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Southern Tier Cross-Country Bicycle Tour

On September 18, 1999 I plan to ride across the U.S. from San Diego, CA to St. Agustine, FL. I will be travelling with up to 15 other cyclists on a route sponsored by Adventure Cycling. Formerly BikeCentennial, Adventure Cycling is a non-profit organization that promotes bicycle touring and sponsors several cross-country cycling trips each year. There are three cross-country routes: The Northern Tier route that starts in Seattle, Washington and passes through most of the northern border states and ends in Bar Harbor, Maine, The Trans-Am route which is the original BikeCentennial route starting in Yorktown, Virginia, passing through the Central states to Colorado where it heads north through Montana, Idaho and Oregon, ending in Portland, Oregon; and the Southern Tier route, which extends from San Diego to St. Augustine, Florida.

I will be taking the Southern Tier route starting on Sept. 18. A group of 13 cyclists are signed up for the trip and they will be joined by a tour leader who will ride with the group. The tour leader will manage the logistics of the tour, helping the group to decide where to camp, when to take rest days, and to reach group decisions. There will be no sag support; each cyclist will carry their own gear, including tent, sleeping bag, group cooking gear, group food, and all personal items. A tentative itinerary has been established, but the group will be flexible as to when and where we will stop each day. The plan is to have a rest day every 7 to 10 days.