Share The Road - On the road - Day #33

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DAY 33
Hummelstown, PA to Philadelphia, PA

86 miles

We get on the road early. One of Gary’s good friends, Chris, is joining us. Chris is a 37 year-old man who has begun a wellness center with his company in South Carolina that is largely inspired by Gary. He is a very sweet and humble man. The bike he’s riding is not anywhere near what we’re riding -- more of a cross between a mountain bike and a road bike -- this will make his ride terrifically more difficult. That, and the fact that his training seems to have been rather light is going to make for a tough day. Nobody shares why this is so important to Chris, but Gary assures us that this ride means the world to him. Gary commits to staying behind with Chris (as he’s riding slower than the group pace).

The scares start early. We get on HWY 30 and it’s morning traffic in a Philadelphia suburb -- the real stuff. At several points we have to merge across off-ramps where cars are screaming at 70 MPH to get to their stop light (important to get there fast, you know). At one point, Geoff cut me off from behind to the right (we’re always supposed to pass on the left) just as we were merging on to a busy on-ramp. This really riled me -- I’ve got heavy traffic rolling at 70 to my left a bumpy median closing in on the center and I’m trying to read a nearly blind on-ramp to my right and...well, you get the point.

It got worse.

Raul misread a sign. He cut quickly across THREE lanes of traffic including one with a big rig in it. Bernie and I screamed. It just missed him. He made it to the median. Bernie pulled off to the side and put his helmeted-head in his hands. I was really riled -- the thought of losing Raul to an awful accident like this hammered home the fragility of life. It could have been over that fast. Had I seen it happen -- and it was right in front of me -- I might have absolutely lost my mind.

Raul apologized later, saying it was a stupid move. At the same time, he insisted that he had plenty of room. They could both be true.

The ride continued without further incident. Chris made 56 miles on his hybrid which is really quite an accomplishment. There’s something to be said for the awesome machines on which we ride (which doesn’t lessen the accomplishment).

We had a tense moment late in the day as we started to get close to the time we needed to get off the road in order to make a committment that Chris had lined up for us with a mentoring group he has worked with in Malvern. We had crossed into Philly proper, acccomplishing our miles for the day, but Gary really wanted to get downtown and say hello to one of our major sponsors, Cigna Health Insurance. There was pull between two things and eventually Gary relented. I was sorry for him as I knew what a big deal it was. At the same time, I could see why Chris was getting edgy -- these people were counting on him; two things going on and the need to keep the group together (based on difficult logistics in splitting the group).

The meeting with the group (Second Mile) was awesome. I also met one of Gary’s good friends and Gary’s older brother while there. I did an isometric/resistance workout with Chris and the group (because 86 miles wasn’t enough, apparently) and that took the last of all I had. Chris spoke briefly to the group, then Gary told some of our stories from the road. They were both great.

The biggest highlight for me was speaking to the coordinator of Second Mile. His stories about why he runs the center and the results he’s produced are nothing short of amazing. I have a good feeling he won’t end up on the cutting room floor.

We went back to Philly and parked the RV downtown in a garage. Big time security, rock star treatment from the guys -- all good. We meet Ruth Stoolman, our coordinator from Cigna. She’s wonderful. We go to Buca di Beppo and order the menu -- I mean the MENU. We got after it big time: pasta w/ oil and Veggies, Bruschetta, Garlic Bread, Warm spinach salad with tomatoes, pecans and feta cheese, stuffed shells with sausage, eggplant parmagiana, chicken (prepared in a way I can’t remember) and green beans w/ lemon.

Are you kidding me? Are YOU kidding me? We tore it up. Delicious.

The most special part came at the end of the meal when we got back to a tradition we hadn’t done in some time: each of us sharing highs and lows from the day. There were some fun ones in the beginning, but then it began to get deeper and more emotional. There was still great humor in there, but also great tears, too. Much love -- and at the same time desire to reunite with family and our lives outside of this adventure. Sadness and jubilation, day and night, yin and yang.