Today was another beautiful, sunny, hot day. After breakfast at our hotel, we were back on the road again in an attempt to conquer Pennsylvania’s hills and mountains. We wound our ways up and down hills and valleys and through small towns that seem to be untouched by cellphone data and voice service (at least on our phones). We saw a lot of old crumbling motels and other businesses that appeared to have been casualties of the global economy.
We stopped in a small town at a “mom and pop” gas station for lunch. Andrew ordered a sandwich, and the waitress/cashier/gas station attendant asked him what he wanted on it. Andrew asked, “what toppings do you have”? The waitress replied “anything you want”. Andrew replied, “just give me everything then”. The waitress replied “you can’t have everything”. Eventually, we were both able to negotiate a meal that our waitress would agree to serve us, albeit with some disdain for our choices.
Our support car from home (Andrew’s parents) were supposed to catch up with us today. Unfortunately, with the limited wireless availability in the mountains they buzzed by us while we were on lunch and had to turn around and come back. We finally got a faint wireless signal in late afternoon and were able to communicate our position at Shade Gap Elementary (in the shade). We finally rendezvoused there. After stocking up on fresh drinks and supplies, we were on our way for our evening ride to finish the day with a final mileage count of 158 KM.
Our day ended with a beautiful sunset taken in from the Tuscarora Summit and a return trip in the support car to civilization where Chipotle served us our burritos just the way we wanted them.
Crossing Pennsylvania takes a long time in a car, but on a bike it can seem like forever. Almost half of our trip will be spent in Pennsylvania. Not only will we bike over 320 km here, but we’ll be tested by the very hilly terrain.
In order to pass the time, Andrew is exercising his mind using mental counting games. Today he is counting roadkill and Dollar General stores to keep his mind off the hills. We are passing by Pennsylvania Game Lands which are maintained by the state for use in hunting, fishing, and trapping; consequently, animal life is plentiful and Andrew’s roadkill count is accelerating. Because it is another hot day, the smell of the roadkill sometimes greets you before you spot it. Today’s roadkill consists of fox, deer, birds, snakes, and raccoons. The total count comes to 74 by the end of the day. In addition to the roadkill, we encounter live ground hogs, chickens, and rabbits, but no bears this year.
As daylight fades, we call it a day near Freeburg, PA. Having covered a hilly 155KM for the day, we reward ourselves with a hotel room, hot showers, and a soft bed for the night.
One of our goals was to get a strong start the first day and escape the state of New York. We accomplished both of these goals by biking about 165 kilometers (that’s over 100 miles for those Stateside) and arriving in Sayre, PA. We started riding early to get most of our miles in before lunch, so that we could stop for a long lunch/rest and avoid the hottest part of the day.
Andrew’s brother, Brian, met us for lunch and brought his dog, Sadie in mid-afternoon. We spent some time wading in a creek, and having a Siesta, before we were on our way again.
It was sunny and hot in the 30’s (90’s Fahrenheit) most of the day, but we were able to finish the day with a cooling dip in the Susquehanna River at the end. We also watched an evening youth baseball game and found a place near the river to pitch our tent for the night. After the fishermen and the local teens retired, we had a peaceful night.
Each July, our church runs a week-long retreat in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Five years ago, several of us cycled the 850 km from Kitchener, Ontario over several days. A few years later, Andrew and Brian Koch did the same from Syracuse, New York.
In the past few months, I came across some surprising reports highlighting the high rates of poverty in the city of Harrisonburg. It crossed my mind that for years we had been having our retreat at the Eastern Mennonite University, but never made much more of an impact on the area.
With that in mind, my brother-in-law Andrew Koch and I plan to cycle again from Syracuse to Harrisonburg in the days preceding Eastern Camp 2016. We would like to raise $3500 ($5 per km) and donate it to the shelter at the Salvation Army in Harrisonburg.
Every summer our denomination’s North American church organizations sponsor conferences which we call “camps”. Back in the old days these conferences were held at rustic campgrounds, hence the origin of the term “camp”. The conference or “camp” we are attending this week actually is held on a college campus with lodging in dorm rooms instead of the traditional cabins. Meals are served in the campus dining room. We have access to many of the college’s facilities including the gymnasium, track, and soccer field, so we are far cry from the original setting of the camps. While the venue has changed over the years, the format remains much the same.
The first required event is a general assembly at 8:40 a.m. each morning which begins with singing as people gather in the main auditorium. The day’s announcements are then made noting special presentations that day (“forums”) and recreational activities in the afternoon. At the end of general assembly a corporate prayer is offered and everyone departs to their individual Bible classes. The younger classes are separated by age group and there are multiple adult classes with a mixture of all ages above 29. Each camp has a theme for the week and a corresponding banner which hangs in the main auditorium. The theme this week is “Even so, come, Lord Jesus” taken from Revelation 22:20. The focus is on how we should be living our lives so that we are ready for Jesus’ return. The class lessons this week are organized around the parable of the sower, which each day’s lesson is focused on one of the places where the sower’s seed fell.
At 10:30 “forums” begin. There is a single forum for teenagers and three forums for the adults to choose among, focusing on specific topics (e.g., The Power of Words, Finding God’s Purpose in Every Stage of Life, Mentoring the Next Generation, etc.). After the forums, the teens go to teen choir practice and the adults go to lunch or to adult choir practice. In the afternoon, organized recreational activities are held in the gym and on the outdoor sports’ fields. Late in the afternoon/early evening there is orchestra practice and men’s choir practice with supper in between.
In the evening there is another general assembly in the main auditorium with congregational singing and an evening worship service. For the younger children there are separate “Junior church” services, and on two nights, separate services just for the teens. After the evening services, there is a short break for everyone to reconvene in the auditorium for “Inspiration Time”. In the original camp days this was known as “Camp Fire”. There would be a physical fire and someone would be chosen to emcee the evening and tie together special musical numbers and testimonies into a narrative. Today, this is still done in much the same way except that the fire is gone and the emcee stands on the stage in the auditorium instead of next to the fire. After Inspiration Time, those who still have energy gather to sing some more.
Music is very important to us as a group and all those practices referenced above lead to musical programs that are presented on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. EDT is the men’s choir program. Thursday night at 6:45 p.m. EDT is the teen choir program, and Friday night at 6:45 p.m. EDT is the adult choir program. Nowadays, we stream these live along with our services and Inspiration time. You can listen in live, at no cost, by visiting easterncamplive.org and creating an ID. All live broadcasts are also available in “on-demand” mode as soon as the live streaming ends.
This morning we were back on the road around nine o’clock. The first 15 miles were uneventful, but soon after that Brian started to have knee pain again. By the time we arrived at our first rendezvous point with the supply car in Baker, West Virginia, it was difficult for him to pedal. We stopped for lunch at the local general store/gas station/post office/deli/grocery store/sporting goods (aka gun shop).
Andrew asked if they had Philly Cheesesteak subs. We thought he was expecting a lot, but sure enough they had “steakcheese” subs on the menu. Meanwhile Brian took some pain medicine, made a ice bag for his knee, and then wrapped it in an Ace bandage. After an hour, we were ready to start again. Fortunately, Brian’s pain had subsided and we were back to making good time again. By 2:15 p.m. we arrived at the Virginia border.
Welcome to Virginia
Shortly before 3:30 p.m. we turned south onto Route 42 leading into Harrisonburg, VA. Finally around 4:20 p.m. we pulled into Eastern Mennonite University where our church is having a conference this week. In spite of wrong turns, missed connections, muddy roads, sore muscles, and painful knees, after 5 days and over 476 miles we reached our goal.
To close, we quote Karah again:
When adversity strikes we have two choices: we can choose to blame God for it, or we can allow Him to refine us and make us tender toward Him. I have often wished that The Lord would just take me to heaven; I would then be reminded of Paul and all the suffering he went through and remind myself that “to live is Christ and to die is gain”.
Though I am mostly confined to a wheel chair and still have seizures, (though they are brought under control faster then they used to be) I am happy to be reunited with my family again.
Thank you again for your faithful prayers,
Love in Christ,
Karah
If you would like to partner with us in helping Karah, we ask you to make a donation per mile ridden by us on our way to church camp, or you can contribute any amount you’d like.
Miles
Donation per Mile
Donation Amount
476
.01
$4.76
476
.05
$23.80
476
.10
$47.60
476
.20
$95.20
476
.25
$119.00
476
.50
$238.00
476
.75
$357.00
476
1.00
$476.00
If you’d like to join our conference remotely, we are streaming live at 7 p.m. EDT each night this week (July 20 though July 25, 2014) at easterncamplive.org as well as making this content available on-demand at the conclusion of each program.
This morning the weather remained cloudy after a shower passed through last night. We got off to an early start and made good time crossing the Mason Dixon line (that’s the Maryland border to you Yankees up North) by around 10:30 a.m.
Unfortunately, the supply car was late arriving at our pre-arranged meeting point and we continued on. Then our cell phone and internet service became unreliable and we had a difficult time reconnecting. Finally, we rendezvoused at the Western Maryland Railway Station which lies on the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal route in Cumberland, Maryland.
Western Maryland Railway Station
By this time our group was a little crabby, so we found the perfect place to serve us crabcake sandwiches for lunch:
The Crabby Pig
After lunch, because the canal towpath was muddy from the previous night’s rain, we decided to change our route back to the main roads. The smooth surface of the road is easier to ride on than the towpath, but there are generally steeper hills and, of course, motor vehicle traffic to deal with. During the afternoon, we began to see some rain drops. We ocassionally experienced brief periods of light rain all afternoon and into the evening. Eventually, the steepness of the hills, made us glad to return to the towpath. We met up with our supply car at the Paw Paw Tunnel, and then returned to the main roads to cross into West Virginia.
Welcome to West Virginia
For our evening ride we were back on main roads and experiencing some of the longest and steepest hills yet. At one point just before a turn we saw a “Welcome to Virginia” sign farther down the road and took a detour to photograph it, so technically we visited four states today (Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia); however, once we made our turn, we were back in West Virginia for the remainder of the day. By 8:00 p.m. we were muddy and sore and called it quits for the day with over 100 miles logged. Only about 80 miles to go!
To conclude, here is another excerpt from Karah’s letter where she talks about how she dealt with her pain:
“Another way The Lord comforted me during my hours of intense pain was through a song I learned from Steve Green and I mentally sing it to myself during my hours of seizures or sleepless nights. Below are the lyrics to that song.”
“Whatever it takes to keep me tender toward you, whatever it takes Lord I
beg you to do. Whatever you must lead me through whatever it takes Lord do.
At times I hear your voice and try to hide; but patiently you draw me to your side. I may not always see your words are life to me. So many times I’ve missed you, help me Lord to not resist you.
Whatever it takes to keep me tender toward you, whatever it takes Lord I beg you to do. Whatever you must lead me through whatever it takes Lord do.
Sometimes my heart gets hard and I can’t see that your correction is protecting me, But as I look with in the darkness of my sin breaks my heart and leaves me tender, gratefully I then surrender, I surrender.
Whatever it takes to keep me tender toward you, whatever it takes Lord I beg you to do. Whatever you must lead me through. Whatever it takes Lord do.
Whatever you must lead me through, whatever it takes Lord, there’s too much at stake Lord, whatever it takes Lord, do. Whatever it takes Lord.”
If you would like to partner with us in helping Karah, we ask you to make a donation per mile ridden by us on our way to church camp, or you can contribute any amount you’d like.
The big breakthrough today, besides surmounting several large hills, was passing the halfway point in miles for our trip. If you think it takes a long time to get through Pennsylvania in a car, you would not want try cycling through it. This was our second day biking across Pennsylvania with part of a third day to follow tomorrow. Nevertheless, we had another beautiful day for biking, mostly sunny with highs in the 70s (Fahrenheit). The morning was mostly uneventful, and the last 10 miles before lunch we had a shaded ride through the woods on a gravel path next to a stream.
The path came into the town of Williamsburg where there was a picnic area next to an ice cream shop. We had a picnic lunch and then Oreo flurries for dessert. As we sat eating our lunch, we spied this sign at the opening to the trail we had just ridden, which noted the risky nature of our morning ride:
Dangerous Equine Activities
Fortunately, we did not come across any equine activities, but after yesterday’s encounter, we were wondering if a warning for bear or skunk activities might be more appropriate.
The terrain today was mostly rolling hills. Going up the hills can be slow at times, but coming down the other side presents many beautiful views accompanied by the exhilarating feeling of accelerated progress thrown in for good measure.
We ate supper in Bedford, PA, and set out to get as many additional miles in as possible today. Unfortunately, Andrew’s bike pedal broke and we had to cut our ride short at 93 miles today. We are thankful that Brian was able to fix the bike pedal before we turned in for the night, so we won’t have to spend time searching for a bike shop tomorrow morning. Thank you for your prayers and continuing support for us as well as for Karah!
To close today, here is an excerpt from one of Karah’s letters:
I would like to take this time to express my gratitude for all of your faithful prayers on my behalf during the past year and a half. I am so thankful that God has used this time of testing to bring hundreds of His people to their knees before Him. The Lord promises that He will always answer our prayers and the Holy Spirit is constantly interceding on our behalf. His answers may not seem to be what we think is best however, He is Sovereign and He sees the big picture while we can only see the here and now.
I do not understand why the Lord has seen fit to allow so much suffering; but I thank Him for it because He has used it to draw me closer to Him. God often uses extreme pain and misery to draw us closer to Him, and that has certainly been the case in my suffering. The agony of my seizures was intense and often I wished I could go into a coma and not feel the anguish; but The Lord used the alertness of my mind to comfort and encourage me. I cannot control my outward body; but The Lord ministers to my spirit. Oftentimes when I am gasping for breath, I am reminded that when, Jesus, the perfect One, was gasping for breath on the cross, His Father turned His back on Him; but as I lay hour after hour gasping for breath my Heavenly Father holds me in His loving arms giving me the grace to bear the agony second by second. His grace is always sufficient.
If you would like to partner with us in helping Karah, we ask you to make a donation per mile ridden by us on our way to church camp, or you can contribute any amount you’d like.
Day two began with sore muscles for both of us, and knee pain with each pedal stroke for Brian. Thankfully, this subsided as the day progressed. The morning route included a scenic ride on a gravel road alongside a winding river.
It was beautiful, but after about 25 miles we returned to the main road because, although the trail was level, we felt it was hindering our speed too much. Immediately after leaving the trail, we were met with one of our biggest challenges for the day – a steep, 1 1/2 mile climb. In the process of reaching the summit, we rewarded ourselves with huge ice cream cones at an old fashioned country store, and then were blessed with an exhilarating descent on the way down.
Two Scoops (aka Medium) from the Country Store Near top of the hill in PA
The afternoon brought some unexpected sightings in rural Pennsylvania. Riding through a wooded area, Brian saw what he thought was a large dog loping across the road, but no, dogs don’t have such thick legs! It was then that he realized he was seeing a black bear. Unfortunately (Editor’s note: or fortunately in his parent’s opinion), it scurried into the woods before we were able to get a picture. Other animals we encountered included racoons, a heron, and a skunk family that dashed in front of Andrew as he was racing down a large incline. Another sighting: a road sign pointing to the Jersey Shore. Huh? Who knew that Pennsylvania had a Jersey Shore? In summary: good weather, God’s protection, and good progress today with over 111 miles logged.
We got off to a late start this morning around 10 a.m. Part of the bike trail was the towpath for the old Erie Canal.
Erie Canal
The first 30 miles went by uneventfully; however, after that the roads were not as well marked and we missed a couple of turns. We recovered quickly from most of these, but had one detour that cost us a total of 10 miles. The next test for the day was what our mapping software labeled “seasonal roads”. These roads consisted of gravel, dirt, and rocks for which mountain bikes would have been a better mode of transportation. At one point we had a 10 mile stretch on a seasonal road which couldn’t end soon enough for us. Our sister, Renee, accompanied us in our car and met us in Amish country with a late afternoon lunch.
Lunch in Amish Country
We had a beautiful ride through the Finger Lakes region which ended with a long downhill stretch. At the bottom of the hill was the town of Watkins Glen which is located on Seneca Lake where we stopped for supper.
Seneca Lake
After supper, we had to climb back up the counterpart to the hill we had just come down. After almost 11 hours of biking we turned in for the day. We biked a total of 106 miles today; unfortunately, because of our 10 mile detour only 96 of those miles took us closer to our destination. There were some frustrating moments during the day, but all in all, we made good progress towards our goal.
At the end of the day we’re tired but we’re glad that we can do something to help Karah. While Karah was eventually able to gain some measure of relief from her Ehlers-Danlos symptoms and return back to her family in Brazil, she still has on-going medical treatment needs which require financial support. Currently she relies on a feeding tube for nutrition, and has several medications she must take daily. Two of the medications are costly and not available in Brazil; consequently, they must be shipped from the U.S.
Karah with Dr Henderson
If you would like to partner with us in helping Karah, we ask you to make a donation per mile ridden by us on our way to church camp, or you can contribute any amount you’d like.
2 Corinthians 12:9 Ride Blog 