New York City and the Atlantic Ocean!

It has now been over a week since we completed the cross-country ride in New York City on Friday, August 6, 2010. We started that day in Morristown, New Jersey, having come in to that town (and state) the previous day. The heat and humidity were finally down a bit, for which we were very thankful. The first 15 miles or so were nice, as there was a wide shoulder to the road at that point. Soon, however, the traffic increased as the shoulder decreased. Why was everybody in such a hurry? At times, I feared that this cross-country ride would end tragically somewhere near Patterson, New Jersey. God was gracious to us, and the entire team made it as far as the George Washington Bridge. This is where the real fun began. We crossed over to Manhattan, and quite honestly, the traffic was much more reasonable in The Big Apple. We cycled through Harlem, Central Park, down Broadway, and along the trail by the Hudson River (past Ground Zero) to Battery Park, where we could see the Statue of Liberty in the distance. That activities of the last sentence actually consumed several hours. We were in a celebratory mood, and the weather was really perfect!

Then, we crossed the Brooklyn Bridge and navigated through Brooklyn around rush-hour, telling as many as we could that we had started the ride in Seattle. (Most people didn't seem to believe us, or had not heard of Seattle, but we did not care what they thought!) About an hour before sunset, WE MADE IT! It must have been quite a sight for innocent "normal" people who were enjoying their evening at the beach to see these crazy bicyclists all dressed the same way to run and jump into the Atlantic Ocean! Words are not sufficient to communicate the feelings that we experienced at that moment. On Saturday we enjoyed the city by foot. On Sunday we had our last church visit on Long Island. Sandy and Hilary met us there...it was an awesome reunion after seven and a half weeks apart from each other.

We thank God for the incredible experiences that we had over the seven-week tour across the USA. My bicycle odometer recorded 3,306 miles over 14 states. We were in a total of 38 churches altogether. We did not do official presentations in all of those churches. Sometimes we had a meal, or just met our hosts and shared informally about the cause. Then, there were hundreds, or more probably thousands, of other people that we met along the way. Almost all experiences with others were positive. Sure, there were some rude motorists and people who did not want to hear, but generally the vast majority of our people-contacts were positive. Physically, almost all of the team experienced at least minor crashes, but we had only one emergency room visit! There all lots of sore knees, backs, wrists, and sore bottoms! We also have some pretty interesting tan lines.

Thanks again to all for reading and praying. Next time you fly to the West Coast, please don't complain about leg cramps or a "long flight." For one, the trip could be a lot longer if you travel by another means. Secondly, and more importantly, unless you are gagged, blindfolded, and thrown into the luggage compartment, I would assume that you are traveling for pleasure or perhaps for business. There are too many people who travel across borders against their will, and who are bought and sold as property. Freedom is not an option for them. It was for them that we cycled. It was not always easy...there was pain and discomfort...but it was worth it.