Hail to Pitt.

Just a few days left in the trip, so this will probably be one of my last posts. We arrived in Pittsburgh yesterday. Apparently some of "The Dark Knight Rises" was filmed here...and you can definitely tell. The city has a very gothic/Gotham feel to it that has a strange beauty. We went to a vantage point last night and I decided that Pitt has one of the coolest skylines I've seen.

Tomorrow we are back on the road and headed into the Appalacians. Though they will be nothing like the Rockies, we have a couple tough days ahead of us. I'm excited to be finishing up the ride, but this feeling is very mixed. I will definitely miss these guys and it might be a bit difficult to get back into the swing of the real world. Only five days left until the end the trip and our exciting arrival into DC. Wish us luck, hope to see you soon. -J.P.

Windy City and Pure Michigan.

Sorry for not posting in a while, things have been pretty busy. Since the last post, I've been back on the bike for several days. I've ridden through Milwakee, Chicago, South Bend, Kalamazoo, and tomorrow we ride deeper into Michigan. Chicago was pretty great. The city is so alive and exciting. I'll definitely be considering making a move here in the near future. My collarbone has also been holding up quite well. Although things did get pretty hairy today. After being in Michigan for maybe 5 miles, a giant mastiff, that was over 200 lbs, ran me down in the street, hitting my bike and nearly knocking me down. I strained my shoulder a bit in the process, but nothing too serious. I'm starting to get very excited for the DC arrival. Now, with it being less than two weeks away, things are getting close. I can't wait to ride into the capital and head back to the greatest state in USA. But until then, I intend to soak up every minute I can of this trip. So far, it's been the most challenging, and rewarding, experience of my life. -J.P.

Water World.

Thing have been going pretty well the past few days. One of the more eventful days was in Marshalltown, Iowa. After the morning's ride, we went to a small water park with members of the Central Iowa Arc. This water park was more like a public pool with a couple water slides and a lazy river and, to be honest, I haven't been to a public pool in several years. As soon as we arrive, we realize why it's been awhile since we've visited this scene...the average age is 14. There are 7th-8th grade aged kids are literally crawling around the park. No matter how awkward it is to be around these prepubescent Tweens, we all have a great time. This fun continued into the evening events with the same organization. We met the people of the Arc at a local bowling alley for dinner and a few casual rounds. I could play, because of my collarbone, but I still got to watch and spend some time getting to know Merry and Kathy (two of the Arc members). --I would have a picture with them up here but without an actual computer I have no idea how to upload it-- In other exciting news, I should be riding again four days from now. I'm pretty ready to get back on the bike. Although, I have been keeping busy. By the time I'm riding, I will have finished reading five books...which is probably more than I've read in the past year. Hopefully in the coming days I should have more news on biking and how my collarbone is coming along. Good evening- J.P.

Crew Blues.

I have now spent 6 days as a crew member...and it's awful. 6-8 hours out of every day is spent literally just waiting for cyclists to ride by. I would rather have a summer job at Home Depot testing nails with my face than spend an entire summer as a crew member. Lucky for me, my collarbone seems to be healing well. Which means I will hopefully be back on the bike within the next 2 weeks. And those two weeks couldn't come sooner. Every day I spend in the van I am losing strength and endurance. Just when I was actually becoming a decent cyclist, I'll have to start again from scratch. Anyway, I hope all of you had a wonderful 4th of July. I'll be sure to report back if anything of interest happens, but let's be serious...the van is no place for inspiration. Luckily, we should have some great friendship visits soon to come. Until then. -John Welsh II

Snap Decision.

I apologize for not posting in a while, I've been a bit preoccupied. Three days ago, on our ride into Denver, I took a bit of a spill. As I was coming down the last switchback, of the last downhill of Rockies, my speed got a little out of control. In order for me to make the turn, I would have to go over into the other lane...but an SUV was taking the lane as oncoming traffic. I tugged on the brakes to avoided hitting said SUV, and when I did the speed wobbles set in. Followed quickly by me performing a front flip over the handlebars.. Now at 0 mph this may be a cool trick. At 5 mph this is a magic act. But, at 25 mph it's a broken collarbone. Of course, as I was laying on the side of the street, I didn't know this. I remember a couple things from those few minutes waiting on the ambulance. I remember heckling the girl driving that thought she hit me. After several jokes in her direction, and after she had stopped crying, she reminded me that I was the one on the ground and she could easily kick me in the shoulder and send me flying off the cliff in pain. I admired her sass, even of it was a late arrival... I also remember taking this moment to shamelessly rain hate on any cyclists who were annoying me at the time. I can vividly picture myself telling one to shut up with the medical advice until he received a degree (in a slightly aggressive/offensive tone). Finally, after 3 minutes of agony, the ambulance arrive with a solid dose of Phentanol to ease my pain. The rest of the ride to hospital was a blur of questioning by paramedics, followed by sarcastic, unhelpful answers from myself. When we finally made it to the hospital, there was very little of note. Aside from being put on some sweet meds (pretty sure it was OxyContin), the X-ray process was pretty standard. Needless to say, the last few days have not been ideal. Hopefully these next couple of weeks will go well and I'll be back on the bike before Chicago. Either way, I will be finishing this trip on a bike...even if they have to duct tape me to the top of it. Love you guys, don't be too mad if I don't post frequently. I only have one hand...and it's my right one. Everyone have a great America's Birthday, we'll talk to you soon. -John Fratrick