We made it!!!
Yep, this is the last blog for this trip. We did not post a blog on Thursday night after we arrived because of a lack of a wifi connection and lack of time.
Wednesday night we stayed on the Navy Cruiser. That was really cool, all the scouts enjoyed it!! We saw a movie about one of the neighboring ships (USS Sullivan). We stayed on the USS Little Rock (first guided missile cruiser in the US Navy). The submarine and USS Sullivan were also available for a tour on Thursday morning at 6:30. For any scouts that wanted to sleep in, they didn’t get the tour at 6:30.
Mrs. Kilmer, Anna Kilmer, Kate Kilmer, and Nathan Kilmer met us on Wednesday night at the Navy Park in Buffalo. They brought chocolate treats for the scouts. And the scouts signed an anniversary card for Mrs. Kilmer. Wednesday was Darlene’s and my 20th anniversary. Mr. Alder seems very concerned that I was on the bike trip on our 20th anniversary. So, he provided many coaching tips on how to make it right.
On Thursday morning, we had breakfast and started our 25 mile trip to Niagara Falls. The trip was uneventful. One of the crews became a little lost, but they made it. About 5 miles away, we could see the mist rising up in the horizon from the falls. We first stopped at Goat Island on the US side to see the falls from the US. After Goat Island sight seeing we had lunch and then went on the Maid of the Mist to see the falls from the bottom. Then we traveled to the Canadian side and went through customs. We had no issues with customs going into Canada or returning to the US.
We rode down to Horseshoe Falls and then rode the 3 miles to the campgrounds. Mark Shultz had bike trouble with his derailer, but we were able to limp into camp. Once in camp, the scouts cooked dinner and around 9:00 we headed back to the falls to view it at night. At 11:00 we headed back to camp and went to bed.
Joshua Kilmer’s grandparents joined us in Niagara Falls for the day with several home made chocolate chip cookies. Thanks!! They live in western New York about 1 hour away from the falls.
On Friday we packed up and went back to the falls to visit Clifton Hill see a couple movies and at 3:00 we headed to the train station in Depew, New York.
Again the ride was uneventful. Once we arrived we ordered several pizzas and 100 buffalo wings from Anchor Bar. Anchor Bar is where buffalo wings originated. Everyone enjoyed the buffalo wings and pizza, it was a great last dinner for the trip.
We hung out until the train arrived and then had a very relaxing ride on the train back to Chicago.
Dan Herrera “I want to say thanks to all my friends and family who supported me, and helped me along on the trip. Everyone was a huge help both physically, mentally, and financially. I want to say a special thanks to my parents for allowing me to go on this trip of a life time. I know it scared the heck out of them that I was doing this. Once again, thank you to all, and I had a ton of fun thanks to you.”
Brian Kilmer "This was a very different trip then the rest of the troop's campouts. The boys were great working together on the bike rides. Thanks for everyone who helped to make this trip a huge success."
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Two flat tires, one broken deraileur, one crash involving 3 scouts and we are now in Buffalo, New York. Jack Kish and Brian Alder had flat tires. Mr. Kilmer had a broken deraileur and is now riding the spare bike. The crash involved Mark Kennedy, Dan Herrera and Andrew Guevara. They are all now members of the skinned knee club. All of them are fine. Mark and Dan got too close and locked handlebars. They went down and took Andrew with them.
Last night the staff at Camp Merz ended up taking the scouts out tubing. The thunderstorm passed quickly allowing us to have some fun. We also watched movies (Pirates of the Caribbean) and played board games (Josh played Risk). The Camp was great!! They had dessert for us (brownies) and milk:). We slept great and let the scouts sleep in an hour to 6am.
The ride down the big hill was completely uneventful. Everyone made it down safely. The scouts were getting tired today. You could tell everyone has slowed down slightly.
The Naval Park is awesome!! The boys and adults are looking forward to sleeping on the ship. We are currently cooking dinner. We have the run of the ship tonight. They will show us movies and there is a flight simulator that all the scouts have had an opportunity to try out.
They have another fundraising party on the ship. As soon as they heard about us, they invited us to join them. Unfortunately they are drinking alcohol, so we declined.
Brian Alder “The hill was a slow hill.”
Michael Glass “The hill was disappointing. It was more fun going up.”
Shout out to the wives, we have the no shave rule in effect. Mr. Volk is starting to get wooly.
Getting the boys up in the morning is getting more difficult. Another sign they are getting tired.
Last night the staff at Camp Merz ended up taking the scouts out tubing. The thunderstorm passed quickly allowing us to have some fun. We also watched movies (Pirates of the Caribbean) and played board games (Josh played Risk). The Camp was great!! They had dessert for us (brownies) and milk:). We slept great and let the scouts sleep in an hour to 6am.
The ride down the big hill was completely uneventful. Everyone made it down safely. The scouts were getting tired today. You could tell everyone has slowed down slightly.
The Naval Park is awesome!! The boys and adults are looking forward to sleeping on the ship. We are currently cooking dinner. We have the run of the ship tonight. They will show us movies and there is a flight simulator that all the scouts have had an opportunity to try out.
They have another fundraising party on the ship. As soon as they heard about us, they invited us to join them. Unfortunately they are drinking alcohol, so we declined.
Brian Alder “The hill was a slow hill.”
Michael Glass “The hill was disappointing. It was more fun going up.”
Shout out to the wives, we have the no shave rule in effect. Mr. Volk is starting to get wooly.
Getting the boys up in the morning is getting more difficult. Another sign they are getting tired.
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
A couple things I left out:
Andy Hegg fell off his bike today. I don't know exactly what happened. He just fell. After falling he looked up and said "I got dirty". He was fine and the bike was fine. He didn't hit anything, he just fell off his bike.
Brian Alder stopped the entire troop to look at sports cars. There were a couple for sale that we stopped to look at. Before we left, the chase vehicle was there and another crew to look at the car.
Jake Kish "I hate hills"
We say 4 wild turkeys today. We rode by Lake Erie for most of the day. The views were great!!
8 of the scouts/adults made it up the 1400 foot hill without stopping.
The scouts are watching movies and playing games since we had a late day thunderstorm. Unfortunately the rappelling and skiing were cancelled.
Andy Hegg fell off his bike today. I don't know exactly what happened. He just fell. After falling he looked up and said "I got dirty". He was fine and the bike was fine. He didn't hit anything, he just fell off his bike.
Brian Alder stopped the entire troop to look at sports cars. There were a couple for sale that we stopped to look at. Before we left, the chase vehicle was there and another crew to look at the car.
Jake Kish "I hate hills"
We say 4 wild turkeys today. We rode by Lake Erie for most of the day. The views were great!!
8 of the scouts/adults made it up the 1400 foot hill without stopping.
The scouts are watching movies and playing games since we had a late day thunderstorm. Unfortunately the rappelling and skiing were cancelled.
We are in New York!! We crossed the border today from Ohio into Pennsylvannia and then from Pennsylvannia into New York.
Chris Alder is a pain in the shoulder!! He is putting on extra weight because he isn't exercising.
The big event of the day was the final 1400 foot hill we had to climb to make it to Camp Merz on Chautaugua Lake. The boys did a great job making it up the hill!! Mr. Alder was the first one up, I think he slept all the way up (in the sag wagon).
Everyone is doing great!! They are expecting thunderstorms tonight so we were not able to go repelling.
The Gagnons stopped by to see us today. They are heading to family in Buffalo. They brought cookies:) Thanks!!
Last night the scouts played a new game (Sideline Ball) with Troop 34 in Conneaut, Ohio. They also learned how to play Ambush which Mr. Price would be very good at!! Troop 34 will celebrate their 100 year anniversery in 2010. They were a great troop and have a lot going for them. They have a terrific church and feed us yesterday when we came in.
The camp we are at tonight has also invited us to their dinning hall. The boys are getting spoiled (only setup tents twice so far) and we have had several meals cooked for us.
A shout out to Mirt from Chris at Camp Merz!!
Also, A shout out to Darlene from Brian, Happy 20th Anniversary!!
Unfortunately, we will miss Mrs. Vensel. She had to leave the trip today because of a family issue. We will keep her in our prayers.
Have to run for dinner, talk to you later.
Chris Alder is a pain in the shoulder!! He is putting on extra weight because he isn't exercising.
The big event of the day was the final 1400 foot hill we had to climb to make it to Camp Merz on Chautaugua Lake. The boys did a great job making it up the hill!! Mr. Alder was the first one up, I think he slept all the way up (in the sag wagon).
Everyone is doing great!! They are expecting thunderstorms tonight so we were not able to go repelling.
The Gagnons stopped by to see us today. They are heading to family in Buffalo. They brought cookies:) Thanks!!
Last night the scouts played a new game (Sideline Ball) with Troop 34 in Conneaut, Ohio. They also learned how to play Ambush which Mr. Price would be very good at!! Troop 34 will celebrate their 100 year anniversery in 2010. They were a great troop and have a lot going for them. They have a terrific church and feed us yesterday when we came in.
The camp we are at tonight has also invited us to their dinning hall. The boys are getting spoiled (only setup tents twice so far) and we have had several meals cooked for us.
A shout out to Mirt from Chris at Camp Merz!!
Also, A shout out to Darlene from Brian, Happy 20th Anniversary!!
Unfortunately, we will miss Mrs. Vensel. She had to leave the trip today because of a family issue. We will keep her in our prayers.
Have to run for dinner, talk to you later.
Monday, August 3, 2009
I have been asked to put in a post on where to send a check if anyone wants to dontate to Juvenile Diabetes. You can make a check out to "ADA" or "American Diabetes Association" and mail it to my address at:
Troop 37
0N317 Feece Ct
Geneva, IL 60134
Below are several pictures from Jim Shultz.
Navigation meeting we have every day with the navigators and crew chiefs to talk about the route we will take the next day in detail.
Also, part of Crew 2 consisting of Mark Kennedy and Aaron Volk.
Part of Crew 2 consisting of Nick Crown, Dan Herrera, Joe Guevara, and Ron Volk.
Crew 3 consisting of Joshua Kilmer, Jake Kish, Chris Alder (before accident), Michael Glass, Jacob Haas and Ro Sparacio.
Crew 1 consisting of Mark Shultz, Andy Hegg, Brian Alder, Brian Kilmer, Alex Sparacio, and Blake Heslop.
This is Dan Herrera and Aaron Volk on the Dragster at Cedar Point. They are about to go 120 miles per hour.
Troop 37
0N317 Feece Ct
Geneva, IL 60134
Below are several pictures from Jim Shultz.
Navigation meeting we have every day with the navigators and crew chiefs to talk about the route we will take the next day in detail.
Also, part of Crew 2 consisting of Mark Kennedy and Aaron Volk.
Part of Crew 2 consisting of Nick Crown, Dan Herrera, Joe Guevara, and Ron Volk.
Crew 3 consisting of Joshua Kilmer, Jake Kish, Chris Alder (before accident), Michael Glass, Jacob Haas and Ro Sparacio. 
Crew 1 consisting of Mark Shultz, Andy Hegg, Brian Alder, Brian Kilmer, Alex Sparacio, and Blake Heslop.
This is Dan Herrera and Aaron Volk on the Dragster at Cedar Point. They are about to go 120 miles per hour.
It’s Monday night and we are in Conneaut, Ohio with Troop 34. Troop 34 is wonderful!! They made us a huge dinner when we arrived consisting of Spaghetti, Salad, Deviled Eggs, Fresh Fruit Salad, Italian Bread, Olives, Cake (4 types), Lemonade, and Potato Salad.
I forgot to mention last night that the two ladies (Mrs. Crown and Mrs. Haas) were locked in the laundry mat!! They made an agreement with the scouts that they will wash their clothes if the scouts detail Mrs. Crown car when they return to Geneva. Well, come to find out the laundry mat doors automatically lock at 9:00 pm. The doors lock so you cannot get in or get out. Mr. Volk came to their rescue by getting the back door open so they could get out. I do not know what Mr. Volk did, or if it was related to a previous life.
Another incident included Mr. Guevara while he attempted to take his shower in the outside shower stall. Someone apparently put toilet paper inside the nozzle which caused difficulties. In a desperate attempt to undo the shower head, he used his soiled underwear. Within seconds, the hose was like a fire hose spraying all over the place. To make matters worse, there was no one available to turn off the spicket which forced him to go across the parking lot half-naked!
This morning we had a late start. We slept in tents last night and it took the scouts a while to pack everything up, eat breakfast and be ready to leave. It took 3 hours. Unfortunately, their activity for today was to hang out at the beach for the afternoon. Because of the time we arrived, we were not able to go to the beach.
The church here is wonderful!! It is a gorgeous 100 year old church made out of sandstone and marble. It is huge!! The boy scouts have two rooms dedicated to them and a basketball court in the church. The scouts played basketball and some took naps.
Our plan tomorrow is for everyone to get up at 5:00am and get out as soon as possible. The activity tomorrow night is rappelling in a gorge (once we climb up an 8 mile incline on our bikes… joy to the world [this uplifting message brought to you by Aaron Volk]).
Dan Herrera: “I would like to say hello to my family and the newest member of my family, Lilly. And I hope that the human addition to my family comes soon. I love you Mom and Dad. I promise I will be careful coming down the steep hill.”
Andy Hegg: “I love to rub Mr. Guevara’s beard.”
Andrew Guevara: “The weeks are going by so fast, I can’t believe it’s already the 10th day! Hi to all my friends and family!”
Aaron Volk: “Mom, I don’t promise that I won’t be careful coming down the steep hill. I miss all you guys and look forward to coming home!”
I forgot to mention last night that the two ladies (Mrs. Crown and Mrs. Haas) were locked in the laundry mat!! They made an agreement with the scouts that they will wash their clothes if the scouts detail Mrs. Crown car when they return to Geneva. Well, come to find out the laundry mat doors automatically lock at 9:00 pm. The doors lock so you cannot get in or get out. Mr. Volk came to their rescue by getting the back door open so they could get out. I do not know what Mr. Volk did, or if it was related to a previous life.
Another incident included Mr. Guevara while he attempted to take his shower in the outside shower stall. Someone apparently put toilet paper inside the nozzle which caused difficulties. In a desperate attempt to undo the shower head, he used his soiled underwear. Within seconds, the hose was like a fire hose spraying all over the place. To make matters worse, there was no one available to turn off the spicket which forced him to go across the parking lot half-naked!
This morning we had a late start. We slept in tents last night and it took the scouts a while to pack everything up, eat breakfast and be ready to leave. It took 3 hours. Unfortunately, their activity for today was to hang out at the beach for the afternoon. Because of the time we arrived, we were not able to go to the beach.
The church here is wonderful!! It is a gorgeous 100 year old church made out of sandstone and marble. It is huge!! The boy scouts have two rooms dedicated to them and a basketball court in the church. The scouts played basketball and some took naps.
Our plan tomorrow is for everyone to get up at 5:00am and get out as soon as possible. The activity tomorrow night is rappelling in a gorge (once we climb up an 8 mile incline on our bikes… joy to the world [this uplifting message brought to you by Aaron Volk]).
Dan Herrera: “I would like to say hello to my family and the newest member of my family, Lilly. And I hope that the human addition to my family comes soon. I love you Mom and Dad. I promise I will be careful coming down the steep hill.”
Andy Hegg: “I love to rub Mr. Guevara’s beard.”
Andrew Guevara: “The weeks are going by so fast, I can’t believe it’s already the 10th day! Hi to all my friends and family!”
Aaron Volk: “Mom, I don’t promise that I won’t be careful coming down the steep hill. I miss all you guys and look forward to coming home!”
Unfortunately, we had an accident yesterday with one of the bikes. Mr. Alder will no longer be jumping man hole covers. Yes, our 50 year old child was trying to jump man hole covers with his bike. The bike came down, the front wheel twisted and he decided to become personnal friends with the road. He broke his collar bone. We spent last night at the hospital making sure there was nothing more serious.
Mr. Alder is done riding bikes but he will continue with us to Niagara Falls. We will drop him off in hotels at night. He will heel and we will talk to all the scouts today about safety. We inspected Chris's helmet and he did hit his head. The helmet took a blow to one side. Because he had his helmet on, he has no other injuries.
Outside of our bike accident yesterday was a great day. We only rode 25 miles. We spent most of the day at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Mark's aunt and uncle (Aunt Barb and Uncle Randy) stopped to see us in Cleveland. We had a 7 mile ride into the city, we rode by the Indians Stadium, Basketball Stadium (where the greatest player of all time plays - Lebron James), Federal Reserve Bank, Browns Stadium, Free Stamp, and other Cleveland attractions. We meet at a park next to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and had our Scout's own church service. The scouts did a great job.
We also did Roses, Buds, and Thorns. This is a tool to have the boys talk about what they liked (Roses), what they did not like (Thorns), and what they are looking forward to (Buds).
The Hall of Fame was great!! Ron Volk and I would have been willing to stay longer, but the scouts wanted to leave. We had a 18 mile ride to Eastlake, Ohio. The roads were clear on a Sunday and made it for easy riding if you avoid the man hole covers. It was along this ride that Mr. Alder had his accident.
We stayed at the Reformation Lutheran Church in tents in their backyard. There is a family restaurant right door where we all ate dinner. Once the tents were setup everyone went to bed.
Joe Guevara wants everyone to know he is going raw today (no underwear). I don't know why he wants everyone to know that. Bike shorts are made to not wear underwear.
I need to run over to pick up Mr. Alder, so I will post again tonight.
Mr. Alder is done riding bikes but he will continue with us to Niagara Falls. We will drop him off in hotels at night. He will heel and we will talk to all the scouts today about safety. We inspected Chris's helmet and he did hit his head. The helmet took a blow to one side. Because he had his helmet on, he has no other injuries.
Outside of our bike accident yesterday was a great day. We only rode 25 miles. We spent most of the day at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Mark's aunt and uncle (Aunt Barb and Uncle Randy) stopped to see us in Cleveland. We had a 7 mile ride into the city, we rode by the Indians Stadium, Basketball Stadium (where the greatest player of all time plays - Lebron James), Federal Reserve Bank, Browns Stadium, Free Stamp, and other Cleveland attractions. We meet at a park next to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and had our Scout's own church service. The scouts did a great job.
We also did Roses, Buds, and Thorns. This is a tool to have the boys talk about what they liked (Roses), what they did not like (Thorns), and what they are looking forward to (Buds).
The Hall of Fame was great!! Ron Volk and I would have been willing to stay longer, but the scouts wanted to leave. We had a 18 mile ride to Eastlake, Ohio. The roads were clear on a Sunday and made it for easy riding if you avoid the man hole covers. It was along this ride that Mr. Alder had his accident.
We stayed at the Reformation Lutheran Church in tents in their backyard. There is a family restaurant right door where we all ate dinner. Once the tents were setup everyone went to bed.
Joe Guevara wants everyone to know he is going raw today (no underwear). I don't know why he wants everyone to know that. Bike shorts are made to not wear underwear.
I need to run over to pick up Mr. Alder, so I will post again tonight.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
We are now in Lakewood, Ohio (just West of Cleveland). We rode about 54 miles today. Our half way point was Lakeview Park in Lorain. The park was great!! So great, that we decided to stay about 5 hours playing beach volleyball, football, and swimming in Lake Erie. There was nothing planned in Lakewood, so the extra long stay over worked out very well.
In the morning, I (Mr. Kilmer) ran over a dead possum. It was completely disgusting!! My bike smelled terrible. At Lakeview Park, I spent 2 hours cleaning it and it still smelled. Finally a can of Lysol helped to remove the odor.
Around 5:00 pm, we continued on to Lakewood. All 3 crews rode to the Kilmer’s old house in Avon Lake and took a picture in front of it. Beyond that the bike ride was uneventful.
After taking the last couple days off, the boys were very strong riders today averaging close to 16 miles per hour. All crews completed the ride within 15 minutes of each other.
The church in Lakewood is wonderful. They just finished painting it, the fellowship is huge, and they are letting us use their kitchen. We arrived by 7:00pm. The boys cooked dinner, ate and quickly fell asleep. We did treat them to Dilly Bars from DQ.
The ride is starting to wear on the scouts. They are tired and physiologically they are starting another week of riding. This is the time they will get on each other’s nerves and need to learn to work together. This is what the high adventure program is about. The crews are working together great; they are definitely past the storming part of forming into a team. Now the physical and emotional elements will come into play.
Tomorrow morning we have a scout’s own church service which we will do at a park near the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and then we will visit the Hall of Fame for most of the day.
In the morning, I (Mr. Kilmer) ran over a dead possum. It was completely disgusting!! My bike smelled terrible. At Lakeview Park, I spent 2 hours cleaning it and it still smelled. Finally a can of Lysol helped to remove the odor.
Around 5:00 pm, we continued on to Lakewood. All 3 crews rode to the Kilmer’s old house in Avon Lake and took a picture in front of it. Beyond that the bike ride was uneventful.
After taking the last couple days off, the boys were very strong riders today averaging close to 16 miles per hour. All crews completed the ride within 15 minutes of each other.
The church in Lakewood is wonderful. They just finished painting it, the fellowship is huge, and they are letting us use their kitchen. We arrived by 7:00pm. The boys cooked dinner, ate and quickly fell asleep. We did treat them to Dilly Bars from DQ.
The ride is starting to wear on the scouts. They are tired and physiologically they are starting another week of riding. This is the time they will get on each other’s nerves and need to learn to work together. This is what the high adventure program is about. The crews are working together great; they are definitely past the storming part of forming into a team. Now the physical and emotional elements will come into play.
Tomorrow morning we have a scout’s own church service which we will do at a park near the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and then we will visit the Hall of Fame for most of the day.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
I updated the blog from the other day. The gentleman we meet was Pickle Bob and not Cucumber Bob. He was a local pickle farmer and loved to talk about how corn and pickles are harvested.
Sorry I didn't blog last night, I was at Cedar Point all day with several scouts on the rollercoasters. We had a great time!! We setup rides back and forth from camp to Cedar Point so the scouts had 3-4 times to go back and forth. Several scouts stayed all day.
Send more cookies!!! Mr. Shultz, Mr. Hegg (and daughter and friend), and the Herrera family joined us for the day at the park. Mr. Shultz brought Bannana Bread and Homemade cookies. Thanks Mary!!! The cookies are gone and the bannana bread will be gone this morning for breakfast.
The top three rides were Dragster, Millenium, and Maverick. Mean Streak was a great ride to combine your internal organs. It crews you up and spits you out like a bad piece of gum.
Several people throught the light show at the end of the day was lame, but all in all it was a great day off from riding. This morning we let the scouts sleep in again. They are now up packing. There really isn't much to do in Lakewood, so we wanted them to sleep in.
Some quotes about the last couple of days...
Alex Sparacio "Keep on rocking me baby!!"
Blake Heslop "Awesome!!"
Brian Alder "Top Five to everyone on the Top Thrill Dragster Line. Got two numbers."
Sorry I didn't blog last night, I was at Cedar Point all day with several scouts on the rollercoasters. We had a great time!! We setup rides back and forth from camp to Cedar Point so the scouts had 3-4 times to go back and forth. Several scouts stayed all day.
Send more cookies!!! Mr. Shultz, Mr. Hegg (and daughter and friend), and the Herrera family joined us for the day at the park. Mr. Shultz brought Bannana Bread and Homemade cookies. Thanks Mary!!! The cookies are gone and the bannana bread will be gone this morning for breakfast.
The top three rides were Dragster, Millenium, and Maverick. Mean Streak was a great ride to combine your internal organs. It crews you up and spits you out like a bad piece of gum.
Several people throught the light show at the end of the day was lame, but all in all it was a great day off from riding. This morning we let the scouts sleep in again. They are now up packing. There really isn't much to do in Lakewood, so we wanted them to sleep in.
Some quotes about the last couple of days...
Alex Sparacio "Keep on rocking me baby!!"
Blake Heslop "Awesome!!"
Brian Alder "Top Five to everyone on the Top Thrill Dragster Line. Got two numbers."
Friday, July 31, 2009
Here are a couple of newspaper articles that I am aware of. We have people sending us articles as well.
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/article_0b962cf1-cbda-55ba-b8c8-2552cf785394.html
http://www.bryantimes.com/articles/2009/07/29/news/doc4a7063505d7d9946679660.img
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/article_0b962cf1-cbda-55ba-b8c8-2552cf785394.html
http://www.bryantimes.com/articles/2009/07/29/news/doc4a7063505d7d9946679660.img
Thursday, July 30, 2009
There are two blogs today, please read the one with the quotes as well. Now for the day's events. Last night after we arrived, the staff cooked us dinner which was terrific!! The Eric Shores Council was wonderful. We slept in their pole barn and slept in 1.5 hours. They cooked dinner then the group walked down to an ice cream store. The walk was about a half mile and was wonderful!! We came back and crashed.
This morning we were up and ready in no time. The cub scouts were arriving for day camp at 8:00am, so the scouts had an incentive to leave as soon they could. The ride was nice and leasurely. It was 42 miles. We meet Pickle Bob. Pickle Bob is a local farmer about half way along the trip who loved to talk about farming. All three crews stopped long enough to learn how cucumber and corn was harvested and what field corn tastes like. Ron ate almost the full ear of corn.
Once we arrived at KOA, we cleaned the bikes, setup camp and then went to the local beach. We played volleyball and keep away with the nerf football in Lake Erie. We are now waiting for dinner back at camp. Barbeque Chicken and spagetti with a salad.
Everyone had a great laugh last night. Blake learned where he should not put IcyHot. He was in pain until he made it into the shower to wash off.
Tomorrow is the day at Cedar Point. Mr. and Mrs. Herrera arrived a couple hours ago. They will join us at Cedar Point.
This morning we were up and ready in no time. The cub scouts were arriving for day camp at 8:00am, so the scouts had an incentive to leave as soon they could. The ride was nice and leasurely. It was 42 miles. We meet Pickle Bob. Pickle Bob is a local farmer about half way along the trip who loved to talk about farming. All three crews stopped long enough to learn how cucumber and corn was harvested and what field corn tastes like. Ron ate almost the full ear of corn.
Once we arrived at KOA, we cleaned the bikes, setup camp and then went to the local beach. We played volleyball and keep away with the nerf football in Lake Erie. We are now waiting for dinner back at camp. Barbeque Chicken and spagetti with a salad.
Everyone had a great laugh last night. Blake learned where he should not put IcyHot. He was in pain until he made it into the shower to wash off.
Tomorrow is the day at Cedar Point. Mr. and Mrs. Herrera arrived a couple hours ago. They will join us at Cedar Point.
I have two posts today. Last night I collected quotes from most of the scouts and adult leaders, but I didn't have time to upload them to the blog. They are below:
Alex Sparacio “I’m just happy to be with my dad. Once in a life time experience. The most challenging was the flatness of Indiana. The most enjoyable was just hanging out after riding.”
Blake Heslop “Long Ride. Gold Bond helps and pray for no rain.”
Michael Glass “Gel seats help. Hi to everyone!!”
Dan Herrera “Ohio is definitely not…hilly. In fact it is very flat. I officially love Ohio, but not as much as Illinois. Mr. Kilmer is not very popular among other scouts right now. But he is redeeming himself by choosing a route through the flat farmland of Ohio. The people around here have an obsession with putting fake animals in their front yard, and none of us get it. Worst of all, they always have a fence holding real animals next to the house. It makes no since…AT ALL! Just incase you wanted to know. I want to say hello to my family and friends back in Geneva, and I can’t wait to see you guys.”
Mark Shultz “This place is podonk. Hi mama!!”
Jacob Kish “Indiana is flat. Yeah, right, sure!!”
Jacob Haas “Indiana is flat. Yeah, right, sure!! Hey, Andrew (and Hi to you know who).”
Aaron Volk “Thank you to the Troop 1222 hosts for telling us there are no hills in Ohio. He doesn’t lie.”
Josh Kilmer “We passed a house giving out free kittens.”
Andy Hegg “Dogs like to chase me.”
Andrew Guevara “Everything is going great except for the ride. It is great to stop at camp and relax after a long sweaty day. It is also great to take a shower; I have to thank Mr. Kilmer for bringing the portable shower. Hi to my family and friends.”
Nick Crown “This is a great life-time experience. It is fun.”
Brian Alder “No comment”
Mark Kennedy “No comment”
Mrs. Crown “Hey B. really miss you!! Bean Wednesday lives on.”
Mr. Volk “No comment”
Mr. Alder “Great experience for the boys!! It is great we could give them the opportunity to do this and we are too old to be doing this.”
Mrs. Haas “It is amazing how professional the troop rides following each other.”
Mr. Guevara “Hello to my friends and family and especially those who have supported me on this trip. Greetings from Joe and Andrew.”
Mr. Sparacio “The most rewarding part of the trip is the way the crew is unified, the way they are developing their navigation skills, and the way they are building as a team. Today, they proved themselves by riding the longest bike ride with the shortest miles (only crew not to miss a turn).”
Mr. Kilmer “This has turned out to be a wonderful trip. All the troops (264 in Griffith, 102 in Ligonier, and 1222 in Bryan) have been terrific. The American Legion in Fish Lake was also willing to help us in any way. Everyone has been terrific!! After a couple of days, the safety of the boys has improved greatly. All of the scouts are communicating and working together. This is an opportunity in a life-time to take such a large bike trip across 5 states. When this was first proposed, several scouts and adults thought we were crazy. The trip will give the boys a great self confidence boost!! They are completing something at first they never thought they could.”
Alex Sparacio “I’m just happy to be with my dad. Once in a life time experience. The most challenging was the flatness of Indiana. The most enjoyable was just hanging out after riding.”
Blake Heslop “Long Ride. Gold Bond helps and pray for no rain.”
Michael Glass “Gel seats help. Hi to everyone!!”
Dan Herrera “Ohio is definitely not…hilly. In fact it is very flat. I officially love Ohio, but not as much as Illinois. Mr. Kilmer is not very popular among other scouts right now. But he is redeeming himself by choosing a route through the flat farmland of Ohio. The people around here have an obsession with putting fake animals in their front yard, and none of us get it. Worst of all, they always have a fence holding real animals next to the house. It makes no since…AT ALL! Just incase you wanted to know. I want to say hello to my family and friends back in Geneva, and I can’t wait to see you guys.”
Mark Shultz “This place is podonk. Hi mama!!”
Jacob Kish “Indiana is flat. Yeah, right, sure!!”
Jacob Haas “Indiana is flat. Yeah, right, sure!! Hey, Andrew (and Hi to you know who).”
Aaron Volk “Thank you to the Troop 1222 hosts for telling us there are no hills in Ohio. He doesn’t lie.”
Josh Kilmer “We passed a house giving out free kittens.”
Andy Hegg “Dogs like to chase me.”
Andrew Guevara “Everything is going great except for the ride. It is great to stop at camp and relax after a long sweaty day. It is also great to take a shower; I have to thank Mr. Kilmer for bringing the portable shower. Hi to my family and friends.”
Nick Crown “This is a great life-time experience. It is fun.”
Brian Alder “No comment”
Mark Kennedy “No comment”
Mrs. Crown “Hey B. really miss you!! Bean Wednesday lives on.”
Mr. Volk “No comment”
Mr. Alder “Great experience for the boys!! It is great we could give them the opportunity to do this and we are too old to be doing this.”
Mrs. Haas “It is amazing how professional the troop rides following each other.”
Mr. Guevara “Hello to my friends and family and especially those who have supported me on this trip. Greetings from Joe and Andrew.”
Mr. Sparacio “The most rewarding part of the trip is the way the crew is unified, the way they are developing their navigation skills, and the way they are building as a team. Today, they proved themselves by riding the longest bike ride with the shortest miles (only crew not to miss a turn).”
Mr. Kilmer “This has turned out to be a wonderful trip. All the troops (264 in Griffith, 102 in Ligonier, and 1222 in Bryan) have been terrific. The American Legion in Fish Lake was also willing to help us in any way. Everyone has been terrific!! After a couple of days, the safety of the boys has improved greatly. All of the scouts are communicating and working together. This is an opportunity in a life-time to take such a large bike trip across 5 states. When this was first proposed, several scouts and adults thought we were crazy. The trip will give the boys a great self confidence boost!! They are completing something at first they never thought they could.”
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Today's ride was long!! We are now in Gibsonburg, Ohio after riding 85 miles (depending on whose bike computer you ask). Two of the crews missed a turn and rode as extra 2 miles (it's great exercise:).
Troop 1222 in Ligonier was great last night!! Everyone really enjoyed the pond to go swimming after a 60 mile ride. Thanks Troop 1222!!!
Eveyone made it to bed early last night (9:00pm) and we woke up a 5am. The scouts were actually ready early. We had fog so we had to wait until the fog lifted before we could start our ride. We left at 6:40am. Today's ride was nice and flat which allowed us to make the 80 to 85 miles without any issues. All 3 crews arrived within 20 minutes of each other at the scout reservation. We made it around 1:30.
Our midway point was at Bethany Baptist Church in Grand Rapids, Ohio. The pastor there came out to greet us and was great!! Thanks for using your picnic tables, bathrooms, water and swings!! Bethany Baptist was nice enough to donate to ADA and led us in prayer for a safe journey before we left.
The camp is being used for a Cub Scout day camp until 4:00pm and then the camp is all ours. We have taken over a pole barn so the scouts could avoid setting up tents. All the scouts worked on their bikes when we first arrived (cleaning and making sure everything is working). A thunderstorm rolled in, so we quickly put the bikes under a tarp and took cover.
Once the storm cleared, everyone played volleyball and now are lined up to take showers. The camp is cooking dinner for us. We also need to review tomorrow's route tonight so all the navigators know where to go.
Tomorrow is a short ride of 42 miles to Cedar Point. Therefore, we will sleep in 1.5 hours (until 6:30am EST). Tomorrow's activities include a swimming pool, softball rematch, and hot showers.
I have quotes from most of the scouts that I will post tomorrow as soon as I can.
Troop 1222 in Ligonier was great last night!! Everyone really enjoyed the pond to go swimming after a 60 mile ride. Thanks Troop 1222!!!
Eveyone made it to bed early last night (9:00pm) and we woke up a 5am. The scouts were actually ready early. We had fog so we had to wait until the fog lifted before we could start our ride. We left at 6:40am. Today's ride was nice and flat which allowed us to make the 80 to 85 miles without any issues. All 3 crews arrived within 20 minutes of each other at the scout reservation. We made it around 1:30.
Our midway point was at Bethany Baptist Church in Grand Rapids, Ohio. The pastor there came out to greet us and was great!! Thanks for using your picnic tables, bathrooms, water and swings!! Bethany Baptist was nice enough to donate to ADA and led us in prayer for a safe journey before we left.
The camp is being used for a Cub Scout day camp until 4:00pm and then the camp is all ours. We have taken over a pole barn so the scouts could avoid setting up tents. All the scouts worked on their bikes when we first arrived (cleaning and making sure everything is working). A thunderstorm rolled in, so we quickly put the bikes under a tarp and took cover.
Once the storm cleared, everyone played volleyball and now are lined up to take showers. The camp is cooking dinner for us. We also need to review tomorrow's route tonight so all the navigators know where to go.
Tomorrow is a short ride of 42 miles to Cedar Point. Therefore, we will sleep in 1.5 hours (until 6:30am EST). Tomorrow's activities include a swimming pool, softball rematch, and hot showers.
I have quotes from most of the scouts that I will post tomorrow as soon as I can.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
This post will have to be quick. I am in the laundry mat and they are almost done. The ride today was difficult. We had more hills and the fourth day was wearing on everyone. Tomorrow is the long ride (75 miles). We had some rain during the ride but everyone rode through it without much issue.
Troop 1222 is another great location. We are staying at the Committee Chair's house. He has a pond in the back yard with rafts, pier, sand beach, .... All the boys are currently back at the house swimming and horse playing.
We had to bikes we needed to get fixed and laundry to do. Tonight was laundry day. Both bikes are now fixed and the laundry is almost done. The local newspaper is coming out to interview the scouts later this evening.
The boys have grouped together and voted on buying KFC for dinner tonight. Since all the crews want KFC, we have given in and are ordering several buckets. Troop 1222 Scoutmaster and scouts will be over later tonight to play games. Unfortunately, it looks like some storms are coming in, so we may be stuck in the pole barn. We'll see how the night plays out.
This morning was difficult waking up. We changed time zones, so this morning we woke everyone up at 5am EST (4am CST) to start the bike ride. We left around 6:50 and make it in between 12:20 and 2:00. We also crossed the border into Ohio today.
Since the scouts can't read this until they return, I'll tell all of you a secret that you have to keep to yourself. Ohio isn't any flater than Indiana. We will have hills here too.
Ceci, your mother says HI and Love you!!
I think I figured out pictures, so we'll see if it works.
Monday, July 27, 2009
We are alive and well. I am sitting here in Ligonier, Indiana just outside the kitchen in the cabin. The kitchen is the only place that has a power outlet. We just ate dinner, so Dan Herrera and Josh Kilmer are cleaning dishes and singing songs.
Last night was interesting; we didn’t sleep very well at all. The location was great overlooking the lake, so Ron Volk got the idea that instead of sleeping in tents, we could just sleep in the pavilion with our sleeping bags. Well, this sounded interesting so several of us decided to join him. The first attack came quickly. The mosquitoes came wave after wave. They were relentless. After a couple hours, the rain storm that blew into the shelter sideways didn’t help us get any sleep. At this point I decided to go into the lodge. The American Legion was nice enough to open the lodge for us so the scouts could sleep inside. The hall they slept in smelled like smoke and the fans were loud. After I laid down in the hall, I realized that the hall wasn’t much better than the mosquitoes.
The next morning, I found out the police stopped by around 2am and woke up everyone sleeping in the pavilion since he didn’t know why they were there. After Ron sent the police officer off, they were able to get some sleep. I think there are several of us ready to go to bed early today.
We made it on the road by 6:30am this morning. The trip was great. We saw some Bactrian Camels. A couple of the crews stopped to see them. We also saw Amish and Mennonites. All the crews passed by at least one Amish Buggy. Josh Kilmer’s grandparents came up from Plymouth Indiana to take pictures and wave us on as we rode by. The boys want me to mention that all the crews were chased by dogs today. They didn’t come near the bikes. The dogs did either cheer us on (in their own way), or wanted us away from their territory.
We had one incident today. Brian Alder joined the skinned knee club. He ran into the back of Andy Hegg’s bike and wiped out. He skinned his knee and elbow. We cleaned him up and he went on riding without any issues. Everyone is doing great, Mrs. Vensel is back to normal. All the other boys are doing great.
One of the roads, route 38 was a terrible road to ride on. It had a lot of traffic. Everyone did great riding in a single file and staying on the side of the road. The mothers in the chase vehicle said all the mothers would be very impressed with how the children were riding.
Ron stopped at someone’s house to ask for directions. They tried to send him in the wrong direction. Ron figured it out and took their crew in the right direction.
We arrived between 12:45 and 1:30 this afternoon. Troop 102 from Ligonier has been great. They arrived this morning to greet us. 5 of their scouts are riding with us tomorrow. They gave us Ligonier shirts. We are staying at a cabin they own near the Elkhart River. Ligonier is known for their Marshmallow Festival they hold every year over Labor Day weekend. The ladies were able to go to the scoutmaster’s house for hot showers. The boys and men used the portable camp shower.
The portable shower works great, but it is cold!! The nozzle for the hose yesterday was too strong, so we bought a new one that works great. We also were able to get free ice from the local American Legion again. And I found out the troop has contacted the local newspaper making this the 4th newspaper we will be in.
We ran 4 bikes up to the local bike shop to fix various items. Mike Glass's brake was rubbing, Jacob Haas's gear shifter, Chris Alder's 1st gear, and Ron Volk's wheel bearings. All the bikes were fixed and we are ready to ride again tomorrow.
We hit some more hills today (not as many as yesterday), but in a flat state like Indiana any hill is really unexpected. As we were going up one of the larger hills, Mark Shultz told me I was in trouble. Since I put together the route, I will take all the blame for every hill, busy road, gravel road, and construction that we run into.
Since Dan and Josh are both here, they have requested to add a quote to the blog today.
Quote from Dan Herrera, “Indiana is definitely not flat. Do not take people’s word for it when a state is flat, that is something you must find out on your own. We found that out today and yesterday when Mr. Kilmer lied to us and told us that Indiana was flat. In the rare occasion when you come across a flat road it is gravel and hard to ride on. You should definitely appreciate your car because it definitely doesn’t involve any physical labor. I personally cannot wait to be able to sit in a passenger seat of a car again. I realize this is day 3 of a long trip. Just kidding, I am really enjoying this trip and would like to say hello to my family and friends. Yours truly Dan Herrera.”
Quote from Josh Kilmer, “Indiana is not flat. Do not take Brian Kilmer’s word for it…..Yours truly Josh Kilmer”.
Last night was interesting; we didn’t sleep very well at all. The location was great overlooking the lake, so Ron Volk got the idea that instead of sleeping in tents, we could just sleep in the pavilion with our sleeping bags. Well, this sounded interesting so several of us decided to join him. The first attack came quickly. The mosquitoes came wave after wave. They were relentless. After a couple hours, the rain storm that blew into the shelter sideways didn’t help us get any sleep. At this point I decided to go into the lodge. The American Legion was nice enough to open the lodge for us so the scouts could sleep inside. The hall they slept in smelled like smoke and the fans were loud. After I laid down in the hall, I realized that the hall wasn’t much better than the mosquitoes.
The next morning, I found out the police stopped by around 2am and woke up everyone sleeping in the pavilion since he didn’t know why they were there. After Ron sent the police officer off, they were able to get some sleep. I think there are several of us ready to go to bed early today.
We made it on the road by 6:30am this morning. The trip was great. We saw some Bactrian Camels. A couple of the crews stopped to see them. We also saw Amish and Mennonites. All the crews passed by at least one Amish Buggy. Josh Kilmer’s grandparents came up from Plymouth Indiana to take pictures and wave us on as we rode by. The boys want me to mention that all the crews were chased by dogs today. They didn’t come near the bikes. The dogs did either cheer us on (in their own way), or wanted us away from their territory.
We had one incident today. Brian Alder joined the skinned knee club. He ran into the back of Andy Hegg’s bike and wiped out. He skinned his knee and elbow. We cleaned him up and he went on riding without any issues. Everyone is doing great, Mrs. Vensel is back to normal. All the other boys are doing great.
One of the roads, route 38 was a terrible road to ride on. It had a lot of traffic. Everyone did great riding in a single file and staying on the side of the road. The mothers in the chase vehicle said all the mothers would be very impressed with how the children were riding.
Ron stopped at someone’s house to ask for directions. They tried to send him in the wrong direction. Ron figured it out and took their crew in the right direction.
We arrived between 12:45 and 1:30 this afternoon. Troop 102 from Ligonier has been great. They arrived this morning to greet us. 5 of their scouts are riding with us tomorrow. They gave us Ligonier shirts. We are staying at a cabin they own near the Elkhart River. Ligonier is known for their Marshmallow Festival they hold every year over Labor Day weekend. The ladies were able to go to the scoutmaster’s house for hot showers. The boys and men used the portable camp shower.
The portable shower works great, but it is cold!! The nozzle for the hose yesterday was too strong, so we bought a new one that works great. We also were able to get free ice from the local American Legion again. And I found out the troop has contacted the local newspaper making this the 4th newspaper we will be in.
We ran 4 bikes up to the local bike shop to fix various items. Mike Glass's brake was rubbing, Jacob Haas's gear shifter, Chris Alder's 1st gear, and Ron Volk's wheel bearings. All the bikes were fixed and we are ready to ride again tomorrow.
We hit some more hills today (not as many as yesterday), but in a flat state like Indiana any hill is really unexpected. As we were going up one of the larger hills, Mark Shultz told me I was in trouble. Since I put together the route, I will take all the blame for every hill, busy road, gravel road, and construction that we run into.
Since Dan and Josh are both here, they have requested to add a quote to the blog today.
Quote from Dan Herrera, “Indiana is definitely not flat. Do not take people’s word for it when a state is flat, that is something you must find out on your own. We found that out today and yesterday when Mr. Kilmer lied to us and told us that Indiana was flat. In the rare occasion when you come across a flat road it is gravel and hard to ride on. You should definitely appreciate your car because it definitely doesn’t involve any physical labor. I personally cannot wait to be able to sit in a passenger seat of a car again. I realize this is day 3 of a long trip. Just kidding, I am really enjoying this trip and would like to say hello to my family and friends. Yours truly Dan Herrera.”
Quote from Josh Kilmer, “Indiana is not flat. Do not take Brian Kilmer’s word for it…..Yours truly Josh Kilmer”.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Another day down and lots more to go. Everyone did great today, no one was hurt. Mrs. Vensel is feeling much better. Let's start with one item I forgot about yesterday. Troop 264 had two reports show up from the local papers. They had a great write-up in this mornings paper about us. The other paper write-up will be in a couple of days.
This morning the town of Griffith gave us another police escort out of town. You could read this good or bad:) We had 3 of the members of Troop 264 ride with us today. One rode with Ron and Deb's crew and the other two rode with Chris and Ro's crew. We rode a total of 57 miles today and averaged about 15 miles an hour.
The first half of the trip was hilly. Very hilly. We kept going up and down and my name was used in vein many times. Mrs. Vensel had a few choice words for me. We took a break in Westville and then continued onto Fish Lake, IN. The groups arrived into Fish Lake between 11:30 and 1:30. The groups are pretty good groups, we were evenly spaced about 1 hour a part.
We passed a Nike Missile silo location from the cold war. One group saw several fighter jets. Once we arrived at Fish Lake, the scouts checked on their bikes (whipped them down and made sure nothing was broken). Unfortunately, one scout had a broken gear changer, so he is borrowing the spare bike from the trailer so his can get fixed tomorrow.
The adults challenged the scouts to a 16" softball game this afternoon. The adults won 13-12. I don't want to hear any more comments about old men and AARP cards. We had 5 adults against 10 high school age boys. We did great!! The first home run Ron Volk hit was painful. He made us actually run several bases!! I was surprised we were able to play after the bike riding, but I can tell we are all ready for bed early tonight. We have another 59 mile day tomorrow.
The scouts are doing great!! They are currently cooking us dinner which I will eat when I finish this blog and then we will settle down with some cards and bed.
The site we are staying at is terrific, we are out at the point of land in the lake. Several of us were brave enough to go swimming in the lake. We also setup the portable shower and most everyone was able to take showers. The water was cold, but refreshing.
One of these days I will get the opportunity to post some pictures. Currently I am using Jake Kish's friend Ron's computer to quickly create this post.
This morning the town of Griffith gave us another police escort out of town. You could read this good or bad:) We had 3 of the members of Troop 264 ride with us today. One rode with Ron and Deb's crew and the other two rode with Chris and Ro's crew. We rode a total of 57 miles today and averaged about 15 miles an hour.
The first half of the trip was hilly. Very hilly. We kept going up and down and my name was used in vein many times. Mrs. Vensel had a few choice words for me. We took a break in Westville and then continued onto Fish Lake, IN. The groups arrived into Fish Lake between 11:30 and 1:30. The groups are pretty good groups, we were evenly spaced about 1 hour a part.
We passed a Nike Missile silo location from the cold war. One group saw several fighter jets. Once we arrived at Fish Lake, the scouts checked on their bikes (whipped them down and made sure nothing was broken). Unfortunately, one scout had a broken gear changer, so he is borrowing the spare bike from the trailer so his can get fixed tomorrow.
The adults challenged the scouts to a 16" softball game this afternoon. The adults won 13-12. I don't want to hear any more comments about old men and AARP cards. We had 5 adults against 10 high school age boys. We did great!! The first home run Ron Volk hit was painful. He made us actually run several bases!! I was surprised we were able to play after the bike riding, but I can tell we are all ready for bed early tonight. We have another 59 mile day tomorrow.
The scouts are doing great!! They are currently cooking us dinner which I will eat when I finish this blog and then we will settle down with some cards and bed.
The site we are staying at is terrific, we are out at the point of land in the lake. Several of us were brave enough to go swimming in the lake. We also setup the portable shower and most everyone was able to take showers. The water was cold, but refreshing.
One of these days I will get the opportunity to post some pictures. Currently I am using Jake Kish's friend Ron's computer to quickly create this post.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Saturday (Geneva, IL to Griffith, IN)
We left around 6:00am in the morning in 3 different crews. The boys had a lot of energy, so we were moving fairly fast. The Illinois Prairie Path and Great Western Trails felt like riding through pudding (Blake’s quote). The rain from the night before made the gravel trails soft and therefore more difficult riding.
We had a couple different incidents in the morning. I am hearing the latest stunts these days is to go head over your handlebars. Both Jacob Haas and Mrs. Vensel did are now experienced at diving over their handlebars (two different incidents). Jacob’s front tire became stuck in a rut causing his accident. Mrs. Vensel had to stop quick because of a yellow light. Jacob is perfectly fine. Mrs. Vensel’s elbow and shoulder are sore, but she jumped back on her bike and continued on. She is icing them both and will definitely be sore tomorrow.
Out side of these two incidents, we had a couple flat tires but nothing that caused us to not make our destination. Mrs. Crown and Mrs. Haas meet us at the 47 mile mark with some snacks and then we continued on.
The Griffith troop (Troop 264) has been terrific. They organized a police escort through town to the church. At church they setup large canopies and had lots of food for us. There was a sign welcoming us to their church. They cooked up a great meal for us (hot dogs, hamburgers, sausage, and pulled pork). They had lots of snacks and drinks for us to eat. The local fire station has opened up the fire house for us to take showers and watch TV. The troop has been terrific to say the least!!
The total trip was a little over 70 miles and we averaged 13.8 miles per hour. 3 of the scouts from Troop 264 will join us tomorrow for the ride to Fish Lake, Indiana. The trip tomorrow will be about 54 miles.
We left around 6:00am in the morning in 3 different crews. The boys had a lot of energy, so we were moving fairly fast. The Illinois Prairie Path and Great Western Trails felt like riding through pudding (Blake’s quote). The rain from the night before made the gravel trails soft and therefore more difficult riding.
We had a couple different incidents in the morning. I am hearing the latest stunts these days is to go head over your handlebars. Both Jacob Haas and Mrs. Vensel did are now experienced at diving over their handlebars (two different incidents). Jacob’s front tire became stuck in a rut causing his accident. Mrs. Vensel had to stop quick because of a yellow light. Jacob is perfectly fine. Mrs. Vensel’s elbow and shoulder are sore, but she jumped back on her bike and continued on. She is icing them both and will definitely be sore tomorrow.
Out side of these two incidents, we had a couple flat tires but nothing that caused us to not make our destination. Mrs. Crown and Mrs. Haas meet us at the 47 mile mark with some snacks and then we continued on.
The Griffith troop (Troop 264) has been terrific. They organized a police escort through town to the church. At church they setup large canopies and had lots of food for us. There was a sign welcoming us to their church. They cooked up a great meal for us (hot dogs, hamburgers, sausage, and pulled pork). They had lots of snacks and drinks for us to eat. The local fire station has opened up the fire house for us to take showers and watch TV. The troop has been terrific to say the least!!
The total trip was a little over 70 miles and we averaged 13.8 miles per hour. 3 of the scouts from Troop 264 will join us tomorrow for the ride to Fish Lake, Indiana. The trip tomorrow will be about 54 miles.
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