3,310 miles in 39 days; been there done that!

Frank arriving at our Last roadside picnic lunch.

The bikes are resting at the Wild Dunes Resort!

On the beach with Marcy

Stick, RG, and Sparky

Mark, Archie and Matt

The successful adventurers with our guides,
Stephanie and Dave

Just like in the TdF!

Happy cyclists

Relaxing at Poe's Tavern, 7 more miles to go!

A loaded freighter coming into port

USS Yorktown

Sparky, Stick, and RG on the Ravenel Bridge

Mission Accomplished!

From Pacific to Atlantic, just me, my bike and 8 other intrepid cyclists who have become good friends. We did it! Today, shortly after 4 pm the entire group rode onto the grounds of our destination hotel along with our two guides bypassing the parking lot and heading straight for the concrete pathway to the boardwalk that eventually led to the Atlantic Ocean.

The day started in Orangeburg, SC with temperatures in the mid 40's; an improvement over the past several days, but cold nonetheless. Since we started a little over 200' above sea level, there was not much to do today except pedal. What rollers we had were minimal so our foursome, Matt (aka Sparky), Archie (aka RG), Stephanie (one of the Trek Guides) and myself did the paceline routine all the way to Charleston.

The roads were quiet until we reached US 17 just southeast of Charleston. Once on this road the traffic increased to a level we did not see the entire ride. Most of the commercial traffic were either trucks returning containers to the port of Charleston or log hauling trucks taking logs to a nearby saw mill. Coupled with the cars and pick-ups the intensity of the traffic made pacelining difficult but we managed.

Once we crossed the draw bridge into downtown Charleston, the traffic quieted and the riding became more relaxed even though we still had better than 15 miles before reaching the ocean. We took a short ride down one of the historic streets of Charleston before heading to the Ravenel Bridge. This bridge was built only a few years ago, I think 2005; the brings spans 2.7 miles across the main harbor area. A separate bike path and running/jogging lane built next to the vehicle lanes made the ride easy and the views spectacular.

Once across the bridge we had eleven miles to the Wild Dunes Resort. We stopped at Poe's Tavern, the regrouping point for everyone. The Colorado trio got there first, followed by Ricky-Bobby, and then our foursome. Dave, the other guide joined us there on his bike after parking the van at the hotel. Now, we just needed Frank (Bones) to arrive.

Frank was incredible this trip. He was undoubtedly the weakest ride in terms of cycling ability and strength. He started every day at least 30 minutes if not more before the rest of us and he finished last nearly every day. Despite those limitations, he rode EVERY mile, one of only four riders to do so out of nine. And he is a flat lander from Florida; made me proud that one of us from Florida matched Ricky Bobby and two of the Colorado trio.

Once Frank got to the turn before the Tavern, we were waiting for him to get started on the final seven miles. When we reached the gate of the resort we regrouped once again for the final 0.1 miles to the beach. The ride along the sidewalk was probably one of the sternest bike handling tests I ever faced. At one point my front wheel left the concrete for the sand just before the final turn towards the boardwalk. Fortunately, I kept my balance, righted my wheel and made two hairpin turns.

Six spouses made the trip east to greet us at the boardwalk. Most of us rode all of the way to the ocean, stopping just short of the water to take off our cycling shoes. Once there the hugs and kisses started. Cameras were quite busy recording all sorts of celebratory nonsense. The smiles, cheers, and slaps on the back seemed endless. We were in the Atlantic. 39 days ago, we stood in the Pacific.

One excellent adventure!