Visit to Sinai Hospital!

Date: 8/31/06
Mileage: 31

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$15,834.00 for Kupenda
Donation thanks to Mike Z
Donation thanks to Mr and Mrs Kebea
Donation thanks to Maura
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,622.00 for ADA
Donation thanks to Mr. and Mrs Carola
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

Today we made an amazing visit to the Pediatric Department at Sinai Hospital. Thanks to the efforts of Kristin Mylot, who works there, we were able to visit with all of the children who are there for surgeries, sicknesses, and diabetes.

(Hanging out with the kids)

(Kristen is on the left!!)

It was probably the best stop yet on our trip! Hanging out with those kids who were there and telling them about our adventures and trying to lighten up their stay in the hospital was absolutely amazing! I could have stayed there all day long.


Apparently they have been following our trip the entire summer. Kristen setup a bulletin board tracking our progress with pictures and funny comments of us on the road.

(Frank.. the toughest person I know)

-Pattt

Towson, MD (Yay for friends!)

Date: 8/31/06
Mileage: 31

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$15,634.00 for Kupenda
Donation thanks to Bob and Sadj (From our triathlon club!!)
Donation thanks to Kathleen Kweeder
Donation thanks to Rachel Chang
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,622.00 for ADA
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

We had a very short bike ride from DC to Towson MD! It was soooo fun because our friends Maura, Laurie, Chip, and Ben all joined us! We were extremely happy to have some other people to bike with. They biked with us from DC to Ellicot City where Maura lives. She made us all a huge lunch and we got to hang out at her house for a while. We know Maura, Laurie, and Chip from our triathlon club and Ben heard about us on the Surly Blog.

(Maura, Sadj, Chip, Ben, and Laurie... with AFC)

After an amazing lunch we said good bye to everyone and we headed to Towson. In Towson we met with Melissa Emery (also from our triathlon club). She let us stay at her extra house (that she is trying to sell). It is a super nice house and the frige is stocked full of left overs from the last triathlon race!! Sooo many treats :)

Melissa took us all out to a Thai resturant for dinner! I love Thai food!!!

(AFC and Melissa!!)

We then headed to Downtown Baltimore to do karaoke. We had originally planned on doing Karaoke at the Hard Rock Cafe but they canceled their yokey because it was an outside venue and there was a 'chance' of rain. We scrambled to find another yokey bar. We were lucky to find one in Federal Hill at a place called Nevin's. We quickly called everyone we knew was comming and told them to meet us there instead. Luckily it worked out well and everyone made it to the new location! It was a great night of yokey!

(Stump, Sadj, and Pat.. singing their hearts out!)

It is official!! Every state that AFC visited we were able to get our yokey on!

(AFC Yokeyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy)

Stats
States visited: 14
States yokeyed: 14

-Pattt

AFC Danceeee Off!

So.... A very long time ago when we were biking from Kansas City, Missouri on our way to Peru, Nebraska (both of which were in the top 1o for best stops on the adventure) we had and AFC Dance Off.

The AFC Dance Off was performed on a day in which we biked 150 miles at a high of around 104 degrees.

The AFC Dance Off was done at around mile 75 (just about 1/2 way in).

If you want to see more of this amazing dancing join us in Ocean City, MD on Sunday September 3rd at 4th Street Boardwalk at the Shenanigan's Irish Pub!!!

Please leave your comments as to which of the three AFC bikers you think won the dance off. First up is Jesse, Second is Adam, Last is Patrick.



-Pattt

Washington DC!

Date: 8/28/06 and 8/29/06
Mileage: 30 (on 28th), 5 (on 29th)

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$15,534.00 for Kupenda
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,622.00 for ADA
Donation thanks to Diane Harrison
Donation thanks to H. Lee Braidwood
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

We sadly had to leave the Stump's house. We had the best weekend ever there but on Monday morning we had to go to D.C.

We biked to the D.C. metro and took that to meet up with Eastern Market where we met with Jon Towson. He works for the ADA national office and is an advid cyclist. He has supplied us with tons of ADA paraphernalia, like the red bracelets, that we have been selling at our events. It was great to meet him again!

Afterwards we went to Jase's house. We hung out there for awhile and then we went to meet up with our friend Jake Klim (a fellow runner from UMBC).

Today we went with our friend Martin Gould (who we know through our Mid Maryland Triathlon Club) to talk with Katie Drennan (who is a member of the Congressional Bike Caucus). It was great to talk with her about how Congress is actually trying to make bike commuting easier in the big cities for all of its environmental and health benefits. We also told her about all of our many many plans for the future of AFC :)

Martin Gould has by far been one of the biggest and most valuable supporters of AFC. He has helped us find tons of our places to stay on our route, he makes sure the people at home don't forget about us while we are away all summer, he has always given us great advise, and he has even helped to steer us in the right direction. We can't say enough how much we appreciate his help and friendship! We can't wait to bike with him again at our finishing ride in Ocean City, MD!

Tonight we are staying with PhillyK and AndyK's parents in DC! And we will be doing DC yokey tonight as well :) with Jase and some other friends.

-Pattt

Hughesville, MD (Jesse's family is awesome!!)

Date: 8/26/06 and 8/27/06
Mileage: 60 (on 26th)

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$15,534.00 for Kupenda
Donations from party in Hughesville ($464.00)
Donation thanks to Bullet!!
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,622.00 for ADA
Donations from party in Hughesville ($116.00)
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

Oh yea!! We are really getting down to the wire now! Soooo awesome that we are staying with all of our friends here in Hughesville.

Mrs. Stump and Aunt Dadoon have been cooking us some huge meals and feeding tons of people. They might be the best cooks on earth. Their apple pie is like nothing I have ever had before.

Thanks to DeeDee and Carly organizing an entire night of fun at the Hotel Charles we were able to raise $580.00 for Kupenda and ADA. I love Hughesville!

(Talking about what AFC is all about on stage at the bar)

RaRa (Jesse's borther)
Mrs. Stump
Carly (Jesse's sister)
Jesse
'P' (Jesse's dad)

(DeeDee and Carly)

Tomorrow we are biking from Hughesville to DC where we will be staying with our friend Jase (Jase actually ran across the country a couple years ago! check out his website here). I guess we will be doing Karaoke in DC either tomorrow or the next day. Only 2 yokies left before we can say we karaoked in every state we biked through (we are counting DC as a state).

-Pattt

Tappahannock, VA (Last Day In VA!)

Date: 8/25/06
Mileage: 65

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$14,870.00 for Kupenda
Donation thanks to Shelley's friends at bowling!
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,506.00 for ADA
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

Last night we went bowling in Norfolk with Shelley and some of her friends! A couple of them even donated :) It was so fun even if all of AFC is awful at bowling!

(AFC Bowling!)

Today we had a really short/easy ride from Norfolk to Tappahannock. We just found the fastest most direct route from the two towns as possible on the map and we went for it! We can't wait until tomorrow when we are reunited with tons and tons of our friends and family in Hughesville, MD. Jesse's parents live in Hughesville and on Saturday night his cousin (DeeDee) and sister (Carly) organized a big fundraising party at a local bar. On Sunday we are having a cookout at his parents house! Ohhhh man its going to be fun!

Here is our schedule for our final week of biking:
Saturday (8/26) bike to Hughesville, MD (party at hotel charles)
Sunday (8/27) rest in Hughesville, MD (cookout at Jesse's parents house)
Monday (8/28) bike to Washington D.C. (staying with our friend Jase.. DC yokey)
Tuesday (8/29) rest in Washington D.C. (find something fun to do)
Wednesday (8/30) bike to Towson, MD (staying with Melissa... find karaoke for MD)
Thursday (8/31) rest in Towson, MD (give a talk at a hospital... other stuff)
Friday (9/1) bike to Cambridge, MD (stay with JasonDrinkMoreWater)
Saturday (9/2) bike to Ocean City, MD (stay at Shenanigan's hotel)
Sunday (9/3) rest in Ocean City, MD (do the finishing ride and finishing party)

We only have 5 days of biking left!! If you would like to meet up with us at any point to bike or hang out,

email me at pblair12@gmail.com, or
call me at 443-223-5740

-Pattt

Norfolk, VA

Date: 8/23/06
Mileage: 5

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$14,820.00 for Kupenda
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,506.00 for ADA
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

Today we had a super extremely short bike ride from Newport News to Shelley's house in Norfolk. It is so awesome to be hanging out with Shelley and Carly! We haven't seen them in soo long :)

We got our karaoke done tonight so that leaves only DC and Maryland left for karaoking! It has been a long hard battle. Some nights we definately did not feel like going to do karaoke, especially on the nights when we had a long bike ride all day, but we have always gotten it done!

(AFC Yokey)

-Pattt

Newport News, VA

Date: 8/22/06
Mileage: 75

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$14,820.00 for Kupenda
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,506.00 for ADA
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

We had a hugeeee breakfast at Judith's house in Chester before we left for Newport News. Judith also packed us some food for the road.

(Good Bye Judith!)

We had a great ride to Newport News. It was almost totally flat and not hot at all. When we got there we played some volleyball at a park.

We stayed with Carly (Jesse's sister)'s friend Lauren's house. At night we all went country line dancing!! soooooo fun!

(Hanging out with Carly and her friends at country line dancing)

-Pattt

Chester, VA (near Richmond)

Date: 8/21/06
Mileage: 95

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$14,820.00 for Kupenda
Donation thanks to Dennis Logan
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,506.00 for ADA
Donation thanks to Jonathan Gdowik
Donation thanks to Jennifer Burtchette
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

Today was great! We biked from Charlottesville to Chester (which is a suburb of Richmond). There was no wind and it was not hot out. We kept a hott pace for the first 73 miles and then we stopped for lunch. We ate lunch with some of Adam's co-workers from Richmond. It was super awesome. They got us wraps, cookies, and fruit and brought it all to a little park that was right on our route as we went through Richmond so we didn't have to do any extra miles to find them. It was great!

After lunch we continued on to Chester, VA. We arrived at the house of Judith who is someone who found us on CraigsList.org. Our friend Lauren Saft put postings on craigs list that we were looking for places to stay all across the country!

Judith made a hugeeeee steak dinner and some amazing deserts! She even had a pool that we were able to cool of in! So awesome!

(Hanging out by the pool!)

Tomorrow we are heading out to Newport News, VA where we will be staying with Carly Stump's friends and hopefully doing our Virginia Karaoke (in case you didn't know... we have to do karaoke in every state we visit).

-Pattt

Charlottesville, VA

Date: 8/20/06
Mileage: 85 (57 yesterday on our way to Lexington, VA)

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$15,790.00 for Kupenda
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,436.00 for ADA
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

Yesterday we had an extremely easy ride from Roanoke, VA to Lexington, VA. It was only 57 miles and there were not huge mountains. Weezal biked with us the whole day! That was sooo fun.

When we got to Lexington Heather and Cindy bought us a super nice hotel room. We were all ready to go to the cheapest hotel/motel in town but our friends would have none of that :)

(Stump writing his book!)

(Adam and Cindy looking at pictures from Cindy's latest trip to Africa with Kupenda)

We had a super great time hanging out with our friends and checking out the downtown area of Lexington. This morning the hotel provided a crutial buffet breakfast. This was really good for us because today we had the hardest/steepest mountain of our entire trip. Tons of other bikers that we have met on the Trans American trail have told us that Mt. Vasuvias is by far the hardest mountain on the trail.

(Cindy and Heather at ice cream brownie dessert!)

They were all right! It was a little over 4 miles long. And I don't know the exact grade of the mountain since there were no street signs to tell us what it was. Some parts were at least 15% if not higher. When we got to the top we were all completely drenched in sweat!

(Climbing the hardest mountian on the TransAmerican Trail...
Notice PhillyK and AndyK in the back on AFCMobile filming the documentary)

(At the top of the mountain PhillyK almost fell off! ...
Luckily AndyK was there to take this picture and then save his life)

On the way down the other side of the mountain we met the famous 'Cookie Lady'. Every cross country biker has met or knows about the Cookie Lady. We talked with her for about an hour and she told us some amazing stories of other bikers she has met over the 30 years she has been living there. She has a second house on the route that is completely devoted to bikers. It is like a Bike Touring museum!!! I have never seen anything like it. There were thousands of pictures, post cards, letters, newspaper clippings, and other things all related to the bikers she has met.

(Hanging out with The Cookie Lady)

(Saying good bye to The Cookie Lady...
Lauren: 'Heather do I have cookie stuck in my teeth?'
Heather: 'Oh no.. How about mine?')

After eating some cookies we made our way to Charlottesville. After dinner we said our good byes to Weezal, Lauren, Heather, and Cindy :(. I can't wait to see them again next weekend in Southern Maryland or in Ocean City, MD at our finishing ride (in two weeks)!

-Pattt

News Interview

Here is a clip from a news interview we gave while we were in Carbondale, IL. Check out the shots of us biking in the Grand Teton Mountains! That footage is from PhillyK's camera!


-Pattt

Roanoke, VA

Date: 8/18/06
Mileage: 85

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$15,790.00 for Kupenda
Donation thanks to Jake Klim (he is a fast runner)
Donation thanks to Jim Klender (amazing biker)
Donation thanks to Timothy Dunn (a friend from Hazard Kentucky)

A Hugeeeee Donation thanks to our friend Hannah Henson and her company
Thales Communications ($1,000.00)

$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,436.00 for ADA
Donation thanks to Jim Klender (amazing biker)
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

Our friend Hanna Henson who works for Thales Communications got her company to donate $1,000.00 to Kupenda for the Children! How amazing is that??? We are only like $5,000.00 away from our goal to raise the money for the boarding facility for the children in Africa now!!

Hannah is also working on setting up a guest bartending event! Soooo amazing!!

Today was an amazing day of biking! It was the perfect weather, almost like fall weather, and it was mostly all downhill.

Our friends from home are here now and we are having a great time hanging out with them. It almost feels like being at home with them here with us!

Tonight we are staying with Mark and Kim! They are amazing! Not only are all five of us in their house but also our four friends (Weezal, Lauren, Cindy, and Heather). So they hosted a total of 9 people! How nice is that?

Sorry there are no pictures today... My camera was out of batteries. I promise to have some picutres up tomorrow!

-Pattt

Wytheville, VA

Date: 8/17/06
Mileage: 60 (yay for an easy day!)

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$13,690.00 for Kupenda
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,411.00 for ADA
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

We were so happy to have an easy day today. The mountains were not quite as steep and it was only 60 miles!!! Tomorrow will be about 85 and then on Saturday we will be hitting the steepest mountian on the Trans American Trail! I will let you know how that goes :)

Virginia is beautiful! I can't say that enough.

Tonight we are staying at a Ramada Inn in Wytheville, VA complements of PapaK (PhillyK and AndyK's dad). I am relaxing and watching TV right now and it is goood!

Tomorrow night some of our friends from home are comming to visit! Heather, Weezal, Lauren, Alex, and Cindy will be with us all weekend! It will be like a little taste of home. I can't wait.

-Pattt

Damascus, VA (The App Mtns are tough)

Date: 8/16/06
Mileage: 80 (yesterday was 90)

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$13,690.00 for Kupenda
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,411.00 for ADA
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

We finally passed out of Kentucky and we are now in Virginia! The last bits of Kentucky were pretty crazy. There were stray dogs EVERYWHERE!! I don't know if people just don't use leashes or if the dogs were homeless but it was kinda scary. They were big dogs too. Luckily no one had any problems just a few scares with the dogs chasing us.

(Out bike gloves are falling apart and so is our bar tape...
So we just use masking tape instead!)

Virignia is beautiful! Huge mountains all around us and everything is so green. We have tons of shade with all the big trees which keeps us much cooler. The best thing is that we are only 1 state away from home!!! It has been a really long trip and we all miss our friends and family very much.

We just got an updated total of all our donations that we sent to Cindy Bauer (President of Kupenda). We are now at $13,690!! That only leaves $6,310.00 more to go to hit our goal of $20,000.00 that will build the boarding facility for the kids in Africa!

(While we were in Hazard, KY we gave a talk about diabetes to a group of senior citizens...
They were sooo nice)

Tonight we are staying at a Hostel in Damascus. So many hikers and bikers have been through this place. It is really cool!

-Pattt

Hazard, KY (Back in the Mountains!)

Date: 8/14/06
Mileage: 115

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$12,857.62 for Kupenda
Donation thanks to Shane and Amy Pointer (our hosts in Berea, KY)
Donation thanks to Lawrence Park United Methodist Church (and GrandmomD)
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,411.00 for ADA
Donation thanks to Shane and Amy Pointer (our hosts in Berea, KY)
Donation thanks to Jonathan Gdowik
Donation thanks to Menisa Marshall
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

Last night we said good bye to Shane and Amy! They were such amazing hosts. I felt totally at home in their house. I am going to miss them a ton!

Well the Rockies are long gone but the Appalachians have just begun! People that we have met biking across the country have told us that the Appalachians would be much harder than the Rockies and after today I would say they are right.

The Rockies were long and sloping while these mountains are short and steep. Long and sloping is very easy! Short and steep can be brutal. Still I think that we can all agree that nothing is worse than the open flatter states. With no sun protection and no hills/mountains to keep your mind occupied.

These mountains and the amazing scenery are super amazing! It makes the day go by much faster that's for sure.

Tonight we are staying at a Church in Hazard. It is a great place to sleep! Ellen and her husband took us out to an amazing Mexican feast at a local restaurant and then took us to the grocery store to buy breakfast for tomorrow!

I can't put into words the amazing hospitality we have experienced on this trip!

-Pattt

The Morning Routine!

So....

Often people ask us... "How do your prepare every morning before you start biking?" Knowing that we usually do somewhere around 90 or 110 miles a day... "Do you eat a huge breakfast? Do you have any morning routines?"

I usually try to eat a few extra carbs. I love pancakes (especially blueberry) or cereal and fruit!

(Wheaties are gooooood)

Jesse also eats a big breakfast and he usually does some stretching.

(Stump stretching out)

Adam...

Well Adam has his own unique way of preparing for a hard day of biking. I cannot really put it into words so we made this video.



The sugar in the watermelon helps to raise his sugar levels when they are low. Now you see why we must fight this battle against diabetes! As you can see... Low sugar levels is an awful awful thing :) hahaha!

Yes we are still taking donations for all of our hard work!

Help stop diabetes and help the kids in Africa!

-Pattt

Berea, KY

Date: 8/12/06
Mileage: 110

Funds Raised:
(Donate Here)

$12,857.62 for Kupenda
Donation thanks to Adam's Grandmom!
$20,000 is the goal for Kupenda. That is the amount needed to build a boarding facility so that 30+ children, who have disabilities, will get to go to school!!! It is a chance to really make a difference in a lot of people's lives!!!

$9,411.00 for ADA
Donation thanks to Adam's Grandmom!
Battling diabetes is something that is close to our hearts since Adam has Type I Diabetes. AFC's mission at it's core is to raise awareness, show other diabetics that anything is possible, and to do anything to combat diabetes!

We said our good byes to Andrea and Ed. It was awesome staying at Ed's house in Louisville, KY. I even got to run with him on our day off. Ed is super fit!

(We will miss you Ed!)

Today was great! It was only a high of 82 degrees and it was not humid!! We really enjoyed our bike ride today.

Tonight we are going to do our yokey for Kentucky! We are staying with Amy and Shane in Berea. They made us an amazing dinner and we had banana pudding for desert!! Banana pudding is probably my favorite desert ever!!!

-Pattt