Saturday, May 9, 2015


Monday, May 11th: Tuscola, IL to Lebanon, Indiana! Day 23 on the road. Back home in Indiana!
(Just before crossing the state line there was a

I spent 5 incredible (ok, I changed majors half way through my junior year and needed more time to get out! :))) college years in Indiana at Purdue University during the early to mid 1980's. I've been back only a couple times since then and was looking forward to getting back but a little anxious to see, although this time would be by bicycle, if my feelings for being back in the state would change any....Riding through gave me lots of time to remember back to my Purdue days and reflect on those experiences. I was able to visit with several really close friends Monday night. After getting into Lebanon, I first got to see my college roommate and his wife and then later that night a couple of my closest Cary Quad RA pals and then stayed with one them and their family in Zionsville for the night and was driven back early Tuesday morning for the ride to Richmond. A great time! To the very special people 'from back in the day' at Purdue, others I befriended in South Bend and down in Bloomington, I very sincerely and with a deeply, grateful heart, say: 'Thank you.' My feelings hadn't changed much while riding through.
You can take the Tad out of Indiana, but you can't take the Indiana out of Tad.




 

 











Sunday, May 10th: Happy Mother's Day! Off to Tuscola! Day 22 on the road.
(photos courtesy of Mike Munk, Bamacyclist)
 A beautiful (and flat!) day riding today. Our shortest day of the whole crossing at 77 miles. One of our fellow riders, Scott Alexander, is rejoining the group after falling In New Mexico and suffering 2 broken ribs. After some recovery and a doctor signing off on him continuing, we're glad to have him back. Leaving Springfield, it begins the 3rd and final 'section' of our trip. Costa Mesa to Albuquerque was the first, from Albuquerque to Springfield the second and now from Springfield all the way east to Amesbury, MA - the third. The photo below is our cue sheet for the day with all of the directions to get from Springfield to Tuscola. With the rain it's always a challenge but w/ the great help from the staff (Judy), a MacGyver'ed holder between the aero bars allowed me to use the bars and read directions!




Saturday, May 9th: Springfield, IL!!!!
After getting through the very beautiful and MANY rolling hills of Missouri the last few days, we're 'settling in' to a few days through much flatter Illinois. Quincy, Springfield and tomorrow to Tuscola as rain is catching up to us and making for wet, sloshy adventures. Today we all enjoyed our second scheduled day off of the trip in Springfield. I woke to the yearly fundraiser  run in town called the Big Ass 5K. Instead of water tables along the route, there are tables with hotdogs, chips, ice cream and beer! I visited the Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, his boyhood home and had the chance to meet up with a very close friend from Purdue for lunch! It was a really great day off. Tomorrow we head to Tuscola come rain or shine!!



Dear Everyone,
Thanks for following my journey across the United States and all of the tremendous support you've given me and offered in donations to Gender Spectrum. I'm very grateful and appreciative. Posting updates on this blog spot is challenging for a variety of reasons so I apologize for not being able to do so very often. I hope you have been able to click on the facebook tab and get more up-to-date posts. Below are some updates taken from my facebook ride page. Sincerely, Tad



April 29th:
Nothing offers perspective like riding a Greyhound bus. People just trying to get through their life, trying to get to where they need to be. It's them. It's me. While the rest (more on that soon) of the riders made their way yesterday to Las Vegas....New Mexico and today to Tucumcari, NM, I fast forwarded with my gear and bike (you'd think my bike took a private limo for what they charge to 'ship' a bike w the luggage) straight to Tucumcari. I added aero bars and more padding to my handle bars and have worked with the staff for the 'best' of tomorrow's overall ride to test my 'new' normal. I feel a new chapter to this trip unfolding and I am excited by its possibilities. Even nowhere becomes somewhere with the right attitude and perspective.
While I was tending to my hands in Albuquerque, the group went through quite a round of drama itself.
To back up a second, we started in Costa Mesa with 16 riders. Day 2 saw a rider need an IV for dehydration. Day 3 saw us lose a rider to a fall that resulted in a broken collarbone and injured shoulder. Day 7, 5 riders finished the Fast South leg only portion and another ride left the tour early for personal reasons. There's me on Day 8, and yesterday 1 rider fell pretty hard and broke his bike. We're waiting on his status but hope he can continue and 3 riders had a pile up resulting in one taking a day off. Phew!!! On a good note we added a rider in Albuquerque who seems like a great addition to the group. We're beat up, but there is so much in our focus of what's ahead, like Texas tomorrow!! We pedal on!



May 1st:
With every day and a new town (and when there's time and the ability to still walk! :))) we try and get out visit, tour, check out whatever points of interest or features of the town we're in. Yesterday, we had strangers at a rest stop ask what we were doing and then wanted to take pictures with us.. :))) After getting into Liberal, a fellow rider, Wes, and I toured 'Dorothy's House' from the Wizard of Oz and historical site building next door. It was a fun change of pace and
 our tour guide, Christina, did a great job keeping a couple cycling nuts entertained. Today we had lunch in Meade, KS in front of the 'Dalton Gang Hideout' which was really cool. We rode from Liberty to Dodge City. Beautiful weather, a nice tail wind, great riding shoulder and a zillion birthday wishes didn't hurt either. Thank you for all of them!!! There are only 8 of us riding now (1 had to end the trip early w/ broken ribs from a fall and another is out for a week and we hope will rejoin us in Springfield) and our 4 wonderful support staff members. We're like a small close knit traveling family.





May 3rd:
I woke up with a 'Barry White' voice today which would have been great to have, without the little cold I've picked up. Thank you to my Ireland family for the great b-day jersey, so I rode representing the Emerald Isle (without the riding on the other side of the street part!) today. Thank you Dee, Michael and Donagh! Today's ride included little Sunday traffic, a bridge that was impassable by bicycle and super humid weather by day's end. Tomorrow the forecast is for thunderstorms. And the adventure continues

May 7th:
Just reached over $3000 in donations for Gender Spectrum! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!! I am so appreciative and grateful of everyone's generosity and support. Thank you again.
All great here in Quincy, IL after a day finishing off a zillion hills through Missouri. Crossed the Mississippi River and got caught in a little rain, but otherwise a successful day! A day off Saturday after we get into Springfield tomorrow, so more updates then. Thank you all for your continued support!!