Day 1 - May 10th - Orientation

Today we had bicycle inspection to make sure that all bikes were road worthy and safe to minimize breakdowns on the road. During the afternoon we had orientation during which the tour leader and staff explained how the tour would be operated. It included lots of tips to help us have safe, enjoyable, trouble free rides each day. Lastly, we each introduced ourselves giving a short background on why we had decided to ride across the country. There were many interesting stories including celebration of a successful open-heart surgery, celebration of being cancer-free for five years, a couple of riders were between jobs, and some, including myself, have had this in mind for many years. There are many interesting people and I'm sure that we will have many interesting conversations while riding and dining. Tomorrow will be our first day of riding - heading east for Boston.