Farewell from Ray

I recieved a post from Ray Gilio today via e-mail:

This is Ray Giglio. Monday, Sept. 27th was my last day cycling with the ECG tour. We stopped for lunch where my Dad lives at an assisted care facility, after cycling 45 miles from east of Hartford, via a circuitous route that captured the Farmington Canal Trail in Simsbury, Avon, and Farmington. I grew-up in this area, and it was where I had always intended to stop cycling. My odometer said 800.0 miles since Calais, ME. We were greeted by a large group of elderly people at The Gables. It was fun for all of us, and many of the residents were quite inspired by the cyclists. We all had a nice lunch and then everyone, except me, got back on the road, eventually riding another 43 miles, for a total of 88. Wow, what a day!
I was glad to see my Dad and my wife, Jane, but it was sad to leave the tour. (It’s mere coincidence that I missed the rain the following two days! I never used the rain gear I brought with me nor had the benefit of the fenders on my bike.) The riders have become good friends, and I will miss them. However, I will be seeing them again, from Charleston to Key West, when I will be one of the drivers of the support vehicle. This is something I decided to do after just a few days into the tour, once I became bonded to the other riders and once I saw that the job of driving the sag wagon is really a two person job, considering all the other things that job entails (e.g. press coordination). So I will be combining my efforts with my good friend Maggie Warren to drive the truck/trailer, thus being part of this worthwhile project as it finishes the last 15 days.

Ray was also kind enough to send us more photos:

The Big Apple

I am sitting in the law office of my nephew, Robert Pollack, in Manhatten. He took me to Katz's deli for lunch. I had a massive pastrami sandwich and it was fantastic. Robert finished his sandwich before I had eaten even half of mine, because I was telling him about the bike ride so much that I didn't have time to eat.



Mac, Tony and I are guests in the penthouse apartment of Hilge Hurford on East 62nd Street in NYC. It stands much taller than any of the previous accomodations that we have shared on this tour. Dave and Jack are staying on the other side of Central Park in the apartment of another friend of the Greenway.



We were met yesterday at the Northern border of NYC by Dave Lutz. He has been involved in the East Coast Greenway since inception and was an invaluable asset in leading us into Manhattan. We could not have found our way without a guide. I tried to post an audio by Dave, where he told the story of the inception, but due to technical difficulties beyond my ability to control, the report was lost. My apoligies.



Each rider is spending his rest day on his own, but we will all unite tomorrow AM for a ferry ride to New Jersey, where we will meet the Krumers for a ride through NJ to spend tommorrow night in their home in Edison NJ, and then on to points south. We are now a little more skilled in the nuance of riding in the Big Apple, and hope to successfully complete our safe journey through this urban area. It is not like cycling in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, or Connecicutt (or Atlanta). We have made a few modifications to our normal safety procedures and biking courtesy in order to "cycle like the New Yorkers". The ride through Central Park was interesting, and a little less frantic than being on the streets of Manhattan.

Times-Square

New York City, NY

Kearns' Deli

Laurie in Stanford, CT

Finally, a Rainy Day

On Tuesday, we rode in the rain most of the day from New Haven, CT to Stamford, CT. The riders got separated at points along the route, but all arrived at our hosts home within minutes of each other.

New Photos

We were able to get a smattering of digital pictures back from the riders. I've put some of them in their place with the older posts, and added a few others here. Enjoy.


Arriving in Massachusetts

A Flower at the O'Neill's in Conn.

Another stop for a "Commitee Meeting" at a turn in the route!


This was one of the bikes waiting for us when we arrived in Portsmouth, NH

Savannah & Cheyanne

“We will never forget this!”

Mr. & Mrs. Cole

Hartford, CT

Bill O'Neill - ECG Connecticut Trustee

Frog Bridge

Jack Kurrle on Covered Bridges

Putnam, CT

Only A Game

The riders were featured in today's NPR broadcast of "Only A Game" for WBUR Boston. I just finished listening to the piece and it was really great. You can listen to the Real Audio stream on their website or click here to listen to just the East Coast Greenway part, which is near the end of the show at about 41 minutes and 25 seconds. Dad has several quotes and is as enthusiastic as always about the Greenway.

Blog of Note

We would like to thank Blogger for naming our site a Blog of Note on their main page. Welcome Blogger fans!

Kitty Carter

Karen Votava @ E.C.G. HQ

Karen Votava is a founder of the East Coast Greenway Alliance and former Chair of the Board of Trustees.

Prior to that, she spent sixteen years as Director of Open Space Planning for the New York City Department of City Planning, where one of her accomplishments was authoring "A Greenway Plan for New York City," a blueprint for 350 miles of greenway trails within NYC.

Providence, RI

Off Course

Boston, MA

Pedal Pushers

Looks like they made the paper (again).

Oops - Technical Difficulties

Gus Harrington

Ray Giglio - last day in Maine

This is Ray Giglio. Today is our 8th day of biking and we leave the state today. I've lived in Maine for 33 years, and on this bicycle trip I've seen parts of the state I've never seen. You always see more from a bicycle or on foot - it seems to be the speed that our brains work at. We have another nice day, although the temperature is starting out at 43F. Moving south will get warmer, because we're biking faster than the seasons move (or so we're told!).

Biking in Boston tomorrow will bring back memories of biking in Boston and Cambridge during my college days. We'll see what the traffic feels like, now that I'm older and "know better." Most of the Greenway is on roads still, so encounters with traffic are common.

Bye for now.

Wells, Maine

The riders spent the evening at Lafayettes Ocean Front Resort in Wells, Maine. Most had direct Ocean Front views from thier rooms. Good sleeping. It is about 42 degrees out this early AM. We are getting ready for a quick breakfast, and then we will finally ride out of Maine. We will be guests in New Hampshire this evening.

While we were on our own last night for dinner, all but one rider ended up at Billy's Chowder House for dinner. We all trickled in over about a 20 minute period, totally frustrating the hostess and waitress. So I guess our tastes in dinner places has merged.

sunday news

The riders made the paper again, this time it was the Portland Press Herald. Some of the comments attributed to the riders are in dispute; Myron did not declare that he would be first to Key West, but he did say that it was not a race, but that someone would probably get there first.

lobster!

We passed a sign for a "Lobster Shoot" a few days ago. There was discussion among the group concerning the fact that most had not heard of shooting lobsters before cooking. So we had a lobster "steaming" and the group asked Myron to pose for the the killing of these critters. We were treated to a great dinner prepared by Rosemary Sexton (in background), with help of Mac, her husband. It was prepared in the home of Steve Bushey and Angela Faeth on Peaks Island in Portland, Maine. Thanks to all for making it a fun event and a great meal.

Rest Day in Portland

Today we are resting in style in Portland, Maine. We are staying at three homes on Peaks Island. Each rider has a private room.

It is raining here, and we don't need to ride in it. The forecast is for clearing weather this afternoon, in time for our lobster boil. Then, for tommorow and the next five days, it looks to be sunny and about 70 degrees. So, I continue to be a long distance cyclist without much experience in the rain. I have crossed the country for seven weeks without any rain, and now the Maine Coast without rain. So we are all hoping for more of the same.

It has been a great experience so far on this tour; great personalities, great biking, and a great cause. All of the "Mainers" that we have come in contact with are very dedicated to getting the East Coast Greenway properly routed, and constructed. I was yelled at in traffic coming into Freeport yesterday; a guy leaned out of his car window as he turned in front of me, and yelled "Cool Bike". So I have no negative incidents to report.

The group did recieve a package of bread and cookies from Ray and Erica Boland at Great Harvest Bread Company in Alpharetta, GA. We have enjoyed some this AM and will take the rest with us for as long as it lasts. We all appreciate these treats, and I have especially been craving that Dakota Bread; there is no substitute for it that I have found. Thanks again, Ray & Erica, and we are hoping to hear from you again.

Hope to post again soon.

Tony Barrett

Bill Logan

Ray Giglio

Portland, ME

media coverage

As you have heard, the riders have been getting quite a bit of local media coverage. Here is a smattering of stories I've found on the web:

• Morning Sentinel
• Portsmouth Herald
• Bangor Daily News

pretty ride

Lisbon, ME

Greenway Week in Maine

Augusta, ME

the Pine Tree State

Bangor, ME

Holden, ME

Acadia, ME

tiny pictures

   

Still working out the kinks, but dad sent these small images from day 1 via his cell phone.

Calais, ME

Start Map

Hallowell, ME

Map

In the beginning…

Welcome to the beginning of a great two month long adventure, bicycling the East Coast Greenway with a group of "Pioneers", the first group to ever bike the Greenway from end to end. We are looking forward to pedalling out of Calais, Maine on the Canadian Border on Sunday, September 12th.

I am leaving my comfortable home and lovely wife, Cathy, in Atlanta for the great unknown (Maine) on Thursday morning. I know from previous experience that it will be an emotional goodbye, as one can never know what dangers one will encounter, and, while the length of the trip is one of the attractions, two months is a long time to be away from home and loved ones. But through the modern miracles of the internet and cell phones, at least some communication will be possible. How did real explorers feel when they left home in the past?

But I expect this trip to be fantastic.