Fundraiser Link: https://www.gofundme.com/f/ride-for-respite

The Backstory: After returning home from the Arizona Trail Race back in May of 2018, I was pretty beat down and bummed about a lot of things. While the experience I had on that trip was incredible, I was still left unfulfilled due to getting hurt and not finishing the trip. I immediately got to work drawing up another big bikepacking trip closer to home for easy access that I could tackle once I healed up. On July 12th of 2018, I had the route created that would take me from East to West across the whole width of Pennsylvania via Route 6. I grew up (and still frequently visit) driving all over portions of Route 6 with my Grandfather when he would take my cousin and I up to his sportsman’s camp to fish and hunt. Some of the road was familiar to me and in more recent years every time I’ve been on it I would dream of what it would be like to travel it strictly by bike. I also had the idea of tying a charity fundraiser into the ride somehow. I’ve been going on theses grand trips and vacations, which is amazing and very fulfilling, but I wanted to be able to share this experience with others as well as use it as an opportunity to raise awareness for something greater than myself. I did some research into Pennsylvania based charities centered around cancer specifically (my grandfather ultimately lost his life in a courageous battle with lung cancer) and landed on an interesting charity called For Pete’s Sake. Their goal is to raise funds so they can send families battling cancer on a respite trip to take a break from all of the craziness and misery. I filed all of this information away into a folder on my computer and unfortunately pushed it to the side for a handful of years. To be honest, I was scared to attempt it. I lost a lot of confidence in myself after the AZT due to poor physical preparation, performance, and a negative mindset. It would be one thing to go out and give this ride a shot, but adding the fundraiser for charity onto it raised the stakes and I would be crushed if I couldn’t complete the route and let a lot of people down that would be monitoring my attempt closely. Coming into early 2021, I finally got the courage to nail down the dates on the calendar for a September ride. I had lofty goals for 2021 in general as far as cycling and running went, so I was training, eating, and recovering the best that I ever had for the first half of the year. About a month before my half Ironman, I got bit by a tick and ended up in the hospital with a pretty serious blood infection (anaplasmosis). That put me out of commission for nearly a month, sucked a ton of fitness from me, and doubt started creeping back into my mind about this ride across Route 6. I decided that I was still going to give it a shot and shoved as much training as I could into a 3 week period, which admittedly was laughable given the amount of miles and elevation gain that I would be doing a few weeks later. Whatever! I linked up with Alisa at For Pete’s Sake and solidified that partnership for the fundraiser. Everything was in place.

Prologue: On August 31st, I made my first post about this ride on my Instagram page. It was now out in the open and there was no turning back! I got an incredibly supportive response from everyone and a large amount of donations rolled in days before my ride was scheduled to begin! My mom helped me out big time by volunteering her time and drive me across state to the start. On Wednesday, September 1st, we loaded up her car with my bike and all of the gear and got on the road for Port Jervis, NY. For the first couple of hours of the drive, I was so incredibly nervous and could have honestly thrown up at any second. There was a lot riding on this and I was starting to feel the pressure. Then the remnants of Hurricane Ida hit Pennsylvania and we drove through a torrential downpour the final two hours. We got to the hotel on the PA/NY border and it didn’t have any power. I needed some place with power so I could top off the charge on all of my gadgets. We ended up finding another hotel a few minutes down the road that somehow was the only building in the area with power. I got everything situated in the room and finally fell asleep around 1am. I woke up a little bit later than I wanted to and tried to force breakfast down, but I was super nervous and it just wasn’t going to happen. I stretched, got suited up, and we rolled out. The starting point for my ride was at the end of a very old and historic cemetery on the Pennsylvania / New York / New Jersey border. There’s a tri-state monument right next to the Delaware river where everything splits. My mom and I lingered around there for a little bit, took some pictures, then I dipped my rear wheel in the river and was on my way…..

Day 1: Port Jervis to Tunkhannock

Distance: 90.8 miles / 7,192ft vert

Money Raised: $1,530

Passed Through: Milford, Hawley, East Honesdale, Waymart, Carbondale, Factoryville

My mom followed me in her car as I rode out of the cemetery and into the town of Port Jervis before splitting off and heading back towards home. After a few minutes, I turned onto Route 6, pedaled over the river and was officially back in PA and the journey began! I was filled with nervous excitement which was propelling me to a 20mph average speed for the first 15 minutes. I finally realized I was going way too fast for a bike tour pace, especially with the amount of climbing I had to do today, so I settled down a bit and fell into a better pace. After breezing through Milford, I hit the first hill and it was game on. The next 22ish miles were filled with a few large climbs and rolling hills through the woods. I popped out at Lake Wallenpaupack (The Office classic Booze Cruise lake) and took a short break there. The next 15 miles were pretty mellow with a steady but not steep incline and included a cool little German alpine store in Honesdale where I took a fun break. Then it was up the second largest climb of the day through Waymart. I took another short break at Keen Lake Resort to lay in the grass and eat nearly everything I had on me. The manager at the lodge was kind enough to let me refill all of my bottles and I was on my way.

After finishing up the climb, I had an incredible four mile descent into Carbondale which was a much needed break for my legs. Just outside of Carbondale is the only major detour on the trip. Route 6 heads south from here for a bit and turns into a major limited access highway that bikes are not recommended to travel on. Instead, you head straight West through the countryside and link back up with Route 6 in Factoryville, about 18 miles away. This detour is heinous. I really shouldn’t complain, the whole 18 miles aren’t bad, but there is a major 2 mile climb coming out of Carbondale that really sucked the life out of me. I think I was able to ride up the first quarter mile of it and then the legs gave out on the 17% grade. A fully loaded 40 pound bike paired with my half assed training didn’t bode well for getting up this hill without walking. I ran out of water at one point and filtered from a creek which I later found out was named Lee’s Creek. I was out of food at this point too but came across Lakeland Orchard in the middle of nowhere. The orchard was my saving grace and I housed six lemon donuts and some candy while facetiming my wife and cousin. That was the boost I needed to finish off the final 25 miles!

The rest of the route to Tunkhannock was mostly flat or some mellow rollers and I felt pretty good after all of that climbing. It was the most elevation I’ve done on the bike in a single ride ever so I was feeling confident and proud. I got into Tunkhannock, restocked all supplies at one of the gas stations, and then decided to get a hotel for the night. I found a $36 trucker motel just outside of town that I can’t say I recommend, but that was totally fine for my purposes. The funniest part was the motel is at the top of a hill called “Mile Hill” which was a literal 1 mile long climb. I grinded that out to end the day, ordered a pizza for delivery to my room, and relaxed for the rest of the night.

Day 2: Tunkhannock to Wellsboro

Distance: 87.3 miles / 6,302ft vert

Money Raised: $2,141

Passed Through: Wyalusing, Burlington, Towanda, Troy, Mansfield

The freshness that I was feeling the night before wore off in my sleep. My heart rate was still elevated all through the night as my body tried to figure out what was going on after the first day. I slept pretty bad, but what’re you going to do? I hopped back onto the bike and said goodbye to the crusty motel. The first twenty miles or so had some decent climbs scattered in and by the time I made it to the Sunoco in Wyalusing I was feeling pretty zapped. I choked down a breakfast sandwich and then a bag of Doritos, peanuts, and a Gatorade and got a little pep back in my step. That came at the right time because I had a 700 foot climb in front of me. It turned out to not be so bad other than I got peppered with some cold rain for about 15 minutes near the top, but I was rewarded with two scenic overlooks of the North Branch Susquehanna River.

The next 30 miles were pretty uneventful with just one big climb but I was starting to feel low again. I also noticed some pain coming from my achilles and right knee, which continued to nag me a little while longer until I made it to Troy. I stopped at the McDonalds in town and ordered what would become my staple: 20 piece chicken nugget with sweet and sour sauce, medium fry, and large Sprite. I popped some Ibuprofen and inhaled my meal while taking a longer than normal break there. Around 3pm I finally got back on the road and went up the long uphill slog to Mansfield. Took another break outside of a Subway / gas station combination store and went over the rest of the plan for the day. I was trying to make it to Gaines, PA where I had a camp spot reserved. That was another 33 miles away and my energy just wasn’t there. Pairing that with a swiftly setting sun and not really wanting to ride at night, the decision to call it quits for the day in Wellsboro was an easy one. I grinded up the final handful of climbs and enjoyed a nice descent into Wellsboro, a great little town and the gateway to the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon. I checked into the Penn Wells Lodge, showered, got some supplies for the next day at CVS, then demolished another pizza before bed. Kevin and Seth facetimed me and I had a great conversation with them and they were very encouraging, which kept me hopeful and in the right mindset for the next day.

Day 3: Wellsboro to Lantz Corners

Distance: 90.9 miles / 3,944ft vert

Money Raised: $2,471

Passed Through: Galeton, Sweden Valley, Coudersport, Port Allegheny, Mount Jewett

Another rough night of sleep down. I woke up this morning with screaming Achilles pain and an overall fatigue hangover. Packing up and breakfast took me longer than I anticipated and I checked out of the hotel about 1.5 hours later than I had planned and I was feeling a bit frustrated. When I was checking out, I had a brief interaction with Serinda at the front desk. We were chatting about my ride and fundraising efforts and she told me about her personal struggles and victory over cancer as well as the impact cancer had on her family. She reached into her purse and gave me what she had to donate. I walked out of the Penn Wells quietly crying behind my sunglasses. It was interactions like this throughout the trip that made it worth it and really re-centered me, reminding me to stay positive and complete the mission.

The sun was burning off the morning fog and it was a beautiful day, so I remained motivated and hammered the pedals out of town. I elected to take a slight detour off of Route 6 and jumped on the Pine Creek Rail Trail for about 8 miles. Once arriving in Ansonia, I said goodbye to the Pine Creek Gorge and got back onto Route 6. The next 25 miles were a steady 1-3% grade going up towards Denton Hill, the highest elevation point on the entire trip. I came across the Black Forest Trading Post & Deer Park and stopped for some snacks and supplies. The employees there were so friendly and I had good conversations with the owners for a bit, then got back on the bike and continued up the big climb to the top of Denton. On the other side of Denton I had about 10 miles of slight downhill into Coudersport, which was a big milestone for me. I’m very familiar with the route between Coudersport and Warren, so that made me feel at home knowing landmarks around me. Right when I got to the Sheetz in Coudersport, my sunglasses snapped and I had to settle for some $14 gas station sunglasses for the rest of the ride. I made my lunch stop at McDonalds and got the usual order, which gave me the juice I needed to continue on again. The next few hours consisted of slight uphill and downhills with a section of steep climbs sandwiched in between. I got to Marvindale and realized my late start kind of screwed me up again. I didn’t want to do much night riding on this trip and only had about an hour until sunset. I was going to come up short of my daily goal (Kane, PA) so I made a plan to get to the Sheetz at Lantz Corners, eat a big dinner, then find some place to camp in the Allegheny National Forest which started a few minutes down the road from there. The only thing that stood in my way about 3 miles of uphill to Mt. Jewett, which I slowly made my way up.

I finally arrived at Sheetz in Lantz Corners and got a giant meal. While sitting in the eatery there, one of the employees struck up a conversation with me about my ride and where I was staying that night. She told me (or so I understood it) that her sister owned an RV Campground a few minutes down the road and to ask for Peggy and Steve when I got there and I could put my hammock up someone on site. I thanked her and got onto my bike and rode off into the dark. High Pines RV Park was just a minute down the road and I pulled in right at 9pm. The office lights were out so I rung the Ring Doorbell and a lady came up to let me in a few minutes later. I told her my story about the lady at Sheetz but she didn’t know a Peggy or Steve and was kind of confused. I explained my situation and she was happy to help. Ellen hooked me up with their last cabin! I was so very thankful for a nice roof over my head for another night. We chatted about cycling for a bit and then I headed down to the cabin for the night. I am still blown away at the number of amazing people I met along the way.

Day 4: Lantz Corners to Union City

Distance: 80 miles / 1,598ft vert

Money Raised: $2,686

Passed Through: Kane, Sheffield, Warren, Youngsville, Pittsfield, Corry

The goal for this day was to get up super early and hit the road and knock as many miles as I could off before it got dark. I wanted to be as close as I could get to the finish for the last day. As it usually goes for me, things don’t always work out as planned. I awoke around 5am and it was pouring down rain. I didn’t feel like starting my day off soaking wet and the forecast said the rain was supposed to die off around 8:30am, so I went back to sleep for a bit to wait it out. It did end up clearing out and I got on the road in a light mist for the first 8 miles to Kane. This is the town where I grew up coming to fish with my grandfather and it felt amazing to be there. I snapped some pics and video through town and then continued on Route 6 until I got to Wetmore. Here I took the most memorable detour of my life. Two lefts off of 6 got me onto Niver Road where my grandfather’s old camp was at. Just as I rolled up, the sun poked through the clouds and I had to snap a picture of my bike with the camp. I totally lost it at this point, all of the emotions I’ve had over the past 3+ days were bubbling inside of me and I let it all out. I called my mom and Megan and talked for a bit and got some words of encouragement before heading back out. I know my pap is smiling down on me and the sun coming out was my sign from Heaven that he’s still with me.

A short ways down the road, I finally hit the 100 mile marker. Those mile markers were haunting me this whole trip, reminding me of just how far away I was from the finish. Now, I was about to hit single digits. Just outside of Warren, the sky opened up and let out a nasty downpour on me. I rode through town getting completely soaked, but that’s ok because the Golden Arches of McDonalds were in sight. Their dining room was closed, so I used the app to order curbside and they brought me my usual meal underneath the overhang on the side of the building. I refueled and then the sun came out! It was beautiful out and things were looking up! The next 40 miles were pretty uneventful but the road was great. Mostly flat through some pretty farmland. However, it did start to get super windy out and I rode into a steady headwind for almost two hours. One final climb up to the town of Corry and then another great descent into Union City. My late start today once again cursed me and I had to call it quits for the day here. I asked around about hotels or places to stay and the closest options were 12 miles backwards the way I just came in Corry. I definitely didn’t want to ride an hour backtracking up that hill, so I popped into the Moose Club to see if anyone knew of some place I could shack up. When I walked into the bar, you could hear a pin drop! Here I was in my lycra skin tight cycling gear with about 350 miles of wear and tear on my face asking if anyone at the bar had it in their heart to let me pitch my camping gear in their yard or porch. It was pretty comical. One gentleman said he owned a repair garage across the street and had some property behind it where I could camp down near the creek. Sold! I thanked him, got dinner at Pizza Hut, then went to my camp spot.

The spot was behind his garage next to a cafe and ice cream place, with the Country Fair gas station catty-corner. I originally strung my hammock up but then I got the idea to throw my tarp cover over top of a picnic table and then sleep underneath that. It was a much quicker setup and the seats of the picnic table served as shelves for all of my belongings under the tarp. It’s a legit setup and I recommend it to anyone with picnic table access in a pinch when out camping! After it got dark I checked in with family, sat on top of my table for a bit taking in my surroundings, then went to sleep. Around midnight I was awaken by a shadowy figure stumbling right through my campsite, but he realized I was there and left me alone. I didn’t sleep too well after that but somehow managed about 4 hours of shut eye.

Day 5: Union City to Pymatuning (finish!)

Distance: 54.2 miles / 2,231ft vert

Money Raised: $3,296

Passed Through: Cambridge Springs, Saegertown, Meadville, Conneaut Lake

This was it, the final day! It was raining again when I woke up, so I wasn’t in much of a rush to get packed up. Once the rain subsided, I got my gear together and the sun poked out, burning off the morning fog. I sat at the picnic table for a short while, thinking about my experience up to this point and had another good cry. Once I composed myself, I hopped across the street to McDonalds and inhaled three egg and cheese mcmuffins to start the ride off right. The first 15 miles were rolling fields through mostly farmland. I wouldn’t have minded the hills normally but at this point it felt like my achilles were hanging on by a thread and the arthritis under my right kneecap was pushing back harder than the past couple of days. I made it through Cambridge Springs and got a nice break with a long flat section through Saegerstown. Not much to report on here other than some hillbillies harassing me with their big trucks. I finally got into Meadville and sat at Sheetz for a little bit to eat and hydrate. Only about 20 miles left from here! After the refuel, I hit a short detour off of Route 6 around a big interchange and ended up in a random neighborhood that dead-ended in the woods on accident. Doh! I got back on track and hooked up with Route 6 again.

From that point, it was a straight shot to the finish. As I descended down into Conneaut Lake, I felt the wind picking up and then the gradual headwind turned into strong and violent gusts. I was peddling pretty hard for the last hour of the ride and not going very fast, which was a demoralizing way to approach the finish. I hit one final climb and then entered the Pymatuning State Game Lands. Four miles later and I stopped at the beginning of the long causeway that goes through the middle of the lake. This was it! I called Megan and let her know I would be at the beach on the Ohio side in about 5 minutes. I was an emotional wreck at this point, everything from the past 5 days was hitting me all at once as I pushed into the wind across the causeway. Then, it was over.

I rolled into the parking lot for the beach area to cheers from Megan and my in laws while I looked for a soft place to land in a grassy area by the water. I got off my bike and collapsed into tears. This ride was awesome and everything I dreamed it to be. I met so many amazing people along the way. The donations from everyone were beyond generous and we nearly doubled my goal. All of the messages on instagram and facebook from friends and family cheering me on and giving me support. My thrashed ankles and knee. All of the giant hills I grinded up with a grimace on my face and the giant hills I bombed down with a huge smile from ear to ear. Laying on the side of the road taking breaks from time to time. Seeing the sun come out over my grandfather’s camp at the exact second I arrived. Spending countless hours talking to myself on this ride in my head, analyzing everything I’ve done wrong my entire life and putting aside those mistakes and looking at what got me to where I am now in life, super happy and content and completely blessed. Quiet time to talk with God along the way. FINALLY having success on one of these massive undertakings! It all flowed out of me for a few minutes and then it was time to dip the wheels in the water and pop the champagne. The ride was over, we were incredibly successful, and I’ll never forget a second of the whole experience.