The Route So Far - Google Maps


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Why?

We are doing this ride to raise money for Research Autism. We are aiming to raise £20,000.
We are supporting Research Autism because my cousin Jamie is severely affected by the disease, and I have seen its effects not only on him but on the whole family." He is 13yrs old, but cannot yet talk.
Just take a moment to imagine not being able to talk.
Imagine understanding everything going on around you, but not being able to comment.
Imagine having to be dressed every morning in clothes you don't choose, and then hurting your parents as you try to tell them you wanted the blue shirt today.
Imagine being swamped by having to hear everything that everyone is saying around you, and not being able to listen to just one thing at once. Jamie loves being in a swimming pool, just floating, legs held motionless by the weight of the water, while he keeps his ears underwater to just relax, hearing nothing.
He understands everything - he appears to have a photographic memory - but can’t get his thoughts out.
Frustration leads to despair, and anger, which is just one of the many things that his family has to deal with.
He has extremely specific eating requirements and requires round the clock supervision. Jamie is at the severe end of the autistic spectrum, but given that one in 100 people suffer from the disease (with varying severity), and that everyone has some autistic traits, it is shocking that so little is known about it'.
Click here to support our cause and donate to Research Autism.
Read the "Meet Jamie" post - the only post in February, for more information about Jamie, and a poem - painstakingly slow for Jamie to type, but ultimately incredible.

Photo Video - New York to St Louis

June 27, 2010

COMPLETE. THE END.

 

The Golden Gate Bridge, shrouded in mist, and one of the numerous signs we ignored to cycle into the freezing cold pacific.

Day 64 - Sacramento to SAN FRANCISCO. 110 miles, 2 burgers FINISH! 6292.9KMS





Maybe its because we know we won't have to cycle at all once we are done, maybe its because the air at sea level is easier to breathe than the air at 4000ft (we have been above 4000ft for the last month) or maybe its because we are so damn fit, but we smashed out 95 miles to get to the ferry terminal at Vallejo by 13.30. 150kms in 8 hours including breaks.

We left Sacramento at the absurd hour of 5.30am. To do this we woke up at the even more absurd hour of 4.30am. Thank you so much to Sherri for waking up when we did, and making breakfast, we couldn't have got here without it. Also thank you for bicycling with us to the bike path, getting lost 200m from the house we were staying at is an unpleasant but surprisingly common happening for us.

We were smashing our personal bests all day today, from 20 miles (32K) by 7am, 43 miles (69k) by 9am, 67 by 11, to 95 miles (150k) by 1.30pm. When we left Sacramento, we were aiming to catch the 4pm ferry, but we started so fast that we realized by 10 that we could just scrape the 2pm ferry - the ferry was only every 2 hours.

We stopped only three times in 8 hours, cycling at an average of 22kph for 7 hours. The second time we stopped, we picked up a footlong sub from subway for us to eat on the ferry, there was no time to eat it before. The countryside we cruised through was fantastic - the Napa valley - world famous for its wine, contained not only vineyards but also many colourful ornamental flowers. We saw more flowers in the napa and neighbouring valleys than we have on the whole trip. Great scenery, and plenty of other cyclists out enjoying the sun this weekend - we saw (another new record) 3 tandems!

The weather was awesome, until we got to San Francisco. Apparently San Francisco is always around 10 Celsius colder than the other side of the bay, and so it was - the fog was down over the golden gate bridge, so our first view of this iconic landmark was towers getting lost in the clouds. It was freezing on the bridge, the wind roared through the pillars, and the fog soaked our tired bodies. But it was awesome. I was so excited to be done, that it didn't matter what the weather was like, just that we had finished. Last year, doing more than 6000 kms on a bicycle seemed inconceivable, and now it's done, I'm still in disbelief - what I do know though, is that we have come a long way, seen a myriad of things: from the normal to the nuts - that I will remember for the rest of my life.

But now back to reality, ish... It is Gay Pride Weekend here in San Francisco, and there is a parade to watch - apparently not much normal, way too many nuts on show. We will enjoy San Francisco until Tuesday when we fly back to New York, having found a spot to box up our bikes somewhere between the sightseeing.
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3 comments:

  1. Many congratulations, guys! This is a terrific accomplishment. We're proud of you. See e-mail.

    Every blessing!
    Steve

    ReplyDelete
  2. Box the bikes up? I thought you maybe you had enough of those bikes, and might just leave them in the ocean!

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  3. Congratulations on a fantastic achievement
    I have loved following your tour on the web!

    ReplyDelete