Day 1: Providence to Mansfield

Oct 10

Posted by

image

image

Phil and I had decided it would be a good idea to meet at a local coffee shop for an hour or so before leaving to let friends and family say goodbye one last time and ride the first few miles with us for as far as they wish.  We had a good turn-out for the send-off gathering.  After eating and making sure the bikes were all packed properly, Phil and I took off, escorted by Phil’s parents and Dick, Cameron and Adam from US Open Cycling Foundation.  It was sad to say goodbye to everyone, and I will miss the people more than anything.

We started down the West Bay Washington Secondary bike path towards Coventry and stopped for ice-cream near the end.  When we finally turned off the greenway, it was just me and Phil.  We had begun the first day of a very long journey.

The day was predominantly uneventful, aside from a pit stop at a biker bar/pizza restaurant just over the Connecticut state line, where the owner hooked us up with ice water and the regulars had plenty of questions and advice for us.  There were a few bike paths that existed in Google maps but not on the roads, so we ran into a few dead ends and climbed a few unnecessary hills.  As we neared the home where we were staying that night, the roads grew even hillier.

Tina and Greg live in Mansfield with their 5 year old daughter, Gioia.  They were kind enough to host us for our first night on the road.  They shared their delicious dinner with us, including homemade wine, homemade bread, and homemade strawberry ice-cream!  We are both very grateful for their generosity in hosting us.

About Sarah

Sarah grew up in Cranston - just south of Providence, Rhode Island - and developed a love for travel, music, and outdoor sports at an early age. She had started bicycling long distances at age 12, as a participant of the MS150 bike tours to raise money for the MS Society. She didn't use her bike regularly until she built her own while studying in Montreal and found it an excellent way to get around the city. After graduating from McGill and moving back to Providence, Sarah started working at Brown University's office of Environmental Health & Safety as the Biological Safety Specialist. She was living 4 miles away at the time, and for the first few weeks was driving to work. She made the switch from driving to bicycling when she realized that she could get to work faster, avoid parking tickets, and integrate a few miles of training into her day. Bicycling was better for the environment and better for her own health and mood. She found that she had more energy and felt much happier once she started biking to work. When her car broke down several months later, she never bothered replacing it. After 4 years of working in Biosafety (and on her master's in Environmental Studies), Sarah left her job to pursue her passion. She has been working various jobs in the bicycle industry since June of 2011, including pedicab driver, bicycle tour guide, bike mechanic and traveling bicycle advocate. In between seasonal jobs, she has done a few long-distance bike tours, which is the main reason for this blog. Her dream is to eventually ride around the world and sail across the oceans.

Posted on 10 October 2011, in Bicycle Touring, Providence to New Orleans. Bookmark the permalink. Leave a comment.

Comments are closed.

%d bloggers like this: