New Friends [news]

01/05/2010 | Comments: 0 | Categories:

It remained cool all day, and that evening, feeling chilled, I crawled into my sleeping bag while Clint cooked the evening meal.  He brought me a hot bowl of Ramen noodles with an extra splash of Blaines hot sauce for good measure.   Soon I was warm as toast and I slept well all night.  Thanks Clint.

Another cold morning with temperatures well below freezing.  We cooked our usual hot cereal and enjoyed a pot of tea. Then with cold hands we broke camp and got back on the road.

While passing a small country church we noticed cars in the parking lot and realized it was Sunday once again.  We put on our cleanest dirty shirts and attended services at the Salem Baptist Church.  Pastor Gardner delivered a nice sermon and the members of the church gave us a very warm welcome.  One of the congregants stood up and made a plea to the other members on our behalf and a collection was taken as people departed.  Well over $250 was donated for our cause from the wonderful people of this little country church and then as we were about to leave a woman asked if we wanted to come to her house for lunch.   It was an easy choice for Clint and I and soon we found ourselves in the home of Fletcher and Daphne, enjoying a beautiful lunch of BBQ pork, rice and black eyed peas.  An invitation for us to stay the night was given numerous times and, with the forecast of another freezing night, we accepted.  After a good nights sleep, and a pancake breakfast the next morning, we thanked our new friends for their hospitality and headed on down the road.

New Years Revolutions [news]

01/04/2010 | Comments: 0 | Categories:

Well rested and well fed from our stay with the Wengers, Clint and I put our bikes in order and on a cool but sunny morning we made our goodbyes and continued our westward journey.  Only a few more million peddles strokes to go!

While in Chapin we were interviewed by the local television station,channel 10 and that evening Clint and I made the evening news.  We talked about our cause and our goal and also asked folks that saw us on the road to honk and say hello.  Chapin is a small town and it was quiet when we passed through, but still we were surprised by the number of people that beeped and waved.    At one intersection a woman called out my name and I assumed she had seen the broadcast the evening before our earlier that morning but it turns out she had sailed on the Schooner Nathaniel Bowditch with me a few years before and what a coincidence that we should meet up so far from Maine.  Once again Clint and I are reminded of what a small world it is.

A headwind, plus the fact that we had been off the bikes for nearly a week, was slowing us a little and just as we were getting back into the rhythm of things Clint received a gash in his rear tire from what looked like an old lawn mower blade that was buried in a pile of leaves and debris along the shoulder.  A local Rite Aid was across the street and we headed there to make repairs. 

Clint examined the damage and decided that the hole was much larger than his patch kit would repair so using a spare that I was carrying we switched tires.  During this time a number of people stopped by and mentioned they had seen us on the news.  A man gave us some money for food and said he would go online to our website and make a donation there also.  How fortunate for us to have that flat tire.

Westward Ho! [news]

12/29/2009 | Comments: 0 | Categories:

After two months of working our way south, down the eastern seaboard, Team Bowditch has made the turn west and has crossed the fault line.   The kindness and generosity of so many people have made the beginning of this trip a great experience and we both look forward to the adventures of the road and chance meetings as we make our push west.  
 
We could not possibly thank all the people that have helped us so far but here is a start.  First on the list would have to be Clint's father, who has done a wonderful job of building and maintaining our website.  Neither Clint nor I could do this trip, as a fund raiser, without his many hours of work.  A simple thank you does not seem enough.  
   
A very big thanks to the many people that have allowed us to spend time with them.  Some for a night and others for days.  This is above and beyond and we are forever grateful. The Dorrs, Naglers, Brewsters, Coppolas, Martins, Valentines, Laquerres. Boulwares, Donsons, Skerrets, and the Brockways. Thank you Larry, who let us camp in his yard and brought us coffee in the morning. To the campsite owners who waved their fees and gave us a place to set up camp for the night.  The Wenger family who took us in for the holidays and shared a great christmas feast with us.

The folks at the Congregational Church in Mansfield, MA, the Church of God in Swansboro, NC, and the Harris Creek Baptist Church near Jacksonville, NC who welcomed us in, listened to our story, and opened both their hearts and their wallets.  We can not thank them enough.
  
Then comes the many people that we have met just ever so briefly.  The USN Master Cheif who gave us a weeks supply of nutrition bars and the Folks at DeLorme Maps for allowing us to set up camp on their lawn. Appreciation to the motorists and truck drivers that have gone out of thier way to give us room om the roads shoulder. and the people who have stopped us on the road to ask about our mission and contribute to the cause.

Team Bowditch's Origins [news]

12/01/2009 | Comments: 0 | Categories:

We are often asked during our travels why we decided to do a bicycle trip in the winter and what is the origin of our name, Team Bowditch.
 
One evening during spring outfitting, I was at the computer, reading some comments and questions on a facebook group devoted to bike touring. One of the questions from a young man from Mansfield, MA was about picking and choosing routes and overall costs of a cross country trip.   
 
Having done a number of trips in the past I gave some of my thoughts on the matter and wished him well on his future adventures. The next day the young man, Clint, thanked me for my response to his query and wanted to know if I was retired our what I did for work that would allow me months of free time for travel.  I explained about my brother, Owen, and the Schooner Nathaniel Bowditch, a Maine windjammer that he and his wife Cathie own and operate out of Rockland, ME.  I told him I was the ships cook and that at the end of the season I enjoyed traveling, and for the past four years have spent a portion of my winters exploring the U.S. from a touring bike.
  
Clint next wanted to know how he could get a job on a Schooner and I explained about our apprentice position, and that if he was interested he should contact Cathie and let her know of his interest.  The apprentice position is non paying and is only for two weeks.  Owen and Cathie both feel that a two week commitment for a young apprentice is long enough for them to see how things will work out and if it does not then we are not stuck with some kid for the summer, especially a kid that could drive us nuts.
 
In August, two of the ships crew headed off for school and that left us short handed. Jovanna, who had been working since spring outfitting was now the only crew member on deck.  She could do it but it would be exausting.  As if on cue Clint, our new apprentice, arrived a few days before our next trip.  With little time to spare we gave him a tour of the schooner, showed him his bunk and then put him to work. After our first sail with Clint we knew we had a keeper.  Owen and Cathie offered him a payed crew position and  asked if he would be willing to finish out the season.
  
I enjoyed Clint's company in the galley when it was his turn to be mess cook.  We talked about bike touring and though I was not planning to travel this winter the more Clint talked about it the more I could hear the call of the open road.  Then, one evening Jo and I were playing cards in the galley and I, just on a whim, said that the three of us should go on a bike trip together.  She thought it was a great idea and when we told Clint about it he was in agreement.  In our spare time we formed our plan and things began to take shape.  We talked about doing it for a cause and as both Owen, Cathie, and I had lost our mothers to breast cancer it was an easy choioce for us to ride for a cure.  Team Bowditch now had a mission.