Periodic Progress Report Southern Tier Cross-Country Bicycle Tour

Date(s): Nov. 20, 1999
Day: Saturday
From: East Palatka, FL
To: St. Augustine, FL
Lodging: St. Augustine Youth Hostel
Segment Mileage: 53.5
Cumulative Mileage: 3608.2
Actual Riding Time: 4:10
Average Speed: 12.8
Weather: Partly cloudy, warm
Temp: High 70's

We did it! We made it to St. Augustine today to complete our coast to coast journey. We arrived around noon at the Castillo de San Marcos, the Spanish fort that was used to guard the city in the late 1600's. We met just outside of town for pictures at the city limits sign, then rode into town as a group to the fort for more pictures and to watch Spike walk down the seawall to dip his front wheel in the water. Later several of us rode to the beach and did the same there in the waves of the Atlantic. It's been an incredible journey with some great people.

This morning we all left camp around the same time so that we could meet at a local restaurant for breakfast. We expected Jimmy to be filming it all with the new video camera he bought in Gainesville like he did last night but he was in too much of a hurry to eat, one of his favorite pastimes. After breakfast we left in a couple of groups, mostly riding slowly to enjoy this last leg of the trip. Suzanne, Oliver, Jimmy and I did form a brief paceline; we couldn't help ourselves. Then we slowed again as we reached the St. Johns River. At that point Jimmy pulled out his video camera to record the group taking a break. The river is as wide as the Mississippi at that point, and we rode along the shore for a few miles before hitting the last straight stretch into town. I rode alone for a while, contemplating the trip and enjoying the day. Then appropriately Oliver and I rode together on the last stretch, having been such good riding partners for so long. I'm going to miss riding with Oliver, who is always so upbeat and cheerful, but won't miss having the BOB flag slapping me in the face as I try to get in close to draft its low profile.

After the pictures in town, and the ride to the beach, I walked around the city to see as many sights as possible before leaving the next day. We all met in the evening to watch the lighting of the St. Augustine Christmas tree, as well as the thousands of lights lining the main plaza, streets, and bridge across the St. Johns, along with hundreds of others there to view the spectacle. It was a long walk to the Gypsy Cab Co. and an excellent final dinner together as a group. Spike and Suzanne gave emotional speeches about their impressions of the trip and the unique group of people who would soon be going their separate ways. Suzanne presented Jim with the mysterious white underwear that had made the rounds during the trip. He had found it in Buckhorn, TX and as a joke had hidden it in someone's gear. It was then passed around the group until Suzanne got it and devised her humorous gift to our leader, appropriately enscribed with the words "Adventure Cycling Leader, Southern Tier Tour, 1999" (as I recall). We reminisced about the great times we had together on the trip and shared a lot of laughs. Several times people asked us if we knew each other before the trip, probably because we seemed so comfortable in each others company. It's amazing how well we've come to know and respect each other over these two months riding across America. With Cyndi's help in compiling a list of current addresses, we plan to stay in touch so that we may ride together again some day. I hope to update these web pages with info about the group, and hope that the site will remain open for the foreseeable future.

Thanks again to Kerie, without whose help this site couldn't have been possible. I'm looking forward to seeing her on the 22nd after a long train ride to Washington, DC, and with luck we'll bike home together for the final miles from the train.

Note from Bob: Bob sent us a note saying that he was back home and doing OK after his not so minor accident (as I had characterized it at the time). He left De Funiak Springs the day after being discharged from the hospital, taking a Greyhound bus to Jacksonville, then Amtrak the rest of the way. He said that while riding the bus he spotted several of us; his riding partner Janet, as well as Suzanne, Bruno and Cyndi. He expressed his interest in possibly completing his cross country trip in the future, although he did make it from California to Florida and that was a major accomplishment. It was sad that he wasn't there with us to complete the trip. We all knew that what happened to him could have happened to any of us, and we all seemed especially cautious during those last days of the trip. We wish Bob the best and hope for a speedy recovery.

Special trip note: Amazingly Spike never had a flat tire the entire trip. Even more amazing was the fact that we never experienced more than a few drops of rain during the trip, and I mean literally drops; leaving Marathon, TX, entering Louisiana, and on the way into St. Augustine. We must have set some kind of record with our lack of rain.