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Peter Matthews is a Wheelmen who lives in Dublin (Ireland) and Gary Sanderson is a Wheelmen who lives in Verona, NJ (USA). Peter and Gary have been friends for several years and they have ridden together on many long distance rides, but never on such a long ride as this one. Both riders are 69 years old, and they want to complete this ride that they have been planning for a long time before they can no longer get up on their high wheel bicycles. Both riders are fans of Thomas Stevens who was the first person to ride a bicycle across America which he accomplished in 1884. However, these riders have chosen a route different from the one that Thomas Stevens took in order to break some new ground for this type of travel. Please wish the riders good health and lots of luck on their journey.

Gary and Peter describe their journey in summary:  "This ride will start in Perth Amboy, NJ, which was an important port on the Atlantic coast from colonial times up into the early 20th century. We will ride the first day to Verona, NJ, which is where Gary lives. From here we will ride thru the Delaware Water Gap in NW New Jersey to Port Jervis, NY. Then we follow NY Bike Route 17 past Lake Chatauqua to Erie, PA. We then follow the southern shore of Lake Erie to Sandusky, OH, where we veer toward the south into Findlay, OH. Then we travel on to Indianapolis, IN, for a day's rest. From here we travel due west and across the middle of Illinois to St. Charles, MO, where the Missouri River meets the Mississippi River. In St. Chharles, we pick up the KATY Trail (a Rail-to-Trail Conversion) which we will ride across the state of Missouri. From the end of the KATY Trail it is about 100 miles to Baldwin City, KS, and the 2004 Annual Wheelmen Meet which we will attend. After the Meet, we continue north in Kansas to Mcaster, KS, and then along the top of Kansas to Oberlin, KS. From here we travel north to North Platte, NE, and then along US Rt. 30 into Cheyenne, WY, for another day of rest and relaxation. From Cheyenne, we travel along I-80 to just north of Salt Lake City, UT, where we turn north traveling thru Twin Falls, ID, to Boise, ID. In Boise, we take US Rt. 20 into Oregon. We will follow US Rt. 20 thru Bend, OR, after which we will take Rt. 126 thru Eugene, OR, and on to the Pacific coast at Florence, OR. We will ride along the Pacific coast for one day to reach Newport, OR, which is our final destination. Here is a detailed itinerary (could be changed by weather or events).  We would like to have Wheelmen join us for segments of our ride as they might be able to find the time and energy." 
 

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