So I got to Boston on Wednesday after an 8:25 flight out of Columbus. Our first day was filled with meeting new people, orientation and general biking information. I had to put my bike together which was fine, and ultimately helped a few other people assemble theirs as well. I went to the beach where we would be dipping our tires in a few short days. It was whirlwind and we were being put to bed at 11 before I knew it (lights out is at 11 when we have ride days....or our first day of orientation.) It was an awesome day and a met a bunch of awesome people.
The first full day of orientation was once again awesome. We got lots of presentations about biking, bike safety, maintenance, hygiene (you don't really want to know), and many other different topics. We did a little do it yourself maintenance where many people learned to change flats and stuff like that. Finally we got to get on our bikes and go for a 'shakedown ride' around the coast. We road down Revere Beach and then to Wayport Bay and back. There was a lot of traffic and the road was fairly bumpy but it went really well and was awesome to get on my bike again after a couple weeks off. It freaking rocked to be riding with everyone and we would get stares and waves, a few times people would yell out, where are you going, with which we got to respond 'Santa Barbara!'.
So on to day 3. Our first ride day was rainy, wet and cold. In spite of this it was a blast and went really well. It was mapped at 23 miles but after a detour to REI, through a state park and getting lost it ended up being 3oish miles. It was a blast and it was really fun to ride with a group, since this was kind of my first time. We didn't all ride together in a group of 32, we sort of broke up and rode with our different speeds in groups of 4 or 5 or even 6. It was awesome. the state park was beautiful and REI was awesome as always. I got a camp pillow, which goes against all my camping instincts, but I'm not carrying it with me so its alright, and ultimately provided a much better sleep. The state park was pretty. The worst part of the ride was passing the turn then having to come back up a hill, and this happened again when we were closer. For dinner we went to the Webbers, who are the parents of the old director of Bike and Build who passed away in 2007, and who this ride is dedicated to. We had an awesome dinner and it was delicious.
Today we had a build day, and I moved a bunch of dirt and it was really good. It was good to do work with my hands. We then had a traditional thanskgiving dinner at the Webbers who are awesome. I will elaborate more the next time I write. We are staying in a school and the computers shot down at 10, so I have to run. I will post some pictures soon and write more when I can. Cheers! and I love you all. I am doing awesome and I will talk to you all soon!
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