Well readers - today I was mere miles away from a full blown Kate Terry breakdown, and it would NOT have been pretty. I generally don't like to blog after a difficult ride, because you all know how much I hate being negative, but I think it's important to share what we accomplished today. Today we rode from Minot, ND to New Town, ND and it was a 73 mile ride. Now, at this point of the trip 73 miles is pretty easy for us. Today that was not the case. We faced super strong headwinds ALL day long and we rode the entire day on Hwy 23. 5 years ago Hwy 23 was a pretty low traveled road but since the discovery of drillable oil there has been a huge incrase of semi traffic. There is also little to no shoulder on this road AND it was pretty hilly (especially for ND), so for cross country cyclists it's a pretty dangerous road. I don't say this to scare anyone (especially my parents!!) and we are all being extra careful, but these conditions plus the extreme wind made for a pretty stressful ride day. Everyone was a little on edge, and I'm embarassed to admit I let the wind get the best of me. Fortunately, the semi trucks were communicating with eachother and knew what Bike&Build is all about so by the end of the day most semis were giving us a lot of room. But even after some 2000 miles of riding, an overloaded semi can still shake me up a bit when it passes at 65 mph on a hill. The last 15 miles were really hard for me, and I DEFINITELY could not have done it without the encouragment and love from Abby, Jess and Leisl - these girls would NOT let me fall behind/ride by myself and were constantly slowing down for me...thank you! I LOVE YOU! :) Much to my enjoyment - as we pulled into New Town we spotted a Tastee Freeze (similar to a DQ but cheaper and maybe even a little more "tastee") right away and treated ourselves to some ice cream and fries. Hours later (and post nap) I'm still more phsycially, mentally and emotionally exhausted than I have been in a long time. I'm glad to be done with today, but I'm really proud that we all finished safely. I know everyone had a hard ride, and we worked through it together. That's what we get for being rockstars and going across the country the wrong way.
Author's Note: I do not have cell reception and haven't had any for a while - so mom and dad, I'll call as soon as I do! It's probably better that I don't...because if I would have called right when I got in today it would have been water works a go go and that's no fun for anyone :)
ANYWHO...hopefully the wind and hills and crazy roads will only get better as we near the Rockys and Montana! Tomorrow we ride to Teddy Roosevelt National Park and we have our first camping experience! I'm really excited and I know we'll have a lot of fun. Tents and smores and stars and Teddy Roosevelt and fire and all other camping delights plus 32 friends...I can't wait :)
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Llama Proma 2010: a day on the farm
One of the most memorable nights of my life took place in Rugby, North Dakota this past week. The 2010 NUS team held their prom at Rugby High School, home to the panthers I do believe. The theme was appropriately named "Llama Proma - A day on the farm" due to all of the llamas we have encountered on our ride. Not to mention the enormous amount of farmland we've been riding through for the past month or so. We were all to dress up in appropriate garb, and the boys each drew a lady's name out of a hat to determine his date for the night. The boys were also all required to ask their date to prom in a very creative way. My date, Mr. Jamey Gaston, may have had the best proposal of them all. I'm afraid my future fiancé has a lot to live up to. The story goes a little something like this...
We were all sitting around the host in Grand Rapids, MN getting ready to go to bed after a presentation when suddenly Beth and Nolan start screaming that we all needed to come outside. We all walked out and Nolan started telling a ridiculous story (clearly trying to buy some time for some reason) when I started to see a few funny faces among my teammates. Sarah and Denis started CRACKING up and I had no idea what was going on! All of the sudden, Jamey appears from the distance riding a HORSE!!! I kid you not a real life horse! He gallops over and asks in his booming voice, "Kate Terry - will you go to prom with me!?!?!?". I clearly lost it and was so happy I could hardly contain myself! It was OUTSTANDING :) Thank you again Jamey, you will always be my prince charming :)
Prom was AWESOMEEEE! We had couples pictures, some of the best farm outfits I've ever seen (or farm products - I was dressed as an ear of corn), outstanding dancing, fantastic decorations and out of this world music to top it all off. I literally sweat more dancing that night than I have on the past few ride days. We danced the night away and even crowned a King and Queen of the Llama Proma - CONGRATS KIRA AND STEVEN...you both deserve it :) :) We awarded best dancers, best outfits and the "spirit of the llama" and just had a ball doing it all! I love my group so much and I can't believe how much fun we have together! I feel so lucky! After all of the festivities were done we took group showers to cool down and de-stink ourselves and went to bed! All in a days work for B+Bers :) we win!
We were all sitting around the host in Grand Rapids, MN getting ready to go to bed after a presentation when suddenly Beth and Nolan start screaming that we all needed to come outside. We all walked out and Nolan started telling a ridiculous story (clearly trying to buy some time for some reason) when I started to see a few funny faces among my teammates. Sarah and Denis started CRACKING up and I had no idea what was going on! All of the sudden, Jamey appears from the distance riding a HORSE!!! I kid you not a real life horse! He gallops over and asks in his booming voice, "Kate Terry - will you go to prom with me!?!?!?". I clearly lost it and was so happy I could hardly contain myself! It was OUTSTANDING :) Thank you again Jamey, you will always be my prince charming :)
Prom was AWESOMEEEE! We had couples pictures, some of the best farm outfits I've ever seen (or farm products - I was dressed as an ear of corn), outstanding dancing, fantastic decorations and out of this world music to top it all off. I literally sweat more dancing that night than I have on the past few ride days. We danced the night away and even crowned a King and Queen of the Llama Proma - CONGRATS KIRA AND STEVEN...you both deserve it :) :) We awarded best dancers, best outfits and the "spirit of the llama" and just had a ball doing it all! I love my group so much and I can't believe how much fun we have together! I feel so lucky! After all of the festivities were done we took group showers to cool down and de-stink ourselves and went to bed! All in a days work for B+Bers :) we win!
Monday, August 2, 2010
Remember that time we biked 118 miles in one day? And got attacked by a bird. Yep.
Hello!
So much has happened since I last blogged and I'm not even going to TRY to go back and explain all of the amazingness but trust me - it was great! Minnesota was a treat and it was especially fun getting to ride into St. Paul with Ali Kolste because she is the reason I'm even doing B&B! I had a really great time staying at my college house with my friends and hanging out but I must admit, it was weird being back in the "real world". Per usual, it's nice to sleep in a bed and watch TV but I always miss my B&Bers when we don't sleep in the same room together :) After St. Paul we headed to Sandstone, Duluth, Grand Rapids, Bemidji and Crookston. The highlights included a day off in Duluth (and seeing Inception with a bunch of the team), a lot of bike path riding, some great DM, Paul Bunyon and Babe the blue ox, cliff jumping, staying at an AWESOME Synagogue, being a speed demon one day and arriving at the host FIRST (never to be repeated again), and so so much more I can't even remember. It was fantastic.
The ride from Crookston to Devils Lake was the most epic day of my entire life. We all were super jacked to ride the longest day of the entire trip (which was documented at 116 miles but turned out to be 118). We started out the day with a pre-biking dance party (standard move for us) and then we were off! I started the day with Travis, Beth and Liz and I did NOT feel good at all. We had a 90 mile day into Crookston and I pushed pretty hard so I think my body was revolting. I was considering spending the rest of the day in the van when we hit the North Dakota border but I soon realized that I would regret that decision for the rest of the trip. When else in my life will I bike 116-118 miles in ONE DAY?!??! Never again, that's when! So I decided to tough it out and finish the ride! It turned out to be OUTSTANDING! I felt great once I convinced myself that I was finishing no matter what. We had first lunch at mile 40, second lunch at mile 80, and Liz and I threw a dance party at mile 100 for Jamey and Gramelly (they loved it). Between mile 100 and 118 is where things started getting interesting. By that time it was just Liz and I - and we were tired, hot and hungry. This combination soon turned into a lot of giggling and maybe a little hallucinating. Liz was attacked by a bird (seriously) and was so startled she drove me right off the road and I rode my bike through the brush on the side of the road (not the first or last time I have done this). It was great and I would not have had it any other way! The best part of the day is that once we made it to the church (mile 118) we decided we were so hungry that we were going to get back on our bikes and ride the 2 miles back into town to the local DQ. For the record, this is the ONLY ride thus far that I have willingly gotten back on my bike after a ride day...where's the logic in that? All in all, AMAZZZZING day and I can't believe we all did it :) :) GO US!
PS: HAPPY BIRTHDAY to fellow cross country biker ABBY CARNEY (Aug 1st)...she and her family just finished their trip! CONGRATS! :) :)
So much has happened since I last blogged and I'm not even going to TRY to go back and explain all of the amazingness but trust me - it was great! Minnesota was a treat and it was especially fun getting to ride into St. Paul with Ali Kolste because she is the reason I'm even doing B&B! I had a really great time staying at my college house with my friends and hanging out but I must admit, it was weird being back in the "real world". Per usual, it's nice to sleep in a bed and watch TV but I always miss my B&Bers when we don't sleep in the same room together :) After St. Paul we headed to Sandstone, Duluth, Grand Rapids, Bemidji and Crookston. The highlights included a day off in Duluth (and seeing Inception with a bunch of the team), a lot of bike path riding, some great DM, Paul Bunyon and Babe the blue ox, cliff jumping, staying at an AWESOME Synagogue, being a speed demon one day and arriving at the host FIRST (never to be repeated again), and so so much more I can't even remember. It was fantastic.
The ride from Crookston to Devils Lake was the most epic day of my entire life. We all were super jacked to ride the longest day of the entire trip (which was documented at 116 miles but turned out to be 118). We started out the day with a pre-biking dance party (standard move for us) and then we were off! I started the day with Travis, Beth and Liz and I did NOT feel good at all. We had a 90 mile day into Crookston and I pushed pretty hard so I think my body was revolting. I was considering spending the rest of the day in the van when we hit the North Dakota border but I soon realized that I would regret that decision for the rest of the trip. When else in my life will I bike 116-118 miles in ONE DAY?!??! Never again, that's when! So I decided to tough it out and finish the ride! It turned out to be OUTSTANDING! I felt great once I convinced myself that I was finishing no matter what. We had first lunch at mile 40, second lunch at mile 80, and Liz and I threw a dance party at mile 100 for Jamey and Gramelly (they loved it). Between mile 100 and 118 is where things started getting interesting. By that time it was just Liz and I - and we were tired, hot and hungry. This combination soon turned into a lot of giggling and maybe a little hallucinating. Liz was attacked by a bird (seriously) and was so startled she drove me right off the road and I rode my bike through the brush on the side of the road (not the first or last time I have done this). It was great and I would not have had it any other way! The best part of the day is that once we made it to the church (mile 118) we decided we were so hungry that we were going to get back on our bikes and ride the 2 miles back into town to the local DQ. For the record, this is the ONLY ride thus far that I have willingly gotten back on my bike after a ride day...where's the logic in that? All in all, AMAZZZZING day and I can't believe we all did it :) :) GO US!
PS: HAPPY BIRTHDAY to fellow cross country biker ABBY CARNEY (Aug 1st)...she and her family just finished their trip! CONGRATS! :) :)
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
On Wisconsin!!
Dear Wisconsin,
It is with full confidence and excitement that I say you have officially won over the NUS'10 B+B group! Everyone was pretty tired of hearing me talk about you for the past few weeks, and they didn't have very high expectations. But low and behold - they were amazed with your majestic beauty, never-ending fun/beer/brats, and varying landscape! YAY!! Congrats and I'm so proud of and for you :)
Now I have to be honest...in the beginning, right when we crossed over from Illinois, people were less than impressed. There was construction, heat and unexpected hills - not a great combination. But I told everyone that Janesville didn't come free, they had to work for it...and was it ever worth it! Everything about our time in Janesville was extraordinary! I was so anxious to "come home" that to everyones surprise (including my own AND my mothers) I was one of the first people to arrive in town! Thank you Mr. Andrew Corcoran for helping me ride like the wind...aka blocking all of the wind for me - LOVE YOU! My mom greeted all of the riders (other than me because I'm just too fast to catch) with popsicles on Milton Shopire road, it was awesome and everyone LOVED it! I was sooo happy to be back home and in the company of my family and friends! Extra special thank you to Cullen, Tori and Amy for coming to see me and helping prepare for the party!
On Saturday we had our build day in Janesville and it was great! We worked on a house on Pine street and got to do a lot of work! We had people on the roof, putting in windows and siding and everything in between! After the build day we had what just may be the absolute BEST B+B BBQ of all time! First of all, I cannot say a big enough THANK YOU to my parents, Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton and EVERYONE ELSE that helped organize/plan this party...it truly was outstanding! The t-shirts, posters, unreal amounts of food, the absence of any and all forms of pasta and exceptional company was enough to put me right over the edge! I could not believe how many people came to see us!!! I was overwhelmed to say the absolute least at how many people were there - THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to everyone! I was SO happy to see you all and it makes me soooo happy to know you read my blog and are excited about this adventure I'm on! It means so much to me, and I LOVE that I can share it with all of you :) :)
The next day we rode into Madison and it was extra special because I got to share it with my family! My Aunt Peggy, Aunt Mary, Uncle Bern and cousins Connor, Tom and Beth all decided to ride with me...it was AWESOME! The boys obviously kicked my butt and are clearly future B+Bers...but they were nice enough to stay with me rather than speeding ahead and leaving me in the dust. We had so much fun and I was SO glad they all got to ride. We all made it to Madison, and I have to give a special shout out to my cousin Beth who was a total rockstar and had never rode her bike more than 10miles before this ride...you make this look easy! :)
We had our first day off in Madison and everyone had a great time! Then we were off to Soldiers Grove, La Crosse/Onalaska, and finished off our tour de WI in Pepin. We spent a lot of time on the Great River Road and it was absolutely GORGEOUS!! Long story short...everyone LOVED riding through WI (hills and rain included) and I had a ridiculous amount of fun doing it! I'll miss you and all your glory - but we will be reunited in September and I promise not to fall for another state other than you!
It is with full confidence and excitement that I say you have officially won over the NUS'10 B+B group! Everyone was pretty tired of hearing me talk about you for the past few weeks, and they didn't have very high expectations. But low and behold - they were amazed with your majestic beauty, never-ending fun/beer/brats, and varying landscape! YAY!! Congrats and I'm so proud of and for you :)
Now I have to be honest...in the beginning, right when we crossed over from Illinois, people were less than impressed. There was construction, heat and unexpected hills - not a great combination. But I told everyone that Janesville didn't come free, they had to work for it...and was it ever worth it! Everything about our time in Janesville was extraordinary! I was so anxious to "come home" that to everyones surprise (including my own AND my mothers) I was one of the first people to arrive in town! Thank you Mr. Andrew Corcoran for helping me ride like the wind...aka blocking all of the wind for me - LOVE YOU! My mom greeted all of the riders (other than me because I'm just too fast to catch) with popsicles on Milton Shopire road, it was awesome and everyone LOVED it! I was sooo happy to be back home and in the company of my family and friends! Extra special thank you to Cullen, Tori and Amy for coming to see me and helping prepare for the party!
On Saturday we had our build day in Janesville and it was great! We worked on a house on Pine street and got to do a lot of work! We had people on the roof, putting in windows and siding and everything in between! After the build day we had what just may be the absolute BEST B+B BBQ of all time! First of all, I cannot say a big enough THANK YOU to my parents, Mr. and Mrs. Hamilton and EVERYONE ELSE that helped organize/plan this party...it truly was outstanding! The t-shirts, posters, unreal amounts of food, the absence of any and all forms of pasta and exceptional company was enough to put me right over the edge! I could not believe how many people came to see us!!! I was overwhelmed to say the absolute least at how many people were there - THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to everyone! I was SO happy to see you all and it makes me soooo happy to know you read my blog and are excited about this adventure I'm on! It means so much to me, and I LOVE that I can share it with all of you :) :)
The next day we rode into Madison and it was extra special because I got to share it with my family! My Aunt Peggy, Aunt Mary, Uncle Bern and cousins Connor, Tom and Beth all decided to ride with me...it was AWESOME! The boys obviously kicked my butt and are clearly future B+Bers...but they were nice enough to stay with me rather than speeding ahead and leaving me in the dust. We had so much fun and I was SO glad they all got to ride. We all made it to Madison, and I have to give a special shout out to my cousin Beth who was a total rockstar and had never rode her bike more than 10miles before this ride...you make this look easy! :)
We had our first day off in Madison and everyone had a great time! Then we were off to Soldiers Grove, La Crosse/Onalaska, and finished off our tour de WI in Pepin. We spent a lot of time on the Great River Road and it was absolutely GORGEOUS!! Long story short...everyone LOVED riding through WI (hills and rain included) and I had a ridiculous amount of fun doing it! I'll miss you and all your glory - but we will be reunited in September and I promise not to fall for another state other than you!
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Why I love Lake Erie and riding with Paul Northrop
Hello everybody from South Bend, Indiana...I have so much to tell you all! We have had an amazing few days filled with MANY MANY miles AND state lines as well as a pretty awesome build site....RECAP!
Avon Lake (July 9th) turned out to be one of the greatest nights of the trip! We had an AWESOME dinner and got to stay with host families. After dinner we all headed to this amazing lake home (yes in Ohio) with a HUGE dock right on Lake Erie. Just for the record, NEVER in my life did I think I would spend so much time riding around and/or swimming in Lake Erie - kuddos. It was BEAUTIFUL, we got there right at sunset and it was just fantastic! The water was SUPER SUPER SUPER wavy (like waves over the dock wavy) and we all decided to risk our lives and biking legs for a little wavepool Lake Erie style maddness. It was incredible...like a Noah's Ark wavepool on steroids. I've never had so much fun while also thinking I was going to die at the exact same time. Thank you to all of the tall boys on my trip that let me grab them when my 5 foot self got scared :)
After Avon Lake we headed to Bowling Green (home of Bowling Green State University) and had an awesome host-stay. I went to mass with a few people in my group and that was really nice. It was a super small town and I was very tired after a GREAT 91 mile day so I can't say I did much other than sleep, bike and eat (story of my life) but I was still a happy camper. I had a really great ride with Beth and in the last few miles before reaching Bowling Green I finally rode without my hands on my handlebars for more than 5 seconds so that was a definite highlight.
Camden, MI was a fun day because we crossed a state line and we rode through an area with a high Amish population so it was really fun to see all of the horse and buggies! I actually had a pretty terrible ride into Camden and wasn't feeling all that great which sucked after having such a great day the day before...oh well! We had an awesome host who let us shower at their homes and watch the last bit of the World Cup game (GO SPAIN!!!!).
The ride into South Bend was AWESOME! It was our highest mileage yet with 92 miles and I was feeling AWESOME! We had two lunches which were provided by Beths family and they even gave us root beer floats :) They know how to please the Northern riders! Paul Northrop is an ox of a man on my trip with a heart of gold! He is (roughly) 6'3 and a VERY strong man...so if I need someone to ride behind to block the wind I know who to find! Anyway, we were riding together for a while and we came upon a hill. I was already having so much fun because we hadn't spent that much time talking yet so it was really fun hearing more about his life. We started up the hill and I surged ahead (as I very rarely do) and all of the sudden, right when I expect my quads to start hating me I started to SPEED UP...? Go figure, right?!?! I was going faster and faster and faster and getting pretty cocky about my mad biking skills until I realized Paul was right next to me. Not only was he next to me...he was literally PUSHING me up the hill while he was riding. Pushing me SO hard that I was going FASTER than I do on plenty of flat stretches. Long story short, thank you Paul - I LOVE YOUUU! :) I wish I could return the favor but, good joke!
We finished the day on the Notre Dame campus! It was soooo much fun! Fighting Irish football stadium and touchdown Jesus included! :) I had a great ride and an awesome build day today too! We worked at a Habitat site where we laid sod, sort of built a porch, and landscaped/mulched a whole bunch! It was great.
Chicago tomorrow...you know what that means! AUNT PEGGY :) :)!!! I'm so excited to see her! She's going to come see us ride in along Lake Michigan which will be AMAZINGGG!! Then its Janesville and Madison and family and BBQs and all sorts of fun!!! I can't wait! Any and everyone in Janesville that wants to see Bike and Build in the flesh we'll be riding in on Milwaukee Street probably sometime around 2pm...cheer us on! :) :)
I don't expect to blog much in the next few days due to all of the excitement so sorry in advance!
<3 Kate
Avon Lake (July 9th) turned out to be one of the greatest nights of the trip! We had an AWESOME dinner and got to stay with host families. After dinner we all headed to this amazing lake home (yes in Ohio) with a HUGE dock right on Lake Erie. Just for the record, NEVER in my life did I think I would spend so much time riding around and/or swimming in Lake Erie - kuddos. It was BEAUTIFUL, we got there right at sunset and it was just fantastic! The water was SUPER SUPER SUPER wavy (like waves over the dock wavy) and we all decided to risk our lives and biking legs for a little wavepool Lake Erie style maddness. It was incredible...like a Noah's Ark wavepool on steroids. I've never had so much fun while also thinking I was going to die at the exact same time. Thank you to all of the tall boys on my trip that let me grab them when my 5 foot self got scared :)
After Avon Lake we headed to Bowling Green (home of Bowling Green State University) and had an awesome host-stay. I went to mass with a few people in my group and that was really nice. It was a super small town and I was very tired after a GREAT 91 mile day so I can't say I did much other than sleep, bike and eat (story of my life) but I was still a happy camper. I had a really great ride with Beth and in the last few miles before reaching Bowling Green I finally rode without my hands on my handlebars for more than 5 seconds so that was a definite highlight.
Camden, MI was a fun day because we crossed a state line and we rode through an area with a high Amish population so it was really fun to see all of the horse and buggies! I actually had a pretty terrible ride into Camden and wasn't feeling all that great which sucked after having such a great day the day before...oh well! We had an awesome host who let us shower at their homes and watch the last bit of the World Cup game (GO SPAIN!!!!).
The ride into South Bend was AWESOME! It was our highest mileage yet with 92 miles and I was feeling AWESOME! We had two lunches which were provided by Beths family and they even gave us root beer floats :) They know how to please the Northern riders! Paul Northrop is an ox of a man on my trip with a heart of gold! He is (roughly) 6'3 and a VERY strong man...so if I need someone to ride behind to block the wind I know who to find! Anyway, we were riding together for a while and we came upon a hill. I was already having so much fun because we hadn't spent that much time talking yet so it was really fun hearing more about his life. We started up the hill and I surged ahead (as I very rarely do) and all of the sudden, right when I expect my quads to start hating me I started to SPEED UP...? Go figure, right?!?! I was going faster and faster and faster and getting pretty cocky about my mad biking skills until I realized Paul was right next to me. Not only was he next to me...he was literally PUSHING me up the hill while he was riding. Pushing me SO hard that I was going FASTER than I do on plenty of flat stretches. Long story short, thank you Paul - I LOVE YOUUU! :) I wish I could return the favor but, good joke!
We finished the day on the Notre Dame campus! It was soooo much fun! Fighting Irish football stadium and touchdown Jesus included! :) I had a great ride and an awesome build day today too! We worked at a Habitat site where we laid sod, sort of built a porch, and landscaped/mulched a whole bunch! It was great.
Chicago tomorrow...you know what that means! AUNT PEGGY :) :)!!! I'm so excited to see her! She's going to come see us ride in along Lake Michigan which will be AMAZINGGG!! Then its Janesville and Madison and family and BBQs and all sorts of fun!!! I can't wait! Any and everyone in Janesville that wants to see Bike and Build in the flesh we'll be riding in on Milwaukee Street probably sometime around 2pm...cheer us on! :) :)
I don't expect to blog much in the next few days due to all of the excitement so sorry in advance!
<3 Kate
Friday, July 9, 2010
SNOW DAY
Hello all! I'm writing to you from Avon Lake, OH (very very close to Cleveland) and I'm super pumped to be back in the Midwest! It's crazy how much closer to home I feel just because we're in Ohio! :) We've had a crazy couple of days! Here are some of the highlights:
We spent the 4th of July in Lockport, NY (home of the Erie canal and a pretty fantastic "cave" tour) and we had a B&B cookout to celebrate! Being my favorite holiday, I was very happy with everyones American enthusiasm. I decorated my bike and it was AMAZING and everyone loved it. We sang patriotic songs on our ride (my favorite thing in the entire world) and had a great ride. We went to the local firework show and pretty much took over (as a group of 32 crazy B&Bers tend to do).
The next day we rode to Niagara Falls and enjoyed a super duper short ride (20 miles) so we could have the ENTIRE DAY to enjoy the falls! We ventured to Canada for the first time as a group (consider it a warm up for when we go to Vancouver) and had a grand old time. We took over the Maid of the Mist and got soaking wet...which was just fine because it was mid 90's and humid outside. What a great day! :)
On July 7th we had a pretty epic ride day. We started the day in Westfield, NY had lunch in Erie, PA and ended the day in Ashtabula, OH...now if you were counting, yes that is THREE state lines in ONE DAY :) :) It was awesome! It was a super hot day so we had two lunch stops. It was SO much fun and I felt like such a rockstar!
Ashtabula, OH ended up being a very eventful city in my B&B experience. Yesterday, we had a build day and toward the end of the day I was painting a fence in the blistering heat when someone tapped my shoulder and asked if I wanted some help. Of course I said "yes!" and turned around and low and behold there was my UNCLE BERN!!!!!! I was completely shocked!!! Clearly I had a panic attack and started screaming even louder when I turned and saw Aunt Mary and all three of my cousins! I was SO SO SO SO excited! They were coming back from Boston because my oldest cousin, Connor, was doing a college tour at Boston College and they decided to surprise me! They took me out to eat, bought lots of groceries for the rest of the B&Bers (fruit...yum!) and it was just the best day ever! I love you guys...thank you so much!! :)
But that's not all Ashtabula, OH had in store for me...today we woke up at 5:00am only to find after packing our bags and eating breakfast that there was an epic storm rolling in and its path happened to be identical to our bike route. After having a couple hours of "delay" our leaders sadly informed us that we would not be able to ride the 80 miles from Ashtabula to Avon Lake. We were all super bummed, but after the storm hit we were all glad NOT to be on bikes. We had to take three shuttle rides in our 15 passenger van and load up 32 bikes in our trailor...it was quite the team effort. We all had fun being stuck in the church and goofing around - but we'll be glad to be biking again tomorrow! 97 miles to Bowling Green...here we come!!! Janesville in a week - yay!!!!
<3 Kate
PS: My friend Beth has been keeping a really cool video blog that I wanted to share with everyone!! I make a few cameo appearances - but for the most part its just a cool way to share our B&B experience :) ENJOY!!!
www.psychedtobike.blogspot.com
We spent the 4th of July in Lockport, NY (home of the Erie canal and a pretty fantastic "cave" tour) and we had a B&B cookout to celebrate! Being my favorite holiday, I was very happy with everyones American enthusiasm. I decorated my bike and it was AMAZING and everyone loved it. We sang patriotic songs on our ride (my favorite thing in the entire world) and had a great ride. We went to the local firework show and pretty much took over (as a group of 32 crazy B&Bers tend to do).
The next day we rode to Niagara Falls and enjoyed a super duper short ride (20 miles) so we could have the ENTIRE DAY to enjoy the falls! We ventured to Canada for the first time as a group (consider it a warm up for when we go to Vancouver) and had a grand old time. We took over the Maid of the Mist and got soaking wet...which was just fine because it was mid 90's and humid outside. What a great day! :)
On July 7th we had a pretty epic ride day. We started the day in Westfield, NY had lunch in Erie, PA and ended the day in Ashtabula, OH...now if you were counting, yes that is THREE state lines in ONE DAY :) :) It was awesome! It was a super hot day so we had two lunch stops. It was SO much fun and I felt like such a rockstar!
Ashtabula, OH ended up being a very eventful city in my B&B experience. Yesterday, we had a build day and toward the end of the day I was painting a fence in the blistering heat when someone tapped my shoulder and asked if I wanted some help. Of course I said "yes!" and turned around and low and behold there was my UNCLE BERN!!!!!! I was completely shocked!!! Clearly I had a panic attack and started screaming even louder when I turned and saw Aunt Mary and all three of my cousins! I was SO SO SO SO excited! They were coming back from Boston because my oldest cousin, Connor, was doing a college tour at Boston College and they decided to surprise me! They took me out to eat, bought lots of groceries for the rest of the B&Bers (fruit...yum!) and it was just the best day ever! I love you guys...thank you so much!! :)
But that's not all Ashtabula, OH had in store for me...today we woke up at 5:00am only to find after packing our bags and eating breakfast that there was an epic storm rolling in and its path happened to be identical to our bike route. After having a couple hours of "delay" our leaders sadly informed us that we would not be able to ride the 80 miles from Ashtabula to Avon Lake. We were all super bummed, but after the storm hit we were all glad NOT to be on bikes. We had to take three shuttle rides in our 15 passenger van and load up 32 bikes in our trailor...it was quite the team effort. We all had fun being stuck in the church and goofing around - but we'll be glad to be biking again tomorrow! 97 miles to Bowling Green...here we come!!! Janesville in a week - yay!!!!
<3 Kate
PS: My friend Beth has been keeping a really cool video blog that I wanted to share with everyone!! I make a few cameo appearances - but for the most part its just a cool way to share our B&B experience :) ENJOY!!!
www.psychedtobike.blogspot.com
Saturday, July 3, 2010
You know you're on Bike and Build when...
I had the idea for this blog on one of my longer rides because there are so many funny B&B things that happen and I just wanted to have them all written down...(this will be added to periodically)
1. Desitin, Gold bond (extra strength medicated) and biofreeze are on your grocery list
2. You can't remember the last time you wore underwear (my favorite part of B&B)
3. You can't remember the last meal you had without pasta and/or peanut butter
4. Your mother buys you a brand new pair of Nike shorts with built-in underware...and you cut it out in an angry rage on day 2
5. Any ride under 65 miles is "short"
6. You have a water bottle in your hands at ALL times
7. People you met days ago = new best friends
8. You can't tell FOR THE LIFE OF YOU what day of the week/month it is
9. You try to get DM (donation magic) all day everyday
10. You can't remember the last time you went a day without eating at a Dairy Queen/Tastee Freeze etc. (they should really consider changing the trip name to Bike and Build and eat a lot of Dairy Queen)
11. If you're on laundry crew you don't even have to look at the tag to see whose clothes are whose - by this time you can name every single piece of clothing in any B+Bers wardrobe (aka duffle/bin)
B&Bers...suggestions appreciated :)
1. Desitin, Gold bond (extra strength medicated) and biofreeze are on your grocery list
2. You can't remember the last time you wore underwear (my favorite part of B&B)
3. You can't remember the last meal you had without pasta and/or peanut butter
4. Your mother buys you a brand new pair of Nike shorts with built-in underware...and you cut it out in an angry rage on day 2
5. Any ride under 65 miles is "short"
6. You have a water bottle in your hands at ALL times
7. People you met days ago = new best friends
8. You can't tell FOR THE LIFE OF YOU what day of the week/month it is
9. You try to get DM (donation magic) all day everyday
10. You can't remember the last time you went a day without eating at a Dairy Queen/Tastee Freeze etc. (they should really consider changing the trip name to Bike and Build and eat a lot of Dairy Queen)
11. If you're on laundry crew you don't even have to look at the tag to see whose clothes are whose - by this time you can name every single piece of clothing in any B+Bers wardrobe (aka duffle/bin)
B&Bers...suggestions appreciated :)
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