Post ride, a few thoughts

Sally drove us home from Maine to Providence, then Dee drove me to the Amtrak station that night for two trains home to North Carolina. She watched as this fellow loaded my bike, Rover, onto the baggage car. Good thing he was wearing white gloves, as Dee noted.

A bit surreal. That's how everything is feeling post-bike ride. If I were to tell someone now that I just rode my bike from Key West to Canada, I'd feel like I was making it up. I did that?

It kind of felt that way on the bike ride, too, actually. We'd tell people what we were doing but it was hard to grasp, for them and for me. We're not riding to Canada, we're just riding to Wilmington today. Philly tomorrow. That was all I could comprehend. 

One of the greatest gifts of this two-month trip — may it last! — was great practice in living in the moment. Every day was so full of new sights, people, challenges and delights. Things never slowed down enough to spend much time pondering the past days or anticipating the days to come, we just lived them. That's new for me, and I like it.

Kind readers have been asking for a report on how things feel, post ride, so I've attempted to write about that on my other blog, Minding the Miles. It's not terribly coherent, but neither are my thoughts these days. 

I'm back in the office this week and it's good, especially my commute on the Greenway to get there. My East Coast Greenway colleague Niles told me yesterday that he thinks Dee and I set a record for riding the route. That's a funny thought, given that we rode at such a comfortable pace and enjoyed so many days off -- eight? nine? -- with friends and family. Maybe riding shorter days, taking more time to get there would make the trip feel less like a blur? 

I shouldn't speak for Dee -- but did I, for two months??  I can report that she misses her bike, terribly. Biking feels kinder to her body than running, she says. And people asking her about the bike trip reminds her of being asked about each of her three Semester at Sea trips. How do you sum up sailing around the world for four months? How do you sum up biking the East Coast for two months? Read the blog....

Thanks again to all of you kind readers, by the way. Your comments, questions, likes and love fueled us as much as all our cups of coffee and Clif bars. We are humbled.