had decided to ride from Rochester, NY to the meet rather than from the Toronto area where the leaders lived.
On Wednesday June 28, I remounted my Rudge just east of Albany NYE at the point where Rt.20 goes East and NY Rt. 9 heads south. This time I turn south, on bike route 9, rather than staying eastbound on US 20 as I had a few days before. After about 10 miles of flat riding down the east side of the Hudson river, I see a few ordinaries ahead, and soon join part of the international riders group. They are looking for other members of their group who actually stayed on the west side of the river. That night, we all stayed in Hudson, NY. I had covered only about 40miles. While in Hudson, I discovered an 1884 54" Columbia Expert with an interesting history: It had been owned from 1910 to 1953 by a acrobat who rode it on a tight rope (without tires) in a circus in Madison Square Garden for many years in the 20's and30's. Since 1953 it was owned by the person from whom I later purchased it.
Over the next week I rode on the route with the "Canadian Team" and covered distances:
Ted had driven my support vehicle and supported the whole group as far as North New Jersey. There Kathy Ham arrived from Tasmania and took over the driving of the Dodge and dispensing of Gatorade and other goodies.
Adding the approximately 480 miles, which I rode coming down from Albany, and the 112 I rode on July 6 on the Wheelmen Century (adding mileage by missing a turn) to the 3218 recorded miles of the transcontinental ride (with the odometer ~1.5 % low), I had a total true mileage of approximately 3810 between San Francisco on May 26 and July 6 at Salisbury. Only counting the ride from my home in Lisle, Illinois to Albany (957 miles), and Albany to Salisbury (480 miles), my continuously routed ride to the IVCA / Wheelmen meet was 1437 miles. Direct air miles from Lisle to Salisbury is somewhere around 800. It is hard to
I returned to Maryland on Aug 20 to ride with the advocacy group (National Bicycle Greenway) to the Capital building in Washington DC. There we made the case for better cycling routes, and received reasonable news coverage. Since the completion of the ride, I have been asked questions about many aspects of it. Here are a few of the answers:
The most difficult aspect, you ask........lets see.....it would probably be dealing with the poor conditions for bicycles on the roads.....there are generally no provisions for cyclists, so the otherwise friendly motorists see you as invading their turf.....if they see you at all. They are not trained to look for you and they do not have any awareness of the fact that the "Good Roads Movement" which gave them the roads they enjoy now, was started by and for the cyclists of the 1880s. Specific road issues:
The second most difficult aspect was the control issues from side/front angled winds ...35 MPH gusting to 48 MPH on Rt. 30 at Kearney, Neb. This stopped me early after a lot of walking since the shoulder was 2 ft wide and there were18 wheelers at my elbow....which was moving dramatically side to side with each gust.
The third most difficult aspect was road selection....if done better, this might have made the most difficult areas less difficult. I did have kind help from those who had gone before, but I think we all just repeat the earlier mistakes....or else there is no good series of roads.
I was prepared for the physical part....physically, mentally, and nutritionally. If I would not have fully understood these areas in advance, I would have suffered with the 99 Degree, 105 Degree, 100 Degree, 102 Degree, and 98 Degree heat on 5 successive days in Nebraska. However, swamp cooling on head and torso covered this... as well as more mineral drinks than you can imagine....a concoction of:
* Sports Toddy (with 74 trace minerals) which I formulated....chased occasionally with Ultra Energy (usually2/day). I never drank naked water!
I subsisted on that and PBJ sandwiches (12 grain bread), ElvisSandwiches(replace the jelly with sliced bananas in the PBJ), Sardines in Olive Oil from the can (I love them!), Corn from the can (Nibblets), Baked Beans from the can or bottle(B&M is great...but others also), an occasional Whopper without Mayo but with Heavy Lettuce and Heavy Tomato...no fries!!!...and fruits (pears,apples,peaches, as available), as well as a couple of carry out salads in the evening eaten in the hotel room. Most eating was on the side of the road standing at the side door of the support van/cooks truck (without stove). The only sit down meals....maybe 4 in 30 days...were Ribs (2) with a big salad bar...lots of greens....and Pancakes (2).....overloaded with Maple syrup....but no butter. I never eat butter.
Steve Carter gave good advice on the Shirt to wear....long sleeve white cotton dress shirt...to keep the sun off. I did this every day....sometimes with a lower layer or two when cold. Sometimes with a 3rd/ 4th (outer layer) when very cold. I always wore a reflective vest over the shirt.
Charlie Farren from Melbourne gave good advice on "bottom protection". She advised the use of "Selik 15" cream slathered on the rear cheeks each morning and evening. No problems matey!
As to psychological issues....I knew I was able to do it (I have ridden the PBP as well as across USA before), I had trained (1300 miles in the 4 months before...with 800 miles in the 14 days before heading to Calif....riding heavy weekends... with high days of 160 and 150 each doubled with a century forth other weekend day). So it was just a matter of doing it. I had 2 spare bikes of good quality (both Victors) along in case they were needed, so equipment was fine. I also had a rear view mirror on my glasses. I consider the mirror to be more important than a helmet, because it helps you to avoid getting into the situation which requires the helmet.
Most importantly, I had a reliable support team (my brother Ted along with me and my daughter Pati doing the web page). Ted understood that Knew what I needed....so he quickly learned not to second guess my requests. My other family members were supportive also, Susan, Dan, Gary, Kathy, Sarah, ....I also had a great bunch of friends who were very supportive...this is important...Thanks to them all!
The other thing about a Penny Farthing, it gets you infinite support from all those you pass by....THEY ALL SMILE! As my slogan says:" The world is a happier place when you ride a Penny Farthing bicycle."
So I advise you all:
Cycle Recycled Cycles