"I was riding (a shiny red bike with a kick-stand) into a terrific headwind, so no matter how hard I tried to push ahead, the wind kept holding me back... Another storm approached and surrounded me, I frantically tried to call Gabriel but phone reception was zero... "
This is how Patricia Starr described the conditions before climbing the grueling 9, 683 feet Grand Tetons of the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming.
(Note: I've had altitude sickness at just 7,000 feet without moving)
Her hot Latin "stud muffin" husband Gabrielle--20 years her junior--was somewhere far behind, driving a blue van, affectionately named: The Love Machine.
Ms. Starr's book Angel On My Handlebars documents her amazing adventure atop a red bike with fuzzy seat cover, wearing short shorts and pantyhose pedaling across America.
From the starting point Astoria, Oregon, where she dipped her front wheel in the Pacific Ocean to Portsmouth, New Hampshire where she dipped her front wheel in the Atlantic, this 67 year-old-woman (at time of journey) is an inspiration for all ages, for all times.
I'm only half way through book, read in one sitting, and wanted to share her journey with you now because I'm about to take one of my own (not nearly as courageous or carbon-free) and wanted you to have a chance to get inspired reading Angel On My Handlebars, too.
In addition to being inspired to scale your own dreams, you'll learn valuable lessons on:
- kick-stand vs. no kick-stand
- biker shorts vs. short shorts with pantyhose
- clip on cleats vs. tennis shoes
- Gatorade vs. creative ways to deal with dehydration
- How Patricia managed hypoglycemia while pedaling 60 - 80 miles a day
- How Patricia managed loneliness, fear, and despair when on long stretches of desert road. (She was the bike group's resident "slow-poke".)
- How she kept going despite challenges like a broken toe, falling multiple times from strong winds, getting a flat tire on the 1-84 freeway in Boise, (I think that was during or after a thunder storm!), her toe clip breaking off, and being far behind from the pack on a road where she learns about bears and bear traps.
Reading this book offered a vicarious thrill ride, as well as conjured up beautiful images as Patricia recounted red rocks and sage brush in Wyoming, and Idaho Falls "a feast for the eyes and ears" with the Snake River dammed to make spectacular short waterfalls surrounded by lush green parkways.
Ms. Starr concluded her book (yes I peaked ahead) with,
"What a glorious feeling to know I had overcome every obstacle put in front of me. I had survived. I had accomplished something spectacular most people only dream about. In doing so, I was funding a scholarship that will be in perpetuity for music majors at our local college. I, Patricia Starr, at age 67, had pedaled my bicycle all the way across America--3,622 miles from Astoria, Oregon to Portsmouth, New Hampshire."
"To achieve all that is possible, you must attempt the impossible. To be as much as you can be, you must dream of being more. Your dream is the promise of ALL you can be." (Author unknown)
To get more inspiration and buy the book, click above.
To check out Patricia Starr's web site, click here.
If you enjoyed this post, consider subscribing to the Chasing Clean Air RSS feed!
