Just want to see the finish–scroll to the bottom of this post.
Day 51 was the final day of my ride. I was anxious. I woke up at 2:30 a.m. and could not fall back to sleep. After tossing and turning for more than an hour, I just got up and started getting ready. Chris, because of her COVID-19 (still mild symptoms), had her own hotel room. It was already drizzling outside, but the forecast indicated it might let up soon and not rain until around noon. I seemed to be slow getting out of the gate, though. I am not sure if maybe I didn’t really want this journey to end. I didn’t plan on it, but when I saw a McDonald’s right after I left, I stopped and grabbed a Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Biscuit.
This blog post will be shorter than usual. It only covers one day. Between the rain and the nature of the ride, I didn’t meet any interesting people along the way. And I am actually on the road back to Fort Collins.
I finished the ride around 2:00. After a brief ceremony, you have to dip your front wheel in the other ocean and take some pictures, we went to the Yorktown Pub, which Chris had conveniently located near the ride’s terminus. After a big burger, clam chowder, and three beers, we were back on the road. Chris drove, and I woke up two hours into our 26-hour return drive. I thought Chris was driving very fast, too. Chris normally drives much slower than the average highway driver — and she was driving at her usual pace. When “wheeeee” means riding 40 mph down a hill, going 70 feels really fast. I will have to drive today.
If you are interested, I have ideas for at least two more blog posts. I need some time to process the whole ride and reflect on what I learned and what completing this BHAG (big, hairy, audacious goal) means to me. I want to write about that. I am also a data geek and would like to conduct some analysis of the ride, envisioning another post along those lines. So it those thoughts interest you, check back in the next few days.
Riding
Day 51: 94 miles, 1998 elevation (no wheeees today)
That forecast for no rain until noon proved incorrect. I was soon riding in and out of light drizzle/rain. The temperatures were in the low 70s, so it was not that uncomfortable. That said, the weather, and probably my anxiousness to get to the end, made it tough to stop and take pictures. And this was easily the most significant, from a historic standpoint, leg of the whole ride. I rode through the area of the Seven Days Battles of the Civil War. More than 36,000 soldiers died in this week-long series of battles. The TransAmerica Trail ends/begins at Yorktown Victory Monument, which commemorates one of the most significant battles of the American Revolution. Plus, the route took me through historic colonial Williamsburg.
Other than getting confused and lost in Williamsburg, the ride was pretty pleasant. The ride starts by riding through those battlefields. Then, at about mile marker 30, the route goes on the Virginia Capital Trail. This is a great 35-mile stretch. A triathlon was using some of the same trails, and that was a bit inconvenient in spots. After getting confused and lost in Williamsburg, I finally found the scenic Colonial Parkway, which took me from Williamsburg right into Yorktown. After a bit of winding along the coast, I made my way to the monument where Chris helped capture the “Kodak” moment. There is a video of me riding up to
Photos and video from the day…
Here are some pictures I took along my drizzly ride. The rain kept me from taking more.
In battlefield country, I met some of my relatives who survived. This is a Civil War-era Cannon from the Seven Days’ Battle.
The Virginia Capital Trail had lots of this…
…and some of this…
…and this.
No photos from Williamsburg, where it was rainy and I was frustrated and lost. But it was a very cool area that linked me to the very scenic Colonial Parkway. It was hard to stop and take photos on the parkway, but it was tree-lined, and I rode about 15 miles on it. Here it is near the end.
Here is the good stuff, I finished…
Rolling up to the Yorktown Victory Monument… [If video does not show, use this link: https://youtube.com/shorts/77wga8Gpfpo?feature=share ]
Some ceremonial photos. I have mentioned that Yorktown Victory Monument is the official start/finish (depending on direction you go) for the TransAmerica Trail.
And then the ceremonial wheel dip.
That is the story of my final day. Thanks for reading and watching.
Chris and I still have two long days of driving ahead of us. I will make at least a couple of follow-up blog posts. If you are interested, do check back. And let me know what you think by commenting below (if you can figure that out, I know it’s not easy), or send me an email or a text.
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