Day 86: Fellow Tourers and the Peace Run

I made breakfast and packed up quickly with the threat of rain on the horizon. I don't mind getting wet myself, especially since out here it's a warm rain, but breaking down and setting up a wet tent is about the most miserable thing I have done on the trip. I said bye to my neighbors and rode into town to visit the Women's Rights National Park. It was a pretty moving set of exhibits, located in the chapel that served at the meeting room for the very first Women's Rights Convention. This town is where Elizabeth Cary Stanton met Susan B. Anthony which kick started their friendship and partnership in the struggle for rights. Being a guy but also just a person living in a modern society where most (sad that I have to say "most" and not all) people have equal rights it can be hard to understand what it must have been like. But the exhibits painted a good picture and I said a silent thank you to those pioneers for their contributions which have ultimately shaped the lives of so many of the strong and wonderful women I personally know. I finally got on the road and had decided to change plans again and try out the Canal Trail. This meant riding due north about 10 miles instead of east, but it ended up being well worth it. The trail is mostly hard packed dirt and gravel and meanders alongside the Erie Canal and other waterways. The great aspect of riding next to a canal is it's almost entirely flat and the beauty of riding along water is pretty fantastic. I came across Kim and his wife, two daughters, and nephew who were riding from the Oregon coast to New Hampshire and were trying to make it by soccer tryouts this coming week. They seemed a little stressed with the deadline and the heat was pretty rough today so I passed them up and kept going, crossing the 5000 mile mark not long after!

I had looked up a deli in Syracuse and was riding along Genesee when I saw a guy running with a torch and a "World Harmony Run" running jersey. After tagging along with him to get the scoop I found out the general mission of carrying the torch across the world in an effort to promote peace. When the support van showed up they handed me the torch and took a few pictures, check it out on the website http://www.worldharmonyrun.org/usa/news/2012/week15/0805! It was pretty amazing stumbling onto this and holding the same torch carried around the world and also held by the likes of Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela. They switched runners and I headed to the deli in a sort of glow.

After some food I continued on the Canal Trail and eventually made a stop for groceries. I went inside having seen the dark clouds coming, and when I came out it had started to sprinkle. I got on the bike with only 7 miles to ride and within 3 block I was stopping under an overpass amidst a complete downpour. I covered my saddle and actually put on my rain jacket. I was a little cool but I felt I needed it more for the bright yellow visibility since it was raining so hard I could barely make out cars a few blocks away except for their headlights. I turned on my taillights and after looking at the horizon and seeing no break from it, decided to go get soaked. If the storm wasn't going to quit then neither was I. Within 5 minutes of this sudden downpour half of the lane was a puddle so my shoes were soaked through instantly but I kept pushing hard after seeing some lightning and hearing a few claps. I could see a few people huddled under awnings, obviously taken by surprise at both the storm and this weirdo riding a bike in it, and I put on a big grin at how ridiculous this was.

Of course by the time I got to Verona Beach State Park the rain had stopped and had I waited in the grocery store for 15 minutes I would have been fairly dry. Oh well, so it goes, I got a nice spot and set up camp, showered, and started preparing food. As I was getting my corn in the pot I saw two other tourers pull up in a spot near me. I had seen Nick and Brad in Buffalo but we had only exchanged a hello. They were headed east but took the Canal Trail the whole way so I didn't see them while I was down near the Finger Lakes. They had picked up some beers and I had a tallboy myself so we sat down on the beachfront bench at sunset and shared stories over brewskies for the next hour and a half. Nick started in Washington and has been taking the Northern Tier route most of the time, and just met up with Brad in the middle of the country. They were great guys and it was a lot of fun to compare trips. I concluded the night with a late dinner and settled in having thoroughly enjoyed the entire day and its experiences.