Of vans, bicycles, roads and bicycles & still running.

OK, so I listed bicycles twice, yes I know it is redundant; That describes the better part of this past week & weekend.

T'was Tuesday evening that this story begins. Ah it was a common evening nothing to suggest an adventure was soon to begin. The weather was moderate, I was relaxing after having had a spaghetti & clam sauce dinner in expectation of a 16 mile jog on Wednesday morning when I recieved a phone call.

Not the ordinary call I would get from one of my brothers. This was a request for assistance. Hey I'm retired I don't need to aid anyone anymore, Right? Wrong! Its my nature to help folks (even if they don't want it)

Arrrgggh Twas but Captain Dean of the good vessel vessel 'She Storm' and the crew of TEAM GUINAN was hard aground and in desperate condition. They were left high and dry without out a Pilot, Navigator and Support Crew. Since I was in need of a small adventure, possibly some excitement and the final fact being I can't say NO to the mission they were in support of the only answer I could provide was Yes, i can and would aid the crew of Team Guinan. The quickness of the yes response and without hesitation so rattled Capt'n Dean he asked a second time and was repeated to the same response.

So what was the mission and purpose of TEAM GUINAN; that was so important it got me to alter, not stop my training for the Marine Corps Marathon? They too were embarked on a similar mission and were upholding the legacy of John Guinan who passed on this past year in raising funds to help stop the disease of HIV-AIDS. John died of an aggressive Brain Cancer and he was a fund raiser and rider for Braking the Cycle in memory of his Brother In Law. John was a person who would help others and never ask for anything in return. So when the request was made, I could not in good conscience refuse. Thus my contribution to TEAM GUINAN's ride from Gettysburg, PA. to Manhattan, NY. was begun. Not with a desperate yell in the storm of the night, but with a simple appeal, which I would not deny.

So Wednesday morning I went for my 16 mile run, starting at 05:00 in the morning and finishing three hours later. The hills are alive with the sound of running Ahem yeah right. Actually cue up the MP3 Player turn on the head lamp and orange light cone and run on. Out along Main St, left on Satterlee, up to Roe Park and along the backside, up to Mearns Ave, left on to Mountain Ave, Straight along 9W, Right onto 218 alongside the Golf Course to just past the State Highway Garage, Reverse Course and out and up Route 293 past the ranges, past Fire Station 3, past Long Pond, starting down hill towards Fire Break 15 & the Snake Pit but reversing course before reaching there and heading back to West Point. In through Washington Gate, down to Central Area; Washington, Cullum, Jefferson, Thayer Road, out Thayer Gate along Main St and back to home. All in 3 hours and 3 minutes of running time.

Thursday Morning as rest day from my previous day but no day of total inactivity. For I meet with Team Guinan and depart from Garrison, NY. for Gettysburg PA. And thus begins the adventures and misadventures.

The drive and ride down to Harrisburg, PA. was for the most part uneventful. Yes Team Guinan was in mixed emotions concerning their upcoming physical challenge. But good spirits pervaded overall. and again the ride was mostly uneventfull till I passed the exit I was looking for. OK Chris stepped up to the plate and started acting as Navigator as we meandered through the Pennsylvanian Country side down to Gettysburg. Actually there were times I was less than cheerful about this portion of the adventure of mis-adventure. Still we had time to relax and arrive in Gettysburg for the inprocessing of riders and claiming of accomodations.

Chris, Dean and I spent the first night in the Colton Motel in Gettysburg, a older facility well past the prime of its youth but mostly clean and with working facilities. Which brings us onto Friday Morning.

Hot water in the shower and clean towels Wooohoooo!. Yet, I'm also training to run in a marathon and since the previous day was spent lounging upon the front left seat of a van resplently decorated with team bicycles I was in need of a good morning run. So out I go off into the Battle Field of Gettyburg in the early morning mist well before dawn. On my return to the Motel, I was able to say Good Morning to the crew setting up the start point for the day's ride in my own unique way. They never saw me coming. Bwahaha, but when I left the road crew knew Team Guinan would ride that day.

Yet for all my ability to follow direction, limited though that may be, I was able to find the first rest point aka Oasis and follow the riders from there. Now this is my first time ever providing support for an operation like this so I'm bound to make mistakes, Picking up riders who's bike were disabled and failing to notify dispatch of the pick up, but at least I deposited the temporay charges safely at the Oasies when that occured.

That night I shared a room with a crew member for another team and sleep was welcomed. The riders rode less mileage overall than I drove.

Saturday morning; Wet, humid, damp, warm, dark and a full half hour run through and around a Golf Course next to the Lancaster House Motel. Followed by breakfast loading the Team's personal effects into the van and begining the day's chase. As you can see from my run description the day was pretty much a raw one. Team Guinan was riding into the wind, mist, rain & wind. Well I did what I could to assist them and the first chance I could I broke course and grabbed some lip balm and skin cream for their faces. The wind burn looked bad on them and they really did need the coverage.

I picked up a couple of sagging riders through the day and delivered them safely to the Oasies. but the day was fairly much uneventful.

The strange thing about Saturday was I saw near our route black arrows on a yellow background very similar to the ones Braking the Cycle was employing for direction. Curiousity being a deathly diversion, me I had to go look and see if it was in fact part of our ride. It wasn't there were only a few clues that it was another course near our own. the shape of the arrows were different and no warning signage as the braking the cycle crew was placing out as well. But still it was a very good thing that I decided to check out what I had initially though was part of our road course as I found a rider from another team who made the same mistake and had followed the course much further along before deciding to ride back

Saturday Night I'm provided accomdations in a seperate Motel from Team Guinan which was a blessing too and true.
As I recieved the quieter of billets. Team Guinan was staying at the Holiday Inn, 1/2 mile away where a wedding reception was in progress along with drunken revelry and wandering drunks in the halls and sobbing drunks in the halls. Me I slept blissfully till my alarm clock sounded at 04:30. Hey I needed to be ready to support my riders.

Sunday, and into deepest darkest New Jersey. Now Jersey isn't the greatest or safest of places to ride or drive. The roads are shoddily marked the drivers uncouth and the right of way laws need updating. But there are nice parts of Jersey too unfortunately they are in New Jersey with idiots, imbeciles and morons who have no clue how to drive safely. I hate the urban areas of Jersey with a passion. And leaving jersey for Manhattan was a pleasure beyond relief.

So Jersey Rt3 to the Lincoln Tunnel then down town to 14th street east to where I can swing around onto 13th street just the otherside of 6th Ave (aka Ave of the Americas) where I find a parking garage. Walk the two blocks over between 7th & 8th Aves where I meet with Mary Jane and Margaret Guinan to await the return of our bicyclists. The LGBT Center on 13th is a older building and a community outreach center. Its not the type of place I would usually go and seek on my own, still the people there were friendly and supportive.

About 3 hours after I arrive in Manhattan, I go and recover the van, park near the LGBT Center I also assist their folks with off and onloading of equipment for cleaning a preparation for the following year's ride.

In all honesty even though there where times I felt aggrivated and stressed; I felt pretty good overall about what I was doing and am very willing to do it all again.

The only inceidents of note on the last day where when the lost rider I found introduced me to his mother; I trheatened to beat Capt'n Dean when I almost missed a turn on the Palisades PKWY; greased a O'possum with the Team Van, sorry about that Christine; and dinner at Chistine's home thanks to Mary Ellen, Tony, Ed.

Those were 4 difficult but not unduly hard days. But hey Monday did come and I went for a training run of 9&1/2 miles over the top of West Point, got my wallet and ID back from christine after leaving it in her van, did some laundry and practiced my bagpiping up around Round Pond.

Tuesday Morning a 3&1/3 mile run, Bagpipe practice with Joe Brady Sr. run over to Middletown NY to get my new running shoes from Frank's Shoe Fitting and a few beers at the South Gate Tavern in Highland Falls, NY.

And hey did I ever say I'm training to run in a marathon as a fund raising event for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society?

Have a good and safe week everyone.
I'm gonna try to publich this blog before I go for another run today.
Q.