Mary and Bill Drache biking up the hill out of Huntington. Way to go Mary and Bill. They are real troupers. Mary is the oldest female riding Sea to Sea at age 66. They are both an inspiration to others on the tour.
Myself in the middle of a wheat field in Oregon
R riding along the wheat fields
Marti DuPlessis just flying on her bike
SAG stop at Walter Vink's RV. Dont put your bike against the RV.
Joy and Doug Lutke and myself all wearing our DALMAC shirts as we did this together last summer
Peleton behind me.
Marti riding along the Snake River
Snake River valley
Sheik Clare Doornbos and fellow rider Roger Feenstra
One of our foodlines Stehanie Webb serving Tyler -not sure he wants whats being served
Leanne Geistefer and Lynn Verros wondering where oh where did I put my stuff.
Some of our support staff Bert Steen Bergen, Cory who drives the Porta potty wagon and Betsy Fox our nurse and lead SAG driver.
Over looking our camp in Huntington.Day 12 Sea-to-Sea Huntington to Ontario Oregon 35 miles
Flats for ride into Huntington –23 Accidents –3 A number of people had flat tires riding along the busy interstate. There is always lots of stuff on the shoulders of the highway, which we end up picking up when we ride there. I try to stay as close to the white line as possible to avoid all that crud that is on the shoulders and which could give me a flat tire.
Today being a short day and time change we were told breakfast would not be till 7 AM. This was very hard for those of us who are awake at 5 AM and were told do not absolutely do not start opening those tent zippers till 6 am. The young people cannot get over how early all of us older folks get up. Most of the young people do not stir till 630 or later. Some of them cannot get over how early some people are out of camp. However when it is very hot they realize how important it is to be into camp before the heat hits. In order to be on the road early, they have to get up earlier pack up and get on the road before 7. They are starting to understand.
Last night we had a 35-mile an hour wind that rack havoc with our camp. I think over 20 tents could not stand up to it and the cyclists pack up their tents either before supper or at 10 PM and slept in the gym. Hank and I could hear the wind flapping most of the tents in some way. Ours held up very well.
Last night and this morning we also had visitors from Winchester Ontario Canada and Tacoma Washington. John DeJonge and his wife from Winchester came to camp to visit with their son-in-law Brian Devries. John did the 2005 and says he is not envious of the bike riding as he has not ridden a bike since 2005, but does miss the camaraderie, the community and spiritual aspect of the tour. This morning Jay DeBoer, Regional Director for DRS visited the camp with his wife. They were vacationing in the area and wanted to see what our camp looked like. Last year Jay and his brother, from Arizona, biked across the US by themselves and had wished the Sea to Sea tour had taken place last year.
Today our ride was fabulous with a little hill just out of camp, but with the wind on our backs we sailed down the road. The temperature was in the mid 70’s, very comfortable riding. The scenery again was beautiful as we biked along the Snake River valley where there were extensive irrigation fields. The were fields of onions, potatoes, corn, and wheat. I took looks of pictures of us biking past wheat fields.
Hank beat me to camp today as I was dilly dallying around taking pictures, visiting the library in town to update the blog for yesterday, shopping and having a good cup of coffee. I did not get into camp till 230 but was in the city of Ontario already at 11. We decided not to go to camp right away as the gear truck had just past us when we got into town and knew it would be an hour before the gear truck would be ready to unload as they needed to figure out exactly where each support vehicle would be parked with the kitchen truck always being placed first.
When I arrived at camp, Hank had already setup the tent and had had a shower. He was eager to go into town. A group of people said they were going so he went and had a beer with other cyclists while I showered and cleaned my bike. When Hank returned we cleaned his bike. We try to clean our bikes once a week to ensure smooth shifting gears and to reduce the chances of problems. We also check our tires regularly to see if we have picked up any goat heads. Last night Hank found 2 in his tires and I found one after I had stopped at a SAG. We are much more cautious where we take our bikes and try to leave them on the road rather than bike onto the dirt shoulder or parking spot where the SAGS are parked. So far neither Hank nor I have had flat tire for which we are very thankful.
Tonight for supper, we had a great meal of meatballs (cooks said they lost their marbles. It was supposed to be meatloaf) mashed potatoes, French style green beans, salad, and chocolate pudding with whipped cream. Delicious. Everything tastes so good as we are outside all day and are very hungry.
This trip as been a great experience and it is really rewarding to see how the young people interact with the older people and likewise for the older with the younger. There is a real sense of community in which people are caring for each other. There is also a great spirit of enthusiasm and joy. Even when people have had a bad day, they do not carry this around very long and are ready for the next day’s opportunities. I am really impressed with the commitment, expressions of love and caring for others, spirit of joy, and maturity level of everyone to make this tour a success. We are truly being blessed.
We continue to treasure all your prayers.
Flats for ride into Huntington –23 Accidents –3 A number of people had flat tires riding along the busy interstate. There is always lots of stuff on the shoulders of the highway, which we end up picking up when we ride there. I try to stay as close to the white line as possible to avoid all that crud that is on the shoulders and which could give me a flat tire.
Today being a short day and time change we were told breakfast would not be till 7 AM. This was very hard for those of us who are awake at 5 AM and were told do not absolutely do not start opening those tent zippers till 6 am. The young people cannot get over how early all of us older folks get up. Most of the young people do not stir till 630 or later. Some of them cannot get over how early some people are out of camp. However when it is very hot they realize how important it is to be into camp before the heat hits. In order to be on the road early, they have to get up earlier pack up and get on the road before 7. They are starting to understand.
Last night we had a 35-mile an hour wind that rack havoc with our camp. I think over 20 tents could not stand up to it and the cyclists pack up their tents either before supper or at 10 PM and slept in the gym. Hank and I could hear the wind flapping most of the tents in some way. Ours held up very well.
Last night and this morning we also had visitors from Winchester Ontario Canada and Tacoma Washington. John DeJonge and his wife from Winchester came to camp to visit with their son-in-law Brian Devries. John did the 2005 and says he is not envious of the bike riding as he has not ridden a bike since 2005, but does miss the camaraderie, the community and spiritual aspect of the tour. This morning Jay DeBoer, Regional Director for DRS visited the camp with his wife. They were vacationing in the area and wanted to see what our camp looked like. Last year Jay and his brother, from Arizona, biked across the US by themselves and had wished the Sea to Sea tour had taken place last year.
Today our ride was fabulous with a little hill just out of camp, but with the wind on our backs we sailed down the road. The temperature was in the mid 70’s, very comfortable riding. The scenery again was beautiful as we biked along the Snake River valley where there were extensive irrigation fields. The were fields of onions, potatoes, corn, and wheat. I took looks of pictures of us biking past wheat fields.
Hank beat me to camp today as I was dilly dallying around taking pictures, visiting the library in town to update the blog for yesterday, shopping and having a good cup of coffee. I did not get into camp till 230 but was in the city of Ontario already at 11. We decided not to go to camp right away as the gear truck had just past us when we got into town and knew it would be an hour before the gear truck would be ready to unload as they needed to figure out exactly where each support vehicle would be parked with the kitchen truck always being placed first.
When I arrived at camp, Hank had already setup the tent and had had a shower. He was eager to go into town. A group of people said they were going so he went and had a beer with other cyclists while I showered and cleaned my bike. When Hank returned we cleaned his bike. We try to clean our bikes once a week to ensure smooth shifting gears and to reduce the chances of problems. We also check our tires regularly to see if we have picked up any goat heads. Last night Hank found 2 in his tires and I found one after I had stopped at a SAG. We are much more cautious where we take our bikes and try to leave them on the road rather than bike onto the dirt shoulder or parking spot where the SAGS are parked. So far neither Hank nor I have had flat tire for which we are very thankful.
Tonight for supper, we had a great meal of meatballs (cooks said they lost their marbles. It was supposed to be meatloaf) mashed potatoes, French style green beans, salad, and chocolate pudding with whipped cream. Delicious. Everything tastes so good as we are outside all day and are very hungry.
This trip as been a great experience and it is really rewarding to see how the young people interact with the older people and likewise for the older with the younger. There is a real sense of community in which people are caring for each other. There is also a great spirit of enthusiasm and joy. Even when people have had a bad day, they do not carry this around very long and are ready for the next day’s opportunities. I am really impressed with the commitment, expressions of love and caring for others, spirit of joy, and maturity level of everyone to make this tour a success. We are truly being blessed.
We continue to treasure all your prayers.
1 comment:
Hi Claire. I really look forward to your updates on your blog. Thanks for all the photos and writing. I am glad everthing is going well. Keep up the great story telling. All of the Sea to Sea riders and staff are in our daily prayers. Be safe and say hello to Ed for me.
Post a Comment