Orientation and Brrrrr-ring on Belfast

Tuesday was orientation in the park near our motel in Bar Harbor.

Leaders gave out welcome bags with maps, jerseys, stickers, and other items - including a note of well wishes from an MS patient.  My note was from Melanie and it was very encouraging - a touching reminder of why we are spending ten weeks on the road.

After everyone introduced themselves, our group of 25+ riders was divided into 4 stations which rotated after each activity.

Station 1 - communication - Everyone was set up on twitter and also to receive tweets via text - a good way for leaders to quickly tell everyone about changes or what's coming up.  We took pictures of the route leaders' phone numbers so that we could call if we needed something on the road.

Station 2 - bike safety - we had to deflate and change out our back tires - and received tips on how to do this more easily. Additionally, we covered road rules.

Station 3 - maps - as part of our welcome bag, we received 11 maps from the American Cycling Adventure Association - we reviewed the first map and discussed key features.

Station 4 - the trailer - everyone picked a cubby for storage and one for food and we signed our names and the year with Sharpies.

We sealed the deal at the end with Pat's Pizza - I remember that from growing up in Portland,ME!

Ben left us Tuesday afternoon - hard to say goodbye but we will see home again in Middlebury when he comes up to pick up Molly.

Wednesday morning started in Bar Harbor with egg sandwiches at 'The Great Maine Breakfast' and the group dipping their tires in the Atlantic ocean at 8:30....a chilly and memorable start to our first ride day.  As the sun started up in the sky, Sony noted it was a balmy 42 degrees - thank goodness for layers!  I swear that Molly packed ten outfits in her little bag and just kept pulling out additional layers like a magician.  (She is a much better packer than I am).

I was a slow rider that day.  Molly and Sony stayed with me like my own personal biking secret service, as we travelled 67 miles to Belfast.  Great rest stops and periodic encounters with other cyclists.  Cool bridges and the infamous Triple Chicks Farm for photo ops.  Such a good group.  Molly kept the tweets flowing to document our adventures and whereabouts.

Amazing to end the day camping on the water in Belfast - are all the camp sites like this???